Spoken English Basic Lesson A1.1 Activities

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Slide 1: Sample Answer

My favourite colour is white.

It is the colour of pureness and simplicity.

It is an eye-friendly colour, unlike red. It makes my mind fresh and calm.

When I wear white shirt or t-shirt, it gives me a positive vibe. It also helps me concentrate on my activities. That’s why it is my favourite colour.


Slide 2: Uses of “it”

It is used for non-living things, animals, infants and insects. Plural of ‘it’ is ‘they’.

  • Russia is a developed country. It is a super power.
  • I’ve four cats. They all are of different colours.
  • Look at his one-year old baby. It has started crawling now.

We can use it as an ‘empty’ subject or as an ‘empty’ object. It is ‘empty’ because it doesn’t refer to anything in particular:

  • It’s getting a bit late now, so let’s watch a movie at home.
  • She doesn’t like it when you are so quiet.
  • How long will it be before he gives up smoking?

We can use it to introduce or ‘anticipate’ the subject or object of a sentence:

  • It’s good that she’s doing more exercise.
  • It was nice to talk to them again.

We also use it to emphasise the subject or object of the main clause:

  • It was his sister who ran the marathon.
  • It was Mary they promoted, not Laura.

It makes the sentence seem less personal and more objective with passive voice:

  • It was decided that we should all swim across the lake.


Slide 3: Uses of “there”

“There” can be used as both a noun and a pronoun.

As a pronoun: It is used to introduce a noun or a phrase.

For example: There are too many people in this elevator.

As a noun: It refers to a particular place.

For example: She went to Bali last month. I can’t wait to go there next year.

"There" also refers to the place where the listener or another person is, and we see the position of people and things from their point of view. 

For example-

A:    Where’s my pencil?
B:    It’s there, next to you, on the white table.


Slide 4: Sample riddles

He was a lawyer. He was an Indian. He practiced law in South Africa for 21 years. He was committed to the principle of non-violence. Who is he?

Answer: Mahatma Gandhi

He was from South Africa. He was expelled from the university because he was involved in a student strike. He became the first black president of South Africa. Who is he?

Answer: Nelson Mandela


Slide 9: Describe your free time

My free time is in the afternoon. It is between 3 pm and 5 pm after my school.

I play video games and also take a nap of half an hour between 3pm and 5pm.

I play video games with my mom and sister in my drawing room.

It increases my mental ability and reasoning. That’s why I like playing video games in my free time.