Week 27 – Plans & arrangements

Week 27 – Plans & arrangements (Future forms: Present Continuous & be going to, A2)

Theme: Talking about future plans, personal arrangements, and intentions.

Main grammar & functions:

• Present Continuous for future arrangements (especially fixed plans with other people, time & place decided):
  • I’m meeting my friend on Friday., We’re having dinner at 7.
• be going to for plans and intentions:
  • I’m going to visit my parents., She’s going to start a new job.
• Simple distinction between arrangements and general plans/intentions (light, with plenty of examples, not heavy theory).

CEFR link:

A2: Can talk about future plans and arrangements using a limited range of structures (CEFR: “Can describe plans and arrangements, habits and routines, past activities and personal experiences.”)

1. Lesson objectives (for students)

By the end of the week, students can:

1. Use be going to to talk about personal plans and intentions.
2. Use Present Continuous to talk about fixed future arrangements (with time/place).
3. Ask and answer simple questions about future plans:
   • “What are you doing this weekend?” / “What are you going to do after work?”
4. Understand the basic difference between arrangements (Present Continuous) and plans (going to) in simple, practical contexts.

2. Grammar focus (with Ukrainian‑speaker notes)

a) be going to – plans & intentions

Form:

• am / is / are + going to + verb
  • I am going to visit my parents.
  • She is going to start a new job.
  • We are going to watch a film.

Contractions:

• I’m / he’s / she’s / we’re / they’re + going to + verb.

Use (simple):

• Personal plans or intentions (often without fixed time/place in the sentence):
  • I’m going to study English more.
  • We’re going to travel in summer.

Ukrainian issues:

• Direct translation of "going" as real movement: students may over‑focus on physical "go".
  • Explain: it can mean "plan/intention", not always physical movement.
• Dropping to:
  • I am going visit → I am going to visit.

b) Present Continuous for future arrangements

Form:

• am / is / are + verb-ing
  • I’m meeting my friend on Friday.
  • She’s having lunch with her boss tomorrow.
  • We’re travelling to Lviv next weekend.

Use:

• Fixed future arrangements – usually with:
  • another person (meeting, visiting, going out),
  • a specific time / day already decided.

Examples:

• I’m seeing the dentist on Monday.
• We’re going to the cinema tonight.
• They’re flying to London next week.

Ukrainian issues:

• Learners may already know Present Continuous for "now" – this is a second use.
  • Make a simple contrast on the board:
    • "I’m eating now." (now) vs "I’m meeting my friend tomorrow." (future plan)

c) Simple contrast: be going to vs Present Continuous

Keep the distinction light and practical at this level:

• be going to – general plans / intentions (decision made, not always fixed in calendar):
  • I’m going to learn Spanish.
  • I’m going to buy a new phone.

• Present Continuous – fixed arrangements in the near future (often with time & place):
  • I’m meeting my friend on Friday at 6.
  • We’re having dinner at a restaurant on Saturday.

You can also allow some overlap; don’t over‑correct if meaning is clear.

3. Vocabulary sets

Future‑plan topics:

• free time: meet friends, go to the cinema, watch a film, play football, visit family, go shopping
• work/study: start a new job, have a meeting, take an exam, study for an exam
• travel: go to the sea, go to the mountains, visit another city, travel abroad

Time expressions for future:

• this evening, tonight, tomorrow, the day after tomorrow
• this weekend, next weekend, next week, next month, next year
• on Monday / on Friday evening / on Saturday morning

Questions for plans & arrangements:

• What are you doing tonight / this weekend / next week?
• What are you going to do after class?
• Are you going to travel this summer?
• When are you meeting your friend?
• Where are you going to go on holiday?

4. Lesson skeleton (60–90 minutes)

1) Warm‑up – This weekend (10–15 min)

• Ask students: "What are you doing this weekend?"
  • Accept any future‑like answers; don’t correct much yet.
• Write some answers on the board and later reformulate them with going to or Present Continuous.

Example student ideas:

• "I go to my parents." → I’m going to visit my parents.
• "I meet my friends." → I’m meeting my friends.

2) Presentation – be going to (plans & intentions) (15–20 min)

1. Present 3–4 example sentences with pictures:
   • I’m going to visit my grandparents.
   • She’s going to start a new job.
   • We’re going to travel to the sea this summer.
2. Underline the structure: am/is/are + going to + verb.
3. Elicit and board the rule in simple form.
4. Controlled practice:
   • Students complete sentences with going to + verb:
     • "This weekend I _ (visit) my friends." → am going to visit.
     • "Next year she _ (start) a new job." → is going to start.

3) Presentation – Present Continuous for arrangements (15–20 min)

1. Present a short dialogue:

A: What are you doing on Friday?

B: I’m meeting my friend after work. We’re having dinner at 7.

2. Highlight forms: am/is/are + verb‑ing and time expressions (on Friday, at 7).
3. Explain in simple terms:
   • This is a fixed plan – you know when and often where.
4. Provide more examples:
   • I’m seeing the doctor tomorrow morning.
   • We’re going to the cinema tonight.
5. Controlled practice:
   • Students transform prompts into Present Continuous:
     • "you / meet / your friend / tomorrow" → "You’re meeting your friend tomorrow."
     • "we / have / a meeting / on Monday" → "We’re having a meeting on Monday."

4) Controlled speaking practice – Plans vs arrangements (10–15 min)

• Give students a mixed list of prompts (plan vs arrangement), e.g.:
  • learn English more, travel to another country next year (plans)
  • meet a friend on Friday, have a lesson tomorrow at 9 (arrangements)
• In pairs, students make sentences:
  • "I’m going to learn English more."
  • "I’m meeting a friend on Friday."
• Encourage them to justify choice briefly if possible:
  • "It’s a fixed time, so Present Continuous." / "It’s a general plan, so going to."

5) Freer speaking – My calendar (15–20 min)

Students plan their week and talk about it.

1. Give students a simple 7‑day weekly planner (Mon–Sun) with time slots (morning/afternoon/evening).
2. They fill in some fixed arrangements and some general plans, for example:
   • Monday evening – English class (fixed)
   • Saturday – visit parents (fixed)
   • "This year I’m going to travel more." (general plan, not on the calendar)
3. In pairs, they ask and answer:
   • "What are you doing on Friday evening?"
     • "I’m meeting my friends."
   • "What are you going to do in summer?"
     • "I’m going to go to the sea."

5. Homework / revision ideas

Choose 1–2:

1. Writing – My plans for next weekend & this year
   • Students write 6–8 sentences:
     • 3–4 with Present Continuous for fixed arrangements next weekend:
       • "On Saturday I’m visiting my grandparents."
     • 3–4 with be going to for general future plans this year:
       • "I’m going to learn English more."
       • "I’m going to start a new course."

2. Personal calendar
   • Students draw or fill in a calendar for next week with at least 5 plans.
   • Next lesson, use it for quick Q&A warm‑up:
     • "What are you doing on Tuesday?" / "Are you going to…?"

3. Question writing
   • Students write 5 questions using What are you doing …? and What are you going to do …?
   • Next lesson: mingle and ask classmates their questions.

Placement checklist (A2+ entry – Week 27)

Good A2+ starting point if a student can already:

• Use Past Simple in short narratives (last weekend/holiday).
• Understand the idea of Present Perfect for experiences (have been, have never…).
• Talk about plans at a basic level (I’m going to…, I will…).

Then Week 27 can be the first week in your course for them.