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Help, I'm blocked! Have to, need to and asking for help

Learners practice have to and need to for blockers and asking for help in this B1 English for IT lesson plan.

Grammar
Have to and need to for what's necessary, don't have to for what isn't (You don't have to wait.), can't for what isn't possible, and Do I have to…?
Topic
Being blocked and asking for help on a mobile team at a fictional payments startup, with words such as stuck, unblock, request access and pair up.
Activities
A story on rubber duck debugging, a team chat, a standup to hear, self-checking drills, a chat and a mock standup with role cards, then a message to write and an update to record.

What's inside

  1. Chapter 1Warm-up: Stuck or Blocked?

    • PictureUnlock
    • Spin the wheel and answerSpin the wheelUnlock
    • Study the words: blockers and helpVocabularyTry it
    • Look at the pictures and choose the wordChoose by pictureUnlock

  2. Chapter 2The Story: Talk to the Duck

    • Read the story: Talk to the DuckArticleUnlock
    • Read the story again: true or false?True or falseUnlock

  3. Chapter 3At Work: Help in #mobile-team

    • Read the chat: Iryna, the new Android developer, needs helpReal-life documentTry it
    • Choose the correct answer about the chatQuizUnlock
    • Sort the parts of a help requestSort into columnsUnlock

  4. Chapter 4Listen: A Blocker at the Standup

    • Listen to Iryna and Diego at the team standupListeningTry it
    • Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
    • Listen again: true or false?True or falseUnlock

  5. Chapter 5Grammar: Have To or Don't Have To?

    • Study the scheme: have to, need to, can'tGrammar schemeTry it
    • Fill in the table with have to, has to, don't have to, do or doesFill in the tableTry it
    • Choose the meaning of each sentenceQuizUnlock
    • Fill in the gaps: say it in everyday American EnglishFill in the gapsUnlock
    • Choose the correct option: Jordan's blocker messageChoose the optionUnlock

  6. Chapter 6Speak Up: The Mock Standup

    • Choose the best reply: ask Wes for helpChatTry it
    • Open a box: take a role in the 15-minute mock standupOpen the boxUnlock

  7. Chapter 7Homework: Your Blocker Message

    • Read your phrase bankReal-life documentUnlock
    • Do you remember? Choose the correct answerQuizUnlock
    • Is the sentence correct? True or falseTrue or falseUnlock
    • Match the sentence halvesMatchUnlock
    • Write a message about your blockerWriting, checked by the teacherUnlock
    • Record your standup update with a blockerSpeaking, checked by the teacherUnlock

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Vocabulary

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

+9 more with pictures and audio in the lessonMore words

  • request access
  • pair up
  • debug
  • API key
  • pipeline
  • permissions
  • rubber duck
  • parking lot
  • out loud

Grammar: have to, need to, don't have to and can't

A blocker message says what you have to do, what you can't do and what can wait. In the language of blockers, learners separate necessary, not necessary and not possible, use has to and needs to with he, she and it, and ask with Do or Does.

have to, need to, don't have to and can't

Say what is necessary, what isn't necessary and what isn't possible: the language of blockers.

Three meanings: necessary, not necessary, not possible

Have to and need to say something is necessary: I have to wait for the test keys. Don't have to says it isn't, though you may: You don't have to wait for the new pipeline. Can't says it isn't possible or allowed: You can't create live keys without approval.

MeaningFormExample
necessaryhave to / has to, need to / needs to + verbI have to wait for the test keys.
not necessary (but OK if you want)don't / doesn't have to, don't / doesn't need to + verbYou don't have to wait for the new pipeline.
not possible or not allowedcan't (cannot) + verbYou can't create live keys without approval.

Have to or has to? Every person

With he, she and it, the forms are has to and needs to: She has to ask. He needs to ask. Negatives and questions use do or does, and the verb goes back to have or need: She doesn't have to ask. Does he need to ask?

Verb and personPositiveNegativeQuestion
have to: I / you / we / theyI have to ask.I don't have to ask.Do I have to ask?
have to: he / she / itShe has to ask.She doesn't have to ask.Does she have to ask?
need to: I / you / we / theyWe need to ask.We don't need to ask.Do we need to ask?
need to: he / she / itHe needs to ask.He doesn't need to ask.Does he need to ask?

Don't have to is not can't

The two negatives mean different things. You don't have to fix it today means there's no need, and tomorrow is fine; I can't test it means it isn't possible, because I don't have a key. In the duck story, the listener doesn't have to say a word.

don't have to: not necessary

  • You don't have to fix it today. Tomorrow is fine.
  • The listener doesn't have to say a word.

can't: not possible or not allowed

  • I can't test it: I don't have a key.
  • Builds from the old pipeline can't go to beta merchants.

Need + a noun, need to + a verb

Need takes a noun directly but to before a verb: I need a key. I need to test it. In everyday American English, have to and need to are more usual than must, which you know from rules: Visitors must sign in.

From Iryna's week

  • Iryna has to request access in the tracker.
  • Jordan needs to register both phones.
  • So I don't have to wait for anything now?
  • Does Jordan need access too?need + a noun: no “to”

have to or must? need or need to?

You know must from rules (Visitors must sign in). In everyday American English, people usually say have to or need to: “I have to leave at five.” And watch need: need + a noun (I need a key), but need to + a verb (I need to test it).

Typical mistakes

  • I have wait for the API keys.

    I have to wait for the API keys.

    have to + verb

  • She have to ask DevOps.

    She has to ask DevOps.

    he / she / it: has to

  • I don't need wait.

    I don't need to wait.

    need to + verb

  • Do I must request access?

    Do I have to request access?

    questions: Do / Does … have to …?

More lessons on this grammar: Modal verbs lessons and exercises

Try the have to and need to exercises

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

More exercises

What's in the lesson

  • 13 auto-checked exercises
  • 2 games
  • 2 teacher-checked tasks
  • 2 real-life documents
  • 1 article
  • 1 grammar scheme
  • 1 set of word cards
  • 1 audio clip
  • 1 picture
  • 1 transcript

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

  • flag a blocker and ask for help in one clear message: what you're doing, what blocks you, what you need and by when
  • say what's necessary with have to, has to, need to and needs to: I have to request access in the tracker.
  • tell don't have to (not necessary) from can't (not possible or allowed): You don't have to wait. I can't test it without a key.
  • ask with Do and Does, and use need with a noun: Do I have to request access? Does Jordan need access too?

Lesson 6 closes The daily standup, the unit of English for IT B1 · Inside the Team on updates, blockers and asking for help, and carries its work task: a mock standup with a blocker. It builds on the status updates of lesson 5, and its homework reviews the grammar of lessons 4 to 6 before unit 3 turns to bugs and tickets. A blocker is usually something you have to wait for, need or can't do yet, so the grammar comes with the job.

The word cards run from stuck and unblock to parking lot, each with a picture and audio, and the story explains how The Pragmatic Programmer (1999) gave rubber duck debugging its name. In the team chat, a bare hi gets no real answer, but a full help request does, and a DevOps engineer explains what is and isn't necessary. The AI-voiced standup brings a new blocker and the phrase take it offline. Four drills check themselves after the scheme, among them a have to table for every person.

Speaking starts with a chat in which students choose Iryna's replies as she asks Wes to review her pull request; then open boxes give them six roles, from developer to Scrum Master, for a mock standup. Homework: a phrase bank to read; a quiz, a true-or-false check on the unit's grammar and a sentence match that check themselves; then a blocker message to write and an update to record for the teacher.

Grammar:
have to / need to · don't have to vs can't
Topic:
standups · blockers · asking for help · rubber duck debugging

Teaching tips

  • Ban the bare hi for a week: in an in-company group, every help request in the class chat must say what you're doing, what blocks you, what you need and by when.
  • One-to-one, be the rubber duck: the learner explains a real problem from work step by step while you only nod; then they turn it into a help request with I have to…, I need… and Could someone…?
  • Sort the negatives with two signs: a green one says no need, a red one says not allowed. Read sentences such as You can't push code to main without a review and let learners raise a sign.
  • Add a real round after the mock standup: once the role cards are done, each learner gives a second update with a true blocker from their own work, ending with I'm blocked by… and a request.

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The whole course: English for IT B1 · Inside the Team

24 lessons at B1 for people who build, test or run software, in American English. Learners follow Iryna, a junior developer, through her first year at Kestrel Cloud, a fictional payments startup: standups, tickets, code review, chats across time zones and job interviews. Each lesson is built around a true story from software history.See the course

  1. Unit 1 Hello, team

    roles, stacks and first days: the present simple, the present perfect with for and since, question forms

    1. Lesson 1How big is a two-pizza team?Present simple for jobs and responsibilities
    2. Lesson 2Your first "Hello, World"Present perfect with for and since
    3. Lesson 3Write your personal READMEQuestion forms for getting to know colleagues

  2. Unit 2 The daily standup

    updates and blockers: the present simple and continuous, just, already and yet, have to and need to

    1. Lesson 4Why is it called a scrum?Present simple vs continuous and state verbs
    2. Lesson 5Done, not done yetPast simple, present perfect and going to for updates
    3. Lesson 6 · you're hereHelp, I'm blocked!Have to, need to, don't have to and can't

  3. Unit 3 Bugs and tickets

    clear bug reports: the past continuous, imperatives and the zero conditional, quantifiers

    1. Lesson 7The first actual bugPast simple and past continuous for bug stories
    2. Lesson 8Steps to reproduceImperatives and the zero conditional for bug reports
    3. Lesson 9The email that couldn't go 500 milesQuantifiers in bug tickets

  4. Unit 4 Code review

    kind, useful comments: -ed and -ing adjectives, modals for suggestions, the first conditional

    1. Lesson 10What's a nit?-ed and -ing adjectives in review comments
    2. Lesson 11Could we maybe…?Modals for suggestions in code review
    3. Lesson 12Your first pull requestThe first conditional and unless in code review

  5. Unit 5 How it works

    explaining systems step by step: time clauses, the passive, relative clauses

    1. Lesson 13What happens when you type a URL?Time clauses with as soon as, until and once
    2. Lesson 14How is a barcode read?The present and past simple passive
    3. Lesson 15Draw it, then say itDefining relative clauses

  6. Unit 6 Remote and async

    chat, email and time zones: polite requests, future forms, the present perfect continuous

    1. Lesson 16Just say what you needPolite requests and indirect questions
    2. Lesson 17Your 9 a.m. is my noonFuture forms for plans across time zones
    3. Lesson 18Write it downPresent perfect continuous for status updates

  7. Unit 7 Users and clients

    user stories and plain explanations: verb + to or -ing, reported speech, comparisons

    1. Lesson 19As a user, I want…Verb + to or verb + -ing
    2. Lesson 20"The client said it was broken"Reported speech for client calls
    3. Lesson 21Explain it in ten hundred wordsComparisons for plain explanations

  8. Unit 8 Your next job

    resumes and interviews: used to, the past perfect, the second conditional

    1. Lesson 22A resume that shows resultsUsed to for your career path
    2. Lesson 23Tell me about a time when…The past perfect for STAR stories
    3. Lesson 24What would you do if…?The second conditional for interviews

Questions about this lesson

How do you use need to in English?
Use need to + a base verb for what's necessary: I need to register my phone in staging. With he, she or it, it's needs to: Jordan needs to register both phones. The negative, don't need to, means it isn't necessary, and questions take do or does: What do I need to do? Before a noun, drop the to: I need a key.
What's the difference between have to and need to?
Most of the time, have to and need to mean the same: something is necessary, so I have to wait and I need to wait are both fine. Have to often points to a rule (You have to request it in the tracker), while need to often comes from the task itself (Staging needs to know your phone first). Negatives match too: You don't have to wait means You don't need to wait.
Do you say need to, have to or must at work?
At work, Americans mostly say have to or need to, not must: I have to leave at five. We have to finish by Friday. Must sounds like a written rule, as on a sign: Visitors must sign in. In questions, must is rare, so ask Do I have to request access?, never Do I must request access? Both have to and need to are fine in a standup or a team chat.
How do you ask for help at work in English?
Put the whole request in one message: what you're doing, what's blocking you, what you need and by when. I'm working on the refund screen. I have to test it against the sandbox, but I don't have a test API key. Could someone help? By today, if possible. A bare hi is hard to answer. An exercise in Help, I'm blocked! on edio.ai sorts requests into these four parts.
How do you say something isn't necessary in English?
Say don't have to or don't need to, with doesn't for he, she and it: You don't have to fix it today. Tomorrow is fine. Jordan doesn't need to write a ticket. Don't use can't here: can't means it isn't possible or allowed, as in You can't create live keys without approval. So you don't have to join gives a choice, but you can't join doesn't.
Is it "I don't need wait" or "I don't need to wait"?
It's I don't need to wait, with to before the verb. Need takes to before a verb (I need to test it) but no to before a noun (I need a key). Have to works the same way: I have to wait for the API keys, not I have wait. The chat in Help, I'm blocked! on edio.ai hides doesn't need to the links among its wrong replies.
What does rubber duck debugging mean?
Rubber duck debugging means explaining your code, step by step, to a silent listener, often a toy duck on the desk. Saying out loud what you usually take for granted often shows you the mistake. The name comes from The Pragmatic Programmer (1999) by Andrew Hunt and David Thomas. At work, people ask Did you try the rubber duck first? or say Explain it to the duck.
What does "blocked by" mean at work?
At work, I'm blocked by names what stops your work: I'm blocked by missing permissions. I'm blocked by the test keys. You can't go on until that changes, so a blocker usually comes with a request: Could someone approve my access request today? Stuck is different: you're stuck on a problem you can't solve alone, such as a crash. Whoever removes the blocker unblocks you.
What do "take it offline" and "parking lot" mean in a meeting?
Take it offline means discuss it after the meeting, and the parking lot is the list of topics saved for after it. Both keep a standup short: This is getting long. Can we take it offline? Sure, it goes in the parking lot. In the standup of Help, I'm blocked! on edio.ai, the two speakers then stay on the call to pair up.
How do you run a mock standup in an English class?
Give each learner a role with a reason to speak: a developer without access, a tester waiting for a build, a designer waiting for feedback, a product owner who needs a date, a DevOps engineer who can help and a Scrum Master who keeps time. Updates use I'm blocked by…, I have to… and Could someone…? The open boxes of Help, I'm blocked! on edio.ai hold these six roles.
Are there interactive exercises for have to and need to?
Yes: self-checking tables and chats train the forms. Four parts of Help, I'm blocked!, a B1 English for IT lesson on edio.ai, play on this page without an account: a team chat with a help request, the standup where a developer flags a blocker, a table of have to, has to, don't have to, do and does, and a chat in which students ask a busy colleague for a code review. The rest is locked.
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