Subject File SOCIAL TIES: Friendships

 

Ex. 1: Talking about friendship. Study the phrasal verbs and watch the video.

• to get on with: to have a friendly relationship with a person
• to fall out with: to have an argument
• to run into/to bump into: to meet a person unexpectedly
• to hear from: to receive communication from
• to make up with: to become friends again after having an argument
• to hang out with: to spend time relaxing and socialising with 
• to catch up with: to talk to someone about what has happened since the last time you met that person

Ex. 2: Find out more about the importance of friendship and how to make friends.

Psychology Today: importance of friendship

Friendships: enrich your life and improve your health

Ex. 3: For different stages in life, we need different types of friends. Find out more about it.

BBC Learning English 6 Minute English podcast: making 'mum friends'

👉What should friends be like for ...

• toddlers and young children between the ages of 5 and 10
• teenagers
• young parents and parents in general 
• middle-aged career professionals between the ages of 35 to 55
• retirees
• elderly people in need of care (age groups 80+)

Subject File THE WORLD OF WORK: At work

Introduction

The average person spends approximately 90,000 hours at work over a lifetime, which equates to roughly one-third of their life. On a weekly basis, employees typically spend between 35 and 44.5 hours in their main job, with full-time US employees averaging around 8 hours per weekday or 2,080 hours annually. 

Key Time-at-Work Statistics:

Lifetime Total: ~90,000 hours, or about 13 years and two months.

Weekly Average: 35–40+ hours, depending on industry and country.

Actual Productivity: While on the clock, studies suggest the average worker is truly productive for only about 2 hours and 53 minutes to 4 hours per day.

"Work About Work": Significant time is lost to meetings, checking emails, and unproductive tasks, sometimes averaging over 6 hours lost weekly due to distractions.

Commuting: In the UK, the average commute adds another 28–30 minutes per day. 

In the EU, 37.3% of employees worked between 40.0 and 44.5 hours per week in 2024, with some European countries seeing higher concentrations in the 35–39.5 hour range.