2011: Year in Review ESL Discussion Questions

What does it mean to review? Re-again. View – look.

Was 2011 a good year for you? Why? Why not?

Was 2011 a good year for everyone you know?

Was 2011 a good year for Wuxi? For China? For the world?

What was your best moment of 2011?

What was your worst?

What was your biggest regret?

Did you lost somebody?

What was the funniest?

What did you learn in 2011?

What was the best movie you saw?

Did you travel anywhere?

Did you meet anyone interesting?

Did you start a new relationship?

What new things did you buy in 2011?

Was 2011 a year of big changes for you?

Was 2011 a milestone year for you?

What did you accomplish in 2011?

Are you richer now than when you were in January?

Who was the most interesting person of 2011?

Who were the 2011's bad guys?

What famous people had a good 2011?

What famous people had a bad 2011?

Did the American president have a good year?

What famous people left us?

What were the biggest news stories? Big sports stories? Local stories? Stories in your hometown? Celebrity stories?

What will be most remembered about 2011?

What was the biggest fad of 2011? What were the fashions like?

If you could change one thing about 2011, what would you change?

English Teacher dances at Wuxi China Christmas Party

Words that begin with the letter "F"

What is your favorite word that starts with “F”? (Free Food)

What are some of the most commonly used words in English starting with “F”? Below is the top 25 in order by use and then listed alphabetically.

1	for
2	from
3	first
4	find
5	form
6	follow
7	father
8	found
9	food
10	four
11	far
12	few
13	feet
14	friend
15	fish
16	face
17	feel
18	family
19	fire
20	farm
21	fast
22	five
23	fall
24	fine
25	fly

face

fall

family

far

farm

fast

father

feel

feet

few

find

fine

fire

first

fish

five

fly

follow

food

for

form

found

four

friend

from

Divide the class into two or three teams and give points to each team that can guess a word.

Now ask them what their favorite word is?

Here is a list of discussion question topics starting with the letter “F”

• Facebook

• Fads & Trends

• Faith & Faithlessness

• Family

• Family & Alternative Lifestyles

• Famous People

• Fashion

• Favorites

• Fears

• Feelings

• Films in Your own Language

• Fire Safety

• First Dates

• Food & Eating

• Free Time

• Friends

• Fruits

• Future

Take a poll to see which topic the student would most like to discuss. Then have the students formulate questions about the topic.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) ESL Discussion Questions

What does "frequently" mean?

What questions are frequently asked? (Tell the students to use the five W questions and how. Yes-No Questions. Have other students try to answer the questions.)

• When you first meet a person?

• When young men meet young women?

• When you buy something? (e.g. Cars, televisions, computers, mobile phones, food)

• To a teacher?

• To a Language Teacher?

• To a government official?

• To a foreigner? (e.g. American, Japanese, German, Canadian)

• To Chinese by foreigners?

• When you have a visitor?

• To a policeman?

• To a computer technician?

• To a financial expert?

• To a child?

• To a pet owner?

• To a store clerk?

• To a movie or pop star?

• To a sports star?

• To a scientist?

• To a doctor?

• To a Taxi driver?

• To a bus driver?

• To you?

• To someone who just went to the cinema?

• To parents (of twins and so on)?

• To an ninety year old person?

• To someone who just did a stupid thing?

• To someone who just did something very clever?

• To another person after you both saw a UFO?

• To someone who is in the hospital?

• To some who has just been in an accident?

• To someone on a day with good or bad weather?

• To someone who looks tired or sick?

At the end of the class:

• What questions are you frequently asked?

• Are there questions that you hate being asked?

• Is there a question you would like to be asked?

Words that begin with “E”

Have students brainstorm a list of words that begin with the letter "E"

Add these words to the mix if the students can think of many. Perhaps, match a word for every word suggested by the students

eye excellence elegant earnest each explode

earn easy extra eat eccentric echo

ecstasy edge educate entertain effective effort

ego eject elaborate elastic energy electric

elephant elevate elite embarrass empty enough

encourage end enemy energy engineer English

enjoy entire equal erase error escape

eternal evade even ever every evil

exact exam excite exist exit expert

explode

Once, you have a good list, play with the words.

Think of questions you can ask about the word.

Try using the five W question words and how.

What do the words mean?

Ask the students to try to make sentences or questions with the words.

Ask the students to think of famous people of places that begin with the letter "E."