I have 12 years: English ages differently

Objective & content

This Grammar Fix video (about 3 minutes) fixes one mistake: using have for age. Freya (British) and Cody (American) give the rule: age is something you are, not something you have. So it is I'm 12, She's 10, They're 15. Questions follow the same rule (How old are you?), and have is still right for things you own (I have a bike). Students repeat sentences with the hosts, then play a three-round game: which sentence is right?

Pedagogical guide

This mistake is not universal. Learners whose language uses "have" for age (French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Polish) translate it directly. German and Dutch already use "be" for age, as English does, so those learners do not make this mistake.

Watch for the opposite problem. Some students learn "not have" and then use be for things they own. Game round three catches it. The video quotes the wrong sentence once. Do the same: correct it, do not drill it.

Suggested procedure

1. Before (2 min). Ask three students how old they are, in English. Write it on the board. Do not correct yet.
2. Watch (3 min). Play the video once. Students repeat aloud when the hosts say "Say them with me": I'm 12, She's 10, They're 15.
3. Game (3 min). Play the game again. Both sentences are on screen and spoken. Pause at each thinking beat ("Have a think", "Hmm... let's see", "Which is it") and ask the class to vote. Warn them that round three is different.
4. After (3 min). In pairs, students ask and answer How old are you? and How old is she? about people on the board.

Materials & prerequisites

• The video, a screen and sound for the whole class.
• The examples are at A1 level. Students need numbers, the verb be and the subject pronouns.

Assessment & extensions

Pairs take turns asking How old are you? and answering. Then they ask what the other has in their bag. Each student corrects the partner who uses have with age or be with an object.