Search
Randall's ESL Cyber Listening Lab: Ordering a Pizza
Details
Activity Description
This activity uses prerecorded authentic conversation in which a caller wants to order a pizza. Pre- and post-listening activities are provided along with immediate feedback on comprehension exercises.
Preparation
- Make sure that the Web site is not blocked at your school site and that your computer can play the audio file.
- Preview the exercise so you can explain it to your students. Show them how to use the player and answer the questions, especially for lower level students or those without good tech skills.
How-To
See the Web Site Example above for:
- Pre-Listening Exercises
- Listening Exercises
- Vocabulary
- Post-Listening Exercises
More Ways
Assign to students for homework or individual in-class work using ideas from the "Online Investigations" section.
Program Areas
- ESL: English as a Second Language
Levels
- Intermediate Low
- Intermediate High
- Advanced
Lesson Plan
Ask how many students like to eat Pizza. Find out how they get their pizza. Do they order online? Do they go to the store to order?
Find out what types of things students like to eat on pizza. Divide students into groups and have groups discuss their favorite types of Pizza.
Today we are going to practice ordering a pizza.
Have students make a list of some of the things they are asked when they order a pizza online. Write the list on the board. Name, address, phone number, type of crust, toppings, etc.
Divide students into small groups or pairs and have them create a list of pizza toppings. Take group lists to create a master list and make sure students are aware of the vocabulary.
Tell students that they will be listening to a phone conversation where a person is ordering a pizza. Play the conversation. For accessibility, please refer to the transcript.
Divide the students into small groups. After listening to the conversation1 one time, have each group make a list of words they heard. Try to elicit all the words for the topping. Do a second listening and try to determine what type of pizza the customer ordered. Do a third listening and see how much of the conversation that the students can retrieve. Finally, give each student the handout to complete while listening the fourth time.
There are many activities associated with this listening. Have students do the comprehension quiz. Then scroll below the ads for the Vocabulary practice mixed-up sentence and sentence vocabulary matching.
Post-Listening Exercise
Are there any toppings or pizza styles unique to your country (e.g., seafood pizza with clams and squid which you can find in Japan)? Is there a charge for pizza delivery and is giving a tip customary in your country? Have you ever made your own pizza? If so, what do you put on your pizza?
Online Investigation
Pizza restaurants are not all the same. They offer different menus, services, and prices. Use the Internet to look up two different pizza restaurants in your area, or better yet, pretend that you are visiting New York City in the United States for a week, and you want to find out what restaurants are available in the area. Check on prices, variety of menu items, delivery, and working hours of each place and compare.
Order a pizza for the class as an extension activity.
Documents
- Customer Order.docx - Customer Order for Pizza Delivery
Standards
- Speaking and Listening
- CCR Anchor 1 - Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
- CCR Anchor 2 - Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.
- CCR Anchor 3 - Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric.
- CCR Anchor 4 - Present information, findings, and supporting evidence such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
- CCR Anchor 5 - Make strategic use of digital media and visual displays of data to express information and enhance understanding of presentations.
- CCR Anchor 6 - Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and communicative tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.
- Language
- CCR Anchor 1 - Demonstrate command of the conventions of English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
- CCR Anchor 2 - Demonstrate command of the conventions of English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
- CCR Anchor 3 - Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully when reading or listening.
- CCR Anchor 4 - Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases by using context clues, analyzing meaningful word parts, and consulting general and specialized reference materials, as appropriate.
- CCR Anchor 5 - Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
- CCR Anchor 6 - Acquire and use accurately a range of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when encountering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.