Learn complete activity chunks such as play chess, go hiking, do yoga, read books, and listen to music. Then distinguish a routine, a preference, an ability, a present interest, and a question about availability.
45–55 min coreplay · go · do · other activity verbsroutine · preference · ability · availability15–20 min optional listening and retrieval
NoticeCompare activity chunks and speaker meanings.
DiscoverChoose forms from the intended message.
BuildMatch chunks and ask useful questions.
UseRecommend activities from fictional profiles.
Free time is uncountable: I have some free time, not a free time. A hobby is an activity or interest someone chooses regularly. Free-time activity is broader, and natural U.S. questions include What do you do for fun? and What do you like to do in your free time?
Two-minute retrieval
Three quick checks from earlier lessons
Answer from memory, then check. Say each complete sentence aloud.
1The previous sentence introduced one chess table. Now locate the same table: next to the window.
2Maya’s Saturday profile describes her routine: She chess on Saturdays.
3The card says this happens on most weekends: Maya plays chess on Saturdays.
Meet the activity vocabulary
This is an optional word bank, not a list of activities every learner should do. Activities differ in cost, access, energy, location, and social setting. Use fictional choices in practice, and describe personal interests only when you freely choose.
soccer
basketball
reading
guitar
music
video games
biking
photography
swimming
running
painting
movies
chess
cooking
gardening
fishing
yoga
tennis
table tennis
volleyball
golf
skiing
dancing
traveling
board games
Notice before the rule
A fictional community-center profile
“Rina plays chess on Thursdays and goes hiking once a month. Sam does yoga on Saturday mornings. Lee reads books in the quiet room. Rina enjoys playing chess, and she’d like to join the photography walk next week.”
Which activities use play, go, and do? Which activity uses its own ordinary verb?
What form follows enjoys? What two words follow the contraction she’d like?
Which sentences describe a routine? Which one describes present interest in a future activity?
Discovery check: complete the profile
Choose the whole chunk from the stated activity and meaning.
1Rina’s Thursday routine uses the game chunk: She chess on Thursdays.
2Her monthly outdoor outing uses a go plus -ing chunk: She hiking once a month.
3Sam’s Saturday practice uses the fixed yoga chunk: Sam yoga on Saturday mornings.
4Lee’s quiet activity uses its own ordinary verb: Lee books in the quiet room.
5Rina experiences chess positively: She enjoys chess.
6She expresses present interest in a future photography walk: She’d like the photography walk next week.
Get to the root: learn the whole activity chunk
Play, go, and do are useful patterns, but they are not a machine that creates every activity phrase. Learn the activity with its normal verb.
chunk family
useful tendency
natural examples
play + game, sport, or instrument
games with rules, many sports, and musical instruments
play chess · play soccer · play tennis · play the guitar
go + -ing activity
some established outings and movement activities
go hiking · go swimming · go running · go fishing
do + activity
some practices, training, and fixed activity names
do yoga · do martial arts · do a workout
another ordinary verb
many activities have their own main verb
read books · watch movies · cook · garden · paint
Go plus -ing is not a general rule for every -ing word. Say go hiking, but read books, watch movies, listen to music, take photos, and garden. Do not create go reading, play photography, or do movies.
Useful U.S. chunks and small-word boundaries
meaning
natural U.S. chunk
boundary
sports and games
play soccer · play tennis · play chess · play video games
no article before these activity names
instruments
play the guitar · play the piano
the is the reliable A1 instrument pattern
screen activities
watch a movie · watch movies · watch TV
one movie needs a; general TV has no article
audio activities
listen to music · listen to a podcast
listen needs to before the audio
photos
take photos · take pictures · do photography
take names the individual action
bicycles
ride a bike · go biking · bike
three natural viewpoints for the activity
physical practice
exercise · work out · do a workout · do some exercises
general U.S. English normally avoids bare do exercise
In U.S. English, movie is a common everyday word. Go to the movies means go to a movie theater. For time, use on weekends for a repeated pattern, on the weekend for a particular weekend in many U.S. contexts, and no preposition before this weekend.
The verb form changes because the speaker’s message changes. Compare the same activity, play tennis.
message
form
example
routine or fact
present simple
I play tennis on Saturdays.
preference or enjoyment
like/love + -ing
I like playing tennis.
experienced enjoyment
enjoy + -ing
I enjoy playing tennis.
ability
can + base verb
I can play tennis.
present wish or polite interest
would like + to + base verb
I’d like to play tennis this Saturday.
Like and love can also take to + verb: I like to swim and I love to cook are natural. At this level, like swimming presents the activity as an experience, while like to swim can present a preferred activity or habit. The meanings often overlap. Enjoy is different: use enjoy swimming, not enjoy to swim.
Would like is not the same as ordinary like. I like playing chess states a preference. I’d like to play chess today expresses a present wish or polite interest in a possible action.
Drill 1: choose the form from the message
1The profile describes chess as an enjoyed experience: Rina enjoys chess.
2The coach asks about ability, not preference: Can Rina chess?
3Rina expresses polite interest in today’s game: She’d like chess today.
4The profile uses the activity-as-experience pattern after ordinary like: Lee likes short stories.
5The schedule describes Lee’s repeated Tuesday routine: Lee short stories on Tuesdays.
6A visitor expresses present interest in a future group: I’d like the book club.
Ask the question that matches your purpose
purpose
natural question
possible answer
discover activities
What do you do in your free time?
I read and play chess.
discover preferences
What do you like doing in your free time?
I like reading.
check one preference
Do you like playing chess?
Yes, I do. / No, I don’t.
ask about frequency
How often do you play?
About once a week.
ask about ability
Can you play?
Yes, I can. / No, I can’t.
check availability
Are you free this Saturday?
Yes, I am. / Sorry, I’m not.
Free time names time available for chosen activities. Are you free? asks whether someone is available at a particular time. It does not ask which hobbies the person has.
Drill 2: identify the question’s purpose
1What do you do in your free time? asks about .
2What do you like doing? asks about .
3How often do you play chess? asks about .
4Are you free this Saturday? asks about .
Sound natural: connected questions and clear activity words
Keep the grammar opening light and stress the activity: Do you like PLAYing chess? In relaxed U.S. speech, do you links closely and may sound like d’you or juh. What do you may sound approximately like whaddaya. These are listening guides, not spellings to write.
Keep the final nasal sound in -ing without adding a separate hard g: PLAYing · READing · SWIMming. Link activity chunks: go-HIking · listen-to-MUsic · play-the gui-TAR.
Common stress patterns include HOBby · VIDeo games · pho-TOG-ra-phy · gui-TAR. Keep third-person endings audible: likes ends /s/, plays ends /z/, and watches adds a final syllable /ɪz/.
Listen: what does the speaker mean?
Your teacher reads each fictional line once with natural U.S. rhythm and once more slowly. Listen for the form before the activity and the purpose of each question. Check your answer before discussing the line with your tutor.
Tutor-read listening check
1Clip 1 states a .
2Clip 2 states an .
3Clip 3 states a .
4Clip 4 expresses .
5Clip 5 .
6Clip 6 .
Build complete activity chunks
Drill 3: match the verb to the complete chunk
Tap a verb, then tap the activity phrase it completes.
Drill 4: build the preference
The fictional profile says chess is an activity she enjoys. Build the sentence.
Drill 5: ask about activities
The visitor wants to discover another person’s activities, not check one ability or time.
Notice and repair errors
Drill 6: required form after enjoy
The fictional profile states positive experience: “I enjoy to play chess at the community center.” Tap the words to replace.
Drill 7: do not overgeneralize go plus -ing
The schedule describes a quiet book activity: “Lee goes reading in the quiet room on Tuesdays.” Tap the verb to replace.
Oral transform: keep the activity, change the message
Say each complete response aloud first. Reveal only after you answer.
1 chess · Thursday routine
I play chess on Thursdays.
2 chess · preference with enjoy
I enjoy playing chess.
3 chess · ability
I can play chess.
4 chess · present interest in today’s game
I’d like to play chess today.
5 ask which activities another person does
What do you do in your free time?
6 ask whether the person is available Saturday
Are you free this Saturday?
Read a fictional activity guide
Saturday at Harbor Community Center
The chess group meets in Room 2 at 10:00 a.m. Beginners are welcome, and no equipment is required. The photography walk starts at 11:30 a.m. outside the main entrance; participants may use any camera or phone. The quiet reading circle meets online at 2:00 p.m. The center also offers seated and standing versions of its 3:30 p.m. movement class.
Read, then choose the exact guide information
1. Which activity explicitly welcomes beginners and requires no equipment?
2. Which activity can a participant join online?
3. What participation options does the movement class explicitly offer?
Play and practice
Games and a short reading that recycle this lesson. Use them as a warm-up, a fast finisher, or homework. Each one checks itself.
Read
Two friends and their free time
Read once for meaning. Then read again and do the tasks below.
Community newsletter95 wordsAbout 1 min
Meet Dev and Carla, two members of our community center. Dev works in a bank, and in his free time he likes cooking. On Saturdays, he plays soccer in the park.
Carla is a nurse. She enjoys running, and she goes swimming twice a week. She doesn’t play sports with a ball, but she can play the guitar.
Dev and Carla both love dancing. Every Friday, they go dancing at the center. Next month, Carla would like to go hiking in the mountains. Dev would like to join her, but he hasn’t got good shoes!
Find it
Tap the 6 activity words that end in -ing. One word appears twice.
Check your understanding
1. What does Dev do on Saturdays?
2. How often does Carla go swimming?
3. What would Carla like to do next month?
Sort it
Play, go, or do?
Tap an activity, then tap the verb that makes the complete chunk.
Unscramble
Spell the -ing form
Tap the letters in order to spell the word. Tap a placed letter to send it back.
1. swim + -ing
2. dance + -ing
3. run + -ing
4. ride + -ing
5. shop + -ing
Word search
Free-time words
Find the word for each clue. Words run across or down. Tap the first letter, then the last.
a board game with kings and queens →chess ?
a musical instrument with six strings →guitar ?
slow stretching and breathing practice →yoga ?
a team sport: kick the ball into the goal →soccer ?
a sport with rackets, a ball, and a net →tennis ?
You watch them at a theater. →movies ?
a sport with a small ball and 18 holes →golf ?
Use it safely and flexibly
You never need to disclose your real interests, abilities, body, health, schedule, work, family, friends, location, finances, religion, devices, travel, or weekend plans. Use the fictional profiles and activity guide, invent details, or share personal information only when you freely choose.
Build the listings: Use the fictional guide to make complete chunks with play, go, do, read, listen to, and take.
Separate the messages: Use one activity to state a routine, a preference with enjoy, an ability with can, and present interest with would like to.
Interview a fictional visitor: Ask about activities, preferences, frequency, ability, and Saturday availability. The teacher answers from a supplied fictional profile.
Offer real choice: Compare an indoor, outdoor, online, quiet, social, low-equipment, or flexible-movement option without assuming what the visitor can or should do.
Final production: recommend two fictional community-center activities for 45–60 seconds. Use the visitor’s stated preference and availability, name each complete activity chunk, explain one schedule or access detail, ask one follow-up question, and make one polite invitation with Would you like to...?
Reflect
Say the system back
Complete this aloud: “Some activities use play, go, or do, but many use their own ______. After enjoy, the activity takes ______. After can, it takes the ______ verb. After would like, it takes ______ plus the base verb.”
Then explain the difference between What do you do in your free time? and Are you free this Saturday?.
Final quiz: choose from the activity and meaning
1. The schedule lists a Sunday soccer game. The members ___ soccer on Sundays.
2. The guide lists a monthly hiking outing. The members ___ hiking once a month.
3. Lee’s profile describes a quiet book activity. Which phrase is natural?
4. The sentence describes positive experience: Rina enjoys ___ chess.
5. The coordinator asks about ability: Can Rina ___ chess?
6. The visitor expresses present interest in the future walk: I’d like ___ the photography walk.
7. The coordinator wants to discover the visitor’s activities. Which question fits?
8. The coordinator knows the activity preference and now needs to check availability. Which question fits?
Return tomorrow before rereading the lesson. Complete the five-minute next-day retrieval, then revisit only the activity chunk, verb-form meaning, or question purpose that still feels slow.
Next-day retrieval
Choose the missing free-time language
1The quiet-hour listing uses the book activity’s own verb: Participants books during the quiet hour.
2The profile describes chess as a positive experience: Rina enjoys chess.
3The coordinator checks availability at a stated time: Are you this Saturday?
Repair the preference form
The fictional profile states positive experience: “The visitor enjoys to play chess.” Tap the words to replace.
Thirty-second retrieval
Without looking back, choose one fictional activity. State a routine, preference, ability, and present interest in that activity. Then ask one activity question and one availability question.
I play chess on Thursdays. I enjoy playing chess. I can play chess. I’d like to play today. What do you do in your free time? Are you free this Saturday?
Choose the right amount of challenge
Communicate in three steps
Learner production. Pick one starting point, then move up only if the learner is ready. True or invented details are equally acceptable.
1
Personal answer
Make the language yours
Use the lesson’s earlier example or invent a similar situation. The details do not need to be personal.
Build the listings: Use the fictional guide to make complete chunks with play , go , do , read , listen to , and take .
Next cues
Separate the messages: Use one activity to state a routine, a preference with enjoy , an ability with can , and present interest with would like to .
Interview a fictional visitor: Ask about activities, preferences, frequency, ability, and Saturday availability. The teacher answers from a supplied fictional profile.
2
Guided role play
Learner production
Build the listings: Use the fictional guide to make complete chunks with play , go , do , read , listen to , and take .
Role 1Learner: use Hobbies & free time to complete the situation in your own words.
Role 2Tutor: respond naturally, ask one follow-up question, and introduce one small change.
Useful language
Separate the messages: Use one activity to state a routine, a preference with enjoy , an ability with can , and present interest with would like to .
Interview a fictional visitor: Ask about activities, preferences, frequency, ability, and Saturday availability. The teacher answers from a supplied fictional profile.
Offer real choice: Compare an indoor, outdoor, online, quiet, social, low-equipment, or flexible-movement option without assuming what the visitor can or should do.
Final production: recommend two fictional community-center activities for 45–60 seconds. Use the visitor’s stated preference and availability, name each complete activity chunk, explain one schedule or access detail, ask one follow-up question, and make one polite invitation with Would you like to...?
3
Real-world challenge
Remove the support
Build the listings: Use the fictional guide to make complete chunks with play , go , do , read , listen to , and take .
A1 target: Speak for four connected sentences and answer one unplanned follow-up question.
