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There is, there are and giving directions

Use there is with a singular place and there are with plural places. Then add a location: There is a library next to the school. To give a route, use go straight, turn left and turn right from a clear starting point. This English 2AC lesson combines a small invented town plan with questions and corrected direction tasks.

Moroccan 2AC · Original English practice · Semester 2 · Updated

English 2AC · S2

The lesson as a PDF

The illustrated lesson and corrected exercises to print. The quiz stays online.

By the end of this lesson, you can

  • Use singular and plural there forms
  • Locate places with next to, opposite and between
  • Give a route from an explicit starting point

Before you startRead short English sentences and familiar school vocabulary

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Start with the situation

Use singular and plural there forms. Locate places with next to, opposite and between. Give a route from an explicit starting point.

Objects-only miniature invented Moroccan town on a classroom desk: school, library, park, bank, cafe, shop.
Compare the situation with the examples and explain your choice of form.
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How do there is and there are work?

There is introduces one countable place: There is a library. There are introduces more than one: There are two parks. Make a negative with not: There is not a cinema; there are not any shops. In a question, move is or are before there: Is there a bank? Are there any cafés? Short answers keep the same verb: Yes, there is. No, there aren’t.

Choose the form from the noun, not from the word there. A school is singular, while two schools is plural. In careful written English, use There are two parks rather than There’s two parks. Do not mix an existence sentence with an identity sentence: There is a library introduces its presence, while It is a library identifies a building already under discussion.

There is, there are and giving directions: illustrated language and evidence guide. There is + singular; there are + plural. Questions begin Is there? or Are there?
There is + singular; there are + plural. Questions begin Is there? or Are there?
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How do you describe position on a plan?

Next to means beside. Opposite means across from. Between names a middle position, usually with two reference points: The library is between the school and the park. Behind and in front of need a clear orientation. In the practice plan, read the two rows as two sides of one street. The school is opposite the bank, the library is opposite the café, and the park is opposite the shop.

Places in the same row are neighbours: the library is next to the school and the park. Do not call two buildings opposite simply because they appear on the same page. Check their positions in the plan. The table uses invented locations to practise English; it is not a navigation guide to an actual Moroccan neighbourhood.

West positionMiddle positionEast position
SchoolLibraryPark
BankCaféShop

Use the plan’s two street sides

There is a library between the school and the park. It is opposite the café.

  1. The library is in the middle of the first row; the café is directly across in the middle of the second row.

How can you give a route someone can follow?

Start by naming the starting place and direction of travel. At the school, face towards the library and park. Go straight past the library. The park is on your left in this imagined route only if the stated orientation makes that true, so avoid adding left or right from a plan that gives no viewpoint. A useful short direction is Go past the library; the park is next to it.

For a real speaking task, draw a simple plan with a starting arrow, then practise turn left and turn right at clearly marked junctions. Ask your partner to trace the route. If the endpoint does not match, improve the directions rather than blaming the listener. Excuse me, where is the library? opens the exchange politely, and Can you repeat that, please? helps when one step is unclear.

A method you can reuse

Step by step

Work step by step

  1. Find the place and its number.
  2. Choose there is or there are.
  3. Add a location supported by the plan.
  4. For a route, state the start and check every step.
There is, there are and giving directions: illustrated practice checklist. Between names two reference points. Directions need a clear starting point and orientation.
Between names two reference points. Directions need a clear starting point and orientation.
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Remember

Next to and opposite describe different positions. Do not give a left or right turn without a clear starting direction or an orientation arrow.

Frequently asked questions

When do I use there is or there are?

Use there is before a singular place and there are before plural places: a library, two parks.

What is the difference between next to and opposite?

Next to means beside. Opposite means across from, such as buildings on two sides of a street.

How do I give directions in English 2AC?

Start with a clear place and direction, then give ordered steps using go straight, go past, turn left or turn right as the plan supports them.

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.

Q1There … two shops.

Correct answer: are

The plural noun shops takes are.

Q2The library is between …

Correct answer: the school and the park

Read the first row of the practice plan.

Exercises with answers

6 exercises, from easy practice to challenges. Try each one yourself, then reveal the answer and explanation.

Exercise 1

Easy

Complete: There … a library. There … two parks.

Answer and explanation

There is a library. There are two parks. A singular place takes is; two places take are.

Exercise 2

Easy

Turn these into questions: There is a bank. There are shops.

Answer and explanation

Is there a bank? Are there any shops? Move is or are before there.

Exercise 3

Intermediate

What is between the school and the park?

Answer and explanation

The library. It is in the middle position of the first row.

Exercise 4

Intermediate

What is opposite the library?

Answer and explanation

The café. It is in the middle position on the other side of the imagined street.

Exercise 5

Intermediate

Start at the school and move towards the library. Explain how to reach the park.

Answer and explanation

Go past the library. The park is next to it. This uses the stated start and direction without inventing an unsupported turn.

Exercise 6

Challenge

A map has no starting arrow. Someone says Turn left. What information is missing?

Answer and explanation

The listener needs a starting place and a direction they are facing. Left changes when the viewpoint changes.