Week 30 – Travel problems & solutions

Week 30 – Travel problems & solutions (modals for obligation/advice, A2)

Theme: Talking about travel problems and giving advice/solutions.

Main grammar & functions:

• Modals for obligation / necessity: must, have to, don’t have to.
• Modals for advice / suggestions: should, shouldn’t (review & extend from Week 18).
• Functional travel/problem language: lose, miss, delay, cancel, luggage, ticket, reservation, problem, solution.

CEFR link:

A2: Can describe common travel problems and give simple advice; can express obligation and lack of obligation (CEFR: “Can give and follow simple directions and instructions”, “Can give simple advice and express obligation.”)

1. Lesson objectives (for students)

By the end of the week, students can:

1. Understand and use must / have to / don’t have to to talk about rules and necessity when travelling.
2. Use should / shouldn’t to give advice about travel problems.
3. Use basic vocabulary to describe typical travel problems and possible solutions.
4. Role‑play simple situations at a station/airport, hotel, or travel office.

2. Grammar focus (with Ukrainian‑speaker notes)

a) must / have to / don’t have to

Meaning (keep simple):

• must / have to – it is necessary (rule or strong obligation).
• don’t have to – it is not necessary (you can, but you don’t need to).

Form:

• must + verb (no -s, no "to")
  • You must show your passport.
  • You mustn’t smoke here. (prohibition)

• have to + verb (changes with subject)
  • I have to wait.
  • She has to check in 2 hours before the flight.

• don’t/doesn’t have to + verb
  • You don’t have to print your ticket. (It’s not necessary.)
  • He doesn’t have to get up early tomorrow.

Ukrainian issues:

• Confusing mustn’t (it is forbidden) with don’t have to (not necessary):
  • "You mustn’t come early" ≠ "You don’t have to come early".
  • Explain clearly with examples.
• Adding to after must:
  • You must to wait → You must wait.

At A2, use must mainly for rules, have to for general necessity, and don’t have to for "not necessary".

b) should / shouldn’t for advice (review & extend)

Form:

• should / shouldn’t + verb (same for all persons).
  • You should buy travel insurance.
  • You shouldn’t forget your passport.

Use:

• Giving advice or suggestions, not strong rules.

Ukrainian issues:

• Tendency to say You must when they mean advice – encourage softer should when it’s a suggestion, not a rule.

3. Vocabulary sets

Travel problems:

• lose your passport / money / luggage
• miss the bus / train / plane
• flight delay, flight cancellation
• heavy traffic
• wrong ticket / wrong date
• hotel problems: no reservation, dirty room, noisy room

Travel solutions / advice:

• go to the information desk
• ask for help
• call the hotel / airline
• show your ticket / passport
• take a taxi
• check the timetable
• arrive early

Key nouns/phrases:

• ticket, boarding pass, passport, luggage / baggage, suitcase, reservation / booking, platform, gate, check‑in, delay

4. Lesson skeleton (60–90 minutes)

1) Warm‑up – Travel experiences (10–15 min)

• Ask: "Have you ever had a problem when you travelled?" (link to Week 24).
  • If yes, what happened?
• Board a few problems (in simple form):
  • "lost luggage", "late for train", "flight delay".

2) Presentation – Travel problems vocabulary (10–15 min)

1. Show pictures/icons of problems: lost suitcase, long queue, traffic jam, flight delay, etc.
2. Elicit/teach phrases:
   • "lose your luggage", "miss the train", "heavy traffic", "flight delay".
3. Quick matching activity (words → pictures) and short Q&A:
   • "What’s this problem?" – "It’s a flight delay."

3) Presentation – must / have to / don’t have to (15–20 min)

1. Give examples from travel context:
   • You must show your passport at the airport. (strong rule)
   • You have to arrive two hours before the flight. (necessary)
   • You don’t have to print your ticket – you can show it on your phone. (not necessary)
   • You mustn’t smoke on the plane. (forbidden)
2. Board a simple table with meaning in L1 (or simple English) if useful:
   • must = rule
   • have to = necessary
   • don’t have to = not necessary
   • mustn’t = not allowed
3. Controlled practice:
   • Students complete sentences with must / mustn’t / have to / don’t have to based on context cues.

4) Presentation & practice – should / shouldn’t for advice (15–20 min)

1. Use travel problem prompts:
   • "I lost my passport."
   • "Our flight is delayed."
   • "We missed the train."
   • "The hotel room is very noisy."
2. Elicit advice:
   • "You should go to the police."
   • "You should ask at the information desk."
   • "You should call the airline."
   • "You should ask for another room."
3. Board pattern: You should / shouldn’t + verb.
4. Controlled practice:
   • Matching problems with advice, then turning them into full sentences.

5) Role play – At the station/airport/hotel (15–20 min)

Students practise describing problems and giving advice/solutions.

1. Prepare role cards with different roles:
   • Traveller with problem: lost luggage, missed bus, wrong ticket, etc.
   • Information desk / hotel receptionist / airline staff.
2. In pairs, students act out dialogues:

Traveller: "Excuse me, I have a problem. I missed my train."

Staff: "You should check the timetable for the next train. You have to buy a new ticket."

Traveller: "Do I have to pay again?"

Staff: "Yes, you do / No, you don’t have to…"

3. Rotate roles and repeat with different problems.

5. Homework / revision ideas

Choose 1–2:

1. Writing – My worst travel problem
   • Students write 6–8 sentences about a real or imaginary travel problem and how they solved it, using:
     • at least 2 sentences with must / have to / don’t have to,
     • at least 2 sentences with should / shouldn’t.

2. Problem & advice cards
   • Students write 3 problem cards and 3 advice cards at home.
   • Next lesson, mix the cards; students pick a problem card and find good advice using should/must.

3. Travel rules poster
   • Students create a simple "Rules at the airport" or "Rules on the train" poster:
     • 4–6 sentences using must / mustn’t / have to / don’t have to.