Your card stopped working in a shop yesterday. You have money in the bank, so why? This morning, you go to the bank to ask — and to get help.
Yesterday you were in a shop. You wanted to pay with your card. But the card said "no" — it did not work! You had money in the bank, so you did not understand. It was not a nice feeling.
You do not know why your card stopped. Maybe the bank stopped it. Banks sometimes do this to keep your money safe. But you need your card, so you must ask.
This morning, you go to the bank. A person works there — the bank clerk. They are friendly and want to help. You ask a simple question: "Why doesn't my card work?" And you ask for help. Stay calm and polite — it is an easy problem to fix.
Calm and polite. Your card stopped working. You want to know why, and you want to use your card again.
Kind and helpful. They can look at your account, tell you why, start your card again, and send you a new one.
Here are the phrases for this conversation. Read each one and say it out loud once. Choose the ones you like. Keep this page open when you practise.
Draw a card. Say what you would say, out loud. Then look at one answer.
Try a few more rounds with the toolkit covered. When it feels easy, you are ready.
Read it out loud, one person each, then change. Find the phrases from your toolkit. Listen for the polite words.
1. Why did the bank stop the card?
2. Was there a real problem, or a mistake? What did the customer really buy?
3. The customer asks for two things at the end. What are they?
No script this time. You have a real talk with a real person. You have a goal.
Say each sentence out loud. Use your own words in the gaps.
Pick a situation. Your partner plays the other person.
🏆 Get a new card and know how long it takes.
Start the scene. After a minute, draw a card. What it says just happened.
Now you are the other person. Your partner takes your old part.
Draw another twist if you like.
Tick what you did, in either seat.
Do it again. Draw a twist before you start. Try to do it faster this time.
Six hundred years ago, in a city called Florence in Italy, there was a family called the Medici. They were bankers — they kept people's money safe and lent it out. They became very rich and very famous.
The Medici made many banking ideas that we still use today. They had banks in many cities. They wrote everything down carefully, so they always knew where the money was. This is why a bank can look at your card and see the problem — like the clerk did for you this morning.
A bank is really just a promise: you give them your money, and you trust them to keep it safe and give it back. When your card stopped, the bank was keeping that promise — checking your money was safe. It was a small problem, but the idea is very old.