Week 28 – Future schedules & predictions

Week 28 – Future schedules & predictions (will vs going to vs timetables, A2)

Theme: Talking about future schedules, personal plans, and simple predictions.

Main grammar & functions:

• Present Simple for fixed timetables/schedules:
  • The train leaves at 7.30., The lesson starts at 9.
• be going to for plans and intentions:
  • I’m going to visit my parents., We’re going to travel in July.
• will for spontaneous decisions and simple predictions:
  • I think it’ll rain., I’ll help you., You’ll like this film.

CEFR link:

A2: Can talk about future plans and arrangements and make simple predictions (CEFR: “Can describe plans and arrangements, can make simple predictions about future events.”)

1. Lesson objectives (for students)

By the end of the week, students can:

1. Use Present Simple correctly for timetables and schedules.
2. Use be going to for personal plans/intentions.
3. Use will for spontaneous decisions and simple predictions.
4. Choose an appropriate future form in common everyday situations (with support).

2. Grammar focus (with Ukrainian‑speaker notes)

a) Present Simple – fixed timetables (review)

Use:

• Fixed schedules that we cannot easily change: buses, trains, planes, classes, cinema times.

Examples:

• The train leaves at 7.30.
• The bus arrives at 9.05.
• Our English class starts at 6 o’clock.
• The film finishes at 10.

Form review:

• 3rd person singular -s (leaves, arrives, starts, finishes).

Ukrainian issues:

• Using will or Present Continuous where English prefers Present Simple:
  • The train will leave at 7.30 – understandable, but teach leaves as the natural form.

b) be going to – plans & intentions (review from Week 27)

Form:

• am / is / are + going to + verb.

Use:

• Personal plans or intentions (decision already made):
  • I’m going to study English this evening.
  • We’re going to buy a new car.

Contrast: often no fixed timetable is needed in the sentence.

c) will – spontaneous decisions & predictions

Form:

• will + verb (same for all persons)
  • I’ll / you’ll / he’ll / she’ll / we’ll / they’ll + verb.

Use 1 – spontaneous decisions (at the moment of speaking):

• (Phone rings) – I’ll answer it.
• You’re busy – I’ll help you.
• Oh, I’m tired. I think I’ll go to bed.

Use 2 – simple predictions (often with "I think", "probably")

• I think it’ll rain tomorrow.
• She’ll probably be late.
• I don’t think it’ll be difficult.

Ukrainian issues:

• Overusing will for all future uses, because Ukrainian often uses a future verb form in many contexts:
  • Tomorrow I will go to work at 8 – OK, but for timetables and firm plans, better show Present Simple / going to.
• Confusing will and want in pronunciation / listening.

At A2, keep your explanation simple and rely on context & examples more than rules.

d) Simple choice guide for students (practical)

Give a very simple decision tree:

• Is it a timetable / schedule? → Present Simple
  • The train leaves at 7.30.
• Is it a plan or intention (I decided before)? → going to
  • I’m going to visit my friend.
• Is it a decision now or a prediction? → will
  • I’ll help you. / I think it’ll rain.

Don’t worry about exceptions at this level.

3. Vocabulary sets

Timetable contexts:

• train, bus, plane, lesson, meeting, film, concert
• leave, arrive, start, finish

Plan/prediction topics:

• weekend/free‑time plans: visit friends, stay at home, go to the cinema, study, travel
• weather, technology, simple life predictions: rain, snow, be sunny, be cold, be difficult, be easy, prices go up/down

Useful expressions:

• I think… / I don’t think…
• probably, maybe, I’m sure…

4. Lesson skeleton (60–90 minutes)

1) Warm‑up – Future question line (10–15 min)

• Put 3 questions on the board:
  • What time does your English lesson start?
  • What are you going to do this evening?
  • What do you think you will do next year? (job/study)
• Students answer individually, then in pairs.
• Use their answers to elicit the 3 future forms you will review.

2) Presentation – Three future forms in context (15–20 min)

1. Show a short text/dialogue that includes all three forms:

Example:

My English lesson starts at 6 o’clock. It finishes at 7.30. After my lesson, I’m going to meet my friend. We’re going to have dinner together. I think we’ll go to a new restaurant. It’ll be expensive, but the food will be very good.

2. Underline:
   • Present Simple: starts, finishes
   • going to: going to meet, going to have
   • will: we’ll go, it’ll be, will be
3. Ask concept questions:
   • Which verbs talk about the timetable?
   • Which verbs talk about plans?
   • Which verbs are predictions?

3) Controlled practice – Timetables vs plans (15–20 min)

1. Give students a simple bus/cinema/class timetable.
2. They make sentences with Present Simple:
   • "The bus to Lviv leaves at 8.15."
   • "The film starts at 9.30."
3. Then give prompts for plans using going to:
   • tonight, this weekend, next holiday.
   • Students write 4–5 sentences:
     • "I’m going to visit my parents on Sunday."
     • "We’re going to watch a film tonight."

4) Presentation & practice – will for predictions (15–20 min)

1. Show a set of simple pictures or headlines (dark clouds, exam, new phone, traffic, etc.).
2. Elicit predictions:
   • "I think it’ll rain tomorrow."
   • "You’ll pass the exam."
   • "Phones will be more expensive."
   • "There won’t be much traffic." (optional negative)
3. Board pattern: I think + will / won’t + verb.
4. Pair work: students make 4–6 predictions about:
   • tomorrow’s weather,
   • their weekend,
   • the future of technology / their city.

5) Mixed practice – Choose the future form (10–15 min)

• Provide 8–10 sentences with gaps and short contexts; students choose Present Simple / going to / will:
  • "The train _ at 8.30." (timetable)
  • "I think it _ rain." (prediction)
  • "We _ visit our grandparents next weekend. We decided yesterday." (plan)
• Check together and discuss reasons briefly.

6) Freer speaking – My future week & predictions (10–15 min)

1. Students write notes under 3 headings:
   • Timetables (lessons, buses, meetings).
   • Plans (going to…).
   • Predictions (will…).
2. In pairs, they talk about their week:
   • "My lesson starts at… The bus leaves at…"
   • "I’m going to study on Saturday."
   • "I think I’ll relax on Sunday."

5. Homework / revision ideas

Choose 1–2:

1. Writing – My next weekend and my future
   • Students write 8–10 sentences including:
     • 2–3 timetable sentences (Present Simple):
       • "My train leaves at…"
     • 3–4 going to sentences (plans):
       • "I’m going to…"
     • 2–3 will sentences (predictions):
       • "I think I’ll…" / "It’ll be…"

2. Prediction cards
   • Students write 5 predictions about the future (next year / in 10 years).
   • Next lesson, use them for a speaking activity:
     • classmates agree/disagree: "I don’t think it’ll be like that" / "Maybe you’re right."

3. Timetable creation
   • Students create a simple timetable (train, bus, daily routine) and write 5 Present Simple sentences from it.