Your student practices talking about their daily schedule, favorite subjects, classmates, and after-school life — all from their own real school day. Here the student is the expert, and your job is to be curious, ask questions, and let them show you what a day in Taiwan looks like.
⏱ About 60 minutes🎯 All levels (questions are leveled)📋 No prep — tap 🔊 to hear any phrase
Before you start tutor prep
Take two minutes before your student joins. A calm, ready tutor helps a nervous student relax.
Test your camera and microphone in Google Meet.
Keep this page open in your browser — you will teach straight from it.
Have a glass of water nearby and smile when your student arrives.
Tap any 🔊 button to hear a word or phrase out loud — use it to model pronunciation.
Mindset: Don't over-correct. Let your student do about 70% of the talking. For this topic, your student is the expert on their own school day and you are the curious guest — ask "Really? What's that like?" far more often than you correct grammar.
1 · Warm-up 5 min
Start gently. Ask these out loud and react warmly to every answer.
What time does your school start in the morning?
Do you like school? Why or why not?
How do you get to school — do you walk, ride, or take a bus?
What is the first thing you do when you get to your classroom?
Tip: If your student gives a short answer, gently echo it back as a question — "Oh, you walk to school? That's nice. How long does it take?" This keeps them talking.
2 · Key words & phrases 8 min
Read each word together. Tap 🔊 to model it, then have your student repeat and use the example sentence.
subjectMath is a hard subject for me.
scheduleMy schedule is busy on Mondays.
classmateMy classmate sits next to me.
homeroom teacherMy homeroom teacher is very kind.
recessWe play outside during recess.
clubI joined the basketball club.
examWe have a math exam on Friday.
uniformI wear a blue uniform to school.
cram schoolAfter class I go to cram school.
lunchtimeAt lunchtime we eat in the classroom.
My favorite subject is ___My favorite subject is science.
After school I ___After school I play basketball.
Tip: Ask your student which subjects they actually like or dislike. Real opinions ("I love science, but I really don't like math!") produce far more natural speaking than drills.
3 · Read & talk 8 min
Read this together. A is the tutor, B is the student. You are comparing your school days.
A:
What time does your school start?
B:
It starts at seven forty in the morning.
A:
Wow, that's early! What's your first subject?
B:
Usually math. Then we have a short recess.
A:
What do you do at recess?
B:
I talk with my classmates or play outside.
A:
Where do you eat lunch?
B:
We eat in our classroom, and then we take a nap.
A:
A nap at school? That sounds nice! What do you do after school?
B:
On some days I go to cram school. On other days I just go home.
Tip: Read it through twice, then swap roles so your student practices asking the questions too. Encourage them to change the answers to match their real school day.
4 · Let's talk 12 min
Now your student shares their own school day. Choose the level that fits and let them lead.
BEGINNER
What subjects do you have today?
Who is your favorite teacher?
What do you eat for lunch at school?
INTERMEDIATE
Walk me through a normal school day, from morning to home.
Tell me about your best friend in class. What do you do together?
What do you usually do at recess and lunchtime?
ADVANCED
Which part of the school day do you enjoy most, and which part is hard? Why?
How is school different now compared to a few years ago?
If you could change one rule at your school, what would it be, and why?
Tip: After every answer, ask "Why?" or "Tell me more." You are learning about school in Taiwan — show real interest and your student will open up.
5 · Going deeper 10 min
Push a little further. These questions ask your student to compare, explain, and imagine.
BEGINNER
What is your favorite subject? What subject do you like the least?
Do you go to any clubs or cram school? What do you do there?
INTERMEDIATE
Why do you like your favorite subject? Why is the other one hard for you?
Tell me about your club or your cram school, step by step, as if I have never seen one.
ADVANCED
Describe your dream school. What would the schedule, subjects, and rules be like?
Some students go to cram school after class. What do you think about that — is it helpful or too much?
Tip: When your student explains something, repeat it back in clean English ("So you study math again after dinner — that's a long day!"). This gives gentle modeling without stopping their flow.
6 · Activity — make a dream schedule 10 min
Time to design something. Your student builds and describes a dream school day, and you ask curious questions.
Your student imagines a perfect school day and picks the subjects and activities for it.
They write or say the schedule from morning to afternoon — first class, recess, lunch, last class.
You ask questions about each part: "What time is that?" "Why did you choose that subject?"
Your student explains what makes their dream day better than a real day.
Finish by having your student pick the one class they would most want to add to their real school.
Student: "My school would start at ___."
Student: "My first subject is ___ because ___."
Tutor: "Nice! What do you do at recess?"
Student: "At recess I ___ with my classmates."
Student: "My favorite class of the day is ___."
Student: "After school I ___ instead of going to cram school."
Tip: React like a real friend — surprise, excitement, curiosity. The more fun you make it, the more your student forgets to be nervous.
7 · Wrap-up 5 min
Ask your student to name 2-3 subjects or activities they talked about today.
Give specific praise — for example, "You described your lunchtime nap so clearly, I really want to try it!"
Let your student pick the topic for next time (festivals, family, food, travel, hobbies).
Say a warm goodbye and thank them for showing you their school day.
Tip: End on a high note. The last thing your student feels should be that they did well and that you enjoyed learning from them.
🧭 Tutor notes
Use this to judge the level you saw and to plan next time.
BEGINNER
Answered in single words or short phrases ("math", "seven forty", "I play").
Next time: pre-teach 5 school words and practice "My favorite subject is ___" until it's automatic.
INTERMEDIATE
Made full sentences and could describe a normal school day and a favorite subject.
Next time: push longer answers — ask them to compare two subjects or explain their club.
ADVANCED
Told stories, gave opinions, and explained ideas like cram school or school rules.
Next time: add follow-up "why" questions and discussion topics like how school has changed.
Most important: Write down your student's name, their favorite subject, their teacher's or best friend's name, and one thing they were proud to tell you about their school. Bring it up next lesson — it shows you listened and builds real trust.
