Business English

Lesson Plan: Business English - Describing Job Roles and Responsibilities

Duration: 50 minutes

Level: CEFR B1

Objective: By the end of this lesson, the student will be able to use work-related verbs and modals of obligation (have to, must) in both positive and negative forms to describe job roles and responsibilities.

Materials Needed:

• Slide presentation (shared via screen during the online class)
• Digital handouts with job role descriptions (shared via email or a learning platform)
• Sample sentences using "have to" and "must" (included in slides)
• Digital worksheets for practice
• Audio/Video clips (optional) demonstrating job responsibilities

Platform: Zoom, Skype, or another video conferencing tool

Part 1: Warm-Up and Introduction (10 minutes)

1. Greeting and Review

• Greeting: Begin the online session by welcoming the student and briefly checking in on their previous learning experiences related to work and job roles.
• Objective Overview: Share the lesson’s objective using the screen-sharing feature to display the first slide, explaining that today’s focus will be on describing job roles and responsibilities using specific verbs and modals of obligation.

2. Warm-Up Activity

• Discussion: Ask the student to discuss their current job responsibilities or hypothetical ones if they are not currently employed. Use questions like: "What are your job responsibilities?" or "What do you have to do in your job?"
• Sharing: As the student speaks, use the shared whiteboard or annotate the slide to write down key verbs they mention (e.g., manage, report, prepare, organize).

Part 2: Introduction to Modals of Obligation (10 minutes)

1. Explanation of Modals

• Introduce Modals: Present the next slide explaining that "have to" and "must" are modals of obligation used to describe necessary or required actions.
• Positive Forms:
  • Must: Strong obligation or rule (e.g., "You must attend the meeting.")
  • Have to: Necessity or external requirement (e.g., "I have to finish this report by 5 PM.")
• Negative Forms:
  • Must not (mustn’t): Prohibition (e.g., "You mustn’t be late for work.")
  • Don’t have to: Lack of necessity (e.g., "You don’t have to work on weekends.")

2. Example Sentences

• Examples on the Slide: Display example sentences on the slide using the modals in both positive and negative forms.
• Discussion: Engage the student by asking them to identify the difference between "must" and "have to," as well as their negative forms, and discuss when to use each.

Part 3: Practice with Modals (15 minutes)

1. Controlled Practice

• Digital Worksheet:Share a digital worksheet via chat or a learning platform where the student can fill in the blanks with the correct form of "have to" or "must."
  • Example: "I _______ (finish) this project by tomorrow." (Answer: have to)
  • Example: "You _______ (be) polite to customers." (Answer: must)
• Discussion: After the student completes the worksheet, discuss their answers using the screen-share feature to display their responses. Correct any mistakes together.

2. Review and Correct

• Class Review: Use the slides to review the correct answers, discussing any mistakes and ensuring understanding. You can use the annotate feature to highlight important points.

Part 4: Describing Job Roles (10 minutes)

1. Vocabulary Introduction

• Job Roles Vocabulary: Use slides to introduce vocabulary related to different job roles (e.g., manager, accountant, sales representative).
• Contextual Use:Provide example sentences that describe responsibilities using the vocabulary and modals learned.
  • Example: "A manager must organize meetings and has to report to the director."
  • Example: "An accountant has to prepare financial statements and must not share confidential information."

2. Practice Activity

• Role-Play: Assign the student a job role and ask them to describe the responsibilities of that role using "have to" and "must."
• Interactive Activity: As the student describes the role, use the screen-share or whiteboard to write down key points, offering corrections or suggestions in real-time.

Part 5: Application and Production (10 minutes)

1. Group Discussion (Adapted for 1-on-1)

• Scenario-Based Discussion: Present a scenario on the slides where the student must discuss responsibilities within a team (e.g., launching a new product). Guide the student to think about what each team member "has to" or "must" do for the project to succeed.
• Individual Task: Have the student describe each role and its responsibilities, using the modals of obligation.

2. Individual Writing Task

• Writing Exercise: Ask the student to write a short paragraph describing their own job or a job they know well, using "have to" and "must" to explain the responsibilities. The student can type this directly in the chat or on a shared document.
• Peer Review: As this is a 1-on-1 lesson, review the paragraph together, providing feedback on the use of modals.

Conclusion and Homework (5 minutes)

1. Review and Recap

• Summary: Recap the key points of the lesson using the final slide: the use of "have to" and "must" in describing job roles and responsibilities.
• Q&A: Address any remaining questions the student may have.

2. Assign Homework

• Homework Task: Ask the student to write a longer description (100-150 words) of a specific job role, detailing the responsibilities and obligations using "have to" and "must." This can be emailed or shared via the learning platform.
• Next Lesson Preview: Briefly mention what will be covered in the next lesson.

Additional Resources

• Books: "English for Business Studies" by Ian Mackenzie
• Websites: BBC Learning English - Business English
• Videos: YouTube videos on modals of obligation in business contexts.