VOA Special English English Learning Library
Audio • INT B2

Soccer Moms

Flag Julia Todd

Audio Lesson

Transcript

Todd: So, Julia, now you are a parent.

Julia: That's right.

Todd: And have you heard of all these terms that we have in the US for different types of parents? I wonder if you have them in the UK?

Julia: You mean like soccer mum, stuff like that?

Todd: Exactly.

Julia: That's the only one I've heard of actually.

Todd: OK. So what do you think a soccer mom is? What have you heard?

Julia: My image is a mother who dedicates her time to running her kids to and from soccer practice. Is that right?

Todd: Right.

Julia: And also drives a big vehicle? My image is of a big SUV or a big four wheel drive.

Todd: Right. I think it's also, it's like a parent that has many scheduled events for their child.

Julia: Oh, OK.

Todd: So maybe they have swimming class or soccer practice, ballet and stuff like that.

Julia: Oh, maybe I'm a little bit of a soccer mum.

Todd: Yeah, I think now, yeah. I think it's actually a good term. It's like, I think a soccer mom usually is considered a caring parent.

Julia: OK.

Todd: And they try to have their child doing productive things.

Julia: It must be pretty, quite an affluent perhaps middle class kind of parent.

Todd: Yeah, exactly, exactly. Now we have the equivalent, it's called a Nascar dad.

Julia: Is Nascar some kind of car racing?

Todd: Yeah, basically it's just the, these cars they run around and ride around in a circle. It's kind of like horse racing for cars, you just go round and round. But, yeah, so I guess it's the same thing. It's just a dad who's really, you know, really into his kids, spends a lot of time with his kids.

Julia: Would this be a stay at home dad, like a...?

Todd: No, no. It's just kind of like a good old boy father, like a dad who's kind of blue collar, not rich, you know, maybe lower middle class maybe but just kind of like your typical sitcom, TV sitcom dad I guess.

Julia: But that's nice. Takes his kids everywhere, that's nice.

Todd: Yeah, yeah.

Julia: Involved in the...

Todd: Yeah, like a Nascar dad would probably take his sons hunting and maybe take his daughter shopping and stuff like that.

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Vocabulary (6)

productive

Soccer moms try to have their children doing productive things.

"Here, 'productive' activities refer to things that children can do that teach them and help with development. Notice the following:"

affluent

A soccer mom is an affluent, middle class type of person.

"In this case, 'affluent' means a person who has a lot of money. Notice the following:"

equivalent

Now we have the equivalent to a soccer mom, which is a NASCAR dad.

"When one thing is 'equivalent' to another, they are basically equal. Notice the following:"

good-old-boy

He's like a good-old-boy father.

"The phrase 'good-old-boy' is used to refer to a man who is humble and generally well thought of in his area. Notice the following:"

blue-collar

A NASCAR dad is blue-collar.

"A 'blue-collar' worker is someone who works in a factory job or one that requires a lot of physical labor and not much formal education. Notice the following:"

TV sitcom dad

He's kind of like your typical TV sitcom dad, I guess.

"A 'sitcom' is a type of television show that uses real life situations to create comedy. A 'TV sitcom dad' would act or look the same as a stereotypical dad on television. Notice the following:"

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