INTERMEDIATE AND ADVANCED ESL SOCIAL ACTIVITIES IN BOSTON
HAVE FUN LEARNING ENGLISH!
SOCIALIZE!
As an intermediate of advanced ESL learner, you have many kinds of great opportunities to socialize in Boston! If you like meeting people, going out, and sightseeing, you can have a great time exploring Boston while learning English!
Remember that whatever you are doing, you can turn in into a learning opportunity! Be an active observer. Ask questions! See, listen, feel, taste, hear! Have fun! You can even ask your teacher if you might write about what you've seen in place of one of your homework assignments! Please remember that if you feel shy about asking questions or speaking English, you're not alone! It's very common to feel that way! Go ahead! Try it out! You can do it!
TOURS IN BOSTON
FREE TOURS
The Massachusetts State House
Park Street Train Station
The great thing about this building is that it's an opportunity to experience Boston's architecture,
history, and politics all at once. Built during the 1700's after the Revolution, the State House is the heart of Massachusetts government even today.
If you're an intermediate or advanced speaker, the best place for you to learn about the State House
is on the State House website itself! Remember to use the back key at the top of the screen when you are finished, so that you can return to this page for more information about exploring.
THE JOHN HANCOCK TOWERS
Copley Square
Take the Green Line. Get off at Copley Square.
Price:
The tallest building in Boston offers a spectacular view of the city! Make sure to visit on a clear day or evening! On a clear day, you can see for miles! On a clear night, the city sparkles like a jewel!
Click here for more info about the John Hancock tower.
TRINITY CHURCH
Copley Square
Take the Green Line. Get off at Copley Square.
Free
Trinity Church has beautiful, stained glass windows and high ceilings. It is a beautiful place to visit if
you are in Copley Square!
Click here for Trinity Church Advanced Descruption
http://www.travelape.com/boston/attractions/trinity-church/360.html
THE BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY
Copley Square
Take the Green Line. Get off at Copley Square.
Free
Enter the library. It is big. You can walk around. There is an ESL section. Read ESL books.
Look at magazines. Sometimes find books in your native language. There is a courtyard. It is pretty. On one floor, you can see paintings by Sargent, a famous painter. Enjoy! Will you stay in Boston for a long time? Get a library card!
Harvard is big! Harvard is in parts of Boston and Cambridge. Visit the Harvard Business School.
It is pretty. Visit the JFK School of Government. It is famous. Many presidents from many countries studied there.
Click on Harvard.
HARVARD SQUARE
Go shopping in Harvard Square! If you visit Harvard Square when the weather is beautiful, you will see and hear the street musicians. Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, those legendary folk musicians played on these streets before they were famous. Tracy Chapman played on these streets.
Have flavored coffee in a cafe or eat in a great restaurant or window shop! Harvard Square is an interesting place!
HOUSE TOURS
Sometimes there are tours of beautiful, old houses. Buy the Boston Globe Calendar. Look up Museums, Houses, if you want to visit a House tour.
QUINCY MARKET, BOSTON
Take the Green Line.
Get off at Government Center.
Quincy Market is a popular tourist attraction. There are many kinds of food at Quincy Market. Eat a cheap meal at a stand. Eat an expensive meal in a nice restaurant. Quincy Market has it all!
People buy souveneirs, clothes, and food at Quincy Market.
THE AQUARIUM
Take the Green Line.
Get off at Government Center.
Walk from Quincy Market.
The Aquarium is an interesting museum of sea life. There are many kinds of fish. There is a shark.
Sometimes there are dolphins. The Aquarium is beautiful. Sometimes it is crowded! Have a good time! Learn a lot!
WHALE WATCH
During the spring, summer, and fall, there are whale watches off the Boston Harbor. Buy a ticket from a Whale Watch Company. Usually the trip is a little long. Bring a good book or a good friend or both! Have a good time! Watch these beautiful creatures of the sea!
THE OLD UNION OYSTER HOUSE
This restaurant is an old restaurant. It is near Quincy Market. It is the oldest restaurant in the United
States. It is older than the United States! Its history is interesting! A man was exiled from France.
He lived upstairs in the building before he became the new King of France. In American history, the
people wanted to rebel against England. Someone published a rebellious revolutionary newspaper here.
If you don't like history, it's okay. The Old Union Oyster House is charming. It is beautiful, with its old booths, its old style lamps, and big lobster tank. Have a good time!
THE HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL
This memorial, which is across from the Old Union Oyster House, reminds us of the people who died during the holocaust. It is a place to pause and reflect, if you want.
THE NORTH END
Everyone loves Itallian food! Walk through the narrow streets of Boston's North End. Eat in a great restaurant. Enjoy Boston's Itallian American neighborhood! If you are not very hungry, go into a cafe and have a delicious cappuccino! During the summer, there are sometimes festivals in the North End! Have fun!
CHINATOWN
Enjoy Boston's Asian American neighborhood! Chinatown offers great restaurants! If you want to find an Asian supermarket, you'll find it in Chinatown. If you don't want to spend a lot of money, go into a Chinese bakery and get a pastry! You can enjoy the tastes and sights of Chinatown!
MIT
From Mass. Ave. in Harvard Square or Boston, take Bus 1.
or
Take the Red Line. Get off at Kendall Station.
MIT is interesting. It is very big and many of its buildings have numbers, instead of names.
Remember -- MIT is famous for its contributions to the world in the area of high technology. It is not famous for its beauty! You should walk around. Visit Rogers Hall. It has a very, very long corridor. Look at the Student Union and Kresge Hal, to the left of the Student Union. Kresge Hall
has an unusual shape for a building.
MIT has a nice view of Boston from the river. If you visit MIT on a nice day, take a photo of Boston from the river!
RESTAURANTS
There are many great restaurants in the Boston area. There are Chinese restaurants, Mexican restaurants, Itallian, Pizza, Korean, Indian, Vegetarian, and others. There are restaurants in big cities and small cities.
CLICK HERE FOR AUTHENTIC INFORMATION AND PRACTICE ACTIVITIES RELATED TO REAL TOUR AGENCIES AND SIGHTSEEING LOCATIONS.
SPECIAL RECOMMENDATIONS
Fire and Ice, etc.
NIGHTCLUBS
Nightclubs are fun! Go to a nightclub! Bring and ID! Have a good time! Listen to music! Dance!
Nightclubs are a good way to relax!
CLICK HERE FOR AUTHENTIC INFORMATION AND PRACTICE ACTIVITIES RELATED TO REAL BOSTON AREA NIGHTCLUBS.
NATURE - BEACHES
REVERE BEACH
Take the Blue Line to Revere. Walk across the street.
Revere Beach is easy to get to by train. It is down the street from the Revere train station. It takes
three minutes to get to the beach from the station.
If you visit Revere Beach on a hot Saturday or Sunday, it will probably be very crowded. You will see many people. They will play their radios. They will have picnics. They will swim in the water!
If you visit the beach on a cold day, you will not see many people. You can take a quiet walk and look at the Atlantic Ocean.
On a hot day or a cold day, the ocean water at Revere Beach is usually cold! But people like to swim at Revere Beach.
ROCKPORT
Take the Green Line to North Station
At North Station Terminal, take the Purple Commuter Rail train to Rockport. You need to walk for
ten or fifteen minutes to go from the station to the beach.
Rockport is a beautiful town. It is small. You can get to Rockport by train. You can go to Rockport by car.
Rockport has a pretty, small beach. It has charming shops. There are good seafood restaurants in Rockport. It is a typcial, old, historic New England town! Have fun!
CLICK HERE FOR AUTHENTIC INFORMATION AND FUN PRACTICE ACTIVITIES RELATED TO MASSACHUSETTS BEACHES.
TROLLEY TOURS
You can get trolley tours near Park Street Station in Boston or from Harvard Square in Cambridge.
Click here for trolley tours.
Trolley tours are fun because you can see many parts of Boston. They are difficult because the guide speaks fast. Go on a trolley tour. Have a good time! But don't worry about the English. See, hear,taste, feel. Have a good time exploring Boston with other people! You will learn! Relax and have fun!
TOURS IN YOUR CITY
You can practice your English by taking tours in your city. For some tour ideas in your city, just click on the link below.
Beginning and Intermediate Speakers
If you are a beginning or intermediate speaker, make sure to tell the guide before the tour begins.
This way, the guide might slow down a little during explanations. If it is possible to get a special
guide, native speaker friend, or teacher to bring you through the city, then you should do this.
Remember that if your real objective is to learn English, then you should speak English during the tour. Use the opportunity to have fun in the exciting city! Let your mind experience the language and the culture. What do you see? Hear? Taste? Smell? Feel? Talk about it!
Advanced Speakers
When you take the tour, see if you can get a good guide who will explain what you are seeing. If you are an advanced speaker, enjoy learning and listening. Ask questions. What are the places around you? What's the history? Why is it important? Enjoy using the language in a social way.
(on the url's...lectures, etc. university stuff...)
GOING INTO THE COMMUNITY: HOMEWORK PRACTICE!
Intermediate Levels
Are you studying new vocabulary in your class or at home? How about new sentence structures? By practicing these structures, you can improve your English. Go into shops and use what you are learning. If you are practicing the conditional, ask, "If I wanted to return this, could I get my money back?" "If I didn't make a reservation, is there a strong chance that I would still be able to get a table at dinner time tomorrow night?"
Ask the question and when you hear the answer, listen closely. Which structures and vocabulary did you hear? It is natural to feel timid,especially when you are trying new structures. Many people feel this way. By pushing yourself to learn and to take risks, you will learn! If it helps you, you might talk with a friend who is also learning
English. Perhaps you can challenge eachother to use your English.
Advanced Levels
(See if I can get free tickets to do theater reviews)
(See if the Boston Globe will visit...)
VOLUNTEER JOBS
(Maybe have some of this section on the volunteer page separately? How much? Where?
INTERMEDIATE TO ADVANCED LEVELS
If you are planning to be in the U.S. for six months or more, then you might want to get a volunteer job. Remember that volunteer jobs can be exciting and educational or pretty boring. It's important that you ask good questions so that you are making a commitment to a job that is right for you. Even though you are working as a volunteer, you should expect a meaningful learning experience from the job, as well as an opportunity to contribute.
Things to Consider
Short-term Help
Organizations will probably want to give you responsibilities that do not require a lot of training.
Why? Volunteers usually do not stay for more than six months to a year. They don't want to invest a lot of time training you, since this wouldn't be wise for the company.
Therefore, you are going to need to be very careful about the kind of job that you take. Of course, many organizations are grateful for the offer of volunteer help and want to give you a meaningful experience. Help them to do this by asking good questions and being very clear.
Kinds of Volunteer Positions
There is almost any kind of volunteer job under the sun. Who wouldn't want a diligent person to
come and work for free? That's quite a deal! Do you love music? You might want to volunteer at a
concert hall for folk music, rock, classical, and more! Do you love museums? You might want to work at a museum! Do you enjoy helping children? How about a children's hospital? Are you interested in the Environment and City Planning? Why Not Go to an Environmental Organization?
For information about kinds of volunteer jobs that may be available, go to the white section of the page below and click on the URL.
(On the URL
Hospitals
Music Houses, Coffee Houses
Homeless Shelters
The Red Cross
Etc.
Cambridge Center for Adult Ed
Then next URL to city specific volunteer organizations.
Be Specific about the Department
Questions to Ask
What would my exact responsibilities be? (Remember: Would is "hypothetical." It means that you haven't accepted the position yet.
Be careful! Do you really want to spend 5 hours at a copy machine?
What kind of people contact will I have?
Will I be using the phones? How often?
What will a typical day look like? (This means, what will I be doing at 9:00, 10:00,11:00, etc.)
How will this position help the organization?
How much of a commitment do you need? (This means, for how many months will I need to work here as a volunteer? You really should be honest with them about this.)
Etc.
THE INTERVIEW
How to get ready
Link to websites...
Payment
Please remember that if you don't have a green card, you can't get paid for your volunteer work. Sometimes learners make the mistake of looking for "volunteer work", only to be disappointed when they reach the end of the search and are told that they can't be paid. Remember that volunteer means
work for free. Go into a volunteer job with the understanding that it is unpaid work. If it's really a source of income that you are looking for, you shouldn't waste your time looking for vo
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