An Adaptable 45-Minute English Lesson with a Clear Speaking Goal

A lesson plan becomes useful when it describes what learners will do, not just what the teacher will present. The following 45-minute lesson practises making and responding to suggestions. It is designed as an adaptable example for learners who already know common leisure activities and can produce short sentences, roughly around an elementary to lower-intermediate level.

The outcome is concrete: pairs agree on a simple after-school or weekend activity and give a reason for their choice. Use fictional characters if personal plans are unsuitable. You need a board, a few activity pictures or written choices, and paper. No phones, paid apps or student photographs are required.

Prepare a small language target

Select three useful chunks: "Let's visit the park," "How about playing badminton?" and "I'd prefer the library because it's quiet." Adapt vocabulary to your curriculum and check whether learners need fewer forms. The objective is a manageable exchange, not mastery of every way English expresses suggestions.

Prepare two fictional schedules with a small information gap. For example, one character is free on Saturday morning and likes outdoor activities; another is available then but wants a low-energy option. Give pairs enough overlap to reach an agreement. Avoid an impossible puzzle that rewards guessing rather than speaking.

Minutes 0-5: notice and connect

Show three activity options. Learners choose one individually, then tell a partner which option they prefer. Accept brief answers at this stage. Listen for vocabulary that is available and words that need support.

Tell the class the goal in plain language: by the end, each pair will agree on an activity and explain the choice. Make success visible with three checks: offer an idea, respond to a partner and reach an agreement. Do not spend the opening explaining every later stage.

Minutes 5-12: model the exchange

Demonstrate a short conversation with a colleague, a confident volunteer or two clearly labelled voices. Include a polite disagreement followed by an alternative, so learners see that accepting the first idea is not the only possible response.

Put the key chunks on the board. Check meaning with a choice question: did the speakers agree immediately, or change the plan? Practise the pronunciation of the chunks briefly, keeping attention on intelligibility. Ask learners to identify what follows "How about" in your model without turning the whole lesson into a grammar lecture.

Minutes 12-20: supported practice

Pairs complete two short exchanges using activity prompts. Give thinking time before speaking. Learner A suggests, learner B responds, and then they swap roles. Leave the model available, but encourage a new activity or reason on the second attempt.

Monitor a few pairs for the same target: can both learners make a suggestion and respond meaningfully? If many cannot begin, pause for another demonstration. If only a few need help, offer a phrase card or point to the relevant board section. More support need not mean a different learning goal.

Minutes 20-32: solve the planning task

Distribute the fictional schedules. Partners ask about availability and preferences, propose an activity and agree on a plan. Require both learners to contribute, but allow a brief preparation phase. A pair records the final activity, time and reason in one or two sentences.

For learners ready for more challenge, add a constraint such as unsuitable weather or a changed opening time. Ask them to renegotiate rather than complete a longer worksheet. For learners who need support, offer two possible activities and a sentence beginning. Keep extensions connected to the original speaking outcome.

Minutes 32-39: feedback and a second attempt

Share two successful language examples you heard and one or two anonymous points to improve. Do not reproduce a learner's sensitive personal information or invite the class to identify who made an error. Ask learners to improve a sample response together.

Give pairs a new activity card or a changed condition and let them try the exchange again. This second attempt is where feedback becomes useful. The EEF's feedback guidance emphasises specific information and opportunities to act on it; the activity here is an original application, not a tested programme with guaranteed results.

Minutes 39-45: check the outcome

Ask each pair to submit its agreed plan. Hear a small selection of exchanges, choosing a manageable sample rather than rushing every pair through a public performance. Learners can mark which of the three success checks they achieved and identify one phrase to practise again.

Use the final minute to explain the next step. If responses were hesitant, revisit the same chunks in a new context next lesson. If learners negotiated comfortably, introduce a wider range of reasons. The stages total 45 minutes: 5, 7, 8, 12, 7 and 6. Treat those allocations as a starting plan; adapt during teaching while protecting time for learners to respond to feedback and demonstrate the outcome.