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Pre A1 Starters family and home: rooms and people practice

A1-A2Pre A1 Starters40 questionsUpdated

Family and home is the topic a Starters child can talk about without preparation, which makes it the best place to build speaking confidence. This page practises the family words, the rooms of the house and the furniture that goes in each of them.

What this task tests

  • Family words: mum, dad, brother, sister, grandma, grandpa.
  • Rooms of the house and the objects that belong in each one.
  • Possessives: my sister, my grandma, my dad's car.
  • There is and there are for describing a room.
  • Simple personal questions about who the child lives with.
  • Furniture words: bed, table, chair, sofa, cupboard, lamp.
  • Everyday home verbs: sleep, eat, wash, cook, play, watch.
  • Prepositions inside the house: in the kitchen, on the table, under the bed.
  • Ages and names: my brother is ten, his name is Sam.

How to do it

  1. Step 1:

    Start with a photo

    A real family photo beats any picture card. The child points and names, and every sentence is true.

  2. Step 2:

    Walk the house

    Go room by room and name three things in each. The house is the vocabulary set; walking it makes it stick.

  3. Step 3:

    Drill my early

    My mum, my brother, my room. The possessive is the natural way children talk about family and it avoids a lot of grammar.

  4. Step 4:

    There is, there are

    Give one model sentence per room: In the kitchen there is a fridge. Then let the child swap the noun.

  5. Step 5:

    Draw a house plan

    A simple plan with labelled rooms doubles as copying practice and as a speaking prompt for weeks.

  6. Step 6:

    Match verbs to rooms

    We sleep in the bedroom, we cook in the kitchen. Pairing the verb with the room gives the child a sentence, not just a noun.

  7. Step 7:

    Hide a toy

    The child hides something and tells you where it is. You get prepositions and furniture in one game.

  8. Step 8:

    Name ages too

    My sister is four. Numbers and family words reinforce each other and both are tested.

  9. Step 9:

    Use a doll's house or a picture

    Anything with rooms lets you ask where questions all afternoon without preparing a thing.

  10. Step 10:

    Keep it open

    Ask about the people the child lives with rather than about a fixed set of relatives. Families differ and the language should follow the child.

Mistakes that cost marks

  • Not thisthe brother of my mum

    Thismy uncle

    Children translate the possessive structure from their first language. Teach the single English word instead.

  • Not thisI have two sister.

    ThisI have two sisters.

    The plural s is easy to drop after a number. Count family members aloud.

  • Not thisThere is two chairs.

    ThisThere are two chairs.

    There is for one thing, there are for more. Drill the two side by side.

  • Not thisI live in a room.

    ThisI live in a house.

    House, flat and room get mixed up early. Use pictures of all three together.

  • Not thisMy mother she is a teacher.

    ThisMy mother is a teacher.

    The extra pronoun comes straight from the first language. Point at the sentence and remove one word.

  • Not thisI have five years.

    ThisI am five years old.

    Age takes be in English. Teach the whole sentence as a fixed chunk.

  • Not thisin the kitchen there are a fridge

    Thisin the kitchen there is a fridge

    One thing takes there is. Ask the child to count before choosing.

Language this task keeps reusing

grandma
Your mum's mum or your dad's mum.
grandpa
Your mum's dad or your dad's dad.
kitchen
The room where you cook food.
bedroom
The room where you sleep.
bathroom
The room with the bath and the shower.
living room
The room where the family sits together.
garden
The green space outside the house.
sofa
A long soft seat for two or three people.
fridge
It keeps food and drinks cold.
stairs
You go up these to the next floor.
flat
A home inside a bigger building.
cousin
Your aunt's or uncle's child.
uncle
Your mum's or dad's brother.
aunt
Your mum's or dad's sister.
lamp
It gives you light in a room.

Practice: family and home

40 original questions. The first 10 are open to everyone. Answers are checked in your browser and never sent to us, so you can share this page with a class as it is.

1Complete the sentence.

My mum's mum is my .
In which room do you cook dinner?

3Complete the sentence.

We sleep in the .
Right or wrong?
  • You sleep in a bed.
  • You cook in the bathroom.
  • A garden is outside the house.
3 to go

5Complete the sentence.

My dad's brother is my .
Where do you have a bath?

7Complete the sentence.

We sit on the and watch television.

8Who is in your family? Tell me their names.

Which one keeps your milk cold?

10Complete the sentence.

I go up the to my bedroom.

Keep going

30 more questions on this page

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Note

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Frequently asked questions

Is it all right if a child's family does not fit the coursebook picture?

Yes, and it is worth planning for. Use the words the child actually needs and keep the activity open: tell me about the people you live with, rather than tell me about your mum and dad.

Do children need words like aunt and cousin at Starters?

The core is mum, dad, brother, sister, grandma and grandpa. Aunt, uncle and cousin are useful extras and come into their own at Movers.

How can I practise rooms without a worksheet?

Play I spy in each room, or ask the child to hide a toy and tell you where it is. Both give you far more language per minute than a page of matching.

Should I teach there is and there are together?

Yes, but always with counting. Ask how many first, then choose the verb. Taught separately, children apply whichever one they heard last.

My child mixes up house and home. Does it matter?

Not at this level. Model home for where you live and house for the building, and let the distinction settle over time.

What if the child is shy about talking about family?

Use a doll's house, a picture family or a favourite cartoon family instead. The language practised is identical and nothing personal is required.