Listening and speaking: preparing sports day
For a sports-day announcement, listen for the meeting time, place, event, equipment and instructions. Use a small note grid instead of trying to write every word. This English 2AC oral lesson includes a playable synthetic-voice recording, a complete transcript, corrected questions and a speaking task to explain the plan to a classmate.
English 2AC · S2
Your illustrated PDF
The transcript, the tasks and corrected exercises to print. The audio and the quiz stay online.
By the end of this lesson, you can
- Understand the key details of a short announcement
- Separate equipment provided from items to bring
- Give a clear spoken summary
Before you startRead short English sentences and familiar school vocabulary
Un bon cours, ça se partage.
Listen to the text
Listen before opening the transcript. This original English practice text is read by a synthetic voice.
Show the transcript
Good morning, everyone. Our practice sports day is on Friday. Please meet in the playground at half past nine. We are preparing a relay and a ball game. Bilal is carrying the cones, and Hamza is checking the team list. You must bring your water bottle. You do not have to bring a ball because the school provides one. Please listen to the teacher before each activity, and do not enter the running area until it is your turn. The activities finish at eleven. After that, we put the equipment away together. Thank you.
Before you listen
Understand the key details of a short announcement. Separate equipment provided from items to bring. Give a clear spoken summary.
How do you prepare for the listening?
Read the questions and prepare headings for day, place, start, finish, activities and equipment. Keep the transcript closed until you have listened independently. The first listen gives the overall purpose: a school-club announcement about an invented practice event. The second listen should fill the grid. A third listen can check one detail you missed.
The recording uses a synthetic English voice. It is provided for language practice, with a full transcript so you can check every detail. The schedule and instructions are fictional examples, rather than an announcement from your own school. Follow your actual teacher’s instructions when taking part in a real event.
Which details are easy to confuse?
Half past nine is 9:30 and gives the meeting time. Eleven is the finishing time. Friday gives the day and the playground gives the place. Label each note so the last number you hear does not replace the first. A relay and a ball game are two activities; cones and a team list are preparation details.
The announcement distinguishes must bring from do not have to bring. Pupils must bring a water bottle. A ball is provided, so bringing one is unnecessary. It does not say pupils are forbidden to own or carry a ball. Read the whole clause because the reason explains the instruction. Bilal carries the cones; Hamza checks the list. The two names have different jobs.
| Listen for | Notes to complete before checking |
|---|---|
| Day and place | Which day? Where? |
| Times | Meeting time? Finishing time? |
| Activities | Which two events? |
| Equipment | What must I bring? What is provided? |
| Instructions | What must I do before an activity? |
A concise spoken summary
Meet in the playground on Friday at 9:30. There is a relay and a ball game. Bring your water bottle. The school provides a ball. The activities finish at eleven.
- The summary preserves the information a classmate needs to prepare and arrive on time.
How do you turn notes into a spoken summary?
Begin with the day and place, then give the meeting and finishing times. Name the activities and the item to bring. End with the instruction that helps a listener know what to do. You do not need to repeat every sentence. A useful summary keeps the essential information and leaves out details that do not affect the listener’s preparation.
Practise once with notes and once looking at your partner. Use short pauses between time, place and instructions. Ask the listener to repeat the start time and required item. If either is unclear, say it again more slowly. Then exchange roles and change one detail, such as the start time, while keeping the rest consistent. This checks understanding more effectively than memorising a script without listening.
A method you can reuse
Step by step
Work step by step
- Prepare a note grid.
- Listen for the whole message, then key details.
- Check answers against the transcript.
- Explain the plan aloud and ask the listener to repeat two essentials.
Remember
Do not confuse the 9:30 meeting with the 11:00 finish. Do not have to bring a ball means it is unnecessary, rather than forbidden.
Frequently asked questions
Is there audio for this oral lesson?
What should I note during a listening task?
What is a good speaking summary?
Quiz: 2 questions
2 questions are randomly selected from this lesson’s 2-question bank. Choose one answer for each question and get an immediate explanation.
Q1Pupils meet at …
Incorrect answer
Half past nine is the meeting time.
Correct answer: 9:30
Half past nine is the meeting time.
Q2Pupils must bring …
Incorrect answer
The ball is provided; pupils bring a water bottle.
Correct answer: a water bottle
The ball is provided; pupils bring a water bottle.
Your score
0/2
Start with the worked examples
Read the lesson in small sections. Write your own example for each rule and try the Easy exercises before returning to the quiz.
Review: 2 missed questions
Pupils meet at …
Correct answer9:30
Half past nine is the meeting time.
Pupils must bring …
Correct answera water bottle
The ball is provided; pupils bring a water bottle.
Exercises with answers
7 exercises, from easy practice to challenges. Try each one yourself, then reveal the answer and explanation.
Exercise 1
EasyOn which day does the event happen, and where do pupils meet?
Answer and explanation
On Friday, in the playground. Both details are stated near the start of the announcement.
Exercise 2
EasyWhat are the meeting and finishing times?
Answer and explanation
Meet at half past nine, or 9:30. Finish at eleven, or 11:00. Keep the two labels separate.
Exercise 3
IntermediateWhich two activities are planned?
Answer and explanation
A relay and a ball game. The cones and team list are equipment or preparation details, rather than extra events.
Exercise 4
IntermediateWhat are Bilal and Hamza doing?
Answer and explanation
Bilal is carrying the cones. Hamza is checking the team list. Use the continuous for these current preparation actions.
Exercise 5
IntermediateWhat must pupils bring? What do they not have to bring, and why?
Answer and explanation
They must bring a water bottle. They do not have to bring a ball because the school provides one.
Exercise 6
IntermediateTell a classmate the day, meeting place, start, finish, activities and required item in under a minute.
Answer and explanation
One possible summary: Meet in the playground on Friday at half past nine. We are doing a relay and a ball game. Bring your water bottle; the school provides the ball. We finish at eleven. Accept a clear summary with all essential details.
Exercise 7
ChallengeAsk your partner to repeat two essential details after your summary.
Answer and explanation
Useful checks are What time do we meet? and What must you bring? The answers should be 9:30 and a water bottle. Repeat a detail more slowly if needed.