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Review: hello from the Statue of Liberty – the verb to be

This A1 ESL lesson plan reviews the verb to be for beginners at the end of the course's first unit.

Grammar
Am, is and are for every person, negatives, yes/no questions with short answers (Is she French? Yes, she is.) and countries and nationalities, all from lessons 1 to 3.
Topic
A ferry trip across New York Harbor to the Statue of Liberty, a gift from France, with nine new words such as torch, crown, tourist and view.
Activities
The statue's sign to read, two listenings on the ferry, self-checking verb to be exercises and a memory game, a chat with a tourist and a spin wheel of questions.

What's inside

  1. Chapter 1Hello, New York!

    • PictureUnlock
    • Open a box and answerOpen the boxUnlock
    • Study the new wordsVocabularyTry it
    • Look at the pictures and chooseChoose by pictureUnlock

  2. Chapter 2Let's read: hello from the statue

    • Look at the photo: the Statue of LibertyPictureUnlock
    • Read the signReal-life documentTry it
    • Read and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
    • Read again and choose the right answerQuizUnlock

  3. Chapter 3Listen: on the ferry

    • Listen to Emma and Jack on the ferryListeningTry it
    • Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
    • Listen again and choose the right answerQuizUnlock
    • Listen to the captainListeningUnlock
    • Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
    • Listen and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock

  4. Chapter 4Review: what can you do now?

    • Do you remember? Choose the correct answerQuizUnlock
    • Is the sentence correct? True or falseTrue or falseUnlock
    • Sort the sentences: am, is or are?Sort into columnsTry it
    • Complete the house group chatFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Find the pairs: question and answerMemory gameUnlock

  5. Chapter 5Let's talk!

    • Choose the right repliesChatTry it
    • Spin the wheel and answerSpin the wheelUnlock

  6. Chapter 6Homework

    • Put the words in the right orderUnjumbleUnlock
    • Put the letters in the right orderAnagramUnlock
    • Record yourself: hello from the Statue of LibertySpeaking, checked by the teacherUnlock

24 exercises in 6 chapters. Start a 7-day free trial to open all of them, copy any part into your own lessons, and teach the lesson live.

Vocabulary

9 words and phrases from the lesson, each with a picture and audio in edio.

+6 more with pictures and audio in the lessonMore words

  • torch
  • crown
  • gift
  • tourist
  • view
  • harbor

Grammar: the verb to be and yes/no questions, reviewed

Lesson 4 is the unit's review, so the grammar is everything from lessons 1 to 3, used again on one trip: the ferry to Liberty Island. Learners mix I'm, he's and they're, nationalities and yes/no questions in new sentences.

The verb to be with every person

Learners pick the right form for each person without a table to look at: am for I, is for he, she and it, are for you, we and they.

  • I'm a student here.
  • The statue is a gift from France.
  • They're students from Brazil.

Countries, nationalities and Where are you from?

The review mixes the question and both kinds of answer: a country with from, a nationality without it.

  • Are they American? No, they aren't. They're from Mexico.
  • Is she French, too? Yes, she is. We're from Paris.

Yes/no questions and short answers

Questions start with the verb, and short answers end on it: Yes, we are and No, I'm not, never Yes, we're.

  • Are you a tourist in New York, too? No, I'm not.
  • Are you on Liberty Island now? Yes, we are!

More lessons on this grammar: Verb to be lessons and exercises

Try the verb to be review exercises

Try them yourself: these are the same exercises your students do in edio.

More exercises

What's in the lesson

  • 10 auto-checked exercises
  • 5 games
  • 1 teacher-checked task
  • 1 real-life document
  • 1 set of word cards
  • 2 audio clips
  • 2 pictures
  • 2 transcripts

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

  • use the verb to be with every person in new sentences: I'm a student here. They're from Brazil.
  • ask and answer yes/no questions about people: Are they American? No, they aren't.
  • say where people are from, with a country or a nationality: We're from Paris. Is she French?
  • read a short sign and understand facts like height, steps and color

Lesson 4 closes Hello!, the first unit of English A1.1 · Hello, World, with no new grammar. Instead it brings back lessons 1 to 3: I'm and you're with greetings and spelling, he's, she's and they're with countries and nationalities, and yes/no questions with short answers. A ferry full of tourists gives Where are they from? real answers, from Brazil and Mexico to France.

Students learn nine new words, from torch to harbor, with pictures and audio, then read the statue's own sign: a gift from the people of France, made of copper and green, but not painted. They listen to Emma and Jack on the ferry and to the captain (AI-voiced). The review chapter has five checks, from am, is or are to a memory game of questions and answers. In the speaking chapter, they chat with Camille, a tourist from Paris, and spin a wheel of questions.

Homework puts words and letters in order and ends with a short recorded hello from the statue, which the teacher reviews.

Grammar:
review · to be: I'm, you're, he's, she's, they're · Where are you from? · yes/no questions and short answers · the alphabet
Topic:
the Statue of Liberty · New York · tourists · review

Teaching tips

  • Treat the review chapter as a team game: one point for every correct short answer, and a bonus for spelling a name.
  • Ask what students know about the statue before reading; most know her, but few know she's a gift from France.
  • Note who still says Yes, I'm or He's Italy, and plan a short warm-up on it for the next lesson.
  • Use the chat with Camille as a model, then have pairs invent a tourist and ask each other where they're from.

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The whole course: English A1.1 · Hello, World

32 lessons for complete beginners in simple American English, from the verb to be to can and can't. Eight units cover greetings, family, numbers, home, food, daily routines, the town and free time, and each ends with a review lesson. Pictures and definitions replace translations, and the practice exercises check themselves.See the course

  1. Unit 1 Hello!

    greetings, the verb to be, countries and nationalities, yes/no questions

    1. Lesson 1Hi, hey, howdy or aloha?The verb to be with I and you
    2. Lesson 2Ellis Island: where are they from?He's, she's, they're: the verb to be
    3. Lesson 3Six languages at the UNYes/no questions with be and short answers
    4. Lesson 4 · you're hereReview: hello from the Statue of LibertyThe verb to be and yes/no questions, reviewed

  2. Unit 2 My people

    family members, possessive adjectives, have got, describing people

    1. Lesson 5Why is Mother's Day in May?Possessive adjectives: my, your, his, her
    2. Lesson 6Best in show!Have got and the possessive 's
    3. Lesson 7National Best Friends DaySubject pronouns, possessives and describing people
    4. Lesson 8Review: Bobbie the Wonder DogPossessives, have got and 's, reviewed

  3. Unit 3 Numbers all around

    numbers and dates, a/an and plurals, phone numbers and prices

    1. Lesson 9Why is March 14 Pi Day?Numbers 0 to 100, decimals and US dates
    2. Lesson 10How old is the General Sherman tree?A, an and plurals, with big numbers and How old…?
    3. Lesson 119-1-1 and other numbers to knowSaying phone numbers, emails and prices
    4. Lesson 12Review: 102 floors and 1,860 stepsNumbers, dates, ages and prices, reviewed

  4. Unit 4 Home sweet home

    rooms in a house, this, that, these and those, furniture, opposites

    1. Lesson 13A house with 132 roomsThis is, these are and plurals
    2. Lesson 14Boston's skinny house: where's the bed?This, that, these, those and Where's…?
    3. Lesson 15Can a dorm room be cozy?Opposite adjectives and have got
    4. Lesson 16Review: homes for everyoneShowing and describing a home, reviewed

  5. Unit 5 Food I love

    likes and dislikes, present simple questions, ordering food

    1. Lesson 17Pancakes for breakfast?I like, I don't like and plural nouns
    2. Lesson 18New York pizza or Chicago deep-dish?Present simple questions and short answers
    3. Lesson 19A coffee to go, please!Ordering food with I'd like and Can I have…?
    4. Lesson 20Review: lunch from a food truckI like, Do you like and I'd like, reviewed

  6. Unit 6 My day

    telling the time, daily routines, days of the week, prepositions of time

    1. Lesson 21What time is it in Times Square?Telling the time and daily routines
    2. Lesson 22Who brings the mail?The present simple with we and they
    3. Lesson 23Is it morning in Hawaii?Prepositions of time with parts of the day
    4. Lesson 24Review: a New York morningTime, routines and days, reviewed

  7. Unit 7 My town

    places in town, prepositions of place, giving directions

    1. Lesson 25Main Street, USAPrepositions of place: near and next to
    2. Lesson 26Meet me at Union SquarePresent simple questions and negatives with we and they
    3. Lesson 27Turn left on 42nd StreetImperatives for giving directions
    4. Lesson 28Review: streets for peoplePlaces, the present simple and directions, reviewed

  8. Unit 8 Free time

    hobbies, can and can't, sports, making plans

    1. Lesson 29Can you play Scrabble?Can and can't for ability
    2. Lesson 30Can you surf?Can for ability and how well
    3. Lesson 31Saturday morning: Little LeagueFree time and making plans
    4. Lesson 32Review: a book for every childCan, can't and free time, reviewed

Questions about this lesson

How do you ask questions with the verb to be?
Put am, is or are before the subject: You are a tourist becomes Are you a tourist? A question word goes in front of the verb: Where are the two girls from? On the ferry in Review: hello from the Statue of Liberty, an edio.ai lesson for A1, one is about the statue herself: Is she American? Well, she's in New York, but she's a gift from France.
When do you use am, is or are?
Use am with I, is with one person or thing, and are with you and with more than one. I am from Boston. The statue is a gift from France. The two girls are Brazilian. So he, she and it take is, while we and they take are: The tourists are from many countries, never is. This lesson's sort puts sentences like these into three columns, one for each form.
Is it "they isn't" or "they aren't"?
They aren't, short for they are not, because a negative keeps the verb of the positive sentence. They are → they aren't, she is → she isn't, I am → I'm not. A quiz in this lesson offers They isn't American as the wrong option about a family on the ferry; the right one is They aren't American.
Is it "from France" or "from French"?
From France, because from takes a country, never a nationality. French describes a person or a thing: Is she French, too? Yes, she is. We're from Paris. Every pair works the same way: They're from Brazil, but They're Brazilian students. The chat and a true-or-false check in this lesson both use a gift from French as the wrong version.
What questions can you ask a tourist in English?
Start with where they're from and who they're with, using the verb to be: Where are you from? Is she French, too? Then ask about the trip: Are you on Liberty Island now? Open with Hi! How are you? and close with Bye! See you! Students chat like this with a tourist from Paris in edio.ai's A1 review Review: hello from the Statue of Liberty.
How do I review the verb to be with beginners?
Bring every form back in one new situation, so learners choose between am, is and are on their own. This review is a ferry trip to Liberty Island: a sign written in the statue's voice, two listenings, then exercises that each test one point, such as a quiz, a sort and a group chat to complete. Because each one checks a single thing, a wrong answer shows what to teach again.
What's a good game for practicing the verb to be?
A memory game of questions and answers: students find the pairs, matching each question with the reply that fits. Where are the two girls from? goes with They're from Brazil, and Is the flame of the torch green? with No, it isn't. It's gold. Review: hello from the Statue of Liberty on edio.ai closes its review chapter with one; its spin wheel then asks for four Are you…? questions.
How do you practice the verb to be one-to-one?
Take turns asking each other real questions about yourselves, people you know and famous places: Where is it? Is it big? Is it old? In this lesson, the chat with a tourist already works for one student, and the spin wheel suits two people, with prompts like You're a tourist in New York! Who are you? Where are you from?
What's good homework for practicing the verb to be?
A short voice message in the role of a tourist, because it needs every form: name and spelling, country and nationality, and two Are you…? questions. In this lesson, students first put sentences like Where / are / the tourists / from? back in order and unscramble words such as torch and harbor; both check themselves. The recording, a hello from the Statue of Liberty, goes to the teacher.
Are there interactive verb to be exercises?
Yes, sorting, gap-fill and chat exercises that check themselves cover the verb to be well. On edio.ai, Review: hello from the Statue of Liberty opens four parts to everyone, with no account: the statue's sign to read, a dialogue on the ferry, a sort of sentences into am, is and are, and a chat with a tourist from Paris. The rest, from the group-chat gap-fill to the memory game, unlocks with a free trial.
Is there a verb to be worksheet for beginners?
Yes, and an online one marks each answer as students go. The review chapter of Review: hello from the Statue of Liberty, an A1 lesson on edio.ai, works as one: students choose the correct answer, mark sentences true or false, sort them into am, is and are, fill in a group chat and match questions with answers. The sort can be tried on the page; the other four open with a free trial.
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