In the Excuses Excuses ESL activity, students have to make up funny excuses for not accepting invitations.
6+
15-25 mins
None
Setup
Each student will need a notebook or piece of paper.
Activity
- First, each student writes down three imagined events (for the coming week) they could invite their classmates to. Higher levels can just note the event and date, but you may want lower levels to prepare the complete invitation.
- When finished, the students stand up and mingle, taking their paper and pen with them. They interact with other students, inviting other students to their events.
- However, every invitation must be declined. Students instead respond with an excuse in the form of a future plan for that date (using the present continuous). For example, Sorry, I’m washing my hair on Friday. The student who asked the question notes down the excuse.
- After this has been repeated sufficient times, students return to their seats. They then share the best excuses they were given with the class. For example, Maria can’t come to my birthday party because she is washing her hair on Friday.
Target Language
The Excuses Excuses ESL activity is a great way to practise either language for invitations, and/or the present continuous for near-future plans. It is suitable for high beginner or low intermediate level students.
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