Lots of our students like reading and talking about celebrity gossip (although not everyone admits it!). In this lesson students take part in a role playing game in which a celebrity couple are interviewed by a journalist. Then they work in groups to write a report for a gossip magazine.

Students do lots of texting in their L1 and are often keen to learn how to text in English too. In this lesson students have a discussion, learn some useful texting abbreviations and read an article about texting and literacy.

This lesson consists of a series of activities to help students talk about food and cooking.

The main focus of the lesson is a text based on a recent survey in the UK indicating that British people are becoming more adventurous and experimental in their cooking and eating habits due to the growing popularity of cooking programmes. This lesson should challenge stereotypes of British food and encourage students to discuss their own preferences and attitudes towards food and restaurants.

The beginning of a meeting presents a major dilemma: is it better to get straight down to business, or is it important to allow or even encourage small talk? The texts in this lesson present arguments from opposing viewpoints, which may help students to question their own assumptions. The lesson goes on to introduce useful language for both small talk and getting down to business, with practice in the form of role-plays.

When we think of negotiations, we tend to focus on the hard negotiating skills connected with bargaining. In fact, many professional negotiators will confirm that the most important skill is effective relationship building. If there is trust and understanding between the two parties, the negotiation will be much more successful, as will the long-term business relationship between them. In this lesson students start with a quiz which leads into a reading activity. Then they look at language in dialogues and finish with a role play.