Chain Stories BBC

The teacher begins with a sentence, for example 'If I go out tonight, I’ll go to the cinema.'
The next person in the circle must use the end of the previous sentence to begin their own
sentence, for example 'If I go to the cinema, I’ll watch Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.'
The next person could say, 'If I watch Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, I’ll eat lots of
chocolate.' Then, 'If I eat lots of chocolate, I’ll put on weight.' etc.

Chain stories

One student says a future plan, e.g. “I’m going to have a barbeque at the weekend.”
Someone else in the class predicts a consequence of that, e.g. “If you have a barbeque this
weekend, you will be annoyed by wasps or mosquitoes.” Someone else then continues the
story with something like “If you are annoyed by wasps or mosquitoes, you’ll start
swatting them with a newspaper.” This continues for a fixed number of stages or until
they reach an interesting conclusion.

Negotiations

The first conditional is often used in sentences like “If I give you a lift to the station, will
you lend me your car for the rest of the day?” This can be made more fun by asking them
to make up sentences that they are sure their partner will accept or reject (e.g. depending
on the cards they have been given). They could also be given a list of things they want
from their partner with points for each thing they can get them to agree to, with the
person from each pair who gets the most points at the end of the game being named the
best negotiator.
Choose one of the sentence below and tell your partner how you would complete the
sentence to make it true for you without saying which sentence it is. They will then try to
guess which sentence you are completing.

or

Fill in at least half the sentences below to make them true for you, then read out just the
part you have written to see if your partner can guess which sentence you are reading
from

As soon as this class finishes, _______________________

As long as I have enough money, _____________________

Unless it rains, ____________________________________

Before I retire, ____________________________________

If I see my ex-girlfriend/ boyfriend again, ________________

When I next see my mother/ father, ____________________

If I lose my job, ____________________________________

As soon as my weekend starts, _______________________

After I finish the piece of work that I am working on at the moment,

______________________________________

If I have to become a full-time housewife/ househusband, ________________________

If I am distracted the next time I am trying to work/ study, _________________________

If I get promoted, _______________________________________

If my job doesn’t seem secure, ____________________________

If I am offered a great job somewhere remote, _________________

When I next have a day off, ________________________________

When I next have a holiday, ________________________________

Until my English is fluent, __________________________________

If I get fed up with my work/ studies, _____________________________

If I feel exhausted this evening, ________________________________