Describing photos

Describing photos (comparing, contrasting and speculating)

You are going to practise language for;

1. Describing photos
2. Comparing and contrasting photos (discussing similarities and differences)
3. Speculating on what might be happening
4. Reacting to photos (giving opinions)

Discuss
Look at the presentation. Follow the instructions and talk about some of the photos

Write
The language used here for comparing and contrasting / speculating is also useful for writing discussion / argument essays. Plan:

1. Introduction – describe the situation / topic to be discussed
2. Compare / contrast ideas (for and against / advantages and disadvantages)
3. Speculate on solutions to problems raised by the question
4. Conclusion – give an opinion

Which pairs or groups of photos in the presentation could be used to demonstrate ideas for argument writing topics  about education, technology, food, family, work, leisure, health, advertising etc?

Comparatives and superlatives

Can you remember? What were the superlatives in the quiz?

• What do you know about comparatives and superlatives?
• When do we use them?
• How do we make them?

Look at the presentation below and answer the questions.

 

Common list of verbs followed by -ing or to-infinitive

Common verbs followed by the gerund:
enjoy………………….. I enjoyed living in France.
fancy………………….. I fancy seeing a film tonight.
discuss………………. We discussed going on holiday together.
dislike………………… I dislike waiting for buses.
finish…………………. We’ve finished preparing for the meeting.
mind………………….. I don’t mind coming early.
suggest…………….. He suggested staying at the Grand Hotel.
recommend………. They recommended meeting earlier.
keep………………….. He kept working, although he felt ill.
avoid………………….. She avoided talking to her boss.
miss ……………………She misses living near the beach.
appreciate………….. I appreciated her helping me.
delay…………………. He delayed doing his taxes.
postpone…………… He postponed returning to Paris.
practise…………….. She practised singing the song.
consider……………. She considered moving to New York.
can’t stand………… He can’t stand her smoking in the office.
can’t help………….. He can’t help talking so loudly.
risk…………………… .He risked being caught.
admit………………… He admitted cheating on the test.
deny…………………. He denied committing the crime.
mention…………….. He mentioned going to that college.
imagine…………….. He imagines working there one day.
tolerate……………… I tolerated her talking.
understand………… I understand his quitting.
involve………………. The job involves travelling to Japan once a month.
complete…………… He completed renovating the house.
report………………… He reported her stealing the money.
anticipate…………… I anticipated arriving late.
recall………………….. Tom recalled using his credit card at the store.

Common verbs followed by to + infinitive:
agree …………..She agreed to give a presentation at the meeting
ask*…………….. I asked to leave early / I asked him to leave early
decide…………. We decided to go out for dinner
help*…………….. He helped to clean the kitchen / he helped his flatmate to clean
the kitchen
plan……………… She plans to buy a new flat next year
hope…………… .I hope to pass the exam
learn…………… .They are learning to sing
want*…………… .I want to come to the party / I want him to come to the party
would like*…….. I would like to see her tonight / I would like you to see her
tonight
promise……….. We promised not to be late
can afford…….. We can’t afford to go on holiday.
manage……….. He managed to open the door without the key.
prepare* ……….They prepared to take the test /the teachers prepared the students
to take the test.
demand……….. He demanded to speak to Mr. Harris.
choose………… .I chose to help.
offer…………….. Frank offered to drive us to the supermarket.
wait……………… .She waited to buy a movie ticket.
would hate*…… I’d hate to be late / I’d hate you to be late.
would love*…… I’d love to come / I’d love him to come.
seem……………. Nancy seemed to be disappointed.
expect*………… They expect to arrive early / they expect Julie to arrive early
intend…………… We intend to visit you next spring.
pretend………… The child pretended to be a monster.
refuse………….. The guard refused to let them enter the building.
tend……………… He tends to be a little shy.
would prefer*… I’d prefer to do it / I’d prefer him to do it.
deserve……….. He deserves to go to jail.
appear…………. His health appeared to be better.
arrange………… Naomi arranged to stay with her cousin in Miami.
claim…………….. She claimed to be a princess.

 

*We can use an object before the infinitive with these verbs.

(Note that ‘help’ can also be followed by the infinitive without ‘to’ with no difference
in meaning: ‘I helped to carry it’ = ‘I helped carry it’.)

Verbs + ing or to-infinitive

Gerunds and infinitives

It can be a little difficult to know when to use gerunds and infinitives.

We use gerunds (verb + ing):

• After certain verbs – I enjoy singing
• After prepositions – I drank a cup of coffee before leaving
• As the subject or object of a sentence – Swimming is good exercise

We use ‘to’ + infinitive:

• After certain verbs – We decided to leave
• After many adjectives – It’s difficult to get up early
• To show purpose – I came to London to study English

• We use gerunds (verb + ing)

We use the bare infinitive (the infinitive without ‘to’):

• After modal verbs – I can meet you at six o’clock
• After ‘let’, ‘make’ and (sometimes) ‘help’ – The teacher let us leave early
• After some verbs of perception (see, watch, hear, notice, feel, sense) – I watched her walk away
• After expressions with ‘why’ – why go out the night before an exam?

Click for exercises on PDF here

Ex 1

Ex 2

Ex 3

Ex 4

2) Speak
Look at the list of verbs in the presentation and make sentences using a gerund or an infinitive after each verb.
Example – I can’t stand driving in the city.

3)Write some sentences using the verbs above which are true for you.
Example – I detest eating prunes.
I’m just a poor EFL teacher. I can’t afford to buy new shoes.

4)Practise
Here are 5 songs with gerunds and infinitives in the titles.
How many do you know? Can you think of any more songs with a gerund or an infinitive in the title?

I promise to try

I can´t stand losing you

Imagine (having no possessions…)

I want to break free