Weather - Summer and Autumn

In this section, we will learn about the four different seasons along with the difference between
Celsius and Fahrenheit. Also, we will learn about weather in different parts of the world. In the
next session, we will practice more dialog. But this is a good starting point when learning to hold
a conversation about the weather.

Summer:

Depending on the location, summer can be warm and pleasant or unbearably hot and humid.
Although you will describe summer in one particular way, you should be aware of how other
people describe summer in different parts of the world.

In Nevada, Arizona, Egypt, or other places that are like deserts, people might say,
" Summer is very hot and dry. It's not so bad when we are in the shade."
" Summer is extremely hot. The sun will burn you if you don't wear sunscreen."
" Because it's not humid, it is easy to get used to."

In Seattle, the summer is the best season,

" Summer is the only time of year that it doesn't rain much."
" Summer is like paradise in Seattle."
" If summer wasn't so good here, I would move to a different city."

In New York, Korea, or other hot and humid places, people can say,
" Summer is both hot and humid here."
" I am always sticky because I sweat so much during the summer."
" Without air conditioning, I don't know how I would survive."

Spring and Fall / Autumn

From my perception, I noticed that spring and autumn are generally pleasant seasons for many
areas of the world. I haven't heard enough to say one way or another, so I can only write down
what I know.

" My favorite season is autumn."

" The only reason I don't like the fall is due to all the leaves I have to rake up."
" Fall is so beautiful because of all the different color leaves everywhere."
" It rains a lot around here during the fall."
" It gets cold in late autumn."
" In our country, autumn is just like summer. It's hot and humid."
" My favorite season is spring because of the budding flowers."
" I love the spring because it's not cold nor hot."
" The spring season here causes a lot of people to sneeze due to all the flowers appearing. Many
people with allergies hate the spring."

Weather - Winter
Winter has many differences between locations. Some places might be extremely cold like
Korea, New York, Alaska, Greenland, etc, and some places might be perfect like Hawaii, Los
Angeles, Mexico and other hot places.

Hot places that enjoy pleasant summer warmth:

" I don't think we have a winter here. During the winter months, it's still 80 degrees. So everyone
loves the winter months because it's not too hot."
" Winter time is the best time to visit because the temperature is the best during January."
" I like to go to Hawaii for my winter vacations because it's so cold in my home city."

Cold places:

" It's freezing out."

" It doesn't snow often, but when it does, it stays around for several weeks because it stays cold."
" For 3 months, this city will be covered with a layer of snow because it will never melt."
" It doesn't get too cold here, but it's always raining and very gloomy."
" The winter here is cold and dry. We hardly get any precipitation."

Weather - Fahrenheit and Celsius

It's unfortunate that some countries still use the Fahrenheit system. It would be so much easier if
everything was in Celsius. But because the United States still uses the Fahrenheit system,
knowing the conversion of Celsius to Fahrenheit will help when speaking to Americans.

" How do you convert Fahrenheit to Celsius?"

" Well, you subtract 32 from Fahrenheit, multiply by 5 and then divide by 9."

" How do you convert Celsius to Fahrenheit?"

" You multiply Celsius by 9, divide by 5 and then add 32."

Here is an example dialog.

Person A: " What is the average temperature in Seoul during June?"

Person B: " It is usually about 26 degrees Celsius during June."
Person A: " What is that in Fahrenheit?"
Person B: " That would be about 80 degrees Fahrenheit."

Usually, it takes some time to convert degrees using the conversion method. So it's easier to have
general temperatures already memorized. Here is a small table so you can quickly respond when
talking with a foreigner about the temperature.

Fahrenheit Celsius
100 37.8
90 32.2
85 28.4
80 26.7
75 23.9
70 21.1
65 18.3
60 15.6
50 10
40 4.4
32 0
20 -6.7
10 -12.2
0 -17.8

You don't need to remember everything. But if you know a couple of numbers you can just
change the other number slightly. For example, if you know that 80 degrees is about 27 degrees
Celsius, then if the temperature is 77 degrees, you can figure that it will be about 25 degrees
Celsius. Also, you don't have to be very accurate. In conversation, many people just want general
numbers and being off by a half a degree will not do any harm.

Finally, during the winter months, it gets so cold that the temperature goes below 0 degrees
Celsius. Let's practice a few sentences using negative numbers.

" How cold does it usually get in Korea?"

" Usually around minus 5 degrees Celsius, but sometimes it gets as cold as minus 12 degrees."

" How cold does it get in Alaska?"

" Depending on the area, but it's common for the temperature to be below 0."
" Is that in Fahrenheit or Celsius?"
" Fahrenheit."
" That means it's 20 below zero!"

Remember, although numbers below zero are negative numbers, it's not common to say,
'Negative 2 degrees.' It's not wrong to say it and everyone will understand, however, when
speaking to many people, almost everyone says 'minus 2 degrees.' Another common way to say it
is below zero is to say, '2 below' as in the example above.

Weather - Questions and Answers

In this session, we are primarily going to practice speaking key sentences that will help you carry
a conversation about the weather.

Asking about the weather:

" Do you know what the weather will be like tomorrow?"
" Do you know if it's going to rain tomorrow?"
" Did you see the weather forecast?"
" What is the weather like in Korea/Seattle/Los Angeles?"
" How is the climate in Korea?"
" Does it rain much in Denver?"
" How different is the weather between Pusan and Seoul?"
" What is your favorite season of the year?"

Answering questions about the weather:

" The weather is supposed to be sunny and warm tomorrow."

" It's supposed to rain for the next several days."
" I didn't see the news yesterday so I don't know what the weather is going to be like."
" Weather in Los Angeles is usually hot in the summer and mild in the winter. It never really gets
that cold."
" The weather in Pusan is very similar to Seoul. The main difference is that Seoul gets a little
more snow in the winter and a little hotter in the summer. This is primarily because Pusan is
right next to the water."
" My favorite season of the year is Spring. It's not too cold and the anticipation of a good
summer puts me in a good mood."

Statements about the weather:

" I heard Seattle is a very gloomy city with so many clouds."

" The weather is beautiful this time of year."
" I hate the rain. It makes me feel depressed."
" Autumn is a great season."
" The summer months are so humid in Korea."
" I can't stand the cold winter months."
" It's a beautiful day today, isn't it?"
" I wish the weather was like this everyday."
" It's been raining for 5 days straight. I wonder when it will stop raining."
" I hate the snow. The roads are dangerous to drive in, and when it melts, the streets are very
dirty."
" I love snowboarding so I always look forward to the winter."
" The winter months are tolerable because I don't mind the cold."
" Korea has four distinct seasons."

Weather - Long Description

Being able to speak specific sentences is good, however, it is more important to be able to say a
whole paragraph when talking about topics such as the weather. I'll have a specific lesson about
putting sentences together in a future lesson. But I'll give one advice now. Basically, make about
10 sentences. After you know your ten sentences about this question, you can say all of them one
after the other so it is a long answer. The ten sentences should be in a list format.

We will learn how to speak longer in a future lesson, but if you want to give it a try now, here are
two examples.

Question: " What is the weather like in Korea?"

Answer: " Well, the weather in Korea is unique with four distinct seasons. In the winter, the
temperature is about zero degrees Celsius. But, because it doesn't rain much in the winter, there
isn't much snow and the air is very dry. In spring, the days warm up significantly but the night
gets a little chilly. T he summer has two characteristics. It is very hot and humid most of the
time, and for about 3 weeks or so, we have a rainy season called monsoon. It gets very rainy and
windy during that time period. But we all look forward to autumn. It is a beautiful time of year
and the temperature is very pleasant. If you plan on visiting Korea, I highly recommend visiting
during autumn."

Question: " Which season do you like the most?"

Answer: " I like summer the most, but at the same time, I hate it. I like summer because it's
warm. I don't mind the heat and I like the longer days. So, I can do more activities like
swimming, bicycling, rollerblading, and many other outdoor activities. I usually take a short
vacation during the summer so I always look forward to that. However, the part about summer I
hate the most is during the monsoon season. I can tolerate the humidity, but when it gets hot and
humid along with the rain and the wind, then it gets terrible."

Weather - Interactive Practice

Click on Listen All and follow along. After becoming comfortable with the entire conversation,
become Person A by clicking on the Person A button. You will hear only Person B through the
audio file. There will be a silence for you to repeat the sentences of Person A. Do the same for
Person B. The speed of the conversation is native speed. Use the pause button if the pause
between each sentence is too fast for you. After practicing several times, you will be able to
speak as fast as a native.

1
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "Hey John, it's beautiful out today, isn't it?"
B: "Yeah. I wish it would be like this everyday."
A: "Did you see the weather forecast?"
B: "Unfortunately, it's supposed to start raining tomorrow night."

2
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "Do you know what the weather is going to be like tomorrow?"
B: "It's supposed to be the same as today. I don't think the weather will change much for the next
week or so."
A: "That's great."
B: "Why are you so happy? Do you have anything planned?"
A: "Yeah, I'm going to Everland with my family this weekend so I was hoping for good weather."

3
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "I can't believe it is raining so much."
B: "It's not that bad. Last year we had floods in 4 different areas of the city."
A: "Really? Does it always rain so much during this time of year?"
B: "This is not as bad as usual. During the monsoon season, we usually have rain for 3 weeks."