What you’ll learn (A1–B1 focus)
- Family: people, relationships, life events, home roles.
- Daily life: routines, time phrases, household chores, errands.
- Natural English: collocations, phrasal verbs, set phrases.
- Fast accuracy: small grammar checks, pronunciation traps.
Core Family Vocabulary (with collocations)
Immediate family
- mother/father, parents; sister/brother, siblings; husband/wife, spouse; son/daughter, children/kids
- Collocations: close family, only child, elder/younger brother/sister
Extended family
- grandmother/grandfather → grandparents; aunt/uncle; cousin; in-laws (mother-in-law, brother-in-law)
- Collocations: family gathering, extended family, stay in touch with relatives
Life events
- get married, get divorced, have a baby, raise a child, grow up
- Collocations: marital status, family background, bring up children
Relationship words
- engaged, married, single, separated, widowed
- Collocations: strong bond, close relationship, fall out with (argue and stop being friends)
Useful sentences
- I’m the eldest of three siblings.
- We’re a close-knit family and meet every weekend.
Daily Life: Routines & Time Phrases
Morning–Evening verbs
- wake up, get up, take a shower, get dressed, have breakfast, commute to work/school, have lunch, finish work, cook dinner, do homework, go to bed
Frequency & time
- always / usually / often / sometimes / rarely / never
- every day, on weekdays, at the weekend, in the morning/afternoon/evening, at night
Household chores
- do the dishes/laundry/housework, make the bed, sweep/mop the floor, take out the trash, water the plants, tidy up, vacuum the carpet, run errands
Errands
- buy groceries, go to the bank, pick up a parcel, post a letter, fill up the car
Natural lines
- I usually cook dinner and my partner does the dishes.
- I do the laundry on Saturdays.
Phrasal Verbs (high-use)
- grow up (become an adult): I grew up in Dhaka.
- look after (take care of): I look after my grandmother.
- get along (with) (have a good relationship): We get along well.
- fall out (with) (argue): He fell out with his cousin.
- pick up (collect/learn): Pick up the kids at 5. / I picked up some new words.
- run out of (finish): We ran out of milk.
- put off (postpone): Don’t put off your homework.
Collocations that sound natural
- spend time with family, share household chores, have an argument, make up after a fight, quality time, family tradition, daily routine, balanced diet, healthy habit, catch a bus/train, miss a bus, meet a deadline
Grammar micro-notes (fast wins)
- Possessives: my mother’s car, my parents’ house (’s for singular; s’ for plural).
- Uncountable nouns: housework, homework, luggage, furniture, advice → no “a/an,” no plural -s.
- I have a lot of homework. (not homeworks)
- People vs peoples: people = persons (plural); peoples = nations/ethnic groups.
- Each/Every + singular verb: Every child needs care.
Word building (use one root to grow)
- marry → marriage → married
- care → careful / careless → carefully / care for (v.)
- help → helpful / helpless → help out (v.)
- health → healthy → unhealthy habits
Mini-dialogues (copy the rhythm)
A. Family roles
- A: Who looks after the kids after school?
- B: My parents pick them up, and I make dinner.
B. Daily routine
- A: Do you work out in the morning?
- B: Sometimes. I usually go for a walk after dinner.
C. Problem–solution
- A: We ran out of rice.
- B: I’ll pick some up on my way home.
Common mistakes → quick fixes
- ❌ I make my homework at night. → ✅ I do my homework at night.
- ❌ She has many furnitures. → ✅ She has a lot of furniture.
- ❌ We did an argue. → ✅ We had an argument / argued.
- ❌ He is married with two kids. → ✅ He is married and has two kids.
10-minute drills (with answers)
A. Choose the best option.
- We usually (do/make) the laundry on Fridays.
- My (elder/older) sister lives abroad.
- I (take/cook) dinner for the family.
- We (ran out of/ran off) cooking oil.
- I (get along/get over) well with my in-laws.
Answers: 1) do 2) elder (for siblings) 3) cook 4) ran out of 5) get along
B. Complete the collocation.
6) spend ___ with family → time
7) share household ___ → chores
8) catch a ___ to work → bus/train
C. Rewrite with a phrasal verb.
9) collect the children → pick up the children
10) postpone the trip → put off the trip
Ready-to-use speaking lines
- On weekdays, I get up at 7 and head to work at 8.
- We share chores at home—my brother takes out the trash and I do the dishes.
- I try to spend quality time with my parents every weekend.
7-day review plan (fast & light)
- Day 1–2: Family words + collocations (10 mins/day)
- Day 3–4: Daily routine verbs + chores; add 5 phrasal verbs
- Day 5: Mini-dialogues (read aloud; record once)
- Day 6: Drill mistakes; write 6 sentences about your family
- Day 7: 1-minute oral summary of your week using at least 8 target items
Mini writing task (A1–B1)
Write 90–120 words about your weekday routine and one family tradition. Use 8+ items from this guide and two phrasal verbs.
Starter frame:
- I usually … In the morning, I … After work/school, I … At the weekend, my family … We like to … We also …
Printable checklist (copy to your notes)
- Family: parents, siblings, spouse, in-laws, cousin, relatives, close-knit, fall out with, get along with
- Daily life: wake up, get dressed, commute, do the dishes/laundry/housework, take out the trash, run errands, cook dinner, tidy up
- Phrasal verbs: grow up, look after, pick up, run out of, put off