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Will vs be going to for Plans and Predictions

Discuss future plans, make predictions, and decisions in the moment.

1. Warm up
Discuss the following with a partner.

1. Who is someone you haven’t seen for a while?

2. When was the last time you saw them? What did you do?

3. What would you like to do the next time you see them?

2. Vocabulary
Photo by Budgeron Bach

A. On your own, tick/check the activities that you would like to do.

…… go bowling …… go to a restaurant …… visit a petting zoo

…… go to the beach …… go rock-climbing …… have a movie night
…… go shopping …… see a local landmark …… go paint-balling
…… visit a museum …… go fishing …… study English more
…… go to the theatre …… watch a sports game ……
…… have a picnic …… go go-karting

B. With a partner, discuss three things you would like to do and one thing you wouldn’t. Give
reasons for your answers.

C. Add an activity that you would like to do together to the list.

3. Reading
A. Read the telephone conversation between friends Kate and Ben.

Kate Hi Ben! I’m so excited for your visit tomorrow. What time will your bus arrive?

Ben It should arrive by 10:30 a.m., but you know what L.A. traffic is like, so a. it will probably be late.
Kate Yes, probably. Is there anything special you would like to do while you’re here?

Ben Well, I ‘d like to go shopping on Rodeo Drive and go to a nice restaurant there. The Los Angeles Dodgers are
playing on Thursday and it would be great to watch the game.

Kate Okay, that sounds good. b. I will get us some tickets for the game.

Ben That’s great! I haven’t seen the Hollywood sign either, so that would be nice to see.

Kate No problem. I checked the forecast. c. The weather is going to be really nice on the weekend, so we can go and
see it then. We can have a picnic if you’d like.

Ben That would be great!

Kate OK... I’ll make some sandwiches. Malia and Kiko are in town on holiday too, so d. they are going to meet us at
Venice Beach on Sunday afternoon for a swim.

Ben I can’t wait! I haven’t seen Malia or Kiko in ages . It’s going to be great!

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 B. Answer the questions about Ben’s visit.

1. Where is Ben visiting? 4. Where are they going to meet their friends?

2. When will he arrive? 5. Which activities from Part 2A does Ben want to do?

3. What will they do on Thursday?

4. Will vs Be going to
A. Review the underlined parts of the conversation in Part 3A and circle the best alternative to
complete the rules. Write (a-d) next to each rule.

1. ______ For plans already decided, use: will / be going to

2. ______ For a decision made in the moment, use: will / be going to

3. ______ For predictions without evidence, use: will / be going to

4. ______ For predictions with evidence, use: will / be going to

B. Complete the following about ‘will’ and ‘be going to’.

1. The negative form of ‘will’ is:

2. The negative forms of ‘be going to’ are:

3. Put parts (a-d) in order to construct a sentence with ‘will’:

a. verb b. will c. object d. subject

+ + +

4. Put parts (a-d) in order to construct a question with ‘will’:

a. verb b. will c. subject d. question word

+ + +

5. Put parts (a-e) in order to construct a question with ‘be going to’:

a. be b. question word c. going to d. subject e. verb

+ + + +

5. Practice
A. Complete the sentences with the correct form of will or be going to.

1. I set my alarm for 6 a.m. We need to leave here at 7:30 a.m. to get the train.

2. Don’t worry. I’m sure your mother be back soon to help with your homework.

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 3. Your father probably call this afternoon, so keep your phone with you.

4. Did you see the forecast? It rain tomorrow, so take your umbrella!

5. I order a pizza tonight, so you don’t need to cook.

B. Put the words in the correct order to make sentences.

1. going / a / I / see / to / tonight / movie / am

2. play / not / this / going / He / to / is / soccer / weekend

3. going / tomorrow / to / She / get / is / haircut / a

4. do / homework / you / this / to / Are / evening? / going

C. Circle the correct alternatives to complete the following.

1. I’m so tired. Will you / Are you going to cook dinner tonight please?

2. I love that dress. Will you / Are you going to wear it tonight?

3. I will / I am going to get a sandwich in the café for lunch. Do you want anything?

4. A Do you know where the car keys are? B No, I will / I am going to ask Dad.

5. It’s his birthday next month, so he will / is going to go to Las Vegas with his friends.

D. Write four sentences about your future plans using ‘be going to’. Two sentences should be
true and two should be false.

1.

2.

3.

4.

E. Read your sentences. Your partner will guess which are true and which are false.

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 Will vs be going to for Plans and Predictions
Level: Pre-Intermediate: A2+
Intermediate: B1
Updated: May 25, 2022
Target: Function: Making predictions. Talking about the future.
Forms: Future forms. Modal and auxiliary verbs. Verb noun collocations.
Teaching time: 90 minutes.
Overview: Students learn some interesting collocations for free-time activities. They will be able to use ‘will’ and ‘be going to’
to talk about future plans and decisions made in the moment as well as make predictions about the future with or
without evidence.

1. WARM UP 3. For predictions without evidence, use: will

A warm up activity helps set the mood for the topic/lesson and
is a good opportunity to assess students’ ability to generate
language as well as elicit target vocabulary used in the lesson. If
students struggle to engage with their partners, ask questions
to encourage participation. Allow a few minutes for students to
complete the warm up activity and continue the conversation if
interesting.
2. VOCABULARY
A. Individually, students look at the list of activities and tick/check
the ones they would like to do. Check students’ understanding
of the vocabulary.
B. In pairs, students discuss 3 things they would each like to do and
1 thing they wouldn’t like to do. Encourage students to discuss
reasons for their choices.
C. In pairs, students discuss an activity they would like to do with
each other and add it to the list in Part 2A. Elicit ideas from
students in open class.
3. READING
A. In pairs, students read the telephone conversation between
friends Kate and Ben. Student change roles and practice again.
B. Individually, students read and answer the questions. Students
can check their answers by comparing with their partner or
check answers as a class.
1. Ben is visiting L.A. (Los Angeles).
2. He should arrive by 10:30 a.m., but may be late because of
traffic.
3. They are going to go to a Los Angeles Dodgers game.
4. They are going to meet their friends on Venice Beach.
5. Ben wants to go shopping, go to a restaurant, see a sports
game, see a local landmark (The Hollywood Sign), have a
picnic, go to the beach (Venice Beach).
4. WILL VS BE GOING TO
A. In pairs, students review the underlined parts in the
conversation in Part 3A then complete the rules by circling
either ‘will’ or ‘be going to’. The underlined parts in the text (a-d)
are examples of rules 1-4 and can be written next to the number
they correspond to.
1. For plans already decided, use: be going to
d. They are going to meet us
2. For a decision made in the moment, use: will
b. I will get us some tickets
a. it will probably be late.
4. For predictions with evidence, use: be going to
c. The weather is going to be really nice...
B. Individually or in pairs, students complete 1-5 about using will
and be going to. Students can compare their answers with a
partner or check as a class.
1. The negative form of will is: will not/won’t
2. The negative form of be going to is:
am not, are not, is not + going to
3. Put these parts in order to construct a sentence with will:
d. subject + b. will + a. verb + c. object
4. Put these parts in order to construct a question with will:
d. question word + b. will + c. subject + a. verb
5. Put these parts in order to construct a question with be
going to:
b. question word + a. be + d. subject + c. going to
+ e. verb
5. PRACTICE
A. Individually, students fill the gaps with either ‘will’ or ‘be going
to’. There are context clues that will help students decide
whether there is evidence of a future plan or a prediction
without evidence.
1. I am going to my alarm for 6 a.m. We need to leave here at
7:30 a.m. to get the train.
2. Don’t worry. I am sure your mother will back soon to help
with your homework.
3. Your father will probably call this afternoon so keep your
phone with you.
4. Did you see the forecast? It is going to rain tomorrow so
take your umbrella!
5. I am going to order a pizza tonight, so you don’t need to
cook.
B. Individually, students put the words in the correct order to make
sentences. Students can compare their sentences with a partner
or check answer with the class.
1. I am going to see a movie tonight.
2. He is not going to play soccer this weekend.
3. She is going to get a haircut tomorrow.
4. Are you going to do homework this evening?
C. I ndividually, students circle the correct alternative to complete
the sentences. Students can compare their sentences with a
partner and discuss any differences or check answers as a class.

© www.esllessonhandouts.com Teaching Notes: page 4

 1. I’m so tired. Will you cook dinner tonight please?
2. I love that dress. Are you going to wear it tonight?
3. I am going to get a sandwich in the café for lunch. Do you
want anything?
4. A Do you know where the car keys are?
B No, I will ask Dad.
5. It’s his birthday next month, so he is going to go to Las
Vegas with his friends.

D. Individually, students write 4 sentences about their future plans.

2 sentences should be true and 2 should be false. Encourage to
consider realistic plans to challenge their partners in the next
activity.

E. Students take turns reading their sentences to a partner or the

class. The student(s) listening should decide which future plans
are true and which are false.

© www.esllessonhandouts.com Teaching Notes: page 5