Language Learning Ideas- Adverbs of Frequency Discussion

Language Learning Ideas- Adverbs of Frequency Discussion
Choose a good or bad language learning idea from below and ask your partner “How often
should I…?” They should give a whole sentence expression with “You should..”, “You
can…” or “You could…” and a frequency expression like “very often” or “never”, using
exact expressions like “at least twice a day” and “as often as you can” if they can. Discuss
if you agree with their idea and what your opinion is, then do the same with other
sentences from below.

You can…
You could…
You should…


ask someone to explain something another way



ask someone to repeat



ask your teacher questions which are about English but aren’t in the course



choose one or two things in English that you want to use as much as possible



correct yourself while you are speaking



do karaoke in English



do your homework just after the last English class



do your homework just before the next English class



get a little drunk before speaking English



have English radio on even when you aren’t listening carefully



interrupt people if they have misunderstood you



learn a famous speech or poem in English by heart



learn lists of English vocabulary



learn whole pages of vocabulary from the dictionary



listen to English while you are sleeping



listen to the news in English



listen, read and speak at the same time (= shadow reading)



memorise new English words that you find in your textbook



memorise new English words that you see in things made for native speakers like

newspapers and movies



play language learning apps on your mobile phone or tablet



practice a conversation that you are going to have in English beforehand

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2015



press the “memory” button on your electronic dictionary to remember what words you

have looked up



put English subtitles on when you watch a film in your own language



read English language children’s books



read English language classics like Dickens and Shakespeare



read English newspapers



read and listen at the same time (for example with a graded reader and its CD or mp3

file)



read authentic texts (= texts written for native speakers such as novels)



read graded texts (= texts written for language learners such as Intermediate-level

easy readers)



read in English about something you are going to watch before watching it



record your own voice



revise (= review) what you have studied in past classes



speak to your own friends in English (instead of your own language)



speak while you are thinking of what to say



study for language exams such as TOEIC



study from a grammar book



take Skype lessons with Filipino teachers



translate in your head into English from your own language



try to pronounce exactly like native speakers



try to start conversations with foreign people in trains and stations



use a bilingual dictionary (e.g. English-Japanese)



use a dictionary



use a monolingual dictionary (= an English-English dictionary)



use automatic translation



use new words that you have learnt



use words in your own language such as names of traditional foods and then explain

their meaning in English

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2015



watch English comedies



watch different episodes of the same English language series



watch something dubbed into your own language before you watch it in English



watch something in English that you have already seen



watch something in English which you already know the story of



watch something in English with English subtitles



watch something in English with no subtitles



watch something in English with subtitles in your own language



write in English even when no one will look at what you have written



write in your own language first and then translate it into English



write new vocabulary on flashcards or in a vocabulary textbook



write the pronunciation of English words using your own language (e.g. Japanese

katakana script)

Ask the class about any topics above which you weren’t sure about or had different
opinions on.

Brainstorm as many possible answers to “How often…?” questions as you can.

Find cards in the pack that are given that could be answers to “How often…?” questions.
What would the question be for the other cards?

Try to make statements about language learning using as many of those cards as you
can.

Make other statements with “should” and the frequency expression cards and see if your
partner agrees.

Possible topics:


Doing your job well



Being “green” (= environmentally friendly)



Being healthy



Improving your appearance



Being a good wife or husband

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2015