Summary
This ESL lesson for C1 English students explores Business and investment. Using a real audio as the basis for discussion, students develop listening comprehension, vocabulary, and grammar skills across a 90-minute class.
The grammar focus is Advanced conditionals with inversion (Should/Were/Had). Key vocabulary includes value proposition (noun phrase), return on investment (ROI) (noun phrase), scalability (noun) and more, all drawn directly from the source material. The practical English section gives students useful phrases for real-life situations: You have 60 seconds to convince a potential investor that your business idea is worth their time and money. These phrases will help you structure your pitch effectively..
Activities
- A warm-up discussion to activate prior knowledge and get students thinking about the topic before listening.
- Comprehension exercises based on the audio to check understanding of the main ideas and key details.
- A grammar focus on Advanced conditionals with inversion (Should/Were/Had). In formal English, especially in persuasive contexts like business pitches, we can make conditional sentences more emphatic by inverting the subject and the auxiliary verb, and removing 'if'. This structure adds a level of formality and sophistication.
- Vocabulary expansion with advanced expressions related to Business and investment not found in the source material.
- Practical English phrases for You have 60 seconds to convince a potential investor that your business idea is worth their time and money. These phrases will help you structure your pitch effectively., with exercises to practise using them naturally.
- A speaking task where students role-play a real-world scenario, applying vocabulary and phrases from the lesson.
Vocabulary focus
The vocabulary section introduces C1-level words and phrases related to Business and investment. Key terms include value proposition (noun phrase), return on investment (ROI) (noun phrase), scalability (noun), traction (noun), seed funding (noun phrase). Students practise using these terms in context through exercises drawn from the source material.
Grammar focus
This lesson focuses on Advanced conditionals with inversion (Should/Were/Had). In formal English, especially in persuasive contexts like business pitches, we can make conditional sentences more emphatic by inverting the subject and the auxiliary verb, and removing 'if'. This structure adds a level of formality and sophistication.
