How Are You? ESL lesson thumbnail
Book 1 · Unit 4Beginner · Ages 6–9

How Are You?

This feelings and emotions ESL lesson teaches beginners to answer 'How are you?' with useful adjectives such as happy, sad, hungry and tired. Students guess facial expressions, sing, mime emotion cards and practise short partner conversations. They create a spinning Feelings Wheel and use it to describe how they feel.

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Lesson format

2 × 45 minutes

Level

Beginner

Age group

Ages 6–9

Main focus

Speaking first

What students will learn

• Recognise and name basic emotions and physical states
• Ask and answer 'How are you?' in context
• Express feelings through songs, gestures and games
• Roleplay common situations (tired, hungry)
• Play an emotion charades guessing game
• Build vocabulary through video and TPR

Lesson flow

Children guess the teacher's expressions in a Face It warm-up, sing emotion songs acting out happy, sad, hot and cold, and watch a video skit discussing a character's feelings. The second lesson practises pair speaking with emotion cards, plays an emotion charades guessing game, and makes a spinning Feelings Wheel used to answer 'How are you?'

Target language

  • • 'How are you?'
  • • 'I'm ___'
  • • 'Are you ___?' Yes/No
  • • Emotion vocabulary

Key vocabulary

  • happy
  • sad
  • tired
  • hungry
  • thirsty
  • excited
  • fine
  • great
  • angry
  • scared

Speaking questions students answer

  • • How are you?
  • • Are you hungry?
  • • Is he tired or hungry?
  • • What's she saying?
  • • Are you hot or cold?

Recommended teaching contexts

• Beginner ESL and EFL classes• Ages 6–9• Primary school classrooms• Language schools• Private and small-group lessons• Teaching greetings vocabulary• Pair and whole-class speaking• Interactive whiteboards and online teaching

Why this lesson works

The lesson follows a clear progression: Guess feelings in the Face It game, roleplay 'Are you hungry?' conversations, make and spin a Feelings Wheel. Teachers can open the materials and start immediately, while students move from supported vocabulary practice to purposeful spoken English.

This lesson includes

• Interactive lesson slides
• Teacher guide
• Printable worksheets
• Speaking practice: "How are you?"
• Classroom games
• Videos
• Vocabulary practice
• Pair work
• Extension activities

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