Week 25 – Comparing people & things

Week 25 – Comparing people & things (Comparatives & Superlatives, A2)

Theme: Describing and comparing people, places, and things.

Main grammar & functions:

• Comparative adjectives: bigger, more interesting, more expensive.
• Superlative adjectives: the biggest, the most interesting, the most expensive.
• Structures for comparing:
  • A is bigger than B., A is more interesting than B.
  • A is the biggest., This is the most interesting film.

CEFR link:

A2: Can compare people and things using simple structures (CEFR: “Can use simple descriptive language to make brief comparisons.”)

1. Lesson objectives (for students)

By the end of the week, students can:

1. Use comparative adjectives to compare two people/things.
2. Use superlative adjectives to describe extremes in a group.
3. Use basic structures for comparisons with than and the.
4. Avoid the most common form mistakes (double comparatives, wrong word order).

2. Grammar focus (with Ukrainian‑speaker notes)

a) Comparative adjectives

Form – short adjectives (1 syllable, some 2 syllables):

• adj + -er + than
  • tall → taller than
  • big → bigger than (double consonant)
  • cheap → cheaper than
  • young → younger than

Form – long adjectives (2+ syllables):

• more + adjective + than
  • interesting → more interesting than
  • expensive → more expensive than
  • beautiful → more beautiful than

Irregular comparatives:

• good → better than
• bad → worse than
• far → farther/further than (optional)

Examples:

• My sister is younger than me.
• Kyiv is bigger than Lviv.
• This film is more interesting than that one.

Ukrainian issues:

• Double comparatives:
  • more bigger → bigger
  • more better → better
• Dropping than:
  • Kyiv is bigger Lviv → Kyiv is bigger than Lviv.

b) Superlative adjectives

Form – short adjectives:

• the + adj + -est
  • tall → the tallest
  • big → the biggest
  • cheap → the cheapest
  • young → the youngest

Form – long adjectives:

• the most + adjective
  • interesting → the most interesting
  • expensive → the most expensive
  • beautiful → the most beautiful

Irregular superlatives:

• good → the best
• bad → the worst

Examples:

• He is the tallest person in our class.
• This is the most expensive restaurant in our city.
• English is the most important subject for me.

Ukrainian issues:

• Forgetting the:
  • He is tallest in the class → He is the tallest in the class.
• Mixing forms:
  • the most big instead of the biggest.

c) Useful comparison structures

Basic:

• A is bigger than B.
• A is more interesting than B.
• A is not as big as B. (optional extension)

Superlative context:

• A is the biggest in the group/class/city.
• This is the best film I know.

At A2, keep the focus on A is adj‑er than B / A is the adj‑est / A is more/the most adj.

3. Vocabulary sets

Adjectives for people:

• tall, short, young, old, friendly, funny, serious, lazy, hard‑working

Adjectives for places/things:

• big, small, cheap, expensive, quiet, noisy, beautiful, interesting, boring, fast, slow

Useful nouns for comparison tasks:

• family members (mother, father, sister, brother, cousin)
• cities / countries (Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, London, etc.)
• school subjects (English, Math, History, PE)
• transport (car, bus, train, plane)

4. Lesson skeleton (60–90 minutes)

1) Warm‑up – Adjective activation (10–15 min)

• On the board, write some nouns: city, car, film, person, subject.
• In pairs, students brainstorm adjectives and share:
  • "big, small, interesting, boring, fast, slow…"
• Board useful adjectives, categorised: people / places / things.

2) Presentation – Comparatives (15–20 min)

1. Show 3 simple pictures (two people, two cities, two cars).
   • Example: a small car, a big car.
2. Elicit and model sentences:
   • The blue car is bigger than the red car.
   • Lviv is smaller than Kyiv.
   • My brother is taller than me.
3. On the board, make a small table:

• • tall → taller than
  • big → bigger than
  • cheap → cheaper than
  • interesting → more interesting than

4. Highlight irregulars: better, worse.
5. Short controlled practice:
   • Gap‑fill:
     • "English is _ (interesting) than Math."
     • "This restaurant is _ (cheap) than that one."

3) Presentation – Superlatives (15–20 min)

1. Show 3 pictures (three cities, three people, three cars).
2. Model sentences:
   • Kyiv is the biggest city in Ukraine.
   • He is the tallest in the class.
   • This is the most interesting book I have.
3. Board a table:

• • tall → the tallest
  • big → the biggest
  • cheap → the cheapest
  • interesting → the most interesting

4. Highlight irregulars: the best, the worst.
5. Controlled practice:
   • Students complete:
     • "Math is _ (easy) subject for me."
     • "This is _ (good) café in our town."

4) Controlled practice – My family / my class (10–15 min)

• Give students a table with family members or classmates and adjectives.
• They write 5–6 sentences:
  • "My father is taller than my mother."
  • "My sister is the youngest in the family."
  • "English is more interesting than Math."
  • "English is the most important subject for me."
• Pair check and quick board feedback, correcting form.

5) Freer practice – Compare & choose (15–20 min)

Option A – Things in your life:

1. Students choose pairs from prompts:
   • "bus / car", "TV / internet", "summer / winter", "city / village".
2. They make and share sentences:
   • "The bus is slower than the car."
   • "The internet is more important than TV."
   • "Summer is the best season for me."

Option B – Class survey:

1. Put questions on the board:
   • "What is the best film you know?"
   • "What is the most beautiful place in Ukraine?"
   • "Who is the tallest person in your family?"
2. Students walk around, ask, and note answers.
3. Report back using superlatives:
   • "The most popular film in our class is…"
   • "The most beautiful place is…"

5. Homework / revision ideas

Choose 1–2:

1. Writing – My family / friends
   • Students write 6–8 sentences comparing family members or friends:
     • 3–4 comparatives (A is taller than B),
     • 2–3 superlatives (He is the oldest, She is the funniest, etc.).

2. City comparison
   • Students choose two cities (e.g., their city and Kyiv) and write 5 sentences:
     • "Kyiv is bigger than …"
     • "… is cheaper than …"
     • "Kyiv is the most interesting city for me" (or similar).

3. Adjective chart
   • Students make a mini‑table at home with 10 adjectives and fill in three forms:
     • big – bigger – the biggest
     • interesting – more interesting – the most interesting
     • good – better – the best, etc.