“Conversation Starter Lesson Series: Intermediate” is designed for intermediate-level ESL learners who want to improve their fluency and confidence in speaking English.
Each lesson includes an engaging reading material with audio, vocabulary and expressions, comprehension questions, and discussion questions to be used for one to one class, group class, or self-study for both online and offline classes.
Unit 8: Money and Finance
Story 03: Budgeting and Spending
Key Lesson Vocabulary & Expressions: Look over and review before proceeding.
- Budgeting
- Tracking spending
- Revelations
- Dining out
- Recurring fees
- Spreadsheet
- Potluck dinners
- Subscriptions
- Memberships
- Goal
Read or Listen to the following passage:
I’ve been trying to save up money to buy a bigger house for a while now. In order to do that, I knew I had to make some changes to my spending habits. I started budgeting and tracking my spending to see where my money was going. And boy, was I surprised!
One of the biggest revelations was how much money I was spending on eating out. I knew I enjoyed dining out with friends and family, but I didn’t realize just how much money I was spending on it. Once I added up all the meals, coffees, and snacks, I was shocked. I was easily spending hundreds of dollars a month on eating out.
Another surprise was how much I was spending on subscriptions and memberships. I had signed up for various services over the years, and many of them had recurring fees. I didn’t even realize how much money I was spending on them until I saw the total amount in my budget spreadsheet.
After seeing these spending habits, I decided to make some changes. I started cooking at home more often and inviting friends over for potluck dinners. I also canceled some of my subscriptions and memberships that I wasn’t using regularly. These small changes have helped me save a lot of money, and I’m now much closer to my goal of buying a bigger house.
Comprehension Questions:
- What is the narrator trying to save up money for?
- What did the narrator start doing to improve their spending habits?
- What was the biggest surprise in the narrator’s spending habits?
- How did the narrator change their spending habits?
- How has changing their spending habits helped the narrator?ive?
Conversations Starters:
- What are some common spending habits that people have that can negatively impact their financial situation?
- How do you approach budgeting and tracking your spending? What tools or methods do you use?
- What are some effective strategies for saving money on everyday expenses?
- Do you prefer shopping in-store or online? Why?
- How do you avoid impulse purchases when shopping?
- What are some of the biggest challenges you face when it comes to saving money?
- How important is it to you to have a savings plan and emergency fund? Why?
- Have you ever tried a “no-spend” challenge? How did it go?
- What role do personal values and goals play in your spending and saving habits?
- How can society as a whole encourage better spending and saving habits?
