General Listening Quiz

What kind of flooring is most common in homes and apartments in your country (e.g., tile, hardwood, carpet, cement, laminate, etc.)? How often do you use carpet cleaning services in your own home? 

1. 1. A clean home makes people feel happier and more relaxed.
   2. Carpet cleaning is more important than cleaning other parts of the house.
   3. Hiring professional cleaners is better than doing the work yourself.
   4. Some people spend too much money on cleaning products.
   5. A messy home shows that people are too busy, not lazy.
   6. Children should help with house cleaning every week.
   7. Vacuuming carpets is enough to keep them clean and healthy.
   8. A dirty home can cause health problems.
   9. People clean more carefully when guests are coming over.
   10. House cleaning is more stressful than relaxing.

Listen to the recording and answer the questions. (See transcript)

Here are some words and expressions that appear in the recording:

• take a beating (phrase): suffer damage or hurt
  – The apartment took a real beating with six crazy college students living there and playing soccer inside.
• track (verb): bring inside something like dirt on your shoes
  – The students tracked mud all over the hallways because it was raining outside.
• bunch (noun): a large amount
  – Tim gave his girlfriend a bunch of roses for her birthday.
• crumbs (noun): very small pieces of food
  – Ants seem to be able to locate the smallest crumbs of food.
• connecting (adjective): joining or linking
  – Our whole family stayed in a really nice hotel, and we could visit each other easily by passing through the connecting door to each room.
• throw in (verb): add, provide, include
  – If you buy the sofa, we’ll throw in this coffee table

• Gap-fill Exercise

What particular customs are there in your country for visiting the home of a friend or someone new? For example, in some countries, people take off their shoes and put on slippers when they enter.

Use the internet to find carpet cleaning companies. Then, answer these questions:

1. What are the names of the companies?
2. What special services do they provide besides cleaning carpets?
3. How much do their services cost?
4. What guarantee do they provide for any of their services?