Unit 2 — On Holiday

Learning objectives Link to heading

• I can talk about a past holiday using past simple in 90 seconds.
• I can describe a place using 6+ adjectives.
• I can use past simple in positive, negative, and questions.

Bildungsplan alignment Link to heading

• 3.1.1 Soziokulturelles Orientierungswissen / Themen
• 3.1.2 Interkulturelle kommunikative Kompetenz
• 3.1.3.1 Hör-/Hörsehverstehen
• 3.1.3.3 Sprechen – an Gesprächen teilnehmen
• 3.1.3.8 Verfügen über sprachliche Mittel – Grammatik

(Source: https://www.bildungsplaene-bw.de/,Lde/LS/BP2016BW/ALLG/SEK1/E1)

Lead-in story Link to heading

Lina spent a week at the seaside in Cornwall. The sea was cold even in August. Her cousin caught one tiny crab and released it three minutes later, looking slightly betrayed. Sam stayed home and finally cleaned his desk. The desk was deeply impressed. Both of them claim to have had the better holiday, with no clear winner.

1. Activate Link to heading

Map prompt. Sticky notes on a blank world map: one place I have been, one I want to visit, one I never want to visit. Compare with another pair.

2. Input Link to heading

Vocabulary — holidays Link to heading

seaside, beach, cliffs, mountains, countryside, city break, campsite, hotel, hostel, suitcase, passport, souvenir, postcard, sunscreen, life jacket, lighthouse, harbour, ferry.

Grammar — past simple (positive / negative / Q) Link to heading

Regular + -ed: worked, played, watched. Irregular changes: go → went, see → saw, eat → ate, swim → swam, take → took, have → had, find → found, fly → flew, leave → left, meet → met.

Negatives & questions: did + base verb.

• Did you go? / I didn’t go.
• Did she eat? / She didn’t eat.

3. Practise Link to heading

Niveau E — controlled Link to heading

1. Past simple: I __________ (visit) my grandmother. We __________ (go) to the sea. We __________ (eat) fish. They __________ (find) a small crab.
2. Make negative + question: We saw a crab → ___ ; They went → ___ .

Niveau E — productive Link to heading

3. Build 6 past-simple sentences about a real or imagined holiday: place, weather, transport, food, one fun thing, one feeling.

4. Produce Link to heading

Pair speaking — Holiday Interview (Niveau E). 90 seconds each direction. Six questions minimum: where, when, who with, weather, transport, best moment, one thing that didn’t work.

Sample Link to heading

— Where did you go? — I went to Cornwall with my family. — Did anything not go to plan? — Yes — we missed the ferry on the second day.

5. Reflect Link to heading

• I can use past simple in pos/neg/Q.
• I can describe a place with 6+ adjectives.
• I can hold a 90-second holiday interview.

One thing in your notebook: Write one sentence using something you learned in this Unit.

Exam example Link to heading

Task 1 — Listening (8 BE) Link to heading

Listen twice.

“Last summer Lina went to Cornwall with her family. They stayed in a small hotel near the harbour. The sea was cold but the sun was warm. They saw seals from the cliffs. They ate fish and chips on the beach.”

1. Where: ___ . 2. Stay: ___ . 3. Animal: ___ . 4. Food: ___ .

Task 2 — Reading (8 BE) Link to heading

Read.

“Sam stayed at home last summer. He cleaned his desk, read three books, learned how to bake bread, and started a small notebook of recipes. He didn’t travel, but he says it was the calmest summer of his life.”

1. Did Sam travel? ___ . 2. Three things he did: ___ . 3. New skill: ___ . 4. Description: ___ .

Task 3 — Use of English (8 BE) Link to heading

Past simple.

1. We __________ (visit) Cornwall.
2. They __________ (not / go) to Spain.
3. ___ you ___ (see) the sea?
4. He __________ (eat) fish and chips.
5. ___ she ___ (find) the right station?

Task 4 — Writing (6 BE) Link to heading

Write 6 sentences about a real or imagined holiday.

Downloads Link to heading

Common pitfalls Link to heading

• I goed → ✗ / I went → ✓ (irregular).
• Did you went? → ✗ / Did you go? → ✓ (after did, base form).
• Past time marker + present perfect = ✗.

Further reading / listening Link to heading

• BBC Learning English — Past simple lessons.
• VisitBritain — short articles for young learners.

Downloads

Presentation

Download .pptx

Worksheet

Download .pdf