The “Used to” Lesson Plan

Main aim To develop students’ ability to talk about past habits using “used to” in the context of childhood and addictions. How will I know if this aim has been achieved? Students will, during the less restricted practice stage, use the target language with sufficient accuracy for their partner to understand their past habits.
Subsidiary aims To develop students’ ability to listen for the main ideas in a text. To improve students’ ability to talk about the topic of addictions by introducing an “addiction” lexical set.
Personal aims Give students more time to discuss in pairs after a listening activity before feedback.
Materials Realia – chocolate, cigarettes, coffee, a PC Pictures or short video clips of children playing on swings, dressing up for Halloween, studying at school. Listening CD and photocopies of tapescript from Language To Go Intermediate (Longman, 2002) lesson 11. Photocopies of handout for each student.
Anticipated problems and solutions Problem: Students may be unable to think of three things they did as a child but don’t do now on the spur of the moment. Solution: Provide prompts and examples if necessary. Problem: Students will not be familiar with “to give up”, to quit”, “to cut down on” in the listening text. Solution: Elicit these items in the context of addictions. Problem: Students will be unfamiliar with the pronunciation of “used to” – /juːstə/ Solution: Drill in affirmative, negative and question forms
Timing	Aims	Activity	Focus
8 mins	Lead in to set the context for the lesson and generate interest	Ss look at photos of children doing things Ss discuss whether or not they did these things in the past and whether or not they do them now Ss write three things they did as a child but don’t do now and give them to T	S-S-S
7 mins	Lexis to introduce vocabulary for listening stage	Ss look at coffee, cigarettes, chocolate and a PC Ss discuss whether or not they use these things, how often, and whether they can stop T elicits addict, addicted, addiction, to quit, to give up, to cut down on, willpower	S-S S-S T-Ss
10 mins	Listening to practice listening for gist	Ss listen to four people describing their addictions: Does the person have the same addiction as you? If not, what are they addicted to; Have they given up? Feedback on board	S Ss-T
12 mins	Presentation to introduce target language to manipulate form to provide restricted practice in using target language and standardise pronunciation	T elicits target language: - Did he smoke in the past? Yes - Once or many times? Many times - Does he smoke now? No “He used to smoke” T repeats with other examples and elicits negative and question T drills target language	Ss-T
10 mins	Less restricted practice to give students restricted practise in using target language	T writes on board one thing that each student used to do as a child Ss circulate, asking each other questions to find out who used to do what Feedback	T-Ss S-S-S Ss-T
3 mins	Less restricted written practice to provide a written record of the target language	Sts write 2 sentences about themselves and two about other sts using target language	S
10 mins	Authentic practice to give students authentic practice in using target language	T gives handout with prompts – last house, last job, appearance 10 years ago Ss circulate and ask and answer questions based on prompts	S-S-S