Conversation Questions

Getting to Know Each Other

Do you have any pets?

What was the last book you read?
Do you like to cook?
What's your favorite food?
Are you good at cooking/swimming/etc?
Are you married or single?
Do you have brothers and sisters?
o Are they older or younger than you?
Do you like baseball?
Do you live alone?
Do you live in a house or an apartment?
Have you ever lived in another country?
Have you ever met a famous person?
How do you spend your free time?
How long have you been studying English?
How old are you?
How tall are you?
Tell me about a favorite event of your adulthood.
Tell me about a favorite event of your childhood.
What are your hobbies?
What two things could you not do when you were...?
What countries have you visited?
What country are you from?
What do you do on Sundays?
What do you do? What's your job?
What do you like to do in your free time?
What hobbies do you have?
What is the nearest bus stop or train station to your house?
What is your motto?
What is your religion? (Perhaps not a good question in some situations.)
What kind of food do you like?
What kind of people do you like?
What kind of people do you not like?
What languages do you speak?
What two things could you not do when you were a child, but you can do now?
What's something you do well?
What's your address?
What's your father like?
What's your mother like?
 What's your name?
What's your phone number?
What's your telephone number?
When did you start to study English?
Where are you from?
Where do you live?
Where do you live? How long have you lived there?
Where were you born?
Which sports do you like?
Who do you live with?
Who do you respect the most?
Who has had the most influence in your life?
Why did you decide to take this course?
Why do you want to learn English?
Would you like to be famous?
What do you think you will be doing five years from now?
o Where do you think you'll be living five years from now?
What is your goal in life?
Are you a 'morning' or 'night' person?
When do you feel best? In the morning, afternoon, or evening?
How many cities have you lived in?
What jobs have you done?
Which do you prefer, sunrises or sunsets?
What could you do as a child that you can't do now?
Who is your next door neighbor in your home country?
o What is he or she like?
o Did you get along with each other?
What is the best memory of our country that you will take back home with you?
What is the worst memory of our country?
How many times did you move as a child?
Are you a task oriented person or a people oriented person?
What is the profile of the wife/husband you would meet?
o What kind of woman/man would you like to marry?
Icebreakers
First day of class? Students too shy? Students dont feel comfortable speaking English? We have
you covered! Just choose whichever icebreaker questions or speaking activities you think will
work best!

Icebreaker Speaking Games/Activities

Who Am I?
First off we have Who Am I?. It takes a little prep (just some paper and tape) but students
really seem to get into it. They may not get to know each other from this one, but they will
certainly get comfortable talking to each other.

Two Truths One Lie

Next is a tried and true activity with virtually no prep. Great for students getting to know each
other and can be a very short or very long activity. It can even be easily turned into a game.

Paper Fight
This get to know you activity is definitely active and can be bit hectic but if you and your
students are keen it can be an activity they will remember for a long time. Good for building
rapport between you and your students.

Deserted Island
The deserted island question is one that we have all done. Its popular for a reason and students
seem to really enjoy figuring out which items to take to the island. With no preparation and lots
of talking, this is a good one to have in your utility belt.

Twenty Questions
Twenty questions is also another well worn activity, but one that never gets old. An added bonus
is that it can be used to review target vocabulary. Its good as a warmer to get them comfortable
with speaking English again.

Multipurpose
This next activity is an interesting one that will get them talking as well as get them thinking
creatively. It can be used in a limited way to review vocabulary since it can only be used for a
few words, but the few that you review will definitely be stuck in their heads after this activity.

Personality Quiz
Ah, personality quizzes. Accurate or not, people really seem to enjoy taking them. You might
want to hide the fact that it is a personality quiz until the very end though. A great activity to get
them talking and also a great activity to review or practice adjectives.

Riddles
Next up, riddles! Logic puzzles! Knock their brains into gear and get them to think outside the
box. To get the most out of this one, definitely put them in groups of three or four. Students get a
lot more out of this activity when they can bounce their ideas off other students.

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Bingo Icebreaker
Use this bingo board to get your students to ask each other questions. Available as a Word file
download so you can edit it for your needs!

Spot the Difference

Last one! This one takes the most prep of all of them. The language production on this one isnt
that high either, but most students will really get into it. You can also use it to point out some
extra vocabulary to get a bit more bang for your buck.

Icebreaker Conversation Questions

Small Talk
Completely random questions, so random in fact, that every student can find at least a couple of
questions that will pique their interest.

Have you ever

Questions about students experiences using the present perfect (i.e. have you ever). Everyone
likes talking about themselves and the things that have happened to them! (These questions are
also listed under grammar)

Comparatives / Superlatives
Questions based on comparatives (i.e. bigger, smaller, more interesting) and superlatives (i.e. the
biggest, the smallest, the most interesting). Lots of questions to get students talking about their
opinions on many different topics. (These questions are also listed under grammar)

250 Conversation Starters

This is a site aimed at native speakers of English but it has a lot of questions in the random
conversation starters section that would be suitable for intermediate and advanced students. A
great extra source of questions if the questions above arent enough for you.

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1. My Name is X, and I Like X

When youre teaching beginner ESL students, this game can be great for the first day.

The game can be carried out in several ways. The first and simplest is perfect for true beginners.
Start by introducing yourself using this format: My name is x, and I like x. Then ask every
student to go around and use the same format. The student has learned two sentence structures
(one with to be and one with a transitive verb).

If you have more advanced students, you can include memory recall in this game. Ask students
to introduce themselves in this way, and then ask students to introduce their neighbor: His/her
name is x and he/she likes x. This way, students learn not only a first-person sentence but a
third-person sentence as well.

The most advanced way to play this game is to include questions. Go around the room, either in
a circle or at random, and have students ask a classmate: Whats your name? What do you
like? The student who asked the question has to introduce their fellow student using the answers
they provide, and then the student who answered asks the questions to someone else. With this
version of the game, students learn how to ask two different kinds of questions.

With such a simple game, the key is to make sure that all students are formatting and
pronouncing their sentences perfectly correctly. This can be used in tandem with a vocabulary
lesson on foods, movies and television shows, animals or colors. Students can use their newly
learned vocabulary to fill in the blank at the end of the I like sentence.

With this game as with many classroom games the more random you can make the order
in which students are called upon, the better. When students realize that the order is random,
theyre much more likely to pay attention to other students answers instead of counting how
many more turns until they have to participate.

2. Reporter

This game is a great way to get students using their newly acquired oral expression skills and
listening comprehension. Pair up the students and have them interview each other. Depending on
the level of your class, you may want to start with a 5-10 minute brainstorming session to come
up with questions before having them begin.

If you want students to work on their oral expression, they may present their partners to the rest
of the class by using the answers provided during game time. If youre aiming for students to
practice their written expression skills, they can write out their partners answers during the
interview and hand this in to you afterwards.

You can turn this into an even more elaborate game by making the interviews homework and
having students present their partners to the class without giving the identity of the partner. The
class then has to guess the identity of each person based on the details that are presented.
Not only does this game force students to ask questions and reformulate the answers, but it also
gives them a great way to practice either oral or written expression.

3. Two Truths and a Lie

This getting-to-know-you ESL game is a lot of fun for more advanced students. Each student
must tell the class two truths and a lie about him or herself and have the class guess which
statement is the lie. Students must be able to express themselves orally in order to succeed at this
game.

This game allows students to get very creative, which means that they usually have a lot of fun
playing. Be sure to correct them only on grammar and vocabulary that youve covered in class
unless they ask for a word or phrase. Letting students express themselves, even if theyre not
100% correct, is important for this game. Teachers should not hesitate, however, to correct
grammar and vocabulary points that have been covered already in class.

4. Secrets

This game can be played to get students up and moving, which is a big help if your ESL class
has a tendency to be tired, lethargic or quiet.

First, ask each student to write down a secret on a piece of paper. Go around and make sure that
the secrets are written down correctly, but dont betray students secrets to their classmates!

Have each student fold their paper and put it in a hat. Each student then draws a secret from the
hat. Once each student has a secret, have them walk around the classroom asking other students
questions to find out whose secret they have. Theyre not allowed to directly say whats on the
paper in their questions!

For example, if a students secret is I have five cats, the person holding the secret might ask
Do you like animals? or How many animals live in your house?

5. Find a Partner

This game is similar to the above, but its perfect to link with a vocab lesson on food, movies,
books, colors, animals and so on

Each student writes down their favorite (book, food, movie) on a piece of paper and hides it in
their pocket or textbook. Each student then goes around and asks their classmates questions to
find someone who has written down the same answer. The only trick is that they cant use the
words theyve written down when asking questions to other students!

To make sure that none of these games gets out of hand and that students are really practicing
correct English, the key is for you to moderate effectively. Wander around the room and listen to
students conversations, correcting them as needed based on topics that youve covered in class.
As mentioned with other games, its ineffective to correct students on topics you havent
covered. Only do so if they explicitly ask for a word or phrase. By drawing attention to things
that they dont know and have no way of knowing, students will become more nervous to
participate and other games may be less effective.

Use these games to encourage oral expression amongst your students and to encourage them to
speak to one another in English. Soon, calls to participate in other ESL activities will be met with
excitement!
Quesos frescos, los ms recomendados

Lic. Marcela Licata - zonadiet.com

de la seccin: Comida

Los quesos frescos se obtienen en la industria alimentaria a partir de leche pasteurizada de vaca
mayoritariamente, pero tambin de cabra y oveja, a travs de los siguientes procesos:

Coagulacin cida: empleando cultivos de bacterias cidas. A ciertos quesos tambin se les
aade algo de cuajo y es la nica transformacin microbiana que tienen durante todo el
proceso.
Escurrido: tras unas horas de incubacin a 25-30 C, se forma la cuajada y se los escurre de
manera suave aproximadamente una hora o incluso menos, dejando as mucha parte del suero.
No se prensan
No se maduran

Realizado el proceso, se obtiene un queso de color blanco puro, de consistencia cremosa, gusto suave y
su conservacin est limitada a unos das en la nevera.

Por qu son los ms saludables?

Por no estar sometidos al periodo de maduracin

Por tener menos contenido en grasas
Por aportar menos sodio (sal)
Porque son apropiados para personas que padecen trastornos cardacos y arteriosclerosis

Diferentes tipos de quesos frescos y sus caractersticas

Queso Cottage: es un queso muy consumido en Estados Unidos desde hace ms de 100 aos. Se
elabora a partir de leche desnatada o semidesnatada, a la que se le agrega un cultivo de
estreptococos y una bacteria llamada leuconostoc, la que le proporciona ese sabor tan suave
que lo caracteriza.
Es de aspecto granulado, ideal para preparaciones dulces o saladas, de bajo aporte en grasas y
alto contenido en protenas, por lo que es adecuado para dietas de adelgazamiento.
Proporciona cada 100 gramos:
o caloras: 120
o grasas: 4 gramos
o protenas: 14 gramos
Queso de Burgos: es el queso fresco de Espaa, elaborado a partir de leche de oveja, cuajo y sal.
Tambin existe la variante sin sal, adaptada a personas que no puedan consumir sal.
Es un queso suave, tierno y fcil de digerir. Al estar elaborado a partir de la leche de oveja tiene
 un alto contenido en CLA (cido linoleico conjugado).
Proporciona cada 100 gramos:
o caloras: 100
o grasas: 7 gramos
o protenas: 7 gramos

La variante desnatada contiene menos grasa an.

Requesn o queso de suero: como su nombre lo indica se elabora a partir del suero que se
desecha en la elaboracin de los dems quesos. Su proceso es calentar el suero a 90 C,
produciendo precipitacin de sus protenas (las del suero), y as se forma una masa slida que es
el requesn.
Proporciona cada 100 gramos:
o caloras: 160
o grasas: 5-6 gramos
o protenas: 20 gramos de protenas de alto valor biolgico.
Queso Petit Suisse: este queso fresco de origen francs tiene agregados de nata y azcar,
adems de saborizantes y colorantes, resultando ms atractivo y apetecible, pero menos
saludable. Tiene una textura suave y cremosa.
Proporciona cada 100 gramos:
o caloras: 165
o grasas: 8,5 gramos
o protenas: 7 gramos
Queso Quark: es el queso fresco ms consumido en Alemania, de consistencia cremosa y sabor
algo cido.
Se elabora a partir de leche de vaca desnatada, por lo que es el queso fresco que menos grasas y
caloras aporta.
La coagulacin cida dura aproximadamente entre 6 y 12 horas con un cultivo a base de
Streptococcus cremoris.
El consumo de queso quark es muy aconsejado para dietas bajas en caloras.
Proporciona cada 100 gramos:
o caloras: 65
o grasas: 1-3 gramos
o protenas: 4 gramos

Las ventajas de consumir quesos blandos

o Alto aporte de minerales, entre ellos el calcio y fsforo.

o Son ricos en protenas y aminocidos.
o Muy digeribles.
o Su contenido calrico y de sodio es menor que el de los quesos curados.
o Sus protenas pueden reemplazar a las de las carnes y huevos.

Siendo los quesos frescos una excelente fuente de nutrientes saludables, debemos
elegirlos e incorporarlos a nuestra alimentacin diaria.