myClass Teachers’ Notes

Elementary
Communicate with confidence in public 02

Let’s meet
Lesson description
In this lesson you will arrange a time for a meeting. You will learn language for discussing plans and
practise language for dates and times.

Aim
Agreeing on a time to meet.

Language
•  Present continuous for future arrangements.
•  Dates and times.

Task
Learners will talk to each other to arrange a time to meet.

Materials
Handout.
Diary pages (photocopiable).

Suggested running order

Lead-in Discussing making arrangements.
Input Dates and times.
Listening to people arranging a time to meet.
Language focus Present continuous for future arrangements.
Task Arranging a time to meet.
Report.
Making your own arrangements.

Lead-in

1 Learners do this really quickly just to get used to times, days and months.
2 Learners discuss the questions with a partner or small group. First check meaning of ‘an
arrangement’ (a plan you make with one or more other people).
Feedback to the whole class on different types of arrangements (language that comes up here
may be useful later in the lesson) and other points from their discussion.Elementary

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Communicate with confidence in public

02

Input

1 Dictate the following dates. Ask learners to write them down. (They can write e.g. 28/6 rather
than the words in full.)
1 the 28th of June
2 the 15th of April
3 February the 10th
4 July the 25th
5 the 31st of August
6 September the 2nd
7 the 23rd of October
8 the 13th of March
9 July the 30th
10 the 4th of November
2 In pairs, learners practise saying the dates. Drill any problematic ones.
3 Learners fill the gaps with the prepositions (in, on, at).
Answers
1 on Monday
2 in the morning
3 on Tuesday evening
4 at 7 o’clock in the evening
5 in September
6 on July the 17th
Note the patterns:
on – days
in – the morning, the afternoon, the evening BUT at night
in – months (and years)
at – times (note also e.g. at lunchtime, etc.)
4 In pairs, learners ask and answer the questions. Encourage them to use ‘full’ answers e.g. on the
25th of September, not 25th of September.
5 2.1 Listen to the conversation and answer the questions.
Answers
1 James says he’s busy, but Maria seems to be busier.
2 Now.

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Elementary
Communicate with confidence in public 02

6 2.1Listen again and complete the diaries. NB. Most of the information is close together, so
more than one listening might be needed. Alternatively, ask student A to fill in Maria’s diary and
student B to fill in James’s diary. Then swap notes and listen again to check.
Answers

Maria James

Monday 01 Monday 01
Jo 9 am
meetings all morning tennis in the morning
Tuesday 02 Tuesday 02
meet marketing 1 pm lunch (with Rob)
people 2 pm
interviews all day
Wednesday 03 Wednesday 03 football 5 pm
free after 4.30 pm
Thursday 04 flying to New York Thursday 04

Friday 05 New York Friday 05

7 In pairs, learners put the lines in order to make a dialogue. You could make copies of the
ordered dialogue below, or put it on the IWB for learners to check their answers and to make
reading the dialogue more comfortable.
Answer
A: Hi Brian. It’s Liz.
B: Hi. How are you?
A: Fine. Do you want to meet this weekend?
B: That’d be great. What are you doing on Friday evening?
A: Sorry, I’m busy on Friday. I’m visiting my parents.
B: And I’m afraid I’m working on Saturday. What about Sunday?
A: That’s fine. I’m not doing anything on Sunday.
B: Okay, let’s meet at Carlo’s at one, have some lunch and then do something else.
A: Good idea. See you on Sunday!
8 Learners practise reading the dialogue with their partner. You could drill parts of the dialogue
first or monitor and drill problematic areas after, and then get them to read it again.

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Elementary
Communicate with confidence in public 02

Language focus

1 Learners look at the extracts and find the forms used for talking about arrangements.
Answers
question What are you doing (on Friday)?
positive I’m flying (to New York).
negative I’m not doing (anything on Sunday).
Note: present form of be + -ing. Elicit form for he / she.
Note: yes / no question (e.g. Are you doing anything on Friday?) and short answer (Yes, I am / No, I’m
not.)
Note: contractions, weak forms and intonation in questions and drill pronunciation.
2 Complete the sentences with the correct forms of the verbs in brackets.
Answers
1 Sorry, I can’t come to the meeting, because I’m going (go) on holiday.
2 Are you going (you / go) to Fred’s wedding on Saturday? – Yes, of course I am.
3 I’m afraid we can’t help you on Sunday. We’re spending (spend) the weekend in the country.
4 I’m not doing (not / do) anything on Friday. Shall we meet?
5 Why isn’t he coming (he / not / come) to the party? – I think he’s working (work).
3 Learners ask their partner about their arrangements for the next week and make notes in the
diary page. Give them example questions (e.g. What are you doing on Monday? / Are you doing
anything (interesting) on Tuesday?). If they don’t have much to say, they could invent information
or you could give them a persona to make up information for (e.g. a film star).
4 Learners change partners and tell the new partner what they found out. Check for switch to ‘he
/ she’s -ing’.

Task

1 Look at the conversation between Brian and Liz that was put in order in the input and put
phrases for making suggestions, saying ‘yes’ to suggestions and saying ‘no’ to suggestions in
the table.
Answers

Suggestions Saying yes Saying no

What about Sunday? That’d be great. Sorry, I’m busy (on Friday).
Let’s meet at Carlo’s at one That’s fine. I’m afraid I’m (working on
Saturday.)
That’s fine.
Good idea!

Note: e.g. What about + -ing?

Other phrases could be added, depending on the class.

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Elementary
Communicate with confidence in public 02

2 In pairs, learners make up a short conversation following the instructions in the flow diagram.
Before doing this, you could brainstorm different activities to suggest e.g. going shopping,
seeing a film etc. and/or reasons for saying no e.g. visiting relatives, going to the hairdresser’s
etc.
Learners will talk to a partner to arrange a time for a meeting. They will then speak to a new
partner to arrange to all meet at the same time.
3 Give out the diary pages (photocopiable) and give learners time to check what arrangements
they have for the week. Then Student A phones Student B and Student C phones Student D.
You could give them an example of how to start the conversation on the board
e.g.
A: Hello B.
B: Hello A. How are you?
A: Fine. I’m calling to arrange a time for a meeting about …
Once they have decided on a date and time for the meeting, they note it in their diaries. Change
pairs. Student B phones Student C and Student D phones Student A. They try to make an
arrangement for the same time.
e.g.
B: Hello.
C: Hello.
B: I’m meeting A at 3 pm on Tuesday the 2nd. Are you free?
…
After this, learners return to their original partner and confirm or change times for their
meeting.
Note: Some pairs will finish before others. You could get them to arrange a second meeting.
4 Learners report to the class on when they arranged their meeting for and how easy it was to
do. Why?
5 Learners add some personal arrangements to their diary for Saturday and Sunday. Then, in a
small group they arrange to meet socially at the weekend – decide what to do and where and
when to meet.

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Elementary
Communicate with confidence in public 02

Audio script
2.1
M = Maria, female J = James, male
J Hi Maria. It’s James.
M Hello. How are you?
J Busy! But we need to meet about next week’s training. What are you doing on Friday?
M I’m flying to New York on the 4th, that’s Thursday, for the conference.
J Ah yes. What about the 3rd?
M I’m doing interviews all day, but I’m free after 4.30.
J Sorry, I’m playing football at 5. Tuesday maybe?
M Let’s see. I’ve got meetings all morning. I could cancel my meeting with Jo at 9 …
J No. I’m playing tennis in the morning. How about the afternoon?
M Hmm, I’m meeting the marketing people at 2 … I could see you at 1.
J Sorry, I’m having lunch with Rob.
M I see. Are you doing anything now?
J No, I’m free now. I’ll be there in five minutes …

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