Places and Directions- Design a Town

Places and Directions- Design a Town
Instructions
Choose one of the cards on the next page and tell your partner where to put it on the table
or around the classroom (depending on what your teacher tells you). You can give
directions and/ or positions, e.g. “Go straight for five seconds. Turn right. Go straight one
centimetre” and/ or “It’s opposite the house”. Silly places (“The school is under the
hospital” etc) are also okay. If your partner says “in”, fold the other piece of paper and put
it around that card. Blank spaces and blank cards mean you have a free choice – the
person listening should write the things that is said (e.g. “hat shop”) on the card and then
put it where they are told to. Change roles and do the same again with different cards.
Continue asking about position and placing that card in the place that is said until all the
cards are finished, until there is no more space on the table, or until your teacher stops the
game.

Useful language for giving directions
“It’s… seconds (North/ South/ West/ East) (on foot/ by car)”
“Turn left (and left again)”
“Turn right (and right again)”
“Go straight/ Go straight ahead/ Go straight (a tiny bit/ a little bit/ one centimetre/ half a
centimetre/ one and half centimetre/ two centimetres/ … centimetres/ one second/ two
seconds/… seconds).”
“Go back (a tiny bit/ a little bit/ one centimetre/ half a centimetre/ one and half
centimetre/ two centimetres/ … centimetres/ … metres/ … millimetres/ one second/ two
seconds/… seconds).”
“It’s next to/ opposite/ in front of/ behind/ near…”
“It’s between… and…”
“It’s on/ under…”
“It’s on… Street”
“It’s… Street”

Extension 1
Ask for instructions on how to get somewhere and walk your fingers or push a toy car
following your partner’s instructions. If they give the wrong instructions, you should do
what they say and then they should give instructions on how to get from that wrong place
to the correct place.

Extension 2
Turn the cards face down and then play the same game as Extension 1, this timing
guessing where the place is and giving directions if you don’t remember which card it is.

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2016

Blank cards

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2016

Places cards to copy and cut up

bank

beach

bookshop

bus stop

bus stop

bus stop

campsite

castle

Chinese

restaurant

cinema (=

movie theater)

gym (= sports

centre)

hotel

hotel

Indian

restaurant

Japanese

restaurant

lake/ pond

library

mountain

music shop

palace

park

post box

post box

post office

school

school

sports shop

station

station

supermarket

supermarket

convenience

store

convenience

store

swimming pool

swimming pool

theme park

amusement

arcade

public toilet

public toilet

apartment

building

apartment

building

house

house

office building

office building

zoo

theatre

hospital

clinic

kindergarten/

nursery school

hair salon

pet salon

hospital

hospital

________ shop

________ shop

____________

restaurant

____________

restaurant

coffee shop

coffee shop

toy shop

temple

church

police station

fire station

pet shop

police station

animal hospital

Green Road

London Road

High Street

Main Street

___________

Road

___________

Street

___________

Street

___________

Road

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2016