What Were You Like as a Teenager?

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Materials Daily News

Intermediate

Learning Objectives

In this lesson you will:

Improve your ability to talk about school life.

Exercise 1

Warm-up

Have a short conversation based on these questions. Make sure you ask your tutor some questions too!

What were your favorite school subjects?

Did you have a favorite teacher at school?

Exercise 2

Vocabulary

Listen and repeat these words with your tutor.

peer pressure
detention
dating
first job
household chores
cram school
field trips
sports practice

Let's Practice

Fill in the blanks using the items on the list to complete these sentences.

I got my when I was 15.

They both got for talking during the test.

I had to take care of a few this morning.

We went on a to the local museum.

I didn't start until I went to college.

I had a test at my today.

I experienced a lot of when I was in school.

I got injured at yesterday.

Exercise 3

Useful Language

Listen and repeat these words and phrases with your tutor.

outgoing
teacher's pet
troublemaker
top of the class
introverted
rebellious
get straight As
extroverted
procrastinator
insecure
self-conscious
class clown

Let's Practice

Tell your tutor if each pair of words or phrases has a similar or different meaning.

outgoing / extroverted

teacher's pet / troublemaker

top of the class / get straight As

introverted / rebellious

procrastinator / class clown

self-conscious / insecure

Exercise 4

Dialogue

Read the dialogue aloud with your tutor, then answer the questions.

	Meryem What were you like as a teenager?
	Hyun-woo I was a bit of a troublemaker to tell you the truth! My parents will tell you that I was pretty rebellious.
	Meryem Oh, really? How about as a student?
	Hyun-woo I was a bit of a teacher's pet at elementary school, but that all changed when I hit adolescence. I skipped class all the time and my grades were pretty bad.
	Meryem I would never have guessed that! I always thought you were the kind of kid who would have gotten straight As. What did you usually do after school?
	Hyun-woo I'd usually just hang out with my friends, but I also had some part-time jobs when I was at high school.
	Meryem Were you under a lot of pressure to succeed at school?
	Hyun-woo Not really! A lot of my friends were under a lot of pressure from their parents, but not me! I was a massive procrastinator, so I remember staying up all night before my exams or to finish assignments.
	Meryem I can totally relate to that! What do you miss about your school days?
	Hyun-woo Despite it being a bit chaotic, I miss a lot of things! I miss summer vacations, dating for the first time, and even some of the teachers! My memories of it are all pretty positive.

Check Your Understanding

How does Hyun-woo describe himself as a teenager?

How did Hyun-woo study before exams?

What does Hyun-woo miss about his school days? (Hyun-woo想念关于他校园生活的什么？)

Exercise 5

Find the Mistake

Find and correct the mistake in each sentence. Be careful — not all sentences have a mistake!

I'd hung out with my friends or go to cram school.

I was quite introverted when I was at school.

What was you like as a teenager?

Were you under a lot of pressure to success at school?

My memories of high school is pretty positive.

I was a bit of a class clown at elementary school.

It was the best field trip ever.

How do you miss about your school days?

Exercise 6

Fill in the Blanks

Read the dialogue aloud with your tutor and fill in the blanks. You will be Zach. Use the Answer Pool below to help you.

	Hannah What were you like as a teenager?
	Zach I was athletic, competitive and very (1) — a typical extrovert, really. How about you?
	Hannah Unlike you, I was very self-conscious, and a bit sad and moody, too. How about as a student?
	Zach Well, I was sort of the class (2). Academically, I wasn't top of the class or anything, but my (3) weren't too bad, especially in math.
	Hannah What did you usually do after school?
	Zach Both of my parents (4) and I had a little brother, so I took care of a lot of household (5). I had to juggle that with sports practice.
	Hannah Sounds like you had a quite busy school life! Were you under a lot of pressure to succeed at school?
	Zach Yes, there was quite a bit of (6) to keep my grades up, but also to do well at sports.
	Hannah I see. When you look back, what do you miss the most about your school years?
	Zach I don't get many (7) to play sports these days, so I do really miss that aspect of school. I dealt with a lot of peer pressure though, so there's definitely things like that I don't (8).

Choose answers from the options below that fit in blanks 1 to 8

Answer Pool (Questions 1-8)

miss
worked
pressure
clown
chores
grades
chances
outgoing

Exercise 7

Conversation

Have a conversation based on these questions. Don't forget to ask your tutor some questions too!

What were you like as a teenager?

What were you like as a student?

What did you usually do after school?

Were you under a lot of pressure to succeed at school?

What do you miss about your school days?