Abstract: The goal of this lesson is to review and practice prepositions of place, in conjunction with the present tense and furniture / housing vocabulary.

Duration: One-hour class period.

 Context: This lesson is designed for a beginner adult EFL / ESL classroom.

Materials Required:

• A computer with projection capabilities for teacher use.
• Whiteboard and markers.
• Architect Worksheets A and B.

Preparation:

Content: Students should be familiar with there is / there are, simple present, present progressive, and furniture / house vocabulary.

Implementation:

• Guess a letter. Write: “ _ _ _   _ _ _   _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _   _ _ _ _   _ _   _ _   _ _ _  _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ?” on the board, with each slot corresponding to a letter in the following question: “Can you describe what is in the picture?” Students take turns guessing a letter (using the form “A as in apple,” for instance) until someone guesses the question. This is what we will do next!
• The instructor then projects the following picture:

• Using there is / there are, students first write a short inventory of objects in the picture.
• The teacher orally elicits the names of objects, and then begins to talk about location and relationships, e.g. “Where is the cup of coffee?”
• As students respond, the teacher writes the prepositions students are able to produce on the left-hand side of the board, adding additional prepositions as needed:
  •  in
  • on
  • in front of
  • behind
  • above /over
  • under / below / underneath
  • between
  • next to
  • Also: on the right-hand / left-hand side of; to the right / left of

• Next to each preposition, the instructor draws a cube in black. S/he then draws a circle on the cube (in a contrasting color) for the first two prepositions to demonstrate meaning (as in this picture).
• The instructor then asks for volunteers to come up to the board and draw the circle in the appropriate place for the remaining prepositions. Students copy the information into their notebook.
• The instructor advises the students to return to their inventory of objects in the picture, and write 5 full sentences describing the location of these items. Short oral review.
• Students then divide into pairs and hands out the Architect Worksheets (Student A and Student B have different sheets). Student A is an architect with a plan for furnishing Student B’s new apartment. Without showing Student B her plan, Student A must describe the layout, as Student B draws and asks clarifying questions. At the end, the students reveal and compare their layouts.

Extension Activities:

• Scavenger Hunt: Before class, place 20 objects around the classroom in visible (and less visible) positions that clearly demonstrate prepositions of place (e.g. a tennis ball under a chair, a piece of candy next to a book, scissors on a chair, a hat on the floor, a flower in a vase, a marker behind the door). Create a handout listing all of the objects, with a blank line next to each. Student pairs need to locate each object and write a complete sentence using a preposition to describe the object’s location. The first group that finishes wins, assuming all their answers are correct. Review as a class and elicit alternate answers.