Questions: ESL lesson plans and exercises

Q: How do you form questions with do, does and did?

Do, does or did, the subject, then the base form. Do they eat the crust? Does she live in Tucson? Did he fix his phone? Does goes with he , she and it in the present, while did is the same for every person. Questions with be need none of the three: Is it hot in July? Were you at home?

Q: What are the wh- question words?

What, where, when, who, which, why and how. They ask for information rather than a yes or a no: Where did he work? Who did you call first? Some pair up with another word, as in what time , what color , what kind of and which team , and how is often followed by an adjective: how long , how tall , how far .

Q: What's the difference between subject and object questions?

Subject questions ask about the doer of the action. They keep statement order with no do , does or did : Who invented Tethys? What happened? Object questions ask about the person or thing after the verb, so the helper comes back: Who did Nora call? In the present, a subject question takes the -s form, even when the answer is many people: Who wants cookies?

Q: What are indirect questions?

Questions inside a polite opener, in statement word order. After Could you tell me… , Do you know… or I was wondering… , the subject comes before the verb and do , does and did drop out: Could you tell me when you sent it? Yes/no questions add if or whether . When the opener is a statement, the sentence ends with a period: I was wondering if you received it.

Q: Are there interactive exercises for wh- and yes/no questions?

Yes, from yes/no questions to question tags. A few of them play near the top of this page, no account needed. Inside the lessons, students drag words into place, fill gaps, complete tables and answer quizzes in their own edio.ai accounts, and those exercises check each answer at once. A free trial opens all 16 lessons and the rest of the library.

Q: How do I teach wh- questions to beginners?

Begin with be, then bring in do and does. English A1.1 on edio.ai starts with Are you…? and Is she…? about languages at the UN, then Do you like…? about pizza. English A1.2 adds what + a noun at a yard sale, does for the weather, wh- questions about ferry times and how + an adjective for sizes. English A2.1 takes the same questions into the past with did .

Q: What are good games for practicing questions?

Guessing games, where only questions lead to the answer. In twenty questions, students find a mystery person or object with yes/no questions alone; in a hot-seat interview, the class fires wh- questions at one learner. Each lesson here also has a speaking chapter with a chat and a game such as Spin the wheel, Open the box or a memory game.

Q: Can I teach these question lessons one-to-one or set them as homework?

Yes, either way. One-to-one, the student follows the lesson live in their own account while you lead, and the speaking game needs just the two of you. For homework, the drills still check themselves, and you can go through the student's work afterwards.

Levels A1 to B2 16 lesson plans · 8 drill lessons Exercises that check themselves

English questions change the word order: be or a helper verb comes before the subject, as in Are you hungry? and When did Bell make his first call? Here you'll find 16 ready-made lessons on questions from the edio.ai library, levels A1 to B2, all in American English. They run from yes/no and wh- questions through subject and object questions to indirect questions and question tags. Play a few of their exercises, read the rules from their grammar schemes and choose a lesson by level. Each lesson is interactive, and the question drills check themselves.

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Questions lesson plans and drills

16 lesson plans and 8 drill lessons, A1 to B2. Lesson plans are whole lessons with reading, listening and speaking; drill lessons are 44 to 46 self-checking exercises with no new words.

Try the question exercises

One exercise from each of 6 lessons. These are the same exercises your students do in edio.

Questions explained

We ask yes/no questions to check a fact (Is it in English?) and wh- questions to get information (What size are these boots?). Subject questions ask about the doer, indirect questions sound more polite, and question tags check a fact or invite the other person to agree.

Yes/no questions: Are you…? or Do you…?

With be, the verb itself goes first: Are you hungry? Other verbs need do or does before the subject: Do you like pizza? (not Are you like pizza?). Short answers repeat that first word: Yes, I am. No, they don't.

be: Are you…?

Are you hungry? – Yes, I am.
Are they from Chicago? – No, they aren't.

a verb: Do you…?

Do you like pizza? – Yes, I do.
Do they eat deep-dish? – No, they don't.

From the lesson New York pizza or Chicago deep-dish? (English A1.1)

Wh- questions: question word + do or does + verb

A wh- question puts the question word first, then do or does, the subject and the base form: What time does the ferry leave? The -s of leaves moves to does, so the main verb has none.

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?

Question words

Question	Answer
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.

From the lesson What time does the ferry leave? (English A1.2)

Past questions: did + base form, or was and were

In the past, did serves every person and the verb goes back to its base form: Did they find a moth? (not Did they found…?). Questions with be take no did at all: Was it a real bug?

Other verbs: Did + base form

Did Edison use the word “bug”? – Yes, he did.
Did the Mark II stay at Harvard? – No, it didn't.

be: Was / Were, no did

Was it a real bug? – Yes, it was.
Were the engineers at Harvard? – Yes, they were.

From the lesson A real bug in the computer (English A2.1)

Subject and object questions: Who invented it?

When who or what asks about the doer, the question keeps statement order and needs no do, does or did: Who invented Tethys? Asking about the object brings did back: What did Gitanjali invent?

Ask about the doer: Gitanjali

Gitanjali invented Tethys.
Who invented Tethys?
– Gitanjali Rao did.

Ask about the object: Tethys

Gitanjali invented Tethys.
What did Gitanjali invent?
– Tethys.

From the lesson The girl who tests water (English A2.2)

Indirect questions: Do you know where…?

After Do you know…? or Could you tell me…?, the question inside takes statement order and drops do, does and did: Can you tell me where the logs are? A yes/no question adds if or whether: Do you know if it works on iOS?

Direct question	Indirect question
Where are the logs?	Can you tell me where the logs are?
When is the release?	Could you tell me when the release is?
What does this error mean?	Do you know what this error means?
Why did the build fail?	Do you know why the build failed?
Does it work on iOS?	Do you know if / whether it works on iOS?
Is the API down?	Do you know if / whether the API is down?

From the lesson Just say what you need (English for IT B1)

Question tags: positive statement, negative tag

A positive statement takes a negative tag and a negative one a positive tag, repeating be, the helper verb or the modal: You've met Jess, haven't you? It isn't far, is it? With no helper, the tag uses do, does or did.

Plus becomes minus, minus becomes plus

Positive statement → negative tag

It's a lovely view, isn't it?
You've met Jess, haven't you?
We can walk there, can't we?

Negative statement → positive tag

It isn't far, is it?
You haven't been to Portland before, have you?
You won't be late, will you?

Which verb goes in the tag?

Statement	Tag	Rule
The tasting was great,	wasn't it?	be: repeat it
You've tried the Kenyan,	haven't you?	auxiliary have: repeat it
We should book a table,	shouldn't we?	modals (will, can, would, should): repeat them
Ana travels a lot,	doesn't she?	present simple: do / does
You flew in last night,	didn't you?	past simple: did
Claire met you in Amsterdam,	didn't she?	a name or a noun becomes a pronoun in the tag

From the lesson The Business Lunch (Business English B2)

Questions about questions in English

How do you form questions with do, does and did?

Do, does or did, the subject, then the base form. Do they eat the crust? Does she live in Tucson? Did he fix his phone? Does goes with he, she and it in the present, while did is the same for every person. Questions with be need none of the three: Is it hot in July? Were you at home?

What are the wh- question words?

What, where, when, who, which, why and how. They ask for information rather than a yes or a no: Where did he work? Who did you call first? Some pair up with another word, as in what time, what color, what kind of and which team, and how is often followed by an adjective: how long, how tall, how far.

What's the difference between subject and object questions?

Subject questions ask about the doer of the action. They keep statement order with no do, does or did: Who invented Tethys? What happened? Object questions ask about the person or thing after the verb, so the helper comes back: Who did Nora call? In the present, a subject question takes the -s form, even when the answer is many people: Who wants cookies?

What are indirect questions?

Questions inside a polite opener, in statement word order. After Could you tell me…, Do you know… or I was wondering…, the subject comes before the verb and do, does and did drop out: Could you tell me when you sent it? Yes/no questions add if or whether. When the opener is a statement, the sentence ends with a period: I was wondering if you received it.

How do question tags work?

Positive statement, negative tag; negative statement, positive tag. The tag repeats be, the helper or the modal, or uses do, does or did: The tasting was great, wasn't it? You flew in last night, didn't you? Watch for I'm next, aren't I? A falling voice asks the listener to agree, and a rising one asks a real question.

Are there interactive exercises for wh- and yes/no questions?

Yes, from yes/no questions to question tags. A few of them play near the top of this page, no account needed. Inside the lessons, students drag words into place, fill gaps, complete tables and answer quizzes in their own edio.ai accounts, and those exercises check each answer at once. A free trial opens all 16 lessons and the rest of the library.

How do I teach wh- questions to beginners?

Begin with be, then bring in do and does. English A1.1 on edio.ai starts with Are you…? and Is she…? about languages at the UN, then Do you like…? about pizza. English A1.2 adds what + a noun at a yard sale, does for the weather, wh- questions about ferry times and how + an adjective for sizes. English A2.1 takes the same questions into the past with did.

What are good games for practicing questions?

Guessing games, where only questions lead to the answer. In twenty questions, students find a mystery person or object with yes/no questions alone; in a hot-seat interview, the class fires wh- questions at one learner. Each lesson here also has a speaking chapter with a chat and a game such as Spin the wheel, Open the box or a memory game.

Can I teach these question lessons one-to-one or set them as homework?

Yes, either way. One-to-one, the student follows the lesson live in their own account while you lead, and the speaking game needs just the two of you. For homework, the drills still check themselves, and you can go through the student's work afterwards.

More English grammar

Lessons for every grammar point, from the verb to be to reported speech. All grammar points

Questions lesson plans and drills

Six languages at the UN

New York pizza or Chicago deep-dish?

What size are these boots?

Does it rain in the desert?

What time does the ferry leave?

How long is a blue whale?

To be negatives and questions: is it your bag?

Present simple: don't, doesn't, do you…?

Wh- questions: what, where, when, why?

A real bug in the computer

“Mr. Watson, come here”

The girl who tests water

Past simple negatives and questions: where did the cake go?

Subject and object questions: who won the quiz?

My suitcase has gone to Honolulu!

Why do high jumpers go backward?

Write your personal README

Just say what you need

Indirect questions: could you tell me where it is?

Question tags: it's your first day, isn't it?

The Business Lunch

Emails That Get Answers

Conversations kept for history

Negative and echo questions: didn't you know?