English, baby!

Building a Fire

Learn English meaning of ‘Building a Fire'

Date: Jan 08 2020

Themes: Hobbies, How To, Travel

Grammar: Prepositions

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Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

Go Super to Listen

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

Go Super to Listen

Building fires is a special human skill. It is something that makes people different from other animals. In the US, many children join the Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts. They study nature and explore outside. They go camping with adults and learn to build fires. Scouts follow the instructions of their leaders, and they learn the perfect way to make a big, warm fire.

To build a fire, you need different sizes of wood. You begin with kindling, the smallest type of wood. On top of the kindling, you will first put small sticks and then large sticks. Finally, you put logs on the fire. Some people even use fuel to make a quick fire. But you don’t need to be a scout to build a fire. Some people just wing it.

Brian invites Romeo to go camping with him. But can either of them build a fire? Find out in today’s English lesson.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Brian

Romeo

Brian: Hey, Romeo, I was going to go camping this weekend. Do you want to come with me?

Romeo: Oh, yeah! I’m totally down.

Brian: Great. Do you know how to build a fire?

Romeo: No!

Brian: OK.

Romeo: Don’t judge me.

Brian: No, no, that’s OK. I just wanted to make sure… because I don’t either.

Romeo: You don’t know how to build a fire?

Brian: I know some rough ideas. I know that you need kindling, fuel, and that you need wood, campfire wood or logs...

Romeo: And maybe, some sparks? I don’t know. We’re going to go, and we’re going to wing it. We’re going to be freezing.

Brian: I read an internet article, so that should help us. You have to put the kindling down on the bottom, and that catches fire.

Romeo: Right.

Brian: Then, it catches the smaller sticks on fire.

Romeo: Right.

Brian: Then, it catches the logs on fire. And you really want a nice red… red burning embers on the logs.

Romeo: Right.

Brian: That means it is fueled and heated correctly, I believe.

Romeo: You watch too much Survivor.

Brian: Well then, aren’t you glad you’re going camping with me?

Romeo: Yes, we need you!

Brian: Great. Do you know how to hunt?

Romeo: I can learn.

Brian: OK because I don’t know either.

Romeo: It going to be a great trip.

Grammar Point

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Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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Discussion

Go Super to Listen

Brian asks Romeo if he wants to go camping. However, neither Brian nor Romeo knows how to build a fire. Romeo knows that a fire needs sparks, but he doesn’t have any other information. However, Brian read some online instructions. He learned some basic ideas about building a fire.

Brian tells Romeo that they need to begin with kindling. The kindling helps to create the fire. Then, they can add sticks and logs to make the fire bigger. Brian says that the goal is to have really hot, red embers. The red embers mean that the fire is burning correctly. Romeo is happy that Brian can build the fire this weekend.

When do you build a fire? Who taught you how to build a fire?

Comments

Yibiao

Malaysia

I have nvr tried building a fire, should try it one day.
By the way, I’m confused with the dialog when Brian asked “I ‘was’ going to camping this weekend…”. Why not “I ‘am’ going to camping this weekend..”.
Your advice is highly appreciated. Thanks

gserrano

United States

I usually build a fire when we do cook outs, and on special occasions when we go to the beach to stay there overnight. It is a blast to gaze at the stars while sitting down around a fire.