A selection of English ESL interview questions printables

AIMS:
The major aim of this exercise is to talk about personal and partly professional development of your student(s).
•	to practice questions and answers related to employment
•	to practise formal conversation
•	to experience the dynamics of interviewer-interviewee relationship
•	to simulate a job interveiw

Self development questions - discussion questions

 Sts have to Imagine they are reporters  & interview Mr Camera and Mr Morandi the owner of the haunted restaurant.The intervies can be used as role play too.

Latest news

Conversation prompts using simple past tense.

The aim is to get students talking with a low-anxiety exercise.  

Answer verbally, teacher can monitor for mistakes in tense usage.

Can be done one-on-one, in pairs or groups, with students reporting back to the class on the student they "interviewed".

Can be used with written responses, but this is not as effective, in my opinion.

Prompts

This game plays like Guess Who. Students should play in pairs and select one character and keep that secret. They then take turns asking each other 'Do you like ~?' Then, using the process of elimination, students try to guess their partner's character.

What Do You Like Interview Game (Target: Asking 'Do you like ~?)

Students interview their classmates, practicing the two main questions - "What's your favorite vegtable?" and "What do you have?" It's a simple warm up activity.

Interview Your Friends

1) Using the pictures as guides, students create their own questions to ask 2 classmates.

Example:

Can you ride a bike?

Can you play the piano?



2) In pairs, they interview each other and write their partners answer in number form. Repeat.



3) Individually, students write full sentences about 1 of their partners.

Example: Joe can ride a bike. He can't play the piano.

Can you... Interview

This is an information gap worksheet that can be used to practice reported speech (reported statements and questions) in groups of 3.

I would use  as a closing activty with higher-level students. 

Instructions are included at the end of the document. 



NOTE:

I tried this worksheet with my lower-intermediate level student and it was quite tough for her. So I suggest that before letting the students work in pairs, you orally put all the questions of the interview into direct speech with correct grammar.

Then model the activity with 1-2 questions and answers.



For example: 

The original question: The latest book or movie that made you cry?

The grammatically correct question: What was the latest book or movie that made you cry? 

The reported speech: I asked her what the latest book or movie that had made her cry had been.  

It is useful to write this on the BB (along with the answer and leavy it there while the students are practicing the activity).



As an alterntive you can edit the document by putting all the questions and answers into correct grammatical form. 



The interview questions are taken from http://www.popmatters.com/post/65969-20-questions-lady-gaga/. I have removed 5 questions as to my mind they were not suitable to use at school context. 



P.S. The preview looks uneven but the document is Ok when you download it. 



Reported Speech (15 questions to Lady Gaga)

After watching Emma Stone's interview, the students have five activities:

1) True or False. Correct the false ones.

2) Explain the meaning of certain phrases taken from the video

3) Explain why the interviewer/Emma Stone said something 

4) Choose the correct option between words that sound alike or might have alike meaning. 

5) Answer questions.

It's ideal for one-to-one lessons and for practicing conversation, specially activities 2&4. 

Emma Stone Interview - Listening video comprehension activity 

Students interview their friends with the key question - "How many are in your family?"

How many are in your family?

Pupils ask eachother questions about the different subjects they have at school. They walk around in the classroom. They write down the names of the pupils and their answers. When they have 10 different answers, they add up the answers and then the teacher writes on the whiteboard the top 3 of the class in the different categories. 

Interview subjects

This worksheet is designed for B1-B2 level students, aligning with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). It focuses on the Present Perfect Simple and Continuous tenses, offering detailed practice and explanations to help students understand and use these forms correctly. The worksheet integrates reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills through a thematic exploration of the impact of smartphones on society. Students begin by engaging with an article on the pros and cons of smartphones, followed by comprehension questions and vocabulary exercises. They then explore various opinions through interviews, which serve as a basis for introducing and practicing the target grammar. The worksheet culminates in a reflective writing activity and a pronunciation practice session. The primary objective is to enable students to accurately use the Present Perfect tenses in various contexts while expanding their vocabulary and improving their fluency. By the end of the worksheet, students will be able to express opinions, discuss technology's influence on their lives, and apply nuanced grammatical structures in both written and spoken communication.

The Impact of Smartphones (Present Perfect Simple vs. Continuous)

This worksheet is supplementary to the PPT presentation. You will learn new vocabulary, interview your friends, write a short paragraph about your friend. Beginners level.

Friendship

Culture, intercultural communication, cross-cultural communication

Adjectives to describe feelings, emotions

Adjectives to describe personality and character

Adjectives: Gradable / Non-gradable adjectives

Articles: Definite or indefinite article (a, an or the)

BE + infinitive structures (e.g. he was to become famous)

Clauses of contrast (e.g.  although, while)

Clauses of purpose (e.g. in order to, so that, so as to)

Clauses of reason (e.g. because, because of, due to, as, since)

Cleft sentences (e.g. It's Joey we're looking for)

Comparison: Comparative adjectives and structures

Comparison: Superlative adjectives and structures

Conditional 2 (second conditional) - would

Conditionals: Conditional phrases (e.g. unless, provided that, as long as)

Conjunctions (aka connectives, e.g. and, but, or, so, then)

Contractions (shortened forms, e.g. don't, aren't, etc.)

Determiners (words that can come before nouns)

Formal and informal English (politeness or colloquial language)

Future perfect continuous (progressive) tense

Future perfect simple and continuous (progressive) tense

Future phrases (e.g. be about to, bound to, likely to, due to, set to + INF)

Homonyms (two words with the same pronunciation - homophones and homographs)

It as preparatory subject (e.g. it's raining, it's nice of you to)

Linking verbs (aka copulas, e.g. I am a student)

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how to accuse somebody of something in English

how to apologize, say sorry, forgive and express regret in English

how to ask for information and make inquiries in English

how to ask for something, make requests in English

how to blame somebody for something in English

how to defend yourself from criticism in English

how to deny or admit something in English

how to describe things or people in English

how to emphasize important things in English

how to encourage or discourage people in English

how to evaluate people or progress in English

how to express agreement /disagreement in English

how to express approval and disapproval  in English

how to express cause and effect in English

how to express interest in something in English

how to express likelihood, probability in English

how to express likes and dislikes in English

how to express sequence and chronology in English

how to express shock and disbelief in English

how to express sympathy and condolences in English

how to give permission, authorization in English

how to inform somebody about some news in English

how to interpret what was said in English

how to keep a conversation going in English

how to make guesses about something in English

how to make, accept and refuse offers in English

how to order or make a booking in English

how to persuade, convince people in English

how to praise people and express appreciation in English

how to reassure somebody of something in English

how to refuse and object to something in English

how to remind people of something in English

how to rephrase, paraphrase what was said in English

how to say thank you, express gratitude in English

Nouns: Collective nouns (team, class, family, committee)

Nouns: Proper nouns (names of people, cities, companies)

Oxymorons (phrases with words of contradictory meaning, e.g. living dead)

Participles: Past participle (e.g. HAVING DONE)

Participles: Present participle (e.g. DOING)

Parts of Speech (aka word classes, e.g. nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs)

Past perfect continuous (progressive) tense

Phonetics (pronunciation, IPA, phonetic symbols)

Plural nouns: regular plurals with S ending

Prefixes (e.g. A, UN, IM, DIS, MIS, EN, etc. )

Prepositions vs adverbs (e.g. before me, saw him before.)

Prepositions: Double prepositions (e.g. out of)

Prepositions: Participle prepositions (e.g. pending, concerning)

Prepositions: Phrase prepositions (e.g. by means of)

Present perfect continuous (progressive) tense

Present perfect simple or present continuous tense

Present simple tense: S for third person singular verbs

Present simple vs continuous (progressive) tense

Pronouns: EACH OTHER, ONE ANOTHER (reciprocal pronouns)

Pronouns: Possessive pronouns (e.g. my, mine)

Pronouns: Reflexive pronouns (e.g. myself, yourself))

Pronouns: SOMEBODY, ANYBODY, EVERYBODY, NO ONE, NOTHING, etc.

Pronouns: THIS, THAT, THESE, THOSE (demonstratives)

Pronouns: YOU and THEY to talk about people in general

Quantifiers (e.g. some, many, much, any, few, little)

Questions: WH questions (open-ended questions)

Reported speech: reported questions (indirect questions)

There is / there are / there was / there were / there will be, etc.

Verbs: Transitive or intransitive verbs (words that can or cannot stand with objects)

Working with Paragraphs: ordering, titling

Role play, miming, drama activity or improv game

Pictionary (picture dictionary) or picture matching

Writing an opinion essay (persuasive essay)

Learners who are Pre-A1 have just begun learning English and will first learn how to:<ul><li>Say the letters in the alphabet and numbers</li><li>Say hello, talk about names and age</li><li>Name the colors and dates, express likes and dislikes</li></ul>

Absolute beginners who have begun to learn the letters and numbers

Learners taking the A1 Elementary exam should be able to:<ul><li>Introduce themselves and ask and answer questions about personal details such as where he/she lives, things he/she has, people he/she knows.</li><li>Communicate using very basic phrases as long as the other person talks slowly and clearly and is prepared to help.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: common adjectives & adverbs of frequency, going to, how much/how many, imperatives, I'd like, 's – possessive, common prepositions of place and time, present simple & continuous, there is/are</li></ul>

A very basic tourist level, which is enough for buying food and a bus ticket

Learners taking the A2 Pre-intermediate exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand sentences and frequently used expressions (e.g. very basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment).</li><li>Complete tasks that are routine and exchange information about familiar matters.</li><li>Describe matters of immediate need in simple terms.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: countable/uncountable nouns, adverbs of frequency, future will/going to, much/many, present perfect, past simple, past continuous, common phrasal verbs, common modals: can/should</li></ul>

A tourist who can do basic conversations about the past, present and future

Learners taking the B1 Intermediate exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand points regarding family, work, school or leisure-related topics.</li><li>Deal with most travel situations in areas where the language is spoken.</li><li>Create simple texts on topics of personal interest.</li><li>Describe experiences, events, dreams, and ambitions, as well as opinions or plans in brief.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: question tags, intensifiers: too/enough, future tenses, past tenses, modals, conditionals, wh-questions in the past</li></ul>

Learners who can deal with both familiar and routine situations, in friendly and work contexts

Learners taking the B2 Upper-intermediate exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in his/her field of specialization.</li><li>Interact with fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without difficulty for either party.</li><li>Produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain an opinion on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: perfect tenses, mixed conditionals, modals in the present, phrasal verbs, reported speech, wish, relative clauses</li></ul>

The level where you can be a tour guide for your foreign friends and talk about a lot of topics, even abstract ones, with ease and fluency

Learners taking the C1 Advanced exam should be able to: Express ideas fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions. Use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes. Understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts. Produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, using linking phrases (=words that connect ideas between sentences). Main grammar points to know: inversion, mixed conditionals, modals in the past, all passive forms, phrasal verbs (all patterns), wish/if only for regrets

Learners who can smoothly communicate in every walk of life, read long texts and write well

Learners taking the C2 Proficient exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand almost everything read or heard with ease.</li><li>Summarize information from a variety of sources into a coherent presentation.</li><li>Express themselves using precise meaning in complex scenarios.</li><li>Can express him/herself spontaneously, very fluently and precisely, differentiating finer shades of meaning even in the most complex situations</li></ul>

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317 Interview questions English ESL worksheets pdf & doc