Welcome to English as a Second Language podcast number 1294, Chaperoning a Field Trip.
This is English as a Second Language podcast episode 1294.
I'm your host, Dr Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in beautiful Los Angeles, California.
This episode is a dialogue between Whoopi and Antonia about...
Two people going with a group of students, two adults going with a group of younger students to make sure that they behave, that they don't do anything wrong on a field trip, a short trip, usually from school to somewhere that is educationally interesting for students.
Well, I'll explain more when we get started.
So let's get started.
I don't think I'm cut out for this.
How am I supposed to chaperone a class of students on a field trip?
I thought you were gun-ho about being a chaperone for Nadia and the rest of her class on their trip to the Children's Museum.
That's why you volunteered.
I was, but then I started reading this material the school sent me to prepare for the trip.
Like what?
I'm supposed to supervise the children all the time, escorting them to the restrooms and making sure they don't misbehave.
I don't know what to do if the kids get out of hand.
It's not an overnight trip, just a morning at the museum.
I know, but I'm responsible for their safety.
What if I have to give first aid?
The teacher will be there.
He'll know what to do in a real emergency.
But how am I supposed to keep track of so many kids?
Not all of the students are going on the trip just the ones with signed permission slips.
Even so, it's a big responsibility.
There are so many things that can go wrong.
Do you want me to go in your place?
Yes.
No, I already told Nadia I'll be going, and she's really excited.
I don't want to disappoint her.
You'll be absolutely fine.
I'm sure it won't be like last time.
Last time?
Never mind.
Forget I mentioned it.
Rupi begins by saying, I don't think I'm cut out for this.
The phrasal verb to be cut C-U-T out, O-U-T for F-O-R.
Something means to have the right experience or preparation to deal with something or handle something.
More generally, it can mean simply to be prepared for something, or perhaps to have the natural ability to do something.
Rupi says he's not cut out for this.
This is, we find out, chaperoning a class of students on a field trip.
To chaperone C-H-A-P-E-R-O-N-E means to supervise or be responsible for another person or group, especially a group of children or teenagers.
We call the person who chaperones a chaperone.
As a noun, it's the person.
As a verb, it's the act of supervising or taking care of usually a group of younger students.
These students are on a field, F-I-E-L-D, trip.
A field trip is usually when a group of students goes to a certain place in their city or town for several hours as part of their education.
It might be a trip to a museum.
It might be a trip to a park or a place where they learn about nature and science.
Field trips are popular in American schools, at least they're popular with students.
It's a time for students to leave the school and learn about their world.
Learn about something.
Perhaps they're studying in another place.
Antonia says I thought you were gung-ho about being a chaperone for Nadia and the rest of her class on their trip to the children's museum.
So this field trip is to a children's museum.
Antonia says that she thought Rupi was gung-ho about Gung G-U-N-G.
Hyphen ho H-O- is a somewhat unusual expression we use in American English to mean very enthusiastic or excited about doing something.
Someone who is gung-ho about his job or about a certain project, is very excited about doing it, very eager about it.
The expression apparently comes from a rather poor pronunciation of a Chinese expression that was used by some American soldiers during World War II.
I believe the original expression had to do with working together.
In any case, in American English, it means to be enthusiastic about doing something.
Antonia thought Rupi was enthusiastic about being a chaperone for his daughter's class's trip to a museum.
She says, that's why you volunteered.
To volunteer.
V-O-L-U-N-T-E-E-R is to offer to do something without being paid for it or without being required to do it.
A person who volunteers is called a volunteer.
So once again, it can be a verb or a noun.
Rupi says I was.
But then I started reading this material.
The school sent me to prepare for the trip.
Rupi says he was gung-ho, but now he is not, because he had to read all of this material and he discovered something.
He discovered that he has a lot of duties as a chaperone.
Duties D-U-T-I-E-S is the plural of duty D-U-T-Y, which means a task or a responsibility, something that you are expected or required to do, usually as part of your job.
Antonia asks Rupi for some examples of these duties.
That's what she means when she says, like what?
Meaning, give me some of these duties.
Rupi says, I'm supposed to supervise the children all the time.
To supervise S-U-P-E-R-V-I-S-E.
A group of people or a person means to monitor or to be responsible for someone's behavior, to be making sure that a person does what he is supposed to do.
In this case, to make sure the children are doing what they are supposed to do which, of course, is not easy, depending on how old the children are and whether they are good children or bad children.
My neighbor's children, for example, are bad children.
I would not want to supervise them.
But back to our story.
Rupi has to also escort the children to the restrooms.
To escort E-S-C-O-R-T means to go with another person to make sure he is safe or to make sure that he does what he is supposed to do.
Usually, however, to escort a person means to go with the person for his protection and safety.
There is a noun that comes from this verb, escort.
The accent is on the first syllable.
An escort is a person who escorts another person to protect that person.
However, The noun escort can also mean something different.
It can also refer typically to a woman who is paid to go with a man to do certain things.
To be their friend, but perhaps a little more than that, if you understand my meaning.
Well, here, we're not talking about escorts.
We're talking about escorting children to the restrooms or the bathrooms and making sure the children do not misbehave.
To misbehave, M-I-S-B-E-H-A-V-E, means not to do what you are supposed to do.
That prefix, mis-, M-I-S-, means not to.
To behave means to do or act the way you are supposed to, following the rules.
To misbehave means to do the opposite, not to follow the rules.
Rupi says The expression to get out of hand means for a situation to not be controllable or to be unmanageable.
If a situation gets out of hand, you are no longer able to control it or to prevent it from getting worse.
Rupi is worried about what he'll do if the kids get out of hand.
Antonia says, O-V-E-R-N-I-G-H-T means from one day to another.
In this case, it would involve staying with the children...
Antonia is saying that it is not an overnight trip.
In other words, it shouldn't be that difficult.
Rupi says, I know.
But I'm responsible for their safety.
Safety, S-A-F-E-T-Y, is the opposite of danger.
It's to be protected from bad things happening to you.
What if I have to give first aid, Rupi asks.
First aid.
A-I-D is medical help you give someone that isn't very serious but has to be done because of an accident or perhaps sudden illness.
First aid might include doing things to help a person until a real doctor or a paramedic arrive.
Antonia says, Rupi says, But how am I supposed to keep track of so many kids?
The expression to keep track T-R-A-C-K of something or someone means to pay attention to and know the location of something.
People, in this case.
The kids have to be kept track of.
We have to know where they are at all times.
Sometimes we use this expression to keep track of, to mean simply to keep records of or to know about, to monitor.
Antonia says...
Most schools, in order to take the children on a field trip outside of the school building, get the permission of the parents.
The parents have to sign a piece of paper, a slip, S-L-I-P, of paper, that gives the school permission, P-E-R-M-I-S-S-I-O-N.
Permission is the same as an okay, saying yes, it's okay for my child to go on this trip.
Ruppe says even so, even if we consider all of those facts, it's a big responsibility.
There are so many things that can go wrong.
Antonia then asks, do you want me to go in your place?
In other words, I will go instead of you?
Rupi says yes, but then he realizes he's made a mistake and immediately follows by saying no.
I don't want to disappoint her.
Antonia says, You'll be absolutely fine, meaning everything will be okay.
I'm sure it won't be like the last time.
Now, we don't know what Antonia is referring to, what she's talking about.
Presumably, we can guess, the last time there was a field trip.
Perhaps there was some problem.
Rupi says, last time?
He wants to know what the problem was that happened on the last field trip.
Probably one that Antonia was on.
Antonia says, however, never mind.
That phrase, which is quite common in American English, means I don't want to give you any more information.
I don't want you to keep asking me about this topic.
Or simply, I don't want to repeat what I just said because I don't want to talk about it anymore.
Antonia says never mind, forget.
I mentioned it, meaning forget the fact that I just said that there was, or at least I suggested that there was a problem last time.
Now let's listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.
I don't think I'm cut out for this.
How am I supposed to chaperone a class of students on a field trip?
I thought you were gung ho about being a chaperone for Nadia and the rest of her class on their trip to the Children's Museum.
That's why you volunteered.
I was, but then I started reading this material the school sent me to prepare for the trip.
I have so many duties.
Like what?
I'm supposed to supervise the children all the time, escorting them to the restrooms and making sure they don't misbehave.
I don't know what to do if the kids get out of hand.
It's not an overnight trip.
Just a morning at the museum.
I know, but I'm responsible for their safety.
What if I have to give first aid?
The teacher will be there.
He'll know what to do in a real emergency. but how am I supposed to keep track of so many kids?
Not all of the students are going on the trip, just the ones with signed permission slips.
Even so, it's a big responsibility.
There are so many things that can go wrong.
Do you want me to go in your place?
Yes.
No, I already told Nadia I'll be going, and she's really excited.
I don't want to disappoint her.
You'll be absolutely fine.
I'm sure it won't be like last time.
Last time?
Never mind.
Forget I mentioned it.
It's hard not to be gung-ho about improving your English after listening to the wonderful scripts by our wonderful scriptwriter, Dr Lucy Say.
From Los Angeles, California, I'm Jeff McQuillan.
Thanks for listening.
Come back and listen to us again right here on ESL Podcast.
English as a Second Language Podcast is written and produced by Dr Lucy Say, hosted by Dr Jeff McQuillan.
Copyright 2016 by the Center for Educational Development.
