UNIT 1 TO BE: INTRODUCTION

STANDARD COMPETENCE

Use “to be” in daily conversation: to introduce our selves and to ask someone
about their identity.
INDICATOR

Able to differentiate “to be” and its functions in the daily communication,
both in oral and written communication.

CONTEXT

We often need to introduce ourselves to new acquaintances or ask them about

their profile. Moreover, we also have to describe about things that we do
while we are introducing ourselves. Therefore, we need to understand the use
of “to be” in English, which is an important part of English language.
LEARNING MATERIAL

“To be” in English language is used to connect a Subject to its Predicate in a

sentence. In Bahasa Indonesia, “to be” often not translated. “To be” will
depend on the Subject used in a sentence and the timeline of the sentence:
present, past, or future. For our context in this Chapter, we will use present
and past as our time reference to identify the “to be” form used in our
sentences.
See Table 1 to get more understanding on to-be form.
 Table 1 to-be Form
Subject Present Past
“To Be” Form “To Be” Form

I am was
You/They/We are were
He/She/It is was

LISTENING

Exercise 1

Listen to Ami introducing herself and then complete the missing part of
the sentences below!
Good morning Teacher and friends. I ___ pleased to introduce myself. My
name ___ Ami. I live with my parents. We just moved to Medan for a month
because my father got a promotion from his office.
I have two siblings, an older brother and a young sister. My brother's name
___ Leonard and my sister's name ___ Mei. We ____ two years different.
I love reading and writing. I also like to do some exercise to keep my fitness.
Sometimes, I go to the gym to exercise, but mostly, I love to play badminton
with my friends.
It ___ good to meet you all. I hope we can get to know each other more.

Exercise 2
From the information given by Ami on her introduction, write some questions
that you can ask her to get to know her better! In your questions, try to use
“to be” form.
For example: How old are you, Ami?
1. ____________________________________________?
2. ____________________________________________?
 3. ____________________________________________?
4. ____________________________________________?
5. ____________________________________________?
SPEAKING
Exercise 3
Practice the given conversations with your friend. When possible, change the
information in the sentence with your profile.
Conversation 1

Rini : Hello! I am Rini. What is your name?

Renta : My name is Renta. I am from Balige.
Rini : Where do you live?
Renta : I live at Jalan Turi Medan. How about you?
Rini : I live at Jalan Yos Sudarso Medan. So, how old are you now?
Renta : I am twenty years old.
Rini : What is your phone number?
Renta : My cell phone is 7357446. I have to go now. Please call me if
you need me. It is very nice to meet you Rini.
Rini : Nice to meet you too, Renta. I will call you.

Conversation 2

Deny : I see you are reading Paulo Coelho novel. How do you like it?
Lisa : I like a lot, I can’t put it down. Have you read it?
Deny : Yes, as a matter of fact, I just finished it. The ending is great.
Lisa : Please don’t tell me! I’m almost done.
Deny : Okay, okay. So, tell me where you are from?
 Lisa : I am from Parapat. But I live in Medan now.
Deny : How do you like it here in Medan?
Lisa : I like it so much. Have you ever been to Medan before?
Deny : No, I haven’t. This is my first trip. I have a job interview here.
Lisa : I hope you got the job, so we can hang out around again next
time.
Deny : Yeah, that will be good. Please pray for me.

Exercise 4
Based on the conversations above mark the statements below True or
False!
1. Renta is twenty years old. True - False
2. Rini lives at Jalan Pattimura Medan. True – False
3. Deny is reading the Paulo Coelho novel. True - False
4. Lisa comes from Parapat. True - False
5. Lisa lives in Medan now. True - False
6. Deny just finished read the Paulo Coelho novel True - False
7. Lisa has a job interview in Medan. True - False
8. Lisa and Deny read the same novel. True - False
9. Lisa and Deny is a long-time friend. True - False
10. Lisa want to hear the story from Deny. True – False
Exercise 5
Complete the conversation with a proper “to be” form.
Rosa : Hello, My name ____ Rosa.
Arif : Hi Rosa, my name ____ Arif.
Rosa : Where ____ you from, Arif?
Arif : I ____ from Padang, but I live in Medan now.
Rosa : What ____ your hobby?
Arif : My hobby ____ singing and cooking.
Rosa : How old ____ you?
Arif : Oh really, we ____ having the same age.
Rosa : It ____ nice to meet you, Arif.
Arif : Likewise, it ____ good to meet you, Rosa.

Exercise 6
Fill in the blank with is, am, are, was, were!
1. I ……. Rudi.
2. What ……. your name?
3. He ……. Mr. Nurdin.
4. His name ...... Mr. Kartolo.
5. ……. she Miss Retno?
6. …... his name Mr. Berton?
7. They ……. high school students.
8. She ……. a police woman.
9. Her cat ……. gone yesterday.
10. The students ........ playing football two days ago.
READING

My English Classmates
My English class is such a fun class. I have thirty classmates in this class.
They come from different nations, cultures, and religions. Three of them are
my closest friends. There is Taya. She is from Bandung and she is a
Sundanese. She loves to smile. Her smile is cheering other people around her.
Then there is Gustaf. He is a Bataknese and comes from Medan. He loves to
sing. His songs entertain the whole class. The last one is Martha. She is a
Chinese and raised in Jakarta. She is a good speaker and she speaks loudly
because she has her big voices with her.
They are my best friends. The different background and the local language
do not make us feel different at all when we are in the English class because
we speak the same English language. We are enjoying our English class
together.

Figure 1 Classmates
(Source: www.friendshipcircle.org/blog)
Exercise 7
Answer the questions based on the text above!
1. How the writer describes her English class?
a. interesting c. quiet
 b. bored d. attractive
2. What is the main topic of the given text?
a. Situations class c. Typical of people
b. The country of people d. The culture
3. Who is the one who loves to sing?
a. Andi c. Gustaf
b. Taya d. Martha
4. Who is the one who loves to smile?
a. Andi c. Gustaf
b. Taya d. Martha
5. Where is Martha come from?
a. Bandung c. Medan
b. Borneo d. Jakarta
WRITING

PROCEDURE TEXT
Procedure text gives instruction or step by step to do something.
Generic Structure:
 Goal : The final purpose of doing the instructions.
 Materials : Ingredients or tools to do the instruction.
 Steps : A series of detail instructions to achieve the final purpose.
Usage
 Use action verbs, such as make, cut, measure, put.
 Use conjunction words, such as first, second, then.
Procedure text example:

Goal: How to Make a Cardboard Photo Frame

Materials: To make a cardboard photo frame, you need some

equipment and materials like cardboard, paper, string,
photo, glue, paint, sticky tape and ruler.

Steps: Let’s start to make it. First, find a photo. Then, measure
up frames. Cut out the first frame. Cut out the second
frame so that the first can fit on top without slipping
through. Make the third frame with the same overlap.
Paint the frames in different ways. Finally attach a stand
or handle.

Exercise 8
Write your procedure text on making something that you like!