Going Shopping and Determiners

• newEditor
• English
• Secondary Education
• Age 13

Going Shopping

This lesson focuses on speaking and Use of English at Cambridge B1 level, with shopping language and determiners as the main grammar thread.

Today’s Goal

I can use shopping vocabulary and determiners correctly when I speak about buying things.

What words do you connect with shopping in English?

Use this as a warm-up. Expect words like clothes, price, size, money, cashier, discount, receipt, mall, and try on.

Shopping Situations

• We shop for clothes, food, gifts, and everyday items

• We ask about price, size, color, and quantity

• We often need to choose, compare, and decide

• Clear language helps shopping feel easier and faster

Open with familiar situations so students connect the language to real life before focusing on form.

Useful Shopping Words

• customer - a person who buys something

• shop assistant - a person who helps in a store

• receipt - paper that shows what you paid for

• price - how much something costs

• change - money returned after paying

• discount - a lower price

Useful Phrases in Shops

• Can I help you?

• I’m looking for ...

• Do you have this in a different size?

• How much is it?

• Can I try it on?

• I’ll take it.

Model pronunciation and intonation. These phrases support later speaking tasks.

A Simple Shop Dialogue

Shop assistant: Can I help you?

Customer: Yes, I’m looking for a T-shirt.

Shop assistant: What size do you need?

Customer: Medium, please. How much is it?

Shop assistant: It’s $18.

Customer: Great. I’ll take it.

Read the dialogue aloud with a natural rhythm. Highlight how each line has a clear purpose: greeting, request, detail, price, decision.

Who helps customers in a store?

A

receipt

B

discount

C

shop assistant

D

change

Checks key shopping vocabulary from slides 2 to 5.

Complete the shop dialogue

The shop assistant says, “Can I help you?” The customer answers, “I’m looking for a T-shirt.” Then the assistant asks about the size. After that, the customer asks about the price and finally says, “I’ll take it.”

shop assistant

size

price

customer

change

color

receipt

discount

The blanks follow the speaking sequence shown in the model dialogue: person, detail, then cost.

What makes a shop dialogue clear and polite?

Expected elements: a polite opener such as 'Can I help you?' or 'Excuse me,' a request like 'I’m looking for...,' and a shopping detail such as size, color, or price.

What Are Determiners?

Determiners come before nouns. They help us show:

• which thing

• how many

• how much

• whether the noun is specific or general

Examples: a bag, the jacket, some shoes, this shirt

Keep the explanation practical. Students need to see determiners as useful words for real communication, not only as grammar labels.

A, An, and The

• Use a / an for one thing in general:

- a hat

- an umbrella

• Use the for a specific thing:

- the hat in the window

- the blue umbrella

Point out that 'an' depends on sound, not spelling. Use quick oral examples if needed.

Some, Any, Much, Many

• Use some in positive statements:

- I need some socks.

• Use any often in questions and negatives:

- Do you have any trainers?

- I don’t need any help.

• Use much with uncountable nouns:

- How much money...?

• Use many with countable nouns:

- How many bags...?

If students mix up countable and uncountable nouns, use shopping examples like bags, apples, money, rice.

This, That, These, Those

• this - one thing near me

• that - one thing far from me

• these - more than one thing near me

• those - more than one thing far from me

Examples:

• This jacket is nice.

• Those shoes are expensive.

Use gestures in the classroom to make meaning physical and memorable.

Determiners in Shopping Talk

• I’d like a bottle of water.

• Do you have any black jeans?

• How much is this sweatshirt?

• Can I try on those trousers?

• The cashier gave me the receipt.

Small words make the message clear and natural.

This slide connects grammar back to speaking. Emphasize that correct determiners improve fluency and accuracy together.

Choose the Correct Determiner

1. I need a / the new backpack for school.

2. Do you have some / any white T-shirts?

3. How much / many are these socks?

4. Can I see this / these jacket, please?

5. I bought a / an umbrella yesterday.

Let students justify each answer aloud, not only give the answer. Focus on why the determiner fits.

Correct the Sentences

• I need any help.

• How many money do you have?

• Can I try on this shoes?

• She bought an T-shirt.

• The shop assistant gave me a receipt, and receipt was very long.

Students should rewrite the full sentences correctly: 'some help' or 'I don't need any help,' 'How much money,' 'these shoes,' 'a T-shirt,' 'the receipt.'

Which sentence uses the correct determiner?

A

Do you have some trainers?

B

How many money is that?

C

Can I try on this shoes?

D

I bought an umbrella.

Distractors come from common determiner errors covered on slides 7 to 12.

Choose the correct determiners

In a shop, we use a or an for one thing in general. We use the for a specific item. We ask, “Do you have any black jeans?” and “How much money do I need?”

a

the

any

much

some

many

this

those

an

Checks core contrasts: a/an, the, any, and much.

Why do determiners matter when you shop?

Expected elements: 'a' for general singular item, 'the' for a specific known item, 'these/those' for plural items, and reference to making meaning clear in shopping talk.

Speaking Model: Asking for Help

• Start politely: Excuse me / Can I ask something?

• Say what you want: I’m looking for ...

• Add details: a black bag, some sports shoes

• Ask a follow-up: Do you have it in medium?

Model short spoken exchanges before students produce longer ones.

Speaking Model: Asking About Price

• How much is this T-shirt?

• How much are these trainers?

• That jacket is cheaper than this one.

• Those jeans are too expensive for me.

Determiners help identify exactly which item you mean.

Remind students that singular/plural nouns affect both the determiner and the verb.

Mini Dialogue Pattern

Customer: I’m looking for a ...

Shop assistant: What color or size do you need?

Customer:

Shop assistant: Yes, here you are.

Customer: How much is / are ... ?

This gives students a speaking frame without turning the slide into an activity prompt. The teacher can use it as a support model.

Natural Choices in Conversation

When we speak in shops, we choose determiners quickly to make meaning clear.

We say a sweater when the item is not specific yet, the sweater when both people know which one, and these sweaters when we point to more than one. Accurate choices make spoken English sound more natural.

This is a synthesis slide. Slow down and connect grammar choice to real communicative purpose.

Shopping Vocabulary in Context

• aisle - a passage between shelves in a store

• fitting room - a place where you try on clothes

• cashier - the person who takes payment

• refund - money returned after you give something back

• sale - a time when prices are reduced

• size - the measurement of clothes or shoes

• brand - the company name of a product

Which question matches more than one item near the speaker?

A

How much is this T-shirt?

B

How much are these trainers?

C

How much is that jacket?

D

How much are those jeans?

Tests the link between number, distance, determiner, and verb form from slides 13 to 16.

Complete the shopping talk

A customer says, “I’m looking for a black bag.” Then the customer asks, “Do you have any sports shoes?” When pointing, the customer can say, “How much are these trainers?” Good determiner choices make the conversation sound more natural.

a

any

these

natural

the

some

this

those

cheap

This echoes the speaking models and synthesis idea that accurate determiners support natural conversation.

Which shopping phrase do you feel most ready to use?

1

Ask for help

2

Ask about price

3

Ask for size

4

Buy an item

What is one useful thing you learned today?

Reflection prompt. Invite students to mention a word, rule, or phrase they can now use more confidently.

What part of today’s lesson felt hardest?

Reflection prompt. Encourage students to identify the hardest area, such as a/an/the or much/many, and why it was difficult.

Grammar Glossary

determiner - a word before a noun that shows which one, how many, or how much

countable noun - a noun you can count, like bag or apple

uncountable noun - a noun you do not usually count separately, like money or milk

specific - clearly identified, not general

general - not one particular person or thing

singular - one person, thing, or idea

plural - more than one person, thing, or idea