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Turn Around

Written by Michael Franklin for Teach-This.com 2014

TEACH-THIS.COM
Turn Around
In this fun teaching activity, students make suggestions about leisure activities to do.
Students also practice accepting, refusing and making excuses. Before class, make one
copy of the worksheet for each group of up to 12 students. Cut the worksheet up into cards
as indicated.
Procedure
If there are more than 12 students in the class, divide them into two groups. Give one card to
each student in the class. Keep one card for yourself to demonstrate the activity. Go through
the free time activities on the cards. Make sure the students know which verb to use with
each activity: go to the pub (go for a drink) / go to a restaurant / go to the beach / go cycling
(go for a bike ride) / watch TV( watch a DVD) / have a picnic / go swimming / go to the
cinema / go jogging / go fishing / go clubbing (go dancing) / go shopping
Tell the students that they are going to go round the class and talk about things to do, using
their cards as prompts. Write some expressions for making and accepting suggestions on
the board:
Suggestions
Why dont we?
How about (verb+ing) ?
Lets

Accepting a suggestion
Yes, thats a good idea.
Yes, Id like to do that.
Yeah, great!

Demonstrate the activity with individual students. Tell them to hold their cards so that the
picture is facing them and the blank side is facing their partner. Now ask the students to go
round the class or group, making and accepting suggestions with as many different partners
as possible, using their cards as prompts. Make sure the students vary their language each
time.
When the students have finished, ask them to exchange cards and go round the class or
group again, this time holding their cards the other way round so the picture is facing their
partner. The students take it in turns to make suggestions using their partners cards as
prompts. Students practice making a different suggestion each time they change partner.
When the students have finished, write some phrases for refusing a suggestion and making
excuses on the board:
Refusing a suggestion
Im sorry. Im busy then.
Im afraid, I cant.
Im sorry. I dont think I can.

Making excuses
Im meeting a friend.
I have homework to do.
I have a class.

You could also elicit reasons from the class as to why they cant do an activity and write
them on the board.
Now, ask the students to swap cards again and to write an excuse on the blank side of the
card. Tell the students to hold their cards so that the picture is facing their partner and the
excuse is facing them. Students then go round making suggestions, refusing and giving
excuses. Each student makes the same excuse several times.
When they have finished, ask them to exchange cards and to go round the class again, this
time holding their cards the other way round so the picture is facing them and the excuse is
facing their partner. In this part of the activity, the students make the same suggestion
several times and give a different excuse each time they change partner.
Written by Michael Franklin for Teach-This.com 2014