At the shop: How much is it?
Children practise polite shopping language and prices, read a short shop dialogue, then run a class market with paper money.
At a glance
- From
- Level 1, Next Steps English: Week 22, Shopping and prices
- Grammar
- How much is...?
- Key language
- Can I have..., please? / How much is it? It's... / How much are they? They're... / Here you are. / Thank you.
- Children make
- A shopping role-play in pairs and a completed price list.
- Class size
- Works with 10 to 50 children; pair and group steps say how to scale.
Objective
Children ask for items politely, ask and say prices, and complete a short shopping conversation.
Success criteria for children
- I can ask for something politely.
- I can ask "How much is it?" and understand the price.
- I can be the shopkeeper and the customer.
Timing: 60 minutes
| Minutes | Stage | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 5 | Warm-up: numbers race | Count to 20 round the class; fast number dictation. |
| 5 to 15 | Shop words and prices | Show items with tags; teach How much is it? and How much are they? |
| 15 to 27 | Reading: At Mr Kay's shop | Read the dialogue in two halves of the class; answer questions. |
| 27 to 37 | Practise the dialogue | Pairs read, then change the items and prices. |
| 37 to 52 | Class market | Half the class are shopkeepers, half customers; then swap. |
| 52 to 60 | Exit ticket | Complete a four-line shop dialogue. |
Materials
- Real objects or pictures for the shop: an apple, a pencil, a ball, a book, sweets, a toy car
- Paper money: each child cuts out the coins on the worksheet, or uses numbered slips
- Price tags made from scrap paper
- Money (free, linked from Week 22)
- Level 1 reading (free, linked from Week 22)
Before the lesson: Use a simple class currency so maths stays easy: whole "coins" from 1 to 10. If your class knows your local currency, use it instead.
Step by step, with teacher talk
0 to 5 minWarm-up: numbers race
- Count round the class to 20, then back. Say five numbers; children write them on their hand or a slate.
5 to 15 minShop words and prices
- Hold up the apple with a tag. "How much is it? It's two coins." Drill.
- Hold up two sweets. "How much are they? They're one coin." Show that one thing is "it" and more than one is "they".
- One book. "How much is it" or "How much are they"? (Is it.)
- Who asks "How much is it?", the customer or the shopkeeper? (The customer.)
15 to 27 minReading: At Mr Kay's shop
- Read the dialogue aloud. Then half the class reads Mr Kay, half reads Zara.
- Children answer the questions with a partner, then do task 1.
27 to 37 minPractise the dialogue
- Pairs read the dialogue twice, swapping roles.
- Erase some words on the board version (item, price) so pairs must use their own.
"Now change it. You want a ball, not an apple. How much is it? You choose!"
37 to 52 minClass market
- Shopkeepers put two items with price tags on their desk. Customers get ten coins each.
- Customers visit three shops and buy something. They must use the full dialogue.
- After six minutes, swap roles. Big class: one row are shopkeepers and the next row turns round to shop.
- Do you just take the item? (No, we ask politely and pay.)
52 to 60 minExit ticket
- See below. Children who finish write task 2 on the worksheet.
Differentiation
Support
- Keep the dialogue on the board during the market.
- Shopkeepers only say prices; customers only ask. Swap later.
- Use prices from 1 to 5 only.
Stretch
- Buy two things and work out the total: "That's five coins, please."
- Give change: "Here's your change."
- Add "Have you got...?" "Sorry, I haven't."
Dialogue
Mr Kay: Good morning! Can I help you?
Zara: Yes, please. Can I have an apple?
Mr Kay: A red one or a green one?
Zara: A green one, please. How much is it?
Mr Kay: It's two coins.
Zara: And how much are the pencils?
Mr Kay: They're three coins each.
Zara: OK. One apple and one pencil, please. Here you are.
Mr Kay: Five coins. Thank you! Here's your apple and your pencil.
Zara: Thank you. Goodbye!
Questions
- What colour apple does Zara want?
- How much is the apple?
- How much is one pencil?
- How much does Zara pay in total?
- Find two polite words in the dialogue.
Printable worksheet
Prints on its own A4 page. Use Print the worksheet above, or print the whole plan and the worksheet starts on a new page. One copy per child, or one per pair to save paper.
At the shop
1. Read the dialogue again. Write the price.
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| one apple | coins |
| one pencil | coins |
| one apple and one pencil | coins |
2. Put the shop conversation in order. Write 1 to 5.
- It's four coins.
- Hello! Can I have a ball, please?
- Thank you. Goodbye!
- Yes, here you are.
- How much is it?
3. Your shop. Draw and write prices for three things.
4. Cut out your coins.
Answer key
Dialogue questions
- A green one.
- Two coins.
- Three coins.
- Five coins.
- Any two of: please, thank you, good morning, goodbye.
Worksheet
- 1: two; three; five.
- 2: order is Hello! Can I have a ball, please? (1), Yes, here you are. (2), How much is it? (3), It's four coins. (4), Thank you. Goodbye! (5). So the numbers written down the list are 4, 1, 5, 2, 3.
- 3 and 4: answers will vary.
Exit ticket
Write on the board and children copy and complete on a slip:
A: Can I have a ___ , please?
B: Here you are.
A: How much ___ ?
B: It's ___ coins.
Homework
Make a shopping list in English with five things your family buys. Next to each, write how much you think it costs.
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Start free with LitlingsMore lesson plans
- Level 1, Week 22: Shopping and prices (the curriculum week this plan comes from)
- All reading texts, dialogues, scripts, worksheets and answer keys on this page are original to Litlings and free to copy for classroom use.