Colors
Be Verbs - Yes / No Questions (Lesson Plan)
Beginner ESL students can hear two people speaking natural English using be verbs and Yes / No questions. Recommended study plan:
- Watch the video
- Take the quiz
- Listen again and read the script
- Learn the grammar with the notes
Meg: Hey, Todd. Let's talk about colors.
Todd: All right.
Meg: What is blue?
Todd: The ocean is blue. The sky is blue. During the day, the sky is blue. And my eyes are blue.
Meg: Oh, mine too. What is red?
Todd: Red. Let's see. Well, tomatoes are red. Strawberries are red, and ...
Meg: And roses are red.
Todd: Roses are red. That's right.
Meg: Yeah. What is green?
Todd: Well, lots of vegetables are green. Lettuce is green. Cabbage is green or purple. And asparagus is green.
Meg: Asparagus, right. Also, grass is green.
Todd: That's right. Grass is green.
Meg: What is yellow?
Todd: Well, lemons are yellow. The sun is yellow, sometimes, or orange.
Meg: Or red.
Todd: What else is yellow?
Meg: Sunflowers are yellow.
Todd: Sunflowers are yellow. That's nice.
Meg: What is orange?
Todd: Also, sometimes the sun is orange. Oranges are orange.
Meg: Of course.
Todd: And persimmons are orange.
Meg: Yes.
Todd: Oh, I know.
Meg: What?
Todd: Carrots.
Meg: Carrots.
Todd: Carrots are orange.
Meg: Of course. Carrots are orange. What is black?
Todd: Sometimes dirt is black. The night sky is black.
Meg: Right. And your shirt is black.
Todd: Yes. I like my black shirt.
Meg: What is white?
Todd: Vanilla Ice Cream is white. The snow is white.
Meg: Yes. And clouds are white.
Todd: Clouds are white. And sometimes clouds are black.
Meg: Yes, when it's going to rain.
Todd: Or gray.
Meg: Right. What is pink?
Todd: Some flowers are pink. Cotton candy is pink.
Meg: Yes.
Todd: And, sometimes lollipops are pink.
Meg: Yeah. A lot of candy is pink, sometimes.
Todd: Now, sometimes women's clothing is pink.
Meg: Or men's.
Todd: Or men's. Do you like pink shirts?
Meg: I don't usually wear pink shirts. What about you?
Todd: I don't like pink shirts. I don't like pink, actually.
Meg: Oh, that's too bad.
Todd: What is your favorite color?
Meg: My favorite color is orange.
Todd: Really? Orange?
Meg: Yeah, I love orange. It's so bright. What about you?
Todd: I have three. I like the same. I know I like green. I love green, I love blue, I love purple.
Meg: You like the cool colors.
Todd: Right. I don't like orange, I don't like yellow, and I don't like pink.
Meg: You don't like the warm colors.
Todd: Yes. Bright colors, not so much.
Meg: I see.
Todd: What about red? Do you like red?
Meg: I don't especially like red. I like red poppies, a type of flower.
Todd: All right, yeah.
Meg: But I don't like to wear red.
Todd: Yeah, me too. Do you dislike any colors?
Meg: Actually, I don't like brown. I think it's a boring color.
Todd: Yeah, that's true. But often dogs are brown and I love dogs.
Meg: I also like dogs, so a brown dog is okay. But a brown shirt, no, thank you.
Basic Subject - Verb Agreement with Be ( is / are )
Singular Nouns + Be - For singular nouns as the subject use the verb is.
My car is nice.
This shirt is blue.
The game is exciting.
The sky is blue.
Plural Nouns + Be - For plural nouns as the subject use the verb are.
My eyes are brown.
The apples are sweet.
The clouds are gray.
The bananas are delicious.
Non-Count Nouns+ Be - For noun you cannot count use the verb are.
The air is dirty.
The weather is bad.
The time is near.
My energy is low.
Plurals vs. Singular nouns - We usually use the plural noun when talk about things in general.
Apples are red.
I love peaches.
Cars are expensive.
I like pink flowers.
