Intermediate ESL Speaking 1 - Pets

ESL Intermediate Speaking Unit: Animals

Engaging Conversations & Thought-Provoking Discussions for ESL Learners

About This ESL Unit

This dynamic ESL speaking unit from SuperEnglishESL.com is designed for intermediate (B1-B2) ESL students, helping them develop fluency, expand vocabulary, and build confidence through fun and meaningful discussions. With a focus on animals, pets, and wild adventures, this unit sparks curiosity while improving students’ ability to express opinions, debate ethical topics, and engage in storytelling.

Each lesson incorporates discussion prompts, interactive activities, dialogues, and role-playing, ensuring students actively practice their speaking and listening skills in an engaging environment.

Ideal for: 1:1 online ESL classes, group lessons, or in-person classrooms.


Lesson Overviews

Lesson 1: Pets – Man’s Best Friend & More!

Students explore why pets are so popular and the responsibilities of pet ownership. They discuss pet choices, training, and the benefits of having an animal companion.

📌 Lesson Features: ✔️ Warm-up: Fun “Would You Rather” pet-related questions
✔️ Reading & Discussion: Why do people love pets? The importance of responsibility in pet care
✔️ Vocabulary Focus: Companion, loyal, responsible, adopt, shelter, lifestyle
✔️ Interactive Elements: Role-play convincing parents to get a pet
✔️ Real-Life Applications: Discussing pet care, choosing a pet that matches lifestyle


Lesson 2: Exotic Pets – Unusual & Unexpected Animals!

Would you rather have a snake, a parrot, or a sugar glider? This lesson explores the appeal and challenges of owning exotic pets and whether wild animals belong in homes.

📌 Lesson Features: ✔️ Warm-up: What exotic pet would you own and why?
✔️ Reading & Discussion: Unusual pets around the world, the ethical debate of keeping wild animals as pets
✔️ Vocabulary Focus: Exotic, habitat, affection, license, domestic, wildlife
✔️ Interactive Elements: Debate whether people should need a license for exotic pets
✔️ Real-Life Applications: Discuss the responsibilities and costs of caring for an exotic pet


Lesson 3: Safari Adventures – Witnessing Wildlife Up Close

Students embark on a virtual safari, learning about Africa’s Big Five and the thrill of seeing wild animals in their natural habitat. They also discuss safari guides, conservation, and wildlife protection.

📌 Lesson Features: ✔️ Warm-up: What’s your favorite wild animal and why?
✔️ Reading & Discussion: What is a safari? The Big Five, protecting wildlife
✔️ Vocabulary Focus: Safari, jeeps, poach, roam, conservation, lodge
✔️ Interactive Elements: Role-play a safari tour guide introducing animals
✔️ Real-Life Applications: Discussing ethical tourism and how to protect endangered animals


Lesson 4: Super Animals – Nature’s Most Incredible Creatures

This exciting lesson uncovers real-life “superpowers” in the animal kingdom, from electric eels and regenerating axolotls to sharks with incredible senses.

📌 Lesson Features: ✔️ Warm-up: If you could have an animal’s superpower, what would it be?
✔️ Reading & Discussion: Animals with amazing abilities – electric eels, regenerating axolotls, sharks, and more
✔️ Vocabulary Focus: Transmit, reputation, detect, aquatic, regenerate, limb
✔️ Interactive Elements: Rank the most powerful animal abilities and explain choices
✔️ Real-Life Applications: Debating whether humans will ever develop super abilities


Who Is This Unit For?

Intermediate ESL students (B1-B2)
Teens & pre-teens in online or classroom settings
ESL teachers looking for engaging, discussion-based speaking lessons

Downloadable Materials

📄 Lesson worksheets & vocabulary exercises
🎭 Role-playing & debate activities
📚 Discussion prompts & reading passages
🎲 Games & ranking activities for speaking practice

Teacher Tips

📌 Encourage role-playing and debate to get students speaking naturally
📌 Use real-life animal videos to spark discussion
📌 Have students rank and defend their opinions to improve fluency


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