Starting and Ending Conversations- Disappearing Text Memory Game
A LESSON PLAN FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHERS
Phrases for beginning and closing conversations review by memorising model conversations with a fun covering the text word by word game.
Lesson Plan Content:
Starting and Ending Conversations- Disappearing Text Memory Game
Work in groups of two to four people. Look at the text that your teacher tells you to look at.
The first person reads out the whole of the text, then covers or deletes one word, keeping
the punctuation if you can.
If you are doing it online, one person should share their copy and delete the words that
they choose, and also words that other people choose (to instructions like “Can you delete
the word “the”, on the second row/ in the third column?”). The words can be deleted or
changed to white.
The next person then reads the whole text, including the word that was just covered or
deleted, and chooses one more word. You must say exactly what is written in each square,
even when other words would also be correct. The bold text is one person and the normal
text is the other person, but one player should read out both people’s parts each time.
Take turns reading out the text and covering or deleting words until the whole text is gone,
until you give up, or until your teacher stops the game.
After finishing the memory game, roleplay situations from below, starting with the one that
you just memorised:
-
Meeting someone again
-
The first contact with someone (e.g. meeting for the first time at a trade show/ trade
fair/ conference)
-
Smoothly ending a conversation such as a business meeting
Do one or both of the brainstorming stages below.
Test each other on the phrases in the ways suggested on the brainstorming sheets.
Make similar dialogues in the boxes given for other groups to play the same memory game
with, then swap texts.
Play the same memory game with the text that you wrote.
Roleplay starting and ending a conversation. Before you start, decide how long the whole
conversation will be and how long you will spend smoothly ending it, e.g. five minutes, with
the last one minute smoothly ending. Roleplay that conversation, discuss if it went well or
not and why, then try again with the same or different time limits.
Roleplay more realistic meeting people in English situations for you, telling your partner
who you are meeting (and so who your partner should pretend to be) and the situation
(e.g. a Malaysian supplier who you are visiting at their own office).
p. 1
Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2021
300 pages of other social English materials:
Starting conversations – To delete or cover
Hi
Maria.
Hi
Alex.
It’s
great
to
see
you
again.
Good
to
see
you
too.
How’s
it
going?
Great
thanks.
My
big
project
is
finished!
How
about
you?
How’s
work?
Not
bad.
This
time
of
year
is
usually
not
so
busy.
Lucky
you!
Alex,
do
you
know
Elsa?
She’s
an
admin
clerk
in
our
Spanish
office.
No,
I
don’t.
Nice
to
meet
you,
Elsa.
…
p. 2
Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2021
300 pages of other social English materials:
Starting conversations – Reference copy
Hi
Maria.
Hi
Alex.
It’s
great
to
see
you
again.
Good
to
see
you
too.
How’s
it
going?
Great
thanks.
My
big
project
is
finished!
How
about
you?
How’s
work?
Not
bad.
This
time
of
year
is
usually
not
so
busy.
Lucky
you!
Alex,
do
you
know
Elsa?
She’s
an
admin
clerk
in
our
Spanish
office.
No,
I
don’t.
Nice
to
meet
you,
Elsa.
…
p. 3
Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2021
300 pages of other social English materials:
Starting and ending conversations with strangers – To delete or cover
Is
this
seat
free?
Yes,
please
go
ahead.
Thanks.
It’s
really
busy,
isn’t
it?
Always!
Is
this
your
first
time
here?
Yes,
I’m
based
in
Vietnam.
Are
you
from
Tokyo?
Yokohama,
so
not
far.
So,
what
brings
you
here?
I’m
selling
security
software.
What
do
you
do?
I’m
in
IT
too.
Well,
the
presentation
is
starting
but
I’d
love
to
hear
more
about
your
products.
My
is
here
on
my
business
card.
Thanks.
I’ll
you
later
today.
Great!
p. 4
Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2021
300 pages of other social English materials:
Starting and ending conversations with strangers – For reference
Is
this
seat
free?
Yes,
please
go
ahead.
Thanks.
It’s
really
busy,
isn’t
it?
Always!
Is
this
your
first
time
here?
Yes,
I’m
based
in
Vietnam.
Are
you
from
Tokyo?
Yokohama,
so
not
far.
So,
what
brings
you
here?
I’m
selling
security
software.
What
do
you
do?
I’m
in
IT
too.
Well,
the
presentation
is
starting
but
I’d
love
to
hear
more
about
your
products.
My
is
here
on
my
business
card.
Thanks.
I’ll
you
later
today.
Great!
p. 5
Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2021
300 pages of other social English materials:
Smoothly ending conversations – To delete or cover
Well,
I’d
love
to
talk
more,
but
I
have
another
meeting
at
half
past
four.
No
problem.
It
was
nice
to
meet
you,
Abdul.
It
was
great
meeting
you
too,
Kim.
What’s
your
schedule
for
the
rest
of
the
day?
I’m
finished,
so
I’ll
cook
some
Italian
food.
Great!
Well,
have
a
nice
evening.
You
too.
See
you
tomorrow.
Yes,
see
you
then.
Bye.
Goodbye.
p. 6
Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2021
300 pages of other social English materials:
Smoothly ending conversations – For reference
Well,
I’d
love
to
talk
more,
but
I
have
another
meeting
at
half
past
four.
No
problem.
It
was
nice
to
meet
you,
Abdul.
It
was
great
meeting
you
too,
Kim.
What’s
your
schedule
for
the
rest
of
the
day?
I’m
finished,
so
I’ll
cook
some
Italian
food.
Great!
Well,
have
a
nice
evening.
You
too.
See
you
tomorrow.
Yes,
see
you
then.
Bye.
Goodbye.
p. 7
Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2021
300 pages of other social English materials:
Brainstorming and finding phrases with the same meaning
Without looking above for now, brainstorm at least one phrase with the same meaning as
each phrase below. The phrase could be longer, more formal, etc, but must mean the
same. Many phrases not above are also possible. Try to make as many changes as you
can to the words below (without changing the meaning), but small changes are also fine.
Starting meeting people again conversations
Hello.
It’s nice to see you again.
Nice to see you too.
How are you doing?
And you?
How is your job going?
Fine.
Oh, you are so lucky!
Alex, have you met Elsa?
Pleased to meet you, Elsa.
Starting and ending conversations with strangers
Is anyone sitting here? – No, please go ahead.
Have you been here before? – No, I haven’t.
I work in Vietnam.
Do you come from Tokyo?
Why are you here in…?
What’s your job?
Anyway,…
Here is my business card. My email address is written on it.
Smoothly ending conversations
So, I’d like to speak more, but I have one more meeting at four thirty.
It was nice meeting you.
Do you have any plans for the rest of today?
Enjoy your evening!
I’ll see you tomorrow.
Check with the dialogues, brainstorm more phrases if you can, then test each other:
Read out a phrase and see if your partner can say if it is to start or end conversations
Read out two phrases with the same meaning, but with one word replaced by “beep”,
“blank”, etc and see if your partner can repeat back the whole phrase
Read out a phrase and help your partner make a phrase which means the same thing.
Other phrases not above are also okay as long as they have the same meaning.
Read out a phrase above and see if your partner can respond to it.
Read out a phrase above then together roleplay from there to the end of the conversa-
tion.
p. 8
Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2021
300 pages of other social English materials:
Without looking above, brainstorm useful phrases into the categories below. Phrases
which aren’t above are fine as long as they have the same function.
Greetings at the beginning of the conversation
Polite things to say when you meet for the first time (like “Nice to meet you”)
Friendly things to say when you meet again (like “Nice to meet you” to meet again)
Small talk questions at the beginning of the conversation
Responding to people’s answers
Asking the same question back
Introducing other people
Smoothly finishing conversations (giving reasons for ending the conversation, etc)
Talking about business cards
Polite/ friendly things to say at the end (like “Nice to meet you”, but at the end)
Small talk questions at the end of the conversation
Good wishes for something that the other person will do
Talking about future contact (the next meeting, etc)
Greetings at the end of the conversation
p. 9
Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2021
300 pages of other social English materials:
Blank grid to make your own dialogue in
p. 10
Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2021
300 pages of other social English materials:
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