A Day at School

Level:	Topic:	Speakers:	Length:
easy	education	man – boy	01:35

Pre-Listening Exercises

Describe a normal school day in the life of a student in your country including hours, class subjects, meals, rules, dress, and extra-curricular activities. What options are there in your country to take online classes through distance learning, even for children?

Idioms

“crack the books” = start studying
“The reason why he isn’t doing very well is that he rarely cracks the books.”

“cut class” = miss school
“Although some of my daughter’s friends cut class a lot, she is at school every day.”

Listening Exercises

A. Listen to the interview and answer the questions.

How does Joshua go to school in Japan?

He walks with a group of students.

He rides the subway at 8:00 AM.

He takes a school bus every morning.

Randall: Eight O'clock. And do you go by yourself, or on a school bus? Joshua: No, I have a group that goes with me.

Which item did Joshua NOT take to school?

a backpack

gym clothes

a school hat

Joshua: I take my taiso fuku, that is gym clothes, and I take my backpack and my books [ Oh, okay. ] and stuff like that.

What does Josh do first when he gets to school?

He stands and bows to the teacher.

He puts on his gym clothes for class.

He practices his reading and writing.

Randall: Okay and what is the first thing you do when you get to school? Joshua: We do "kiritsu, rei." Randall: "Kiritsu" and "rei." Now what are those? Joshua: It means "stand up, bow."

Where does Joshua eat lunch at school?

in the lunchroom

in the gymnasium

in his classroom

Randall: Okay, and where do you eat lunch? Do you have a lunchroom or cafeteria? Joshua: No, we eat in our classroom.

Joshua probably gets home from school between _____.

2:00 and 3:00 p.m.

1:00 and 2:00 p.m.

3:00 and 4:00 p.m.

Joshua: We come home sometimes at 3:00 and sometimes at 2:00.

Vocabulary Practice

Try this activity to practice the vocabulary from the conversation:

Gap-fill Exercise

Post-Listening Exercises

What thing did you most enjoy about your school life in your country? Talk with a partner. Explain and discuss some of these topics:

the length of the school year
a typical day at school
teacher and student interaction
extra activities after school

Online Investigations

Use the Internet to learn about the school system in another country and find the answers to these questions:

How do students get to school?
Do students meet inside a building or outside?
What subjects do students learn each day?
What time does school start and end?
What do students eat for lunch? Is it something they bring with them, or does the school have a cafeteria?
How many students are in a class?

Back to Easy Quizzes

See Listening Script

General Listening Quiz

“A Day at School”