Hibiscus Teach · Vids
Making new friends: Charlotte’s Web and Harry Potter
Practise meeting people and describing where they are.
Created by Denis M., British English teacher.
Watch each clip, then try its activities.
The films and cartoons use natural English. Focus on the task and the pictures; you do not need to understand every word. Use English captions when the source provides them. Definitions, examples and model answers are original teaching material; vocabulary may describe a scene without being spoken in it.
Useful language
Use I’m + name to introduce yourself. Say Nice to meet you. Ask Where are you? Use in for an enclosed place: in a room, in a train. A corner is where two sides meet.
Say it now: Speak for 30 seconds. Introduce yourself to a new classmate and say where you are.
Example answer
Hi, I’m Paula. Nice to meet you. I’m in the classroom.
Solo: change one detail. Tutor: ask one simple question about the answer.
Charlotte’s Web: finding a new friend
Wilbur hears someone, but he cannot see her. Watch where she comes from.
Selected extract: 0:00 to 0:33. Press play after loading. Source: Movieclips.
Watch and check: 3 questions
Choose one answer for each question, then read the feedback. Replay the extract if you need to.
Answer key and explanations
- A. He cannot see the speaker. He hears the voice but says he cannot see the speaker.
- B. Up in a corner She tells him to look up in a corner.
- C. Move closer He asks her to move closer so he can see her.
1–2 minGrammar in a minuteA2 · A small change with a comparative
“Move a little closer.”
Clip 1, quotation excerpt
Closer compares the distance with the present distance. A little means a small change. Move closer does not tell the listener to go farther away.
Speaking: use the language
Speak for 30 to 45 seconds. Use the words above. A short, clear answer is enough.
Describe where you are to a friend who cannot see you.
Model answer
I’m in the kitchen. I’m near the door. Come closer. You can see me now.
Your answer can be different.
Solo: repeat with a different room. Tutor: Where is your favourite place to meet friends?
Harry Potter: meeting on the train
Harry and Ron meet Hermione on a train. Use the pictures to answer the questions. You do not need to understand the magic words.
Selected extract: 1:09 to 2:02. Press play after loading. Source: Warner Bros. Entertainment.
Watch and check: 3 questions
Choose one answer for each question, then read the feedback. Replay the extract if you need to.
Answer key and explanations
- B. On a train They are in a train compartment, with seats and a window.
- A. Harry Harry is the boy wearing round glasses.
- C. A girl Hermione, a girl in school clothes, appears in the doorway.
1–2 minGrammar in a minuteA2 · Experience up to the present
“I've only tried a few simple ones myself.”
Clip 2, quotation excerpt
Have tried describes experience before now without a finished time such as yesterday. Have never tried would mean no experience at all, rather than a few attempts.
Speaking: use the language
Speak for 30 to 45 seconds. Use the words above. A short, clear answer is enough.
Act out meeting a student on a train. Give your name and ask one question.
Model answer
Hi, I’m Maya. Nice to meet you. What’s your name? Do you go to this school?
Your answer can be different.
Solo: answer your own questions as the other student. Tutor: What is a good first question for a new classmate?
Listen, repeat and use
Listen once, then repeat. Replace a word or name to make each sentence true for you.
Hi, I’m Sam.
Introduce yourself.
Nice to meet you.
Be friendly when you meet someone.
Where are you?
Ask about a person’s location.
Come closer, please.
Ask someone to move nearer.
Check what you can use
Mastery quiz: 6 questions
Choose one answer for each question, then read the feedback. Replay the extract if you need to.
Answer key and explanations
- A. I’m Rosa. Use I’m + name.
- B. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you is a polite greeting for a new person.
- C. in In describes being inside the train; on a train is also natural.
- A. Where are you? Where asks about a place.
- B. Come closer, please. Closer means at a smaller distance.
- C. glasses Glasses can help a person see.
Final speaking challenge
Return to one speaking task. Say your answer again without reading the model. Use two useful phrases from this lesson.
Solo: record 30 to 45 seconds, then listen for the phrases you used. Tutor: ask one follow-up question and help the learner say the answer again.
1–2 minGrammar masteryB1 · Present perfect or finished past
“I've only tried a few simple ones myself.”
Clip 2, quotation excerpt
Present perfect can describe experience up to now. A finished time such as yesterday normally takes past simple.