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General English · Speaking · A2

Talking about work and study

Explain your everyday responsibilities and say what you enjoy or find difficult.

Lesson 3 · About 18 minutes

Learn: your objectives

  • Describe tasks rather than only naming a job.
  • Explain one positive and one challenge.

Warm-up

Think about these questions. Say a short answer aloud.

  • What do you do during a normal weekday?
  • Which task do you enjoy?

Useful language

Tasks and reactions

I spend a lot of time …

Describe a regular activity with an -ing form.

I spend a lot of time helping customers.

What I like is …

Highlight a positive part.

What I like is working with a small team.

I find … difficult.

Name a challenge without saying everything is bad.

I find early starts difficult.

Notice: model speaking

Read aloud. Notice how the speakers use the phrases and respond to each other.

Maya: What do you do at the bookshop?

Rustam: I help customers and put new books on the shelves.

Maya: Do you enjoy it?

Rustam: Yes. What I like is meeting different people. I find busy Saturdays difficult, though.

Maya: I understand. I study in the mornings and work in a café twice a week.

Speaking strategy

Use ‘role → tasks → reaction’. If you do not work or study now, describe a household responsibility or an imagined routine.

Pronunciation & fluency focus

Practise task pairs together: ‘help customers / and arrange the books’. Pause between tasks, not after every word.

Teaching guidance, not an analysis of your voice.

Use: controlled practice

Choose a useful response for each situation. Check when all questions are answered. These are phrase exercises, not a speaking assessment.

1. Which answer explains a shop assistant's tasks?
2. Complete a natural description: ‘I spend a lot of time …’
3. You enjoy your course but find one part hard. Choose a balanced answer.
4. A partner says they work in a café. Ask about their routine.
5. Which ending invites a partner to describe their studies?

Build your answer

Write a few keywords. Then look away and speak. Notes stay on this page only.

Speak: your challenge

Speak for 45–60 seconds about work, study or a regular responsibility. Explain what you do, what you like and what is difficult.

An imagined role is fine. Do not share workplace secrets or personal contact details.

Speak aloud. This page does not record, listen to or assess your speech. There is no automatic speaking score.

Self-check

Open to everyone. Answers, notes and checklists are not saved to an account. These original lessons use level labels to organize learning; completion is not official CEFR certification or proof of a level.