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What time does the ferry leave? Wh- questions with does for schedules

This A1 ESL lesson plan teaches wh- questions with does for asking about times and trips.

Grammar
Question word + does + he, she or it + the verb with no -s (Where does it go?), do for I, you, we and they, and answers such as About 35 minutes.
Topic
Ferry trips and schedules, on the Washington State Ferries route from Seattle to Bainbridge Island, with words such as departure, arrival, terminal and deck.
Activities
A sailing schedule to read, a dialogue and a terminal announcement to hear, self-checking drills, a chat with a visitor, open-box questions for a partner and a message about a trip.

What's inside

  1. Chapter 1All aboard!

    • PictureUnlock
    • Spin the wheel and answerSpin the wheelUnlock
    • Study the words: on the ferryVocabularyTry it
    • Look at the pictures and chooseChoose by pictureUnlock

  2. Chapter 2Let's read: the ferry schedule

    • Look at the photo: the Seattle ferryPictureUnlock
    • Read the scheduleReal-life documentTry it
    • Read and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
    • Read again and choose the right answerQuizUnlock

  3. Chapter 3Let's listen: a day on the water

    • Listen to Olivia and KofiListeningTry it
    • Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
    • Listen and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
    • Listen to an announcement at the ferry terminalListeningUnlock
    • Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
    • Listen and choose the right answerQuizUnlock

  4. Chapter 4Grammar: What time does it leave?

    • Study the scheme: questions with doesGrammar schemeTry it
    • Choose the right wordChoose the optionUnlock
    • Drag the words into the gaps: question wordsDrag and dropTry it
    • Fill in the table: make questionsFill in the tableUnlock
    • Choose the right question or answerQuizUnlock

  5. Chapter 5Let's talk: buses, trains and boats

    • Choose the right replies: a visitor in your townChatTry it
    • Open a box and answerOpen the boxUnlock

  6. Chapter 6Homework

    • Put the words in the right orderUnjumbleUnlock
    • Match the words and the meaningsMatchUnlock
    • Write a message: my tripWriting, checked by the teacherUnlock
    • Record a voice message: a trip in your townSpeaking, checked by the teacherUnlock

25 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

  • departure
  • arrival
  • dock
  • deck
  • terminal
  • seagull

Grammar: wh- questions with does

A ferry schedule is full of answers, and question words are the way to find them: What time, Where, How long. With a Saturday trip from Seattle as the example, learners build each wh- question as question word, then does, then the bare verb, and switch to do for I, you, we and they.

What time does the ferry leave?

Ask about times and trips: question word + does or do + verb.

Question word + does + verb

For he, she and it, the question word comes first, then does, then the subject and the verb: What time does the ferry leave? The verb's -s jumps to does, so The ferry leaves turns into does the ferry leave.

he, she, it: question word + does + verb

What time / Where / When / How longdoeshe / she / it / the ferryverb (no -s)

What time does the ferry leave?

Where does it go?

How long does it take?

The -s goes to does

The ferry leaves at 9:50. → What time does the ferry leave? In the question, does has the -s (do + es). The verb has no -s.

Do or does? Every person

The table runs leave through every person. I, you, we and they take do (What time do you leave?), and only he, she and it take does. In the answer, the -s comes back: It leaves at 9:50.

WhoQuestionAnswer
IWhat time do I leave?You leave at 9:35.
youWhat time do you leave?I leave at eight.
he, she, itWhat time does it leave?It leaves at 9:50.
weWhat time do we leave?We leave at 9:35.
theyWhat time do they leave?They leave at ten.

What time, where, how long: question words

Each question word asks for one kind of answer: What time for a clock time (At 9:50.), Where for a place (To Bainbridge Island.), How long for a stretch of time (About 35 minutes.). A few words make a full answer: What does Kofi drive? A bus.

QuestionAnswer
What time does the ferry leave?At 9:50.
Where does it go?To Bainbridge Island.
When does it arrive?At 10:25.
How long does it take?About 35 minutes.
What does Kofi drive?A bus.

What time or when?

What time asks about the clock, so its answer is a time: At 9:50. When is wider, and its answer can be a time or a day: When does it leave? On Saturday.

What time or When?

What time asks about the clock: What time does it leave? – At 9:50. When asks about a time or a day: When does it leave? – At 9:50. / On Saturday.

Common mistakes

  • What time the ferry leaves?

    What time does the ferry leave?

    question word + does + the ferry + verb

  • What time does the ferry leaves?

    What time does the ferry leave?

    after does: verb with no -s

  • What time do the ferry leave?

    What time does the ferry leave?

    he, she, it, the ferry: does

  • How long it takes?

    How long does it take?

    don't forget does

More lessons on this grammar: Present simple lessons and exercises · Questions lessons and exercises

Try the wh- questions exercises

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

More exercises

What's in the lesson

  • 11 auto-checked exercises
  • 3 games
  • 2 teacher-checked tasks
  • 1 real-life document
  • 1 grammar scheme
  • 1 set of word cards
  • 2 audio clips
  • 2 pictures
  • 2 transcripts

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

  • ask about times with What time and When: What time does the ferry leave? When does it arrive?
  • ask where something goes and how long it takes: Where does it go? How long does it take?
  • put the -s on does, not on the verb, and use do with I, you, we and they: What time do you leave?
  • read departure and arrival times on a schedule and answer in a few words: At 10:25. To Seattle.

Lesson 10 is the second lesson of Getting around, the third unit of English A1.2 · Out and About. It builds on lesson 6, where Does…? questions got a yes or a no (Does it rain in July? Yes, it does.), and puts a question word in front of does; How often, heard once in the dialogue, gets a lesson of its own in lesson 18. On a timetable, every departure, arrival and crossing time answers a wh- question.

Students spin a wheel of questions about boats and their mornings, then learn nine words, from sail and arrive to terminal and seagull, with pictures and audio. They read a weekend sailing schedule from Seattle to Bainbridge Island, listen to Olivia and Kofi plan a day trip with it (an AI-voiced dialogue), then follow an announcement at the terminal. In the grammar chapter, four self-checking exercises come after the scheme: choosing the right word, a drag-and-drop of question words, a table that makes questions from sentences and a final choice of the right question or answer. In the speaking chapter, a visitor to the student's town asks about a bus in a chat, and open boxes give questions to ask a partner.

Homework puts questions in order and matches ferry words with their meanings, both self-checking. Students then write a friend about a trip by bus, train or ferry and record a voice message about one in their town, both for the teacher to check.

Grammar:
wh- questions with does · What time does…? · Where does…? · How long does it take? · question word + do / does + verb
Topic:
Washington State Ferries · Seattle · ferries · schedules · trips

Teaching tips

  • Turn the schedule into a quiz race: read out an answer, such as At 10:25 a.m. or To Seattle, and teams race to ask the question that fits: When does the 9:50 ferry arrive?
  • Move the -s with a colored pen: write The ferry leaves at 9:50, circle the -s, then draw an arrow to does in What time does the ferry leave?
  • Bring a timetable from your town, for a bus or a train, and have pairs ask each other Where does it go?, What time does it leave? and How long does it take?
  • After the chat with the visitor, swap roles: one student is a visitor who asks about a museum and a bus, and the other answers from a timetable they make up.

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The whole course: English A1.2 · Out and About

32 lessons that pick up where English A1.1 ends, in simple American English, from the present simple with he and she to was and were. Eight units cover shopping, the weather, getting around, celebrations, health, animals and nature, jobs and weekends. Pictures and definitions replace translations, and the practice exercises check themselves.See the course

  1. Unit 1 Shopping

    clothes and colors, he and she in the present simple, sizes and prices, paying in a store

    1. Lesson 1What does she wear on Aloha Friday?Present simple with he, she and it
    2. Lesson 2A basket on wheels?Present simple negatives with don't and doesn't
    3. Lesson 3What size are these boots?What questions and a pair of
    4. Lesson 4Can I try it on? The Santa Fe Indian MarketRequests and permission with Can I and Can you

  2. Unit 2 Weather and seasons

    the weather, seasons and months, the present continuous, how often it rains or snows

    1. Lesson 5Is the Windy City windy?Weather adjectives with It's
    2. Lesson 6Does it rain in the desert?Yes/no questions with does
    3. Lesson 7Baseball at midnight?The present continuous for now
    4. Lesson 8Is it always windy on Mount Washington?Adverbs of frequency and their place

  3. Unit 3 Getting around

    transport, timetables, where places are, tickets with want and need

    1. Lesson 9How do you get to work?By + transport, take the bus and on foot
    2. Lesson 10 · you're hereWhat time does the ferry leave?Wh- questions with does
    3. Lesson 11Where's the streetcar stop?Between, behind, in front of and across from
    4. Lesson 12Do you need a ticket?Want and need with a noun

  4. Unit 4 Celebrations

    dates and holidays, in and on, party invitations, object pronouns

    1. Lesson 13Why is it called Juneteenth?Ordinal numbers for saying dates
    2. Lesson 14Never on a Sunday? The Rose ParadeIn, on and at for dates and times
    3. Lesson 15Come to our Lunar New Year party!Some and any with plural nouns
    4. Lesson 16Thank you, teacher!Object pronouns me, you, him, her, it, us and them

  5. Unit 5 Healthy me

    the body, how often, at the pharmacy, steps with first and then

    1. Lesson 17Does your back hurt?Hurt and hurts with parts of the body
    2. Lesson 18How often do you walk?How often questions and expressions of frequency
    3. Lesson 19What's the matter?Have and has for health problems
    4. Lesson 20Clean hands in five stepsSequence words with imperatives

  6. Unit 6 Animals and nature

    there is and there are, what animals are doing, parks, a, an and the

    1. Lesson 21Which frog sings its name?There is and there are for what's in a place
    2. Lesson 22What's the bear doing now?Present continuous questions and negatives
    3. Lesson 23Are there any horses on the beach?Questions with is there and are there any
    4. Lesson 24Where do the baby turtles go?A, an and the for first and second mention

  7. Unit 7 Jobs people do

    jobs and workplaces, the present simple and continuous, job interviews, possessive pronouns

    1. Lesson 25Who makes the sounds in movies?Present simple vs present continuous
    2. Lesson 26Nurses on horses?At, in and on with workplaces
    3. Lesson 27Can you be a lifeguard?Verbs with prepositions
    4. Lesson 28Whose hat is this?Possessive pronouns from mine to theirs

  8. Unit 8 Weekend stories and plans

    was and were, how long and how tall, and, but and or, camping food

    1. Lesson 29Why do we have two days off?Was and were, the past of be
    2. Lesson 30How long is a blue whale?How + adjective questions about size
    3. Lesson 31A cow made of butter?And, but and or for joining ideas
    4. Lesson 32What do you need for s'mores?Containers and quantities with of

Questions about this lesson

What are wh- questions?
Wh- questions are questions that begin with a question word, so they ask for information instead of a yes or a no: Where does the ferry go? To Bainbridge Island. The name comes from the letters wh in what, where and when, and how questions count too: How long does it take? In the present simple, do or does comes right after the question word.
What are the question words in English?
The main question words are what, where, when, who, why and how, and some join a second word to ask something more exact: what time, how long, how often. Each one wants its own kind of answer: Where does it go? To Bainbridge Island. What time does it leave? At 9:50. In What time does the ferry leave?, an A1 lesson on edio.ai, students drag the right question word into eight questions.
How do you use "How long does it take?"
How long does it take? asks how much time a trip or a job needs, and the answer uses It takes: It takes about 35 minutes. Name the trip to be exact: How long does the trip take? How long does the bus ride take? Keep does and the bare verb, so never How long it takes? or How long does it takes?
How do you make wh- questions with does?
Use question word + does + subject + base verb: What time does the ferry leave? Where does it go? When does it arrive? The verb loses its -s because does already has it: The ferry leaves, but does the ferry leave. For I, you, we and they, the helper is do: What time do you leave? The A1 lesson What time does the ferry leave? on edio.ai drills both, with times from its ferry schedule.
Is it "What time does it leave?" or "What time does it leaves?"
It's What time does it leave?: no -s after does, because does already carries it. The same goes for What time does the museum open? and When does the next ferry sail? Leaving out does is the other common mistake: What time the ferry leaves? The chat in the A1 lesson What time does the ferry leave? on edio.ai sets both errors as wrong replies.
When do you use do and does in questions?
Use does for he, she and it, and do otherwise: Where does she work? Where do your friends live? What time do you get up? A noun works like its pronoun, so the ferry takes does and Emma and Kofi take do. With either one, the verb after it stays bare: Where does it go?, not Where does it goes?
What's the difference between "What time" and "When"?
What time asks only for a clock time, while When can ask for a time or a day: What time does it leave? At 9:50. When does it leave? can take At 9:50 or On Saturday. So When covers both, and What time fits only clock times. On a schedule, both work: When does the 9:50 ferry arrive? At 10:25 a.m.
What words do you need to read a schedule?
You need departure and arrival, with leave and arrive: a departure is the time a trip starts, an arrival the time it ends. Add a.m. and p.m., and from and to for the places: From Seattle to Bainbridge Island, departure 9:50 a.m., arrival 10:25 a.m. For ferries, a terminal is the building where people wait, and a dock is where the boats stop.
How do I teach wh- questions to beginners?
Turn a statement into a question: The ferry leaves at 9:50 becomes What time does the ferry leave? Show where the -s goes, then add one question word at a time, each with the answer it expects. What time does the ferry leave?, an A1 lesson on edio.ai, practices that move in a fill-in table: The trip takes about 35 minutes becomes How long does the trip take?
What's a good game for practicing wh- questions?
Try an open-the-box game of questions for a partner: each box gives a question to ask, such as What time does your mom or dad get up? or Where does your best friend live? One box sets a role-play at a ferry terminal, with three questions to ask: What time…? Where…? How long…? The boxes come from the A1 lesson What time does the ferry leave? on edio.ai.
How do you practice wh- questions one-to-one?
Ask about each other's real day: What time do you leave home? How do you get to work? How long does it take? Every answer gives the next question. The chat here works for one student: a visitor asks where a bus goes and when the museum opens, and at the end the student asks a question back: What time does your train leave?
Are there interactive exercises for wh- questions?
Yes: drag-and-drop gaps and chats that check every answer. Four parts of What time does the ferry leave?, an A1 lesson on edio.ai, run right on this page, no sign-up needed: the Seattle ferry schedule, Olivia and Kofi planning their trip, a drag-and-drop of question words (What time, Where, How long, What), and a chat with a visitor. The fill-in table, the announcement and the other drills are locked.
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