By the end of this exercise, you can start a conversation with someone new in English, using question tags to check what you think is true.
Free Year 9 English practice: small talk and question tags, with a dialogue reading, self-marking gap-fills and a writing task.
Read the conversation between Anna and a new exchange student. Choose the correct word for each gap.
Anna: Hi! You're new here, aren't you? I'm Anna.
Jonas: Yes, I am. I'm an 1 student from Austria. It's my first week.
Anna: That's exciting! It's a friendly school, isn't it? You must feel a bit 2 though.
Jonas: A little, yes. Everything is so different — even the school 3 is confusing!
Anna: Don't worry, you'll learn it fast. You don't know where the 4 is yet, do you? The pizza on Fridays is great.
Jonas: Not yet! Actually, I already feel a bit 5 — I miss my friends back home.
Anna: That's normal, it's always like that at first. It gets better, I promise. Are you free this 6? A few of us are meeting in town.
Jonas: I'd love that, thanks!
A positive statement gets a negative tag: same auxiliary verb + matching pronoun. You're new here, aren't you?
1. You're new here, ?
2. She speaks German, ?
3. They live in Berlin, ?
4. He can swim, ?
5. We're going to the party, ?
6. You've got a new phone, ?
7. It rained yesterday, ?
8. Tom and Lisa are coming too, ?
A negative statement gets a positive tag. Watch out for the special cases: I am, Let's... and imperatives.
1. You aren't from here, ?
2. She doesn't like coffee, ?
3. They can't come tonight, ?
4. I'm right, ?
5. Let's go to the cinema, ?
6. Close the door, ?
7. Nobody called, ?
8. There isn't any milk left, ?
A new exchange student has just joined your class. Write a short dialogue (6–8 lines) where you make small talk. Use at least four question tags.
• How do you introduce yourself and ask their name?
• What can you say about the school that checks if they agree?
• How do you find out where they are from?
• How do you invite them to do something with you?
Review your answers below, then send them to your teacher.
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