Small Talk

Florrench M. Gabin, Lisa L. Serafica &

Teresa May A. Mundiz
MEAL
 How’s the Do I know you
weather like?
from somewhere?

That reminds me
of the time…
So, tell me
about yourself?

a light start before a

“heavy meal” of discussion
 A pleasant conversation about
common interests—Kenneth Beare

On business, it’s a picture frame

around business conversation.—
Debra Fine
 Small talk is like
appetizer. It can
create wonder by
turning a challenging
situation into a
favorable one.
is a casual form of conversation that “breaks the ice” and
fills the awkward silence around people.

SMALL TALK
What do you say when…

1. somebody is in your way (e.g.

elevator)?
2. somebody sneezes?

3. you accidentally bumped into

somebody?
4. somebody is in danger?

5. the noise from

someone’s conversation
is disturbing you?

6. there is only an empty

seat at a table where there
are already people?

Anything more?
 “Everyone is human and its our
nature to talk”.
Even you don’t realise it, you use small talk everyday
to interact with people.
 Scott McArthur,
executive
consultant at
Atos Consulting,
says that first
impressions are
made within 0.4
of a second, with
people making
snap judgments
on the way you
dress, use body
language and
shake hands.
Why is it important?
 At work, people tend to overlook the importance
of small talk as they're too busy trying to look
efficient and impress the boss. If you're seen to
be making small talk, you may think your peers
are judging you for wasting time and not focusing
on your workload.
Overcoming Shyness
Small talk helps to achieve this by
encouraging people to talk in an informal
way and, through this, resolve an issue,
negotiate effectively or find solutions.
 Striking up a conversation and engaging with your peers
opens up dialogue. Small talk could lead into talking about
the similar challenges you face, sharing ideas, or even giving
or receiving advice to help solve a problem.
Hooks and cues
Use small talk as a tool to move into more
serious topics.
Raise your profile
By engaging in small talk, not only will you help to raise your
profile, but you may also gain recognition from the directors if they
overhear something of interest and are drawn into the conversation.
Do the five (5) things:
1. Don't talk about yourself, focus on others;
2. Encourage colleagues to engage in small talk;
3. Use small talk to open up lines of communication at
conferences or other working environments ;
4. Stick to small talk - don't use it to gossip; and
5. Use hooks and cues to drill down to key issues
In the 1980s, many companies used to allow
employees to take coffee breaks, giving staff
a chance to socialise.
 Small Talk: a waiter/waitress can engage in with their customer to make
them feel more welcome
I am a timid person around new people and I am currently doing work experience at
a restaurant. I am usually very polite and smiling at the customers but don't say
much apart from hello, thank you and you're welcome. What are some good topics
for small talk I can engage the customers in to make them feel more welcome?
Small Talk vs Gossip
IMPLICATIONS OF
SMALL TALK
DEVELOPING CLASSROOM
SPEAKING ACTIVITIES
From Theory to Practice
 In speaking and listening we
tend to be getting something
done, exploring ideas, working
out some aspect of the world , or
simply being together. In writing
we may be creating a record,
committing events or moments
to paper.
 Features of Spoken Discourse
(Louma, 2004)
• Composed of idea units (conjoined short phrases
and clauses)
• May be planned or unplanned
• Employs more vague or generic words than
written language
• Employs fixed phrases, fillers and hesitation
markers
• Contains slips and errors reflecting on-line
processing
• Involved reciprocity
• Shows variation, reflecting speaker roles,
speaking purpose , and the context
 Functions of Speaking (Brown
and Yule’s Framework)

Talk as interaction
Talk as transaction
Talk as performance
 Talk as Interaction
Main features of talk as interaction

 Has a primarily social function

 Reflects speaker’s identity
 May be formal or casual
 Uses conversational conventions
 Reflects many generic words
 Uses conversational registrar
 Is jointly constructed
Skills involved in using talk as
interaction:

Opening and closing conversations

Choosing topics
Making small-talk
Recounting personal incidents and
experiences
Turn-taking
Using adjacency-pairs
Interrupting
Reacting to others
 Talk as Transaction
Examples of these kinds of talk are:
Main Features of talk as Transaction

It has a primarily information focus

The main focus is the message and not the
participants
Participants employ communication strategies
to make themselves understood
There may be frequent questions, repetitions,
and comprehension checks
There may be negotiation and digression
Linguistic accuracy is not always important
Skills involved in using talk for
transactions

 Explaining a need or intention

 Describing something
 Asking questioning
 Confirming information
 Justifying an opinion
 Making suggestions
 Clarifying understanding
 Making comparisons
 Agreeing and disagreeing
 Talk as Performance
Examples of Talk as Performance
Main features of Talk as Performance:

There is a focus on both message and

audience
It reflects organization and sequencing
Form and accuracy is important
Language is more like written language
It is monologic
Skills in using Talk as Performance:

Using an appropriate format

Presenting information in an appropriate
sequence
Maintaining audience engagement
Using correct pronunciation and grammar
Creating an effect on the audience
Using appropriate vocabulary
Using appropriate opening and closing
 Implications for
Teaching
Three issues need to be addressed in
planning speaking activities for an
oral English course:

• To determine what kinds of speaking

skills the course will focus on
• To identify teaching strategies to
teach each kind of talk
Talk as Interaction
Talk as Transaction
Talk as Performance
Initially talk as performance needs to
be prepared for and scaffolded in
much the same way as written text,
and many of the teaching strategies
used to make understandings of
written text accessible can be
applied to the formal uses of spoken
language
 The third issue involved in
planning speaking activities is
determining the expected level of
performance on a speaking task
and the criteria that will be used to
assess student performance.
 Mastering the Art of
Small Talk
You will learn to:

• Create rapport through small talk

• Spontaneously start conversations
• Maintain stimulating conversations
• Change topics gracefully
• End conversations tactfully
• Converse with confidence
 Questions such as the
following guide as follows:
• What is the speaker’s purpose?
• Who is the audience?
• What kind of information does the
audience expect?
• How does the talk begin, develop
and end?What moves or stages are
involved
• Is any special language used?
 Conclusion
• What will the focus of the activity be: talk as
interaction, transaction or performance?
• How will the activity be modeled?
• What stages will the activity be divided into?
• What language support will be needed?
• What resource will be needed?
• What learning arrangements will be needed?
• What level of performance is expected?
• How and when will be feedback be given?
Thank You for Listening!