DT 03 EF Elem TB Prelims FP3 11/18/07 12:42 AM Page 8

I NTR O D U C TI O N

We have met and spoken to many different teachers in many ● to use new vocabulary in personalized contexts.
different countries over the years, and we are very aware that ● accessible reference material.
no teaching situations are ever the same. For this reason we Every lesson in American English File 1 focuses on high-
have tried to make American English File 1 as flexible as frequency vocabulary and common lexical areas, but keeps
possible. Apart from the main Student Book lessons, there is the amount realistic. Many lessons are linked to the
a wealth of other material that can be used according to your Vocabulary Banks, which help present and practice the
students’ needs and the time available, for example: vocabulary in class and provide a clear reference for students
● the Writing and Review & Check pages. to review and test themselves in their own time.
● over 70 pages of photocopiables in the Teacher’s Book. Where we think the pronunciation of a word may be
● extra self-study support for students both on the problematic, we have provided the phonetic script.
MultiROM and the American English File Website. Student Book page 140.
The Teacher’s Book also suggests different ways of Students can practice the pronunciation of all the words
developing many of the Student Book activities depending from the Vocabulary Banks using the MultiROM and the
on the level of your class. American English File Student Website.
We believe that this flexibility makes the course suitable both
for high-beginner students from school age to adult. Pronunciation
We hope you enjoy using American English File. High-beginner students need
● a solid foundation in the sounds of English.

What do high-beginner students need? ● systematic pronunciation development.

● to see where there are rules and patterns.
It is no coincidence that when we talk about language
High-beginner learners want to speak clearly but are often
knowledge and ability, we use the verb speak: Do you speak
frustrated by English pronunciation, particularly the
English? How many languages do you speak? What most
sound–spelling relationships, silent letters, and weak forms.
students want above all is to be able to speak English and
In the first two Files we introduce the vowel and consonant
this is why our aim is to get students talking.
sounds of American English through American English File’s
unique system of sound pictures, which give clear example
Grammar, Vocabulary, and Pronunciation words to help students identify and produce the sounds.
If we want students to speak English with confidence, we American English File 1 has a pronunciation focus in every
need to give them the tools they need – Grammar, lesson, which integrates clear pronunciation into grammar
Vocabulary, and Pronunciation (G, V, P). We believe that and vocabulary practice.
“G + V + P = confident speaking,” and in American English Student Book page 9.
File 1 all three elements are given equal importance. This is often linked to the Sound Bank, a reference section
Each lesson has clearly stated grammar, vocabulary, and that students can use to check the symbols and to see
pronunciation aims. This keeps lessons focused and gives common sound–spelling patterns.
students concrete learning objectives and a sense of progress. Student Book page 156.
Throughout the book there is also a regular focus on word
Grammar and sentence stress, where students are encouraged to copy
High-beginner students need the rhythm of English. This will help students to pronounce
● clear and memorable presentations of new structures.
new language with greater confidence.
● plenty of regular and varied practice.
● student-friendly reference material.
Speaking
We have tried to provide contexts for new language that will High-beginner students need
engage students, using real-life stories and situations, ● topics that will arouse their interest.

humor, and suspense. ● achievable tasks.

The Grammar Banks, at the back of the Student Book, give ● regular opportunities to use new language.

students a single, easy-to-access grammar reference section The ultimate aim of most students is to be able to
with clear rules, example sentences, and common errors, communicate in English. Every lesson in American English
plus two practice exercises for each grammar point. File 1 has a speaking activity that activates grammar,
Student Book page 122. vocabulary, and pronunciation.
The photocopiable Grammar activities in the Teacher’s Book Student Book page 81.
can be used for practice in class or for self-study, especially The Communication section of the Student Book provides
with slower or weaker classes. “information gap” activities to give students a reason to
Teacher’s Book page 140. communicate.
Student Book page 108 and page 111.
Vocabulary Photocopiable Communicative activities can be found in the
High-beginner students need Teacher’s Book. These include pair and group activities,
● to expand their knowledge of high-frequency words and
mingling activities, and games.
phrases rapidly. Teacher’s Book page 185.

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Listening such as checking into a hotel or ordering a meal in a

High-beginner students need restaurant. To make these everyday situations come alive
there is a story line involving two main characters, Mark
● confidence.
(American) and Allie (British).
● to understand the gist of what is being said.
The You hear / You say feature makes a clear distinction
● to make sense of connected speech.
between what students will hear and need to understand (for
Many students say that they find understanding spoken example, Are you ready to order?) and what they need to say
English one of the hardest skills to master. This can be (for example, I’d like the pasta, please.) The lessons also
especially demotivating at lower levels, where students often highlight other key “Social English” phrases such as Let’s go,
find the speed of the listening material too fast and the tasks OK, and It doesn’t matter.
too difficult. We feel that students need confidence-building, The Practical English lessons are also on the American
achievable tasks that help them understand the gist even English File 1 Video, which teachers can use with the same
though they will not understand every word. Student Book exercises instead of the Class Audio CD. Using
Students also need a reason to listen. As with the reading the video will provide a change of focus and give the lessons
texts, we have chosen recordings that we hope students will a clear visual context. The video will make the lessons more
want to listen to. enjoyable and will also help students to role-play the
Student Book page 88. situations.
Receptive work on pronunciation also helps students get Extracts from the video (the first dialogue from each
used to speakers of English and gives them practice in Practical English lesson) are also on the MultiROM.
“decoding” rapid speech. Student Book page 12.
American English File 1 also contains eight songs that we
hope students will find enjoyable and motivating. For Review
copyright reasons, these are cover versions. High-beginner students need
● regular review.
Reading
● motivating reference and practice material.
High-beginner students need ● a sense of progress.
● engaging topics and stimulating texts.
However clearly structures or vocabulary are presented,
● manageable tasks that help students to read.
students will usually only assimilate and remember new
Many students need to read in English for their work or language if they have the chance to see it and use it several
studies, and reading is also important in helping to build times. Grammar, Vocabulary, and Pronunciation are
vocabulary and to consolidate grammar. The key to repeated throughout American English File 1.
encouraging students to read is to give them motivating but At the end of each File there is a Review & Check section.
accessible material and tasks they can do. In American What do you remember? reviews the grammar, vocabulary,
English File 1, reading texts have been adapted from a variety and pronunciation of each File. What can you do? provides
of real sources (newspapers, magazines, websites) and have a series of skills-based challenges and helps students measure
been chosen for their intrinsic interest. their progress in terms of competence. These pages are
Student Book page 34. designed to be used flexibly according to the needs of your
The Review & Check sections also includes a more challenging students.
text that helps students to measure their progress. Student Book page 14.
Student Book page 87. The photocopiable Grammar and Communicative activities
also provide many opportunities for recycling.
Writing Teacher’s Book pages 140 and 185.
High-beginner students need
● clear models. Study Link
● the “nuts and bolts” of writing on a word- and sentence-
level. The Study Link feature in American English File 1 is designed
to help you and your students use the course more
The growth of the Internet and e-mail means that people effectively. It shows what resources are available, where they
worldwide are writing in English more than ever before both can be found, and when to use them.
for business and personal communication. American English The Student Book has these Study Link references:
File 1 has one Writing lesson per File, where students study a
● from the Practical English lessons MultiROM.
model before doing a guided writing task themselves. These
● from the Grammar Bank MultiROM and Website.
writing tasks focus on a specific text type and provide
● from the Vocabulary Bank MultiROM and Website.
consolidation of grammar and lexis taught in the File.
● from the Sound Bank MultiROM and Website.
Student Book page 61.
These references lead students to extra activities and
Practical English exercises that link in with what they have just studied.
High-beginner students need The Workbook has these Study Link references:
● to understand high-frequency phrases that they will hear. the Student Book Grammar and Vocabulary Banks.
● to know what to say in typical situations. the MultiROM.
the Student Website.
Many high-beginner students will need English “to survive”
if they travel to an English-speaking country or if they are The Teacher’s Book has Study Link references to remind you
using English as a lingua franca. The eight Practical English where there is extra material available to your students.
lessons give students practice in key language for situations

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Student Book Files 1–9

The Student Book has nine Files. Each File is organized like this:

A, B, C, and D lessons Four two-page lessons that form the core material of the
book. Each lesson presents and practices Grammar and Vocabulary and has a
Pronunciation focus. There is a balance of reading and listening activities, and
lots of opportunities for spoken practice. These lessons have clear references to
the Grammar Bank, Vocabulary Bank, and Sound Bank at the back of the book.

Practical English One-page lessons that teach functional “survival” language and
vocabulary (situations like checking into a hotel or ordering a meal) and also
social English (useful phrases like Nice to meet you, Let’s go.). The lessons have a
story line and link with the American English File 1 Video.

Writing One-page lessons that focus on different text types (for example,
informal and formal e-mails) and writing skills like punctuation and
paragraphing.

Review & Check A two-page section – the left- and right-hand pages have
different functions. The What do you remember? page reviews the Grammar,
Vocabulary, and Pronunciation of each File. The What can you do? page
provides Reading, Listening, and Speaking “Can you…?” challenges to show
students what they can achieve.
! File 9 has two main lessons (A and B, which present the present perfect), and
then four pages of review of the whole book: a two-page Grammar section and
a two-page Vocabulary and Pronunciation section.

The back of the Student Book

In the back of the Student Book you’ll find these three Banks of material:
Grammar Bank (pages 122–139)
Two pages for each File, divided into
A–D to reflect the four main lessons.
The left-hand page has the grammar
rules and the right-hand page has two
practice exercises for each lesson.
Students are referred to the Grammar
Bank when they do the grammar in
each main A, B, C, and D lesson.

Vocabulary Bank (pages 140–153)

An active picture dictionary to help
students learn, practice, and review key
words. Students are referred to the
Vocabulary Bank from the main
lessons.
You’ll also find:
● Communication activities
(pages 108–113)
Sound Bank (pages 156–159) A four- Information gap activities and
page section with the American English role plays.
File sounds chart and typical spellings ● Audioscripts
for all sounds. Students are referred to (pages 114–121)
the Sound Bank from the main lessons. Scripts of key listenings.
● Irregular verbs list
(pages 154–155)
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For students For teachers

American English File 1 gives your American English File 1 gives you everything you need to teach motivating,
students everything they need for enjoyable lessons, to save you time, and to make your life easier.
successful learning and motivating home
study. Teacher’s Book The Teacher’s Book has detailed lesson plans for all of the
lessons. These include:
Workbook Each A–D lesson in the ● an optional “books-closed” lead-in for every lesson.
Student Book has a two-page section in ● Extra idea suggestions for optional extra activities.
the Workbook. This provides all the ● Extra challenge suggestions for ways of developing the Student Book material
practice and review students need. Each in a more challenging way if you have a stronger class.
section has: ● Extra support suggestions for ways of adapting activities to make them more
● More Words to Learn, which reminds accessible for weaker classes or true beginners.
students of new vocabulary from the All lesson plans include answer keys and complete audioscripts. Extra activities
lesson that is not in the Vocabulary are color-coded in red so you can see where you are at a glance when you’re
Bank. planning and teaching your classes.
● Question Time, five questions for
You’ll also find over 70 pages of photocopiable materials in the Teacher’s Book:
students to answer, which show them
Photocopiable Grammar activities see pages 140–174
how their communicative competence
There is a photocopiable Grammar activity for each A, B, C, and D lesson. These
is developing. (These questions also
provide extra grammar practice, and can be used either in class or for self-study.
appear on the audio CD portion of
the MultiROM.) Photocopiable Communicative activities see pages 185–219
There is a photocopiable Communicative activity for each A, B, C, and D lesson.
For each File there is a Study Skills tip
These give students extra speaking practice.
on how to learn Vocabulary.
Photocopiable Song activities see pages 222–228
Each Practical English lesson has a one-
American English File 1 has a song for every File. In File 4 the song is in the
page section in the Workbook, and
Student Book, and the other seven songs are in the Teacher’s Book.
includes “Practical English reading.”
The Teacher’s Book also includes the Answer Key for the Workbook (see pages
MultiROM 229–240).
The MultiROM works in two ways:
Video This is a unique “teaching
● It’s a CD-ROM, containing review of
video” that links with the Practical
Grammar, Vocabulary, English lessons in the Student Book.
Pronunciation, and functional The video has stylized minimalist sets
language (with Practical English video that help students to concentrate on
extracts from the Video). the language, and there is a story line
● It’s an audio CD for students to use
that features Mark (American) and
on a CD player or computer. They can Allie (British). Each video section can
listen to, repeat, and answer the be used with the tasks in the Student
questions from the Question Time Book Practical English lessons as an
sections of the Workbook. alternative to using the Class Audio CD.
Student Website There’s no extra video print material, and you don’t need to find extra time to
use it. It shows students language in clear contexts and will help them role-play
www.oup.com/elt/americanenglishfile/1 each scene.
The American English File Website gives The speed of delivery is slightly faster than on the Class Audio CD, as video is
students extra learning resources, easier for students to understand. Extracts of the video also appear on the
including more grammar activities for MultiROM.
every lesson, more vocabulary activities
for every Vocabulary Bank, Practical Class Audio CDs These three CDs contain all the listening materials for
English audio activities, and games and the Student Book.
puzzles. Test Generator This CD-ROM includes over a thousand questions organized
both in ready-to-print tests (in PDF format) and in question banks, where they
can be selected and edited into tests customized to your students’ needs. The
CD-ROM also includes the audio for the listening sections of the tests.
Teacher Website
www.oup.com/elt/teacher/americanenglishfile
This gives you extra teaching resources, syllabus information, etc.

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