Speaking Boost · A2 · Lesson 11 of 50
Speaking Boost A2 · Block 3: Food

What do people eat for breakfast around the world?

Fish and rice in Japan, olives and cheese in Turkey, beans and sausages in England, syrnyky in Ukraine. Talk about the food you love and hate, compare people's days of food, and open a breakfast café.

1

Warm-up

5 min
1.1

Food

Answer each question with 2–3 sentences.

  1. What do you usually have for breakfast?
  2. What is your favourite meal of the day?
  3. Do you eat snacks between meals? What?
  4. What food do you eat every day?
  5. What food do you never eat?
  6. Do you prefer sweet or salty food?
2

Words and phrases

12 min
2.1

New words

Read each word and the example. Then say how often you eat it.

2.2

Which word?

Choose the word that fits.

  1. I always have at 7 a.m.
  2. At 4 p.m. I have a small , usually nuts.
  3. Carrots and potatoes are .
  4. Milk, cheese and yoghurt are .
  5. My grandmother cooks with milk for breakfast.
  6. This curry is very — I need water!
  7. I'm late, so I'm going to lunch today.
  8. Can I have a of cake, please?
2.3

Food groups

Choose the right answer, then press Check answers.

  1. An apple is
    .
  2. Cheese is a
    .
  3. A carrot is a
    .
  4. a ___ of soup
  5. a ___ of bread
  6. Chilli is
    .
2.4

Useful phrases

Use these phrases to talk about what you eat.

  • For breakfast, I usually have...На сніданок я зазвичай їм...For breakfast, I usually have eggs and toast.
  • I eat a lot of... / I don't eat much...Я їм багато... / Я їм мало...I eat a lot of fruit, but I don't eat much meat.
  • My favourite food is...Моя улюблена їжа — це...My favourite food is varenyky with cherries.
  • I can't live without...Я не можу жити без...I can't live without coffee in the morning.
  • I'm not a big fan of...Я не дуже люблю...I'm not a big fan of fish.
  • It tastes...На смак воно...It tastes sweet and a bit sour.
  • How often do you eat...?Як часто ти їси...?How often do you eat pasta?
  • I'm hungry / I'm full.Я голодний(-а) / Я наївся(-лася).I'm full — I can't eat any more!
3

Read and react

8 min
3.1

Breakfast around the world

Read the text. Hover over the dotted words for help.

What do people eat for breakfast around the world?

Breakfast is very different in different countries. What do people eat in the morning?

In Japan, a traditional breakfast is a bit like dinner: rice, miso soup, fish and some vegetables. In Turkey, breakfast is a big meal with bread, white cheese, olives, tomatoes, cucumbers, eggs, honey and a lot of tea.

A "full English breakfast" in the UK is very big too: eggs, bacon, sausages, mushrooms, tomatoes, beans and toast. But most British people don't eat it every day. On weekdays, they often have cereal or toast.

In Mexico, many people eat "chilaquiles": tortilla chips with spicy sauce, cheese and sometimes eggs. In France, breakfast is often small: a croissant or bread with butter and jam, and a coffee.

And in Ukraine? Many people have sandwiches, porridge, eggs or syrnyky with sour cream. What do you have? Is your breakfast typical for your country?

3.2

True or false?

  1. A traditional Japanese breakfast includes rice and fish.
  2. Breakfast in Turkey is usually very small.
  3. Most British people eat a full English breakfast every day.
  4. Chilaquiles are from Mexico.
  5. In France, breakfast is often a croissant and coffee.
3.3

What do you think?

  1. Which breakfast from the text would you like to try?
  2. Which one is the most similar to yours?
  3. Is breakfast the most important meal for you?
  4. What did you eat for breakfast as a child?
4

Grammar for speaking

10 min
4.1

Grammar for speaking

Countable nouns

Things you can count: one apple, two apples.

an egg, three tomatoes, some carrots, How many eggs?

Uncountable nouns

Things you can't count: no plural, no "a".

bread, milk, rice, cheese, water, How much rice?

Containers

To count uncountable things.

a glass of milk, a slice of bread, a bowl of soup, a cup of tea, a piece of cheese

How many + countable: How many eggs do you need? How much + uncountable: How much milk do you drink? Careful: ✗ a bread → a slice of bread / some bread. ✗ breads, rices, milks.

4.2

Choose the right form

  1. How
    eggs do you eat a week?
  2. How
    water do you drink a day?
  3. I'd like
    .
  4. There isn't
    milk in the fridge.
  5. I eat
    fruit.
  6. Can I have
    tea?
  7. We need
    rice for dinner.
  8. There are
    tomatoes on the table.
4.3

Fix the mistake

Each sentence has one mistake. Type the correct words.

  1. I'd like a bread, please. →
  2. How many milk do you drink? →
  3. I eat many cheese. →
  4. Can I have two rices? →
  5. There isn't many sugar. →
  6. How much apples do you need? →
4.4

Talk about it

Answer in detail. Use countable / uncountable nouns.

  1. What do you usually eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner?
  2. How much water do you drink a day? How many cups of coffee or tea?
  3. What do you always have in your fridge?
  4. What food do you eat a lot of? What don't you eat much of?
  5. Describe your favourite meal.
  6. What did you eat yesterday?
5

A day of food

8 min
5.1

Three people, three days

Talk about each person's day of food: how much / how many, what they eat a lot of and what they don't eat much of. Whose day is the healthiest? Whose is the most similar to yours?

Person 1

Olena, 30, office worker

  • Skips breakfast, just coffee
  • Sandwich at her desk
  • Big dinner at 9 p.m.
  • Snacks: chocolate
Person 2

Ivan, 55, farmer

  • Big breakfast: eggs, bread, cheese
  • Soup and meat for lunch
  • Light dinner
  • Snacks: apples
Person 3

Mia, 22, student

  • Porridge with fruit
  • Pizza or noodles
  • Pasta with vegetables
  • Snacks: crisps
5.2

My food day

Speak for 1–2 minutes.

  1. Describe everything you ate and drank yesterday.
  2. What was the tastiest thing?
  3. What would you like to change?
6

Personal questions

10 min
6.1

Part I: Me

  1. What is your favourite breakfast?
  2. Do you ever skip meals?
  3. What is your favourite snack?
  4. What do you usually have for lunch on weekdays?
  5. What food can you cook well?
  6. Do you eat a lot of sweets?
  7. What fruit do you like most?
  8. Do you prefer to eat at home or out?
6.2

Part II: Other people

  1. What do people in your family eat for breakfast?
  2. Who is the best cook in your family?
  3. What do children usually like to eat?
  4. What food do your friends love?
  5. What food did your grandparents eat when they were young?
  6. What is a typical Ukrainian dinner?
6.3

Part III: A bit deeper

  1. Is breakfast the most important meal of the day?
  2. Do people eat more healthily now than before?
  3. Should children eat everything on their plate?
  4. Is it OK to eat in front of the TV?
  5. Why do people in different countries eat different food?
7

Roleplay

12 min
7.1

The breakfast café

You

Café owner

You are opening a breakfast café. Tell a journalist (your teacher) about your menu:
  • three breakfasts from different countries
  • what is in each one
  • which one is your favourite and why
  • the drinks you have
Speak for at least 2 minutes in total. Use countable / uncountable nouns.
Your teacher

Journalist

Asks short questions, for example:
  1. What is in the Turkish breakfast?
  2. How many eggs are in the English breakfast?
  3. Do you have anything for vegetarians?
  4. How much does it cost?
7.2

The food interview

You

Interviewee

A nutrition student (your teacher) is doing a survey about what people eat. Answer in detail:
  • what you eat on a normal day
  • what you eat a lot of and not much of
  • what you drink
  • what you would like to change
You do most of the talking. Use: I usually have... · I eat a lot of... · I don't eat much... · How much / How many...
Your teacher

Student

Asks short questions, for example:
  1. How many meals do you have a day?
  2. How much water do you drink?
  3. Do you eat fast food?
  4. What is your favourite snack?
8

Homework

at home

Your homework score

Do all four exercises, then press Check all homework. Correct answers will appear next to your mistakes.

– / 30
H1

Complete with a word

breakfastsnackvegetablesdairy productsporridgespicyskipslice
  1. I have at 8 o'clock.
  2. An apple is a healthy .
  3. Eat more !
  4. Milk and cheese are .
  5. I eat with honey every morning.
  6. Mexican food is often .
  7. Don't breakfast — it's important!
  8. Would you like a of pizza?
H2

Countable and uncountable

  1. How apples do you need?
  2. How sugar do you take?
  3. I'd like .
  4. There isn't cheese left.
  5. I eat rice.
  6. Can I have water?
  7. We need milk.
  8. There aren't eggs in the fridge.
H3

Correct or incorrect?

Decide if each sentence is grammatically correct.

  1. How much water do you drink?
  2. Can I have a bread?
  3. There are some tomatoes.
  4. How many milk do you want?
  5. I'd like a cup of tea.
  6. I eat many fruit.
  7. There isn't much rice.
H4

Match the two halves

  1. For breakfast, I usually have
  2. I eat a lot of fruit,
  3. My favourite food is
  4. I can't live without
  5. I'm not a big fan of
  6. It tastes sweet
  7. I'm full —

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© Yevheniia Kolesnykova, Academy of Languages. All rights reserved. No copying or reuse without written permission.