Week 20 – Housework & routines

Week 20 – Housework & routines (A1+ → A2‑)

Theme: Daily and weekly housework, routines at home.

Main grammar & functions:

• Present Simple for routines: I do the washing on Saturday., She cleans the kitchen every day.
• Adverbs and expressions of frequency (recycle & extend): always, usually, often, sometimes, hardly ever, never, plus once/twice a week, every day, on Saturdays.
• Third person -s practice (he/she) in the context of routines.

CEFR link:

A1+ / early A2: Can describe daily routines and simple household tasks; can say how often they do them (CEFR: “Can describe his/her daily routine”, “Can express frequency of everyday actions.”)

1. Lesson objectives (for students)

By the end of the week, students can:

1. Name common housework tasks.
2. Talk about their daily/weekly routines at home using Present Simple.
3. Use adverbs and expressions of frequency to say how often they do housework.
4. Talk about their own routine vs another person’s routine (he/she) with correct -s endings.

2. Grammar focus (with Ukrainian‑speaker notes)

a) Present Simple for routines (I/you/we/they vs he/she)

Form (review):

• Subject + verb (base form) for I/you/we/they:
  • I cook dinner.
  • We clean the house on Sunday.
• Subject + verb-s for he/she/it:
  • She cooks dinner.
  • He does the washing.

Negative & questions (light review):

• I don’t do the ironing. / She doesn’t cook every day.
• Do you clean the kitchen? / Does he cook dinner?

Ukrainian issues:

• Dropping the -s for he/she:
  • He cook dinner → He cooks dinner.
• Confusion with do/does vs have/has:
  • He don’t cook → He doesn’t cook.

Focus practice strongly on 3rd person -s within this topic.

b) Frequency words & expressions

Adverbs (recycle from Week 14):

• always, usually, often, sometimes, hardly ever, never

Position:

• Before main verb:
  • I often cook dinner.
  • We usually do the shopping on Friday.
• After be:
  • I am never tired in the morning.
  • She is usually busy.

Frequency expressions:

• every day, every morning, every weekend
• once a week, twice a week, three times a week
• on Mondays / on Saturdays

Ukrainian issues:

• Word order:
  • I cook often dinner → I often cook dinner.
• Preposition on for days:
  • I clean house Saturday → I clean the house on Saturday.

3. Vocabulary sets

Housework verbs / phrases:

• do the washing / do the laundry
• do the washing‑up / do the dishes
• do the ironing
• make the bed
• clean the kitchen / clean the bathroom
• tidy the room / tidy the house
• sweep the floor / vacuum the floor
• take out the rubbish / take out the trash
• cook dinner / make breakfast / make lunch
• do the shopping

Routine phrases:

• in the morning / afternoon / evening
• at the weekend
• on weekdays / on Saturdays / on Sundays

4. Lesson skeleton (60–90 minutes)

1) Warm‑up – Housework brainstorm (10–15 min)

• On the board, write the topic: Housework.
• Ask students: "What housework do you do at home?"
  • Elicit and board simple verbs: cook, clean, wash, vacuum, make the bed, etc.
• Quick pair discussion:
  • "Do you like housework?"
  • "What housework do you do every day / every week?"

2) Presentation – Housework vocabulary (10–15 min)

1. Show pictures of people doing different housework tasks.
2. Present phrases under pictures and drill:
   • do the washing / do the laundry
   • clean the kitchen
   • make the bed
   • vacuum the floor
   • take out the rubbish
3. Students match pictures to phrases on a worksheet or in a simple table.
4. Quick controlled practice:
   • Gap‑fill: "I _ the dishes in the evening." (do)
   • Match verbs with objects: do + washing‑up, make + bed, etc.

3) Routines with Present Simple & frequency (15–20 min)

1. Write 2 example mini‑texts on the board:

A (I):

I usually do the washing on Saturday. I often cook dinner. I sometimes clean the bathroom. I never do the ironing.

B (She):

My mother usually does the shopping on Friday. She always makes the bed in the morning. She sometimes vacuums the floor.

2. Highlight:
   • -s in does, makes, vacuums for she.
   • Position of adverbs: usually, often, sometimes, never before the verb.
3. Elicit rules from students and put them in a simple box on the board.
4. Controlled writing:
   • Students write 3–4 sentences about their own housework using:
     • at least 2 adverbs of frequency.
     • both I and my mother/father/brother… to practice 3rd person.

4) Controlled practice – Survey "Who does what at home?" (10–15 min)

• Give a simple survey table with housework tasks in rows and family members in columns (me, mother, father, brother/sister, etc.).
• Students ask and answer in pairs or small groups (imagining a typical family if necessary):
  • "Who usually cooks dinner?" – "My mother usually cooks dinner."
  • "Who often takes out the rubbish?" – "My father often takes out the rubbish."
• They fill in the table, then report:
  • "In my family, my mother usually cooks dinner. My father often takes out the rubbish. I sometimes do the washing‑up."

Focus on he/she + -s and adverbs of frequency.

5) Freer practice – My housework routine (15–20 min)

Students prepare a short mini‑presentation about their housework routine.

1. Ask students to write 5–6 sentences about housework:
   • 3–4 sentences with I:
     • "I usually cook dinner."
     • "I often do the washing‑up."
     • "I never do the ironing."
   • 2–3 sentences about another person (he/she):
     • "My brother sometimes vacuums the floor."
     • "My mother always makes the bed."
2. In small groups, students read their sentences to each other.
3. Optional: 1–2 students present to the whole group for correction and feedback.

5. Homework / revision ideas

Choose 1–2:

1. Writing – My week of housework
   • Students write 6–8 sentences about their week:
     • at least 3 with adverbs (always, usually, often, sometimes, never),
     • at least 2 about another person (he/she).
   • Example:
     • "I usually do the washing on Saturday. I often cook dinner. I never do the ironing. My mother always does the shopping. My father sometimes vacuums the floor."

2. Housework chart
   • Students make a simple 7‑day chart at home and mark with symbols what they actually do (W = washing, C = cooking, V = vacuuming, etc.).
   • Next lesson, they describe it in pairs:
     • "On Monday, I cook dinner and do the washing‑up. On Wednesday, I vacuum the floor."

3. Sentence transformation (he/she practice)
   • Provide a list of "I" sentences:
     • "I cook dinner."
     • "I take out the rubbish."
     • "I clean the bathroom."
   • Homework: students rewrite for he/she:
     • "She cooks dinner."
     • "He takes out the rubbish."
     • "She cleans the bathroom."