Discussion Q's for English Language Learners

If you live abroad, or aim to, chances are at some point, you're going to tutor or teach English. So here's a great big list of discussion questions!

—GENERAL—>

What’s your name?

How old are you?

What’s your favorite food? (Korean and foreign)

What’s your favorite color?

Do you like sports? What’s your favorite?

Do you like games? What’s your favorite?

Do you like movies? What’s your favorite?

Do you like dramas? What’s your favorite?

What kind of music do you like?

Have you visited other countries?

What country do you want to visit?

What’s your favorite season? Do you like hot weather or cold weather better?

What’s your favorite animal?

Do you have pets? Do you want a pet?

What’s your favorite subject in school? What’s school subject do you not like?

Do you have brothers or sisters? Are they older or younger? Do you want brothers or sisters?

Do you have many cousins?

What do you like to do with your friends for fun?

What do you like to do when you’re by yourself?

Do you play a musical instrument? Which one? What musical instrument would you like to learn?

Do you like to read? What’s your favorite book? What about Webtoon?

What is your favorite subject in school? What is your least favorite?

What did you do today?

What was the best part of this week?

What was the worst part of this week?

—NAMES—>

What is your name?

How do you spell your name?

What does your name mean?

Do you like your name? Why / why not?

Do you have a nickname?

What is your best friend’s name?

What are the names of some of your classmates?

Do you know anyone with a strange or unusual name?

What are some popular English names?

What are some old fashioned English names?

Are there any famous people who have the same name as you?

What the name of your favorite famous person?

How can parents choose good names for their children?

Do you think a person’s name is important?

—ZOO—>

Have you ever been to the zoo?

When did you go? Explain.

What is your favorite animal to see at the zoo?

Would you like to work in a zoo? Why or why not?

What are some good things about zoos?

Do you think there are bad things about zoos?

What kinds of people can you see visiting zoos?

Would you like to live next to a zoo?

—SLEEP—>

What time did you go to bed last night?

What time do you normally go to bed every night?

Do you like to stay up late?

Do you ever go to bed before 9pm?

Do you like to get up early?

When you wake up in the morning, how do you feel?

Do you ever take naps?

How many hours of sleep do you need?

Have you ever fallen asleep in class?

Do you ever listen to music to help you fall asleep?

What would happen if you stayed awake for 24 hours?

Do you ever snore?

Tell me about a dream you’ve had.

—EMOTIONS—>

How do you feel today?

How do you usually feel when you get up in the morning?

What makes you feel angry?

What makes you feel sad?

What makes you feel happy?

What do you like to do when you’re bored?

Do animals have feelings?

Talk about a time that made you feel embarrassed.

How do you feel when you have an English exam?

—COUNTRIES—>

Can you think of five very big countries?

Can you think of five small countries?

Can you think of a country that’s very hot?

Can you think of a country that’s very cold?

What are some countries nearby this one?

What are some countries far from this one?

What are some differences between Korea and America?

What are some differences between Mexico and...?

What countries have you visited?

How was this country different 100 years ago?

How do you think it will be different 100 years from now?

How many countries can you think of that begin with A?

—WEATHER—>

What’s the weather like today?

What do you think the weather will be like tomorrow?

What’s your favorite kind of weather?

Do you know what hail is? Have you ever seen it?

Do you like rainy weather? How does it make you feel?

What is your favorite kind of weather?

Which do you like better: rain or snow? Why?

How can you keep dry in rainy weather?

Which city do you think has the best weather?

Do you know what a tornado is? Have you ever seen one?

Do you know what a flood is? Have you ever seen one?

—TELEPHONE—>

Do you like talking on the phone? Why or why not?

How many times do you talk on the phone each day? Do you think it’s too much or too little?

What age do you think is good for someone to have their first cell phone?

How many phone numbers can you remember?

Do you text a lot every day? Who do you text?

How did people communicate before their were phones?

When was the last time you talked on the phone? Who did you talk to?

Do you have a cell phone? What kind? Do you like it? Why or why not?

—READING—>

Do you like to read? What kinds of things do you like to read?

What’s your favorite novel?

Did you read yesterday?

What is the last thing you read?

Do you read magazines? What kind? How often?

Which do you think is better: reading things online or reading things on paper?

Can reading make you a smarter person?

Tell me about an interesting book you’ve read?

How do you feel when you read things in English? Is it easy or hard? Do you like it?

Which is better: reading or watching TV?

Do you like going to bookstores?

What are some things that can help you become a better reader?

—SCHOOL—>

Did you go to school today? Did you like it?

What’s your favorite thing to study at school?

What did you study in your last class?

Are you / were you a good student?

Talk about three ways you can get good grades in school.

Do you think school should be fun? Why or why not? How do you think it can be fun?

Why do people go to school?

How many years do you think children should go to school?

How many hours do you think children should go to school for each day?

At what age should children go to school?

Do you think students have too much stress? How can they relax more?

Who was/is your favorite teacher?

Do you think teachers jobs are hard or easy?

Why do teachers give tests to students?

Do people ever stop learning? Why or why not?

—FOOD AND DRINKS—>

What do you normally eat for breakfast?

What’s your favorite food? How often do you get to eat it?

What kind of food do you know how to cook? Do you like to cook?

What is healthy food? Do you like it?

Are you hungry now? What do you want to eat after class?

What’s the name of your favorite restaurant?

What’s the strangest food you’ve ever eaten?

Would you like to be a farmer and grow food? Why or why not?

How was food different 100 years ago?

Do you think coffee is good for you? What about tea?

What do you usually eat for lunch?

What’s your favorite drink?

Do you like shopping at supermarkets?

Give me some examples of junk food.

What are some famous Korean foods?

Do you like spicy food?

How do you think you can encourage children to eat more healthy food?

—EXERCISE AND SPORTS—>

What is your favorite kind of exercise?

How much exercise do you get each week? Do you think you get enough exercise?

What are some examples of winter sports?

What are some examples of summer sports?

Should schools give their students more time to play sports?

What are some examples of team sports?

What are some examples of individual sports?

Do you prefer team sports or individual sports?

What strange or unusual sports do you know about?

What sports do you think are really boring?

Do you know how to swim? Do you like the pool or the beach better?

What is the best age for children to learn how to swim?

Did you exercise or play sports yesterday? If so, what did you do?

What kind of exercise do you hate?

Do you like to watch sports on TV? Which ones?

What sport are you best at?

Would you like to be a professional athlete (play sports as a job)?

Which is better: baseball or football?

Is weightlifting a good way to become strong and healthy? Why do you think so?

—RECREATION—>

How much free time do you get during the week? Is it enough?

Do you think most people have enough free time?

What do you like to do during your free time?

Do you think having too much free time is a bad thing?

Do you think having not enough free time is a bad thing?

Do students study too much?

Do you ever study English in your

What did you do for fun last weekend?

What was your last holiday?

How much free time do you have today? Is it enough?

Do people have more or less free time than 100 years ago? Why or why not?

What is your favorite hobby? Why?

What do you plan to do for fun next weekend?

When is the last time you went to a movie theater? What movie did you watch?

How many hours a day do you spend online? What’s your favorite website?

Do you think sleeping is a good way to spend your free time? Why or why not?

—DAILY ACTIVITIES—>

What time do you normally go to bed? Do you think it should be earlier?

What time do you normally wake up? Do you think it should be earlier?

What do you often have for breakfast?

How do you get to school / work? Train, bus, car, walk...?

What time do you arrive at school / work?

What time do you get home after school / work? Are you tired when you get home?

Do you drink coffee? Do you think people drink too much coffee?

Where do you eat lunch? What do you normally have for lunch?

What time do you normally have dinner?

Can you cook? Do you like to cook? What is your favorite thing to cook?

What’s your favorite TV show (drama)? Why do you like it?

How much time do you spend online every day? Do you think it’s too much?

What hobbies do you have? What’s your favorite hobby?

Tell me about your best friend.

—LEARNING ENGLISH—>

Why are you learning English?

Do you like English tests? Are they fun? Why or why not?

How long does it take most people to learn English?

Is it possible to learn a language in only one year? Why or why not?

How many hours a week do you study English? Is it enough?

Do you study English every day?

Can watching TV help you learn English? Why or why not?

Is English an easy language to learn? Why or why not?

Can the internet help you to learn English? How?

Would you like to have a job as a translator? Why or why not?

Do you enjoy learning new things? Why or why not?

What is the best way to learn a language?

How many languages can you speak?

What is the best age to start learning a language? Why?

Is vocabulary easier to learn than grammar? Which do you like better?

Can reading books and magazines help you to learn English?

Is homework fun?

Are you a good English student? Why or why not?

Do you know anyone who speaks English very well? Who?

Do you like learning English? Is it fun?

<3 Daeun