Life

ESL discussion questions about living.

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  1. What is your earliest memory from childhood? How old were you?
  2. What makes a happy childhood in your opinion?
  3. Should a school education prepare people for work or for life?
  4. Why are teenagers often so grumpy? Will this ever change?
  5. What is the most important lesson a teenager should learn about life?
  6. How important is it to go to university nowadays?
  7. Could young men benefit from a year of tough military service?
  8. What should a young person look for in a new job?
  9. Should young adults enjoy themselves and see the world before getting married?
  10. How should we decide who to marry?
  11. What is the best age to have children in your opinion?
  12. What is the one piece of advice you would give to a new mother or father?
  13. Is it possible for both parents to work full time and raise a family?
  14. Can a person live a happy life without being married?
  15. What makes a successful career? Is it about money, status or something else?
  16. Is it possible to begin a new career after 50? Why or why not?
  17. What is the ideal age to retire in your opinion?
  18. How would you like to spend your retirement years? What will you do?
  19. Is death something we should fear or just accept?
  20. Do you believe there is life after death?
  21. What is the meaning of life?
PDF (Individual)
General
PDF (Pairs)
General
PDF (Threes)
General
PDF (Cards)
General
How to use the life ESL discussion questions

It is recommended that you download the life ESL discussion questions in PDF format using one of the links above. The best way to encourage classroom interaction is to download and print the life discussion questions in the 'pairs' or 'threes' PDF format and then divide the questions by cutting along the dotted lines. This allows students to take turns asking and answering the life discussion questions in groups of two or three. Alternatively, you could use the 'cards' format to distribute the questions to any number of students to ask and share.

It is advisable to prepare students for using these discussion questions by first introducing them to the topic of life in an interesting and engaging way. An anecdote, quiz question or a related image or video could all be used to achieve this. Depending on the level, it may also be necessary to pre-teach any challenging vocabulary related to life contained in the discussion questions.

For more ESL discussion questions, see this site's main page. There are discussion questions on a range of topics including general, grammar and business English topics.

For further information about the site and its author, see the about page.