CanPacific Students Blog

TOPICS DISCUSSION
MARRIAGE

Student ‘A’
 Discuss the questions below with your partner.
1. Are you married or single?
2. What are three good things about being single?
3. How can a husband and wife have a long, happy marriage?
4. How much money does it cost to get married?
5. Why do some people get divorced?
6. Do you think most married people are happy? Why? / Why not?
7. Why do people wear wedding rings?
8. Is it okay if a wife is older than her husband? Why? / Why not?
9. How many children do you have? / How many children do you want? Why?
10. How was marriage different 100 years ago?
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TOPICS DISCUSSION
MARRIAGE

Student ‘B’
 Discuss the questions below with your partner.
1. What are three good things about being married?
2. What is the best age to get married? Why?
3. Which is better: a small wedding with few people or a big wedding with lots of people?
4. Which is better: getting married outside in a park or inside a building? Why?
5. How are marriage customs different in different countries?
6. How can someone find a good person to marry?
7. What is a ‘honeymoon’? What are some popular places for a honeymoon?
8. Why are some people very nervous about getting married?
9. Why do people get married?
10. How will marriage be different 100 years in the future?

Conversation Questions
Family
A Part of Conversation Questions for the ESL Classroom.
Are friends more important than family? What do you think?
Are chores assigned to children in your family?
Are you married?
Are you pressured by your family to act in a certain way?
Are you the oldest among your brothers and sisters?
Are your parents strict?
Did you ever meet any of your great grandparents?
Do you get along well with your family?
Do you get along well with your brothers and sisters?
Do you get along well with your in-laws?
Do you have any brothers or sisters? If so, how old are they?
Do you have any children? If yes, what are their names and ages?
Do you have to clean your own room?
Does your mother make you clean your room?
Do you like your family? Why or why not?
Do you live with any of your grandparents?
Do you live with your parents?
Do you look more like your mother or your father?
Do you often argue with your mother or father? What about?
Do you often visit your grandparents?
Do you think people should adopt children from other countries?
Do you usually have any influence on family matters?
Do your parents let you stay out late?
What time do you have to be home?
Do you have a curfew?
How did you get your name?
For whom are you named?
Who are you named after?
How big is your family?
How many (first) cousins do you have?
How many aunts and uncles do you have?
How many brothers and sisters do you have?
How many children do you have?
How many members do you have in your family altogether?
How many people are in your (immediate) family?
How many people are in your family?
How often do you see your cousins?
How often do you see your grandparents?
How often is your entire family together?
How old are your brothers and sisters?
How old are your children?
How old are your grandparents?
How old are your parents?
Is spanking a good way to discipline children?
Should people follow the religion of their parents, or should they have the liberty to choose another?
What are some of your fondest memories of childhood?
What are your parents like?
What do you and your family like to do together?
What do you think of married couples who decide not to have any child?
What do your mother and father look like? How about your grandparents?
What do your parents do in their free time?
What are the occupations of your family members?
What does your father do? What’s his job?
What does your mother do?
What is the best memory you have of your family doing something together?
What kind of things do you do with your family?
What will you teach your children? (what values, beliefs, hobbies, skills, etc.)
What would you change about your childhood?
Where do your grandparents live?
Where does your father’s father live?
Where does your mother’s mother live?
Who do you get along better with, your mother or your father?
Who is the black sheep (odd ball) in your family?
Would you get involved in your in-laws’ family problems?
Would you live with your parents after you get married?
Should children help with the housework?
How much or how often should they help?
What kinds of housework is not appropriate for children to do?
Do you live in a nuclear family or an extended family?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of these types of family?
What impact has divorce and/or modern day living had on the family?
Is the nanny and/or the day-care centre the third parent?
Where is the best place to raise a family?
Where do you think the best place to raise a family is? Why?
What can make you happy in the long term/ short term? Consider the following: job satisfaction, a loving family, good health, plenty of money, strong religious believes, …
What do you think of your mother and your father?
Which do you think is more important: following the dreams your parents want for you or following your own dreams?
What’s the hardest thing you ever had to do?
What was the most important thing your parents taught you?
What’s the best thing about your mom?
If you could have a different number of siblings, what would it be?
Who should take care of old people?
What is the perfect number of children to have?
What’s the best thing about your grandparents?
Should parents give their children an allowance?
How often does your family eat dinner together?
How should parents discipline their children?
After you’re married, should your parents make decisions for you?
What’s the best thing about your dad?
Who is the breadwinner in your family
How is nudity regarded in your family?
Describe the perfect family.
Do your parents get along with each other?
If you are a mother or father, would you allow your son or daughter to listen heavy metal music?
What was the saddest time in your family?
Why do people get married
What to look for in a life long mate
What makes a person a good friend, a friend for life ,, a life mate
What makes a person a bad, traits that irritate and confuse you
What do you think of the budget, what is a budget and how do you make one work?
How do you feel about your parents growing older? If they could no longer care for themselves, would you let them live with you or put them in a nursing home?
Did you help your mother at home?
What household chores do you do?
Can you think of examples of countries that have different cultural values regarding the importance of family?
Do you get along well with your family?
Do you get along well with your brothers and sisters?
Do you get along well with your in-laws?
Do you have to clean your own room?
Does your mother make you clean your room?
Do your parents let you stay out late?
What time do you have to be home?
Do you have a curfew?
How did you get your name?
For whom are you named?
Who are you named after?
What are the occupations of your family members?
What does your father do? What’s his job?
What does your mother do?
Should children help with the housework?
How much or how often should they help?
What kinds of housework is not appropriate for children to do?
Do you live in a nuclear family or an extended family?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of these types of family?
Where is the best place to raise a family?
Where do you think the best place to raise a family is? Why?
Do you think your parents understand you? Why or why not?
Who does the household work, your father or your mother or both of them?
Have you ever seen your mother (or father) cry? When was that and why?
Who is the breadwinner in your family?
Do your parents trust you?
If you were offered an excellent job opportunity abroad, would you consider leaving your family for an indefinite period of time?
Describe a typical family unit and the importance of family in your country.

THE DISCUSSION ON DIETS
STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student B.)

(1) Can you explain the difference between a diet, diet and to diet?
(2) Tell me about your regular diet.
(3) Have you ever been on a diet?
(4) Do you think people who go on diets get the proper nutrition their body needs?
(5) Do you know anyone with anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa?
(6) Do you think the fashion and advertising industries are responsible for encouraging women to be super skinny?
(7) Are you happy with your weight and body shape?
(8) How important is exercising as part of a diet?
(9) Do people in your country eat a well-balanced diet?
(10) How often do you weigh yourself?

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student A.)

(1) Do you worry about your weight?
(2) How much weight would you like to lose or put on?
(3) Are dietary habits in your country changing?
(4) Do you know anyone who is obsessed with their weight and their figure?
(5) What’s your advice for anyone who wants to diet?
(6) Are there any dangers of dieting?
(7) Why are people so worried about the way their body looks?
(8) What do you think of all the fad diets that come on the market?
(9) Do you think it’s possible to lose weight and enjoy eating?
(10) Do you have a balanced diet?

HE DISCUSSION ON SHOES
STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student B.)

(1) What comes to mind when you hear the word ‘shoes’?
(2) How many pairs of shoes do you own, and why?
(3) Why do we need to wear shoes?
(4) What would life be like if we did not wear shoes?
(5) How often do you buy shoes?
(6) What is the most expensive pair of shoes you’ve bought?
(7) What do you know about the history of shoes?
(8) Is there a pair of shoes you would really like to buy?
(9) Do you prefer comfortable boring shoes or uncomfortable fashionable shoes?
(10) Do you ever donate your old shoes to charity?

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student A.)

(1) Would you take old shoes from someone if they offered them to you?
(2) Can men and women wear the same shoes?
(3) Have you ever regretted buying a pair of shoes?
(4) Do you have a favorite pair of shoes?
(5) What is the best colour for shoes?
(6) Why do men have fewer pairs of shoes than women?
(7) What does someone’s shoes tell us about that person?
(8) Are shoes old-fashioned? Should we all wear sneakers?
(9) Are leather shoes best?
(10) You must take off your shoes in the house. What do you think?

THE DISCUSSION ON HOMELESSNESS
STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student B.)

(1) What goes through your mind when you hear the word ‘homeless’?
(2) Do you ever give money to homeless people?
(3) Is homelessness a problem in your country?
(4) What does your government do for the homeless?
(5) What does homelessness say about a society?
(6) Why do you think people become homeless?
(7) What do you think when you walk past homeless people?
(8) How difficult do you think it is for homeless people to get back into employment, get a house, etc?
(9) If you were homeless, where and how would you live?
(10) What do you think it would be like to suddenly become homeless?

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student A.)

(1) Are there homeless children in your country?
(2) Why does the government allow homelessness?
(3) Why do many people look down on the homeless?
(4) What can you do to help the homeless?
(5) If you were homeless, what would you do all day?
(6) Would you give a homeless person a shower and a bed for the night in your home?
(7) Do homeless people lose their civil or human rights in your country?
(8) What do / would you care about more in an election, taxes of the plight of the homeless?
(9) Do you think homelessness will ever disappear, even in rich countries?
(10) What questions would you ask a homeless person?

THE DISCUSSION ON HAIR
STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student B.)

(1) Are you happy with your hair?
(2) What would the world be like if no one had hair?
(3) How does hair change the way we look?
(4) What kind of hair would you really like?
(5) How has your hairstyle changed over the past few years?
(6) Did you have a hairstyle a long time ago that you think is embarrassing now?
(7) Do you like reading magazines about hair?
(8) Do you worry about hair loss, thinning hair or grey hair?
(9) What do you think of men who are going bald and comb their hair over their head?
(10) Do you dye your hair (or would you dye your hair)?

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student A.)

(1) How important is hair?
(2) Do we need hair?
(3) How much time do you spend in the morning doing your hair?
(4) Do you think being a hair stylist is a good job?
(5) Do you ever have a bad hair day?
(6) What problems do you have with your hair?
(7) How often do you look at and arrange your hair every day?
(8) Do you like having your hair cut?
(9) Would you prefer to have straight, wavy, curly or shaggy hair?
(10) What hair products do you buy on a regular basis?

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student B.)

(1) What is your biggest fear for yourself?
(2) What is your biggest fear for the world?
(3) Why do we feel fear?
(4) How often do you feel afraid?
(5) Why do people have different fears?
(6) How do you react to fear?
(7) How would you help someone to get over their fear?
(8) Have you ever panicked with fear?
(9) What happens to you physically and emotionally when fear takes hold of you / overcomes you?
(10) How often do you jump or start when something frightens you?

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student A.)

(1) Do you have any form of phobia or paranoia?
(2) What were you afraid of as a child?
(3) What things are people commonly afraid of and why?
(4) What facial expressions accompany fear?
(5) Do you like putting yourself in situations where you can feel fear?
(6) Are you ever afraid of other people?
(7) Do you think society lives in fear?
(8) “The fear of death is to be dreaded more than death itself.” What do you think about this quotation?
(9) What do you think having a fear of the 21st century would be like?
(10) If you ‘put the fear of God into someone,’ how do you think that person feels?

THE DISCUSSION ON ANGER
STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student B.)

(1) What springs to mind when you hear the word ‘anger’?
(2) Are you an angry person?
(3) What are you like when you are angry?
(4) What’s the angriest you’ve ever been?
(5) When you get angry, do you stay angry for a long time?
(6) Do you like looking at other people getting angry?
(7) What colour is anger?
(8) What makes you angry about modern life?
(9) Someone once said: “For every minute you are angry, you lose sixty seconds of happiness.” Do you agree?
(10) Someone once said: “Anger is one letter short of danger.” Do you agree?

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student A.)

(1) Why do we have the emotion of anger?
(2) Is there anything positive about getting angry?
(3) Who is the angriest person you know?
(4) Should anger be a sin?
(5) Why do we get angriest with the ones we love?
(6) Who on Earth angers you most?
(7) What happens when you bottle up your anger?
(8) Is it easy for you to control and hide your anger?
(9) Elizabeth Kenny said: “He who angers you conquers you.” What do you think she means by this? Do you agree?
(10) A Chinese Proverb said: “Never write a letter while you are angry.” Do you think this is good advice? Have you regretted writing an angry letter?

Success and Failure
Success

Describe a successful person.

Is your idea of success the same as your parents’ idea of success?

Do you think people focus too much on appearing to be successful?

Why is money the most common way of judging success?

Can money buy happiness?

How much pressure do your parents put on you to be successful?

How much pressure will you put on your children to be successful?

Failure

Have there been any failures that made your life better?

Is there a right time to give up and stop trying? Or should you never give up?

Can you think of any famous people who failed spectacularly at something?

Talk about a time you failed at something you tried. Don’t talk about anything that will make you uncomfortable or embarrassed.

Can you think of any famous quotes or idioms about success or failure?

THE DISCUSSION ON RUDENESS
STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student B.)

(1) Are you sometimes rude?
(2) What do you think about rudeness?
(3) What acts of rudeness bother you most?
(4) Is rudeness a problem in your country?
(5) What did your parents tell you about being rude?
(6) Blowing your nose in public is OK in England but rude in Japan. Slurping noodles is OK in Japan but rude in England. Who decides what’s rude and what’s not?
(7) Who is the rudest person you know?
(8) What rude behaviour do you see in public every day?
(9) What do you do when sales staff in shops or waiting staff in restaurants are very rude?
(10) If someone is rude to you, are you generally rude back?

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to Student A.)

(1) What springs to mind when you hear the word ‘rudeness’?
(2) Is your society becoming ruder or more polite?
(3) Which nationalities do you think are overly rude?
(4) Do cars make people rude?
(5) Are there many rude words in your language?
(6) How do you deal with someone who is very rude to you?
(7) Do you think it’s rude to correct someone’s grammar mistakes in a conversation?
(8) Should being rude be made a crime?
(9) Do you like watching one person being very rude to another person?
(10) Why is it rude to ask someone’s age?