Let’s learn how to talk about feelings, emotions and states in English.
Conversation Questions
1.) When are you happiest?
2.) How do you deal with stress?
3.) Do you ever get hangry (angry because you’re hungry)?
4.) What small things annoy you?
WARM UPS
Guess what the expressions mean.
BEGINNER +
1.) To have green eyes
2.) To see red
3.) To see things in black and white
4.) To feel blue
5.) To be tickled pink
6.) To be yellow-bellied
7.) To be in the dark
8.) To blackout
INTERMEDIATE +
1.) To keep something bottled up
2.) To flip your lid
3.) To feel like you are in a fish bowl
4.) To have too much on your plate
5.) To see the glass as half full
6.) To feel bagged
7.) To feel boxed in
8.) To come apart at the seams
ALL LEVELS
Gratitude Game – Make full sentences about things you are grateful for.
One Minute Art! -Think of a specific emotion, and make a mandala that represents it. Other students try to guess the feeling.
VOCABULARY
BEGINNER
Flashcards
Letter Soup
Drag and Drop Game
Multiple Choice
INTERMEDIATE
Expressions about gratitude
Exaggeration for emphasis
READING AND WRITING
WRITING FOR ALL LEVELS
Select a situation, or make up your own, and write a dialogue.
1.) Best friends- One discovers that the other has been gossiping about the other.
2.) You can’t fire me. I quit!- A boss and an employee strongly disagree.
3.) Partners- A couple work together to rebuild trust after it’s been broken.
READING FOR INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED
The Benefits of Expressing Your Emotions – A Business English article by Forbes Magazine
SPEAKING AND CONVERSATION
Speaking Practice (A2 +)
In order to express our feelings and minimize conflict, we use the WIN technique. WIN stands for When you…/ I feel…/ I need…
Take turns thinking of situations where you need to talk to people about their behaviour, and role play using WIN.
Intermediate/ Advanced Conversation Topic
We often use the word make with emotions. You make me sad. That makes me angry. But many therapists insist that their clients avoid using this expression, because it implies that we are not responsible for our own feelings.
1.) What do you think of this idea?
2.) Are we responsible for our feelings, or do others make us feel things?
3.) What other ways can you think of to express your feelings?