8 Future Tense Exercises : Plans, Predictions, Schedules and more
2nd July, 2023
Conversational, visual and audio cues can help convey to students the primary uses of the future tense. Conversational cues give students communicative practice. Images containing action can be used for predictions. Moreover, teaching with the aid of audio can help students engage more deeply with the future tense. Also, calendars are used for plans and schedules.
1 Basic future tense – conversational practice
These exercises include sets of future tense conversational questions, along with multiple potential responses and a follow-up question for each. This practice aims to help ESL (English as a Second Language) students improve their understanding and usage of the future tense in English. Students can familiarize themselves with various contexts where the future tense is commonly used, such as discussing plans, making predictions, and expressing intentions.
This is a structured exercise, with questions, possible responses, and follow-up questions, that allows students to get a more comprehensive understanding of how future tense conversations flow.
Future tense – going to conversational questions (PDF)
Future tense – will conversational questions (PDF)
Future tense – going to vs will conversational questions (PDF)
If you like this kind of exercise, check out my post:
The Art of Prompting Artificial Intelligence for ESL Teachers
Future Tense Usage Chart
| Definite Plans | Probable Plans | Schedules | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Going to | I am going to visit my parents. | We’re going to probably have a meeting. | She’s going to start work at 8am. |
| Will | I will buy a new car. | I think I will have a coffee later. | The plane will depart at 6pm. |
| Present Simple | – | – | The movie starts at 9pm. |
2 Future perfect – conversational practice
More advanced students can practice conversations using the future perfect with the questions below as a guide or starting point. I’ve added a chart to show how the future perfect works.
Future Perfect Chart
| Sentence | Action | Future Endpoint |
|---|---|---|
| By the end of this week, she will have finished her book. | Finishing her book | End of this week |
| They will have moved to a new city by next month. | Moving to a new city | Next month |
| By the time we meet again, I will have graduated college. | Graduating college | Time we meet again |
| By next year, the construction will have been completed. | Completing the construction | Next year |
| By tomorrow morning, the snow will have stopped falling. | Snow stopping to fall | Tomorrow morning |
| She will have learned Spanish fluently by 2025. | Learning Spanish fluently | 2025 |
| By the time you read this letter, I will have left town. | Leaving town | Time you read the letter |
| They will have been married for 20 years by 2040. | Being married for 20 years | 2040 |
| By the end of the day, he will have signed all the papers. | Signing all the papers | End of the day |
| The plane will have landed by 3 pm. | Landing of the plane | 3 pm |
| By next summer, I will have been working here for 5 years. | Working here for 5 years | Next summer |
| By the end of the decade, we will have colonized Mars. | Colonizing Mars | End of the decade |
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3 What are your plans?
A useful vocabulary and speaking activity for talking about plans with “going to”.
4 Plans, predictions and schedules ( with audio and answers)
Expanding on the above, this exercise includes another instance when the future tense is used: schedules. The present tense is used for talking about scheduled activities in the future.
Plans and predictions and schedules (PDF)
(see the YouTube video version)
5 Plans and predictions (with audio and answers)
The two most basic uses of the future tense are for plans and predictions. This exercise includes some common situations when the future tense might be used: talking about the weather, economics (money), careers and immediate actions.
6 Talking about plans with “going to”
“Going to” is the most basic form of the future tense usually taught to students learning the English language. This is a good speaking activity that encourages students to speaking a personal way about the future.
7 Making predictions with “will”
Making predictions is a pretty engaging exercise. And I think this survey-type activity is an excellent way to have a discussion class. Moreover, it can work at fairly low levels.
Making predictions with “will” (PDF)
Related Resources
Comparative adjective exercises
Teaching Gerunds and Infinitives
10 Adjectives Exercises Including Adjectives for People and Things
6 Picture-Based Present Continuous Worksheets (PDF)
5 Useful Passive Tense Practice worksheets
6 Present Perfect Language and Speaking Worksheets
7 Incredibly Useful Past Tense Simple Teaching Activities (PDF)
8 Preposition Exercises for Location, Time and Movement (PDF)
3 Great Exercises for the 2nd Conditional (PDF)
8 Predictions survey
This is a speaking and writing exercise for English language learners to practice using the future tense. Students write 5 questions about the future using the questions at the top of the page as an example. Then they interview 5 students and write a short report about their survey. Click on the image below or the link to download the PDF file.
I teach ESL classes for the school district I’m in. I love your updates on topics, i.e., Coronavirus etc, to assist the students. Also, the creative ways the lessons are presented, makes it almost appear to them as if they’re playing a game! : )
Thanks a lot. I try to keep up-to-date. And try to make things interesting too.
Really appreciate the comments.