Finding an apartment

Learn the basic vocabulary needed to read classified ads for apartments and to speak with an apartment manager

THIS WEEK’S FEATURED POST

Making an appointment with your dentist

This lesson plan for beginner ESL students teaches basic vocabulary for making a dentist’s appointment.

The lesson plan includes activities such as role plays, comprehension tasks, video and audio activities, and reflection questions to…

Keep reading

by ESL Directions

What’s on this page?

Back to “Your home and community”

Lesson plan overview

Task	To learn some of the vocabulary used in ads for apartments and to discuss an advertised apartment with an apartment manager.
CLB level	CLB Stage I (CLB 2-4)
Delivery method	Online
Class size	10-15 students (vary the number of activities according to your class size)
Estimated time	1.5-2 hours (depending on class size)
CLB Skills and Competencies	*Speaking:* Interacting with others Getting things done Sharing information *Listening:* Interacting with others Comprehending instructions Getting things done Comprehending information *Reading:* Comprehending information
Language focus	Learn the vocabulary needed to understand this topic. Practice formulating and responding to questions. Use the appropriate grammar structures and vocabulary to respond personally to the reflection questions. (Encourage students to respond in full sentences.)
Cultural focus	Students understand politeness formulas (e.g., standard greetings and farewells, ways to phrase questions) expected in Canadian exchanges.
Specific task learning objectives	Students learn basic words and phrases related to renting an apartment in Canada. Students watch, listen to, and practice a sample role play. Students discuss their own experiences renting apartments here and in their home countries.
ESL Directions original video (🎥) and audio (🔊) activities?	This lesson includes original video (🎥) and audio (🔊) activities.
Resource attribution	ESL Directions original resources are marked below with an asterisk (*). Feel free to use these, but please give credit to ESL Directions.

Lesson plan

Warm-up: Introducing the topic and defining our terms

Today, we’re going to learn how to understand ads for apartments. We’re also going to practice asking an apartment manager about an advertised apartment.
What is an apartment?
What is an ad?
Where do you see ads for apartments?
What are some words you might see in these ads?

Skill-building activities

Vocabulary flashcards*
Listen to the vocabulary again* 🔊(Pay attention to how to say the words and phrases and what they mean.)

Skill-using tasks

FEATURED CONTENT

Let’s look at some sample ads for apartments:
- Example 1*
- Example 2*
Pair or no pair*
Finding an apartment: Talking with an apartment manager* 🎥
Audio, role play, and comprehension questions* 🔊
Who says what?*

Assessment/review tasks

Open-ended dialogue* (Answer Sarah’s questions about the apartment in your own words.)
Let’s try to understand some real ads (using the Kijiji site) (Depending on the time available, pick one or two real ads for the class to work on together.)
Open the box quiz*
What sticks?* (Ask students to suggest two or three things they remember from the lesson.)

Reflection questions

Do you live in an apartment or a house?
Have you ever rented an apartment in Canada?
How did you find the apartment?
Do you use the ads on online services like Kijiji?
Are there areas of town that you would most like or not like to live in?
What is most important to you in finding an apartment? Examples might include location, parking, closeness to the LRT, number of bedrooms, etc.
Is finding an apartment different here from in your home country?

Renting an apartment

This lesson plan teaches essential vocabulary for communicating with landlords about renting apartments. The lesson includes activities for speaking, listening, and…

Keep reading

Rooms in my house

This lesson plan teaches your beginner ESL students the names and functions of various rooms in a house. The lesson includes…

Keep reading

HOME AND COMMUNITY YOUTUBE PLAYLIST

Click on the small right arrow at the top of this video to play the videos or go to the YouTube Your Home and Community Playlist.

COMMUNITY AND NEIGHBOURS WORDWALL ACTIVITIES

Wordwall is a very useful interactive lesson-creation site. If you sign up for a free Wordwall account, you will be able to see our “Community and neighbours” folder, which includes ESL Directions activities that you can add to your lessons.