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1. The Pragmatics Action Maze

   In: Teaching Pragmatics Format(s): Text, Video, Website

   This lesson aims helps students navigate requests by identifying pragmatically appropriate language.

2. Softening Short Requests

   In: Teaching Pragmatics Format(s): Text, Video, Website

   This lesson aims to introduce students to a range of different ways in which native speakers soften their requests and to develop their awareness of how these are used by different speakers and in different situations within the speech community.

3. The Rules of the Queue

   In: Teaching Pragmatics Format(s): Text, Video, Website

   This lesson in Teaching Pragmatics aims to help students learn to make requests, extend invitations, and offer congratulations (or other speech acts) and to learn how to open and close telephone conversations when leaving a message.

4. Complaining Successfully: Negotiating Redress in Service Encounters

   In: Teaching Pragmatics Format(s): Text, Video, Website

   This lesson in Teaching Pragmatics aims to help students learn how to make complaints during service encounters.

5. Giving and Responding to Compliments

   In: Teaching Pragmatics Format(s): Text, Video, Website

   This lesson in Teaching Pragmatics aims to raise learners' awareness of pragmatic rules and to increase input to learners and opportunities to observe native English speakers' pragmatic behavior.

6. Celebrate! Holidays in the U.S.A.

   Format(s): Text

   This book discusses the ten federally-recognized holidays in the United States, as well as many celebratory days. Download as an e-book or as individual PDF chapters.

7. Developing Pragmatic Competence in the EFL Classroom

   In: English Teaching Forum 2004, Volume 42, Issue 3 Format(s): Text

   Pragmatic competence is an important part of communicative competence, yet it is often insufficiently addressed. This article outlines a program of four lessons on the speech acts of openings and closings. Lessons examine dialogues for cultural differences regarding forms of address, abruptness, expected responses, and so on. Students also consider pre-closing phrases, ways to express politeness, and formality. Finally, students expand an artificial dialogue to make it more realistic. Activities include translation, pair work, creative writing, class discussion, and role play.

8. Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

   In: Celebrate! Holidays in the U.S.A. Format(s): Text

   Asian Pacific American Heritage Month originated with a congressional bill.

9. President's Day

   In: Celebrate! Holidays in the U.S.A. Format(s): Text

   This federal holiday is formally called "Washington's Birthday" and is celebrated on the third Monday in February.

10. Independence Day

    In: Celebrate! Holidays in the U.S.A. Format(s): Text

    Americans celebrate Independence Day on July 4 because on July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence, officially breaking bonds with England and forming a new independent nation, the United States of America.

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