Starter • Unit 2: People & Things

The Perfect Car

Use adjectives to describe things, know that adjectives come BEFORE the noun, and express preferences with 'I prefer'.

50 min
adjective position (before noun) + adjectives are invariable
16 words
1

Listening

10 minutes
A car showroom. A customer is looking at cars with a salesperson.

Dialogue: A car showroom. A customer is looking at cars with a salesperson.

Customer and Salesperson

Here is the text from the listening. Read along and check your answers.

Customer
I want a new car.
What about this blue car?
Salesperson
It's small and easy to park.
Salesperson
Customer
But it's very slow. And it's ugly!
OK. This red car is fast and beautiful.
Salesperson
Customer
Yes! I love it. How much is it?
It's very expensive.
Salesperson
Customer
It's my money!
or click any bubble to hear one line

Comprehension:

1. What color is the first car?

2. Is the blue car fast?

3. What does the customer think of the red car?

2

Language Focus

12 minutes

Grammar Discovery: adjective position: adjective + noun (a big car, NOT a car big). Adjectives don't change in plural.

Look at these phrases from the dialogue. Where is the adjective — before or after the noun?

a NEW car (adjective + noun)

this BLUE car (adjective + noun)

It's VERY SLOW. (adjective alone, no noun)

This RED car is FAST and BEAUTIFUL.

In Portuguese, you say 'carro bonito' (noun + adj). In English?

Try it!

1. a ___ car / a car ___ — which is correct? 'a big car' or 'a car big'?
2. two fast cars / two fasts cars — which is correct?
3. Is it a ___ phone or a ___ phone? (old/new)

Common Errors

a car beautiful → a beautiful car
They're fasts cars. → They're fast cars.
3

Practice

15 minutes

Adjective Position

Which sentence is correct? Choose A or B.

1. A beautiful car or a car beautiful?

A. a beautiful car
B. a car beautiful

2. A phone expensive or an expensive phone?

A. a phone expensive
B. an expensive phone

3. A big bag or a bag big?

A. a big bag
B. a bag big

4. Red shoes or shoes red?

A. red shoes
B. shoes red

5. A house old or an old house?

A. a house old
B. an old house

6. They're cars fast or They're fast cars?

A. They're cars fast.
B. They're fast cars.

Opposite Adjectives

Match the opposites.

Column A

big
fast
expensive
beautiful
new
long

Column B

ugly
short
small
slow
cheap
old

Describe It!

Complete with the correct adjective from the box.

bigsmallexpensivecheapnewold
1. Tokyo is a city.
2. My phone is . I want a phone.
3. A Ferrari is very .
4. A pen is .
5. My bag is very . I need a bag.

I Prefer...

Your teacher asks. Answer with 'I prefer...' and say why.

1. Big cities or small cities?

2. Expensive restaurants or cheap restaurants?

3. Old houses or new apartments?

4. Fast cars or slow cars?

5. Long movies or short movies?

6. Black or white clothes?

4

Let's Talk

13 minutes

Let's Talk!

Use what you learned today to answer these questions. Elaborate as much as you can!

Describing things and preferences.

1. Describe your phone. Is it big or small? New or old? What color?

Follow-up: Is it expensive?

2. Do you prefer big cities or small cities? Why?

Follow-up: Is Sao Paulo big or small?

Self-Assessment

How did you do today?

  • ✓
    I can describe things: It's a big, red car.
  • ✓
    I can say opposites: big/small, fast/slow, expensive/cheap.
  • ✓
    I can say what I prefer: I prefer small cities.

Great work today!

Next class: Next class: REVIEW! Everything from lessons 7 to 12.