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freeenglishlessonplans.com has just reached half a million all time views! Thanks to all my followers and everyone who’s ever viewed anything!
Follow me on twitter @RobbioDobbio
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This is a straightforward conversation topic lesson plan which can be used with both teens and adults and many levels (high A2+). Students discuss the best thing to do in different situations.
You will need the “best way to…” powerpoint:
Language
Put the following structures on the board:
Opinion:
The best/worst thing to do is…
Agreeing and disagreeing:
Agreeing | Disagreeing | Ending an argument: |
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Project the powerpoint onto the board and go through the slides. Play devil’s advocate and ensure that students debate each topic thoroughly.
Debates
You could split the class into teams and debate one of the topics. Give each team an opinion, for example “the best way to break up with someone is by text”, and they have to defend that opinion even if they don’t agree with it.
Homework
Have students choose one of the topics raised and write an essay on it; exploring the different ways suggested and reaching a conclusion as to which is the best.
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This is a great end of year game to play with all ages and levels. It’s based around the popular board game “Articulate” which is a staple in my household at Christmas.
You will need a die and the handouts listed below printed and cut up.
For action cards you need to print out the MES flashcards below and write the verb next to the picture:
Click to access verbs2_cards.pdf
Click to access verbs1_cards.pdf
The Game
Split your class into groups of 3. Have each group come up with a team name and write them on the board. Decide which team goes first. The first player comes to the front of the class and rolls the dice; the numbers correspond to the different categories:
If students roll a 6 they can choose whichever category they like. The player than has 1 minute to describe as many of the words on the cards to their team-mates as they can. Teams score 1 point for each word correctly guessed. If the describer doesn’t know the word or their team are struggling to identify it, they can pass but they can only pass 3 times. Play then passes to the next team. Play at least 3 rounds so that each member of each team has a go at describing.
The rules to describing are:
The game is a perfect opportunity to practice different structures such as relative clauses, adjective order and many more. Below are photos of the prompts I put on the board for my pre-intermediate teenagers class:
Make sure you drill the frames with the students beforehand and do a few yourself to demonstrate. I always carry the (rather battered) card packs in my folder in case I’m ever stuck for an activity for the last 10 minutes of class. Alternatively, play it as an end of term treat and bring sweets for the winning team. Let me know how it goes.
Great resource for CPE/IELTS speaking practice.
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Just a quick note…
Before you use these materials… We’ve created a new podcast aimed at B2+ level English students and teachers alike. You can listen for free at our SoundCloud page below. You can download teacher’s notes to accompany them from our Facebook page or from this blog. All comments and feedback welcome! Give us a like and a share 😉
https://www.facebook.com/2tspodcast/
Used to/would – Past habit and states
This is a lesson plan for intermediate students to practice “used to” and “would” to talk about past habits and states using videos and conversation.
Download the lesson plan and student’s worksheet here:
Warmer: 2 truths and a lie, write three sentences about yourself using “used to”, 2 true and 1 lie. Try to write 2 with state verbs and 1 with an action verb like this:
What does used to mean here?
A past state or habit which is not true now.
What are the negative and interrogative forms?
I used to dance ballet.
I didn’t use to dance ballet.
Did you use to dance ballet?
Drill pronunciation: weak “to” in “used to” and the “ed” in “used” is not pronounced.
Remember: Used to only exists in the past, to talk about present habit we use the present simple with adverbs of frequency.
I usually/normally/tend to go to the gym twice a week.
“Would” can replace “used to” in one of the three sentences at the top of the page with exactly the same meaning. In which sentence is would possible?
We can use “would” with the same meaning as “used to” only when we’re talking about past actions or habits not when we’re talking about states.
When I was at uni I would/used to get up at 11am. (get up = action/habit)
When I was a child I would/used to have blonde hair. (have = state)
Look at the following sentences, decide if we can only use “used to” or if “would” is also possible.
Watch the video and make sentences about it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEZUQxQ51Ak
Arnold used to be a bodybuilder. He would lift weights all day. He used to be the governor of California.
There used to be a (park/playground etc.)
Follow up:
Students write a composition detailing all of the things that they used to do when they were younger and explaining why they don’t do them anymore.
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This is a worksheet for intermediate students to practice quantifiers. It’s written with Catalan students from Barcelona in mind so you might want to edit some of the discussion questions.
Download the handout here:
All of
Most of Some of A few of + A determiner + noun None of (my/your/his/the/etc.) Neither of Both of |
All
Most Some A few + a noun Neither Both |
All (of) my siblings are married.*
Both (of) my siblings are married.* Most of his family have left the country. A few of the people I went to school with are coming to visit. None of her friends live in the village now. Neither of her parents can drive.
*With all and both the “of” is optional. |
All vegetables are good for you.
Most people prefer summer to winter. Some people don’t like cheese. A few places still let you smoke inside. Neither hat was big enough for her. Both men were extremely drunk. |
Which of these sentences is incorrect?
REMEMBER: When we’re speaking in general we don’t use “the”:
Most English people drink too much.
I like rock music.
Choose the correct option to complete the sentences:
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Before you use these materials, why not check out our new podcast for learners and teachers alike? It’s called 2Ts in a Pod, have a listen here:
This is a conversation lesson plan to practise past (3rd) conditional structures whilst debating the value of specific professions to society. Credit to the university of Kent for the inspiration for the activity. I have changed the wording of the task slightly so that students must imagine a world without the achievements and inventions of some famous names from history.
You will need the handout, I have made 4 versions:
Intermediate teens:
Balloon Debate intermediate teenagers
Intermediate adults:
Balloon Debate Intermediate adults
Advanced teens:
Advanced adults:
I planned this as an activity to practise uses of advanced 3rd conditional structures such as:
But for + noun phrase, would/could/might have….
But for Thomas Edison, the lightbulb would have been invented much later.
Or inverted past conditionals:
Had it not been for Shakespeare, we wouldn’t have such a rich vocabulary.
You may want to preteach these structures using my other materials which you can find here and here.
Below you will find they advanced adults version of the activity.
Balloon Debate
You are in a hot air balloon which is losing height rapidly and will soon crash because it is overweight. You are travelling with a group of school children who will grow up to be very famous. You have to decide which 7 to throw over the side; if the balloon crashes you will all die. The passengers are:
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Language
Conditionals | Making Decisions |
If_____ hadn’t invented_____, _____ wouldn’t have happened. | There’s no way we’re throwing ______ overboard because______ |
But for ________ we wouldn’t have________. | Throwing _______ is out of the question because________ |
If it hadn’t been for ______, we wouldn’t have _______ now | I think ________ is expendable. |
Had it not been for _______, we wouldn’t have________. | What did _______ really do for us? |
Examples:
If Charles Darwin hadn’t discovered evolution, society wouldn’t have developed like it has.
If it hadn’t been for Gandhi, India would still be a British colony.
But for Shakespeare, we wouldn’t have such a rich language.
Had it not been for Abraham Lincoln, the slaves wouldn’t have been freed.
Homework Activity:
Students write an essay examining two of the people from the balloon and deciding which one has contributed most to society. They must compare and contrast the achievements of the two and reach a conclusion as to which should be crowned as the most inspiring person in history.