By Gav & Em
What can you do with five minutes left in an English lesson?
If the main task finishes early, pick a filler that gives learners one more useful turn in English. If you’re ready to finish and the room needs to settle, pick a cooler that lets everyone recall, reflect or leave with something they can use.
Five-minute plan · 1 minute to model · 3 minutes to play or practise · 1 minute to share one answer and close. If you have just one minute, ask for one useful takeaway.
Choose an activity · Games · Quick fillers · Quiet coolers · Download the lesson
What Gav and Em do with spare minutes
In S07E19, Em describes the moment when you’ve done the recap, set the homework and still have time left. She reckons it’s always seven minutes. Gav asks adult learners what they have on their desk that day, meaning the work they still need to do. Em turns that into questions about the next task or the afternoon’s plans. A genuine answer gives the teacher or a partner something to ask about next.
In S01E45, Gav describes a different kind of finish with children. He returns to the same story at the end of class and starts by asking where they left off. Em calls that a cooler. A familiar ending can help learners settle and gives them a reason to remember what happened last time. Explore the episode on teaching children and teenagers.
Choose a five-minute activity
Board only means learners need no handouts or individual materials. Online, use a shared whiteboard or show the prompts on screen. Use the levels as starting points and adjust the language to fit what the class already knows.
| Activity | Level | Purpose | Prep and materials |
|---|---|---|---|
| Odd one out | A1–B1 | Game · Explain a choice | None · Board only |
| Question ladder | A2–B2 | Game · Ask follow-up questions | None · Board only |
| Taboo in pairs | B1–C1 | Game · Paraphrase vocabulary | Under one minute · Board only |
| Alphabet relay | A2–B2 | Game · Retrieve topic vocabulary | None · Board only |
| What’s next on your desk? | A2–C1 | Filler · Talk about real plans | None · Spoken |
| One-word change | A2–B2 | Filler · Notice a change in meaning | None · Board only |
| Keep one phrase | A1–C1 | Cooler · Retrieve and reuse language | None · Board only |
| Two things I remember | A1–B2 | Cooler · Check recall | None · Board only |
| One question to carry forward | A2–C1 | Cooler · Find out what needs another look | None · Scrap paper or private chat |
Games
Four quick games for speaking, follow-up questions or vocabulary recall.
1. Odd one out
A1–B1 · Game · Explain a choice · None · Board only
Write bus / bike / train. Give pairs 30 seconds to choose the odd one out and find a reason. Award a point for any reason that fits, then invite a different answer. For A1, model A bike is different. It has two wheels.
2. Question ladder
A2–B2 · Game · Ask follow-up questions · None · Board only
Write Ask → follow up → react and model a round. A asks about the weekend. B answers. A asks one question about that answer, listens and reacts. Award one point for each of A’s three moves. Switch roles after a minute. For A2, put Where?, Who with? and That sounds fun on the board.
3. Taboo in pairs
B1–C1 · Game · Paraphrase vocabulary · Under one minute · Board only
Choose three familiar items. For each round, ask one learner in every pair to face away from the board. Write the target and one banned clue where the clue-givers can see them. Try deadline with time banned. Model It’s the last day you can send your work. Give 30 seconds to guess. Erase the answer, swap roles and reveal a new word. In a large class, give every pair the same word and play simultaneously.
4. Alphabet relay
A2–B2 · Game · Retrieve topic vocabulary · None · Board only
In S06E06, Em gives Gav a topic and they take turns naming sports or fitness activities for successive letters, starting with aerobics, badminton, cycling. Try it in pairs with language from today. Give a point for each word the pair can explain. Let learners pass on difficult letters and stop when the timer goes. For A2, offer a familiar topic and six easy letters. See how Gav and Em play the alphabet game.
Quick fillers
Two short speaking or language tasks for when the main activity finishes early.
5. What’s next on your desk?
A2–C1 · Filler · Talk about real plans · None · Spoken
Ask What’s the first thing you’ll do after class? or, with business learners, try Gav’s desk question. Give thinking time, then ask pairs to find one detail about each other’s plans. At A2, offer I’m going to …. At B2–C1, ask which task comes first and why.
6. One-word change
A2–B2 · Filler · Notice a change in meaning · None · Board only
Write a sentence from the lesson, such as We could meet on Tuesday. Partners change one word and explain the effect. Try could → should to compare a suggestion with a stronger recommendation. Take two examples and check that the changed sentences still work.
Quiet coolers
Three ways to settle the class, revisit useful language and end the lesson.
7. Keep one phrase
A1–C1 · Cooler · Retrieve and reuse language · None · Board only
Write three useful items from the lesson. Learners pick one, think quietly for a minute and say a fresh sentence to a partner. For A1, keep a sentence frame visible. For C1, ask learners to use the phrase in a situation they expect to face this week.
8. Two things I remember
A1–B2 · Cooler · Check recall · None · Board only
Write One word / one example. Hide the lesson notes for 30 seconds. Learners recall one item and supply an example, then compare and check the notes. Let beginners point to a picture or say a short phrase if a full sentence would get in the way.
9. One question to carry forward
A2–C1 · Cooler · Find out what needs another look · None · Scrap paper or private chat
Ask everyone to finish I can now … with an example and I still want to check … with one question. Model I can suggest a different time. I still want to check how to turn down a suggestion politely. Collect the slips or private messages. Choose one common question to revisit next time. For one-to-one lessons, answer one question together if time allows.
FC1 lesson pack for making and changing plans
A2–B1 · 30 minutes · Pairs or one-to-one. Learners make a suggestion, give a reason and agree an alternative when their first plan changes. The lesson uses Odd one out and Question ladder for practice, then Keep one phrase to finish. Use the complete lesson or lift any of the three five-minute stages.
Download FC1 (PDF) · Teacher plan and printable learner page. You can also copy the prompts to the board.