LESSON OVERVIEW

In this lesson, students watch a video about different types of skills, learn useful vocabulary, and practise talking about hard and soft skills.

VOCABULARY

The lesson starts with a task in which students talk about some photos of people learning and say whether they would like to be in these situations. Then, they read sentences and find verbs which go with the noun ‘skills’ (e.g. improve, work on, measure). They find two pairs of synonyms among the verbs. After that, students find different types of skills mentioned in the statements in the previous exercise (e.g. computer skills, communication skills, presentation skills) and spend some time talking about hard and soft skills. Their task is to give examples of the skills, say which ones they would like to develop, whether someone taught them the skills when they were children, etc. They also brainstorm how someone could improve these skills. 

HARD AND SOFT SKILLS

Before watching the video, students look at some pictures and try to guess the difference between hard and soft skills. Then, they watch the video and check their answers. Before the second viewing, students look at seven sentences and decide which skills they describe. They watch the video again to see if they were right. After the viewing part, students create different skills by matching their halves (e.g. being a good leader, time management). Then, they practise talking about hard and soft skills. First, they categorize skills. If they think some skills can be both hard and soft, they need to explain why. Students also talk about the importance of soft skills in the workplace. Finally, students look at four categories and decide which three best fit each category (e.g. ‘most important in the job market today’).