1) Use the words below to complete the proverbs related to time.

money nine present today

1. Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do _________________.

2. A stitch in time saves _________________.
3. Time is _________________.
4. There’s no time like the _________________.

2) Discuss the questions.

1. Do you like or dislike any of the proverbs in exercise 1? Which ones?
2. Do you have similar proverbs in your language?
3. Do you know any proverbs in your language that are related to time?

READING
3) Read the article and complete the subtitles with the following words.
big job small job too much to do want extra time want to save time in the morning

Five great tips to help you

make the most of your time

___________________________________________________? Decide what’s important!

Something may seem important now, but is it important in the long run? In 10 years’ time, 80% of what you
do today will not turn into anything useful, so why do it? Spend your time on what is essential. Forget the rest.

___________________________________________________? D it now!
If you can do something (like a household chore or replying to an email) in two minutes, don’t put it off. You
will have to do it sooner or later, but planning to do it, remembering to do it, and finally doing it in the future
will take five minutes or more. Do it now and save three minutes.

___________________________________________________? Cut it up!

Don’t think that you have to finish a big job all in one sitting. If you do that, you might never start it. Instead,
work on it bit by bit, five minutes at a time.

___________________________________________________? Use what you have!

How do you find time to learn something new or start a new project? Think about all the little ‘pockets’ of time
that you have. Every day we have time to kill while we ride on public transport or wait in queues. Other people
play games on their phones, but you could be studying a new language. If you have a spare minute, use it!

___________________________________________________? Do different things at the same time!

Always in a rush in the morning? Try brushing your teeth in the shower or eating breakfast while you get
dressed. If you do two or more things at once, you’ll be ready for work in no time at all.

4) Read the article again and answer the following questions.

1. What things in the article do you already do?
2. Which tip in the article do you think is the most useful? Why?
3. What obligation you thought was important in the past does not matter today?
4. What household chores do you do? Which do you like or hate? Why?
5. What obligations do you keep delaying?
6. How do you find time for new things?
7. How much time do you have in the morning and what do you usually do?
5) Read the highlighted expressions in the article, then match them with their definitions in the following table.

6) Underline the correct expression to complete each sentence below.

1. I like to find time / make the most of my time at weekends because I work so hard all week.
2. Everyone worked hard and we finished the job in no time at all / sooner or later.
3. I know you’re busy, but if you’ve got a spare minute / time to kill, I’d like to ask you something.
4. I was late and in a rush / at a time when I arrived, so I couldn’t relax and say hello.
5. It was a big project, but we did it slowly, at once / bit by bit, and finished it over two months.
6. Learning a new language is hard work, but it’s a good thing to do in one sitting / in the long run.

7) Complete the sentences below with the expressions you did not underline in exercise 6.
1. He works too hard and can’t ______________________ to relax with his family.
2. Everyone started talking ______________________ and I couldn’t understand what anyone said.
3. He’s got long legs and walks up stairs two steps ______________________.
4. If I have ______________________, I like to relax with a good book.
5. It was a fantastic drama series, I watched it all ______________________ over the weekend.
6. You need to save money because we all have to retire ______________________.

8) Make notes about three topics at a time and then talk about them for a few minutes.

HOW YOU MAKE THE MOST
OF YOUR TIME AT WEEKENDS
SOMETHING YOU NEED TO DO
SOONER OR LATER
AN OCCASION WHEN YOU
WERE IN A RUSH
SOMETHING YOU DID IN ONE
SITTING
SOMETHING YOU WOULD AN OCCASION WHEN YOU
LIKE TO FIND TIME TO DO HAD A LOT OF TIME TO KILL
SOMETHING YOU LIKE TO DO
WHAT YOU LIKE TO DO IF
BIT BY BIT, A FEW MINUTES
YOU HAVE A SPARE MINUTE
AT A TIME
SOMETHING THAT YOU
TWO OR MORE THINGS THAT
THINK IS IMPORTANT IN THE
YOU OFTEN DO AT ONCE
LONG RUN
A JOB THAT YOU STILL HAVE
A JOB THAT YOU FINISHED IN
TO FINISH BUT YOU CAN’T
NO TIME AT ALL
FIND THE TIME