Embarking on the journey of Pre-Intermediate English Language Skills is an exciting step for any language learner. This comprehensive guide, based on the Solutions Third Edition Pre-Intermediate Student's Book, breaks down the core components you'll master. We'll explore essential vocabulary, grammar structures, listening comprehension, and speaking practice crucial for improving your English.
Unlocking Pre-Intermediate English Language Skills: An Overview
At the pre-intermediate level, students expand their foundational English to tackle more complex communication. The curriculum is typically structured around thematic units, each designed to build specific linguistic competencies. This includes everyday interactions, describing experiences, and discussing a range of topics from adventure to finance.
The Solutions Third Edition Pre-Intermediate Student's Book covers nine main units, each focusing on key areas:
- Unit 1: Introduction & Feelings – Likes and dislikes, sports, school subjects, everyday activities, describing people, articles, there is/are, adjectives for feelings, modifying adverbs, past simple, should for advice.
- Unit 2: Adventure – Landscapes, prepositions of movement, past continuous, contrast of past simple and past continuous, word building, extreme adjectives, narrating events, invitations.
- Unit 3: On Screen – Films and TV programmes, adjectives for media, quantity (some, any, a few, a little, a lot of, much/many, how much/many), must, mustn't, wasn't/don't have to.
- Unit 4: Our Planet – Weather, describing temperature, comparative and superlative adjectives, too/enough, natural disasters, phrasal verbs.
- Unit 5: Ambition – Jobs, describing jobs, will/going to for predictions, first conditional, prefixes, application letters.
- Unit 6: Tourism – Visitor attractions, describing attractions, present perfect (been/gone), contrast of past simple and present perfect, compound nouns, planning holidays.
- Unit 7: Money – Numbers and currencies, shops and services, spending, second conditional, past perfect, verb patterns, opinion essays.
- Unit 8: Crime – Crimes and criminals, police work collocations, reported speech (1 & 2), adjective suffixes, describing events.
- Unit 9: Science – Gadgets, materials, describing technology, the passive (present simple, past simple, present perfect, future), making complaints.
Regular Exam Skills Trainers after units 2, 4, 6, and 8 help consolidate learning through reading, listening, use of English, and speaking tasks.
Core Grammar for Pre-Intermediate English Language Learners
Mastering grammar is crucial for clear communication. The pre-intermediate level focuses on solidifying tenses and introducing more complex structures.
Understanding Present Tense Contrast
Distinguishing between the present simple and present continuous is a fundamental skill. The present simple describes regular occurrences, facts, or permanent states. For example, "She has guitar lessons every week." The present continuous describes actions happening at the moment of speaking, around the present time, or future arrangements. For instance, "We're packing boxes today." Some stative verbs like believe, know, like, love, need, understand, want are generally not used in continuous tenses.
Using Articles and There Is / Are
Correctly using articles (a, an, the) and there is / are is essential. We use a/an when mentioning something for the first time or to state someone's job (e.g., "This is a classroom," "My mum's a teacher"). The is used when something is mentioned again, when it's clear what you're talking about, or when there's only one of something (e.g., "The classroom is very high-tech," "The sun is shining"). Generalizations omit the article, for example, "I don't like history."
- There is is used with singular nouns (e.g., "There's a canteen").
- There are is used with plural nouns (e.g., "There are twenty children in the class").
Mastering the Past Simple Tense
The past simple describes completed actions in the past. Regular verbs add -ed (e.g., want – wanted), while many common verbs are irregular (e.g., go – went, begin – began). The verb be has forms was/were. Negatives are formed with didn't + infinitive (e.g., "I didn't go out last night"), and questions with Did + infinitive (e.g., "Did you watch TV?"). Was/were and could do not use did/didn't.
Navigating Quantity with Some and Any
Talking about quantities accurately involves using some and any with uncountable and plural countable nouns. Some is used in affirmative sentences (e.g., "There are some students"), while any is used in negative sentences and questions (e.g., "Are there any countries?"). Other quantifiers include:
- a few/not many + plural noun (for small numbers)
- a little/not much + uncountable noun (for small quantities)
- a lot of + uncountable or plural noun (for large quantities/numbers)
- How much/many...? for questions about quantity or number.
Should for Giving Advice
The modal verb should is used to give advice or make recommendations. We often use "I think... should" (e.g., "I think she should speak to her friend"). For the negative, it's "I don't think... should" (e.g., "I don't think we should borrow more money").
Expanding Your Pre-Intermediate English Vocabulary
Rich vocabulary is essential for expressing yourself effectively. The course introduces various lexical sets.
Describing People and Feelings
Vocabulary for describing people covers physical appearance (e.g., hair length, style, color: long, curly, dark hair) and clothing (e.g., jacket, shirt, trousers). Adjectives like anxious, delighted, embarrassed, relieved, upset help express feelings. Modifying adverbs such as a bit, a little bit, rather, very, extremely are used to intensify or soften these feelings (e.g., "a bit anxious," "extremely proud").
Sports, Hobbies, and Everyday Activities
Discussions around likes and dislikes often involve sports and hobbies (e.g., basketball, drawing, skateboarding, ice skating, bowling, board games, video games). Common everyday activities include go shopping, have a picnic, listen to music, read a book, visit friends/relatives.
Films, TV, and Adjectives for Media
Words related to films and TV programmes are explored, such as action film, animation, chat show, comedy, documentary, fantasy film, game show, horror film, musical, news bulletin, period drama, reality show, romantic comedy, science fiction film, soap opera, talent show, thriller, war film, weather forecast, western. Adjectives to describe them include boring, confusing, convincing, exciting, funny, gripping, imaginative, moving, scary, spectacular, unrealistic, violent.
Key aspects of a film that can be discussed are acting, characters, ending, plot, scenes, script, soundtrack, special effects.
Landscapes and Adventure
For adventure, vocabulary covers landscapes (e.g., cave, waterfall, forest, mountain, stream, valley, moorland) and their adjectives (e.g., narrow, steep, dark, deep, rocky, shallow). Extreme adjectives (e.g., delicious, filthy, fantastic, tiny) and adjectives describing adventure (e.g., athletic, brave, impressive, remote, risky, spectacular, terrifying, thrilling) are also learned.
Developing Pre-Intermediate English Listening and Speaking Skills
Effective communication involves both understanding and expressing. Listening strategies and structured speaking tasks are integral.
Listening for Gist and Key Information
Listening strategies focus on understanding the general meaning (gist) without needing to comprehend every single word. This includes listening for key words, synonyms, antonyms, and using context to predict what will be heard. For example, in an interview about BASE jumping, you might listen for synonyms of "dangerous" or "exciting."
Narrating Events and Describing Photos
Narrating events involves structuring a story: setting the scene (who, what, where, when), describing what happened, and conveying feelings. Phrases for reacting and showing interest (e.g., "You're joking!", "That sounds great!") are practiced. Describing photos follows a similar structure, starting with a general overview and then detailing elements in the foreground/background, left/right, and center. Speculating about feelings and reasons is also encouraged, using phrases like "He could be..." or "It looks like...".
Expressing Likes, Dislikes, and Agreements
Discussions often revolve around expressing likes and dislikes (e.g., "I love it," "I don't mind it," "I hate it"). In dialogues, students learn to identify and express agreement or disagreement. Planning activities, choosing jobs, or reaching agreements involves making suggestions (e.g., "Shall we...?", "How about...?") and responding to them.
FAQs About Pre-Intermediate English Language Skills
Here are some common questions students have about this level of English learning.
What are the main grammar points covered in Pre-Intermediate English?
The main grammar points include distinguishing between the present simple and present continuous, using articles (a, an, the) and there is/are, forming and using the past simple (affirmative, negative, interrogative), understanding quantifiers (some, any, a few, a little, a lot of, much/many), and using modal verbs like should for advice, will/going to for predictions, and conditionals.
How can I improve my vocabulary at the Pre-Intermediate level?
To improve your vocabulary, focus on thematic word lists such as describing people, feelings, sports, hobbies, everyday activities, films, TV, landscapes, and adventure. Use modifying adverbs to add nuance. Practice using new words in sentences and integrate them into your speaking and writing regularly. You can also work on word building by understanding how suffixes form nouns from verbs, like argue to argument.
What types of listening skills are developed in Pre-Intermediate English?
At this level, you develop strategies for listening for gist (general meaning) and specific information. This includes listening for key words, synonyms, antonyms, and using contextual clues to predict content. You'll practice understanding dialogues and longer monologues, matching speakers to feelings, and identifying problems and advice.
How does Pre-Intermediate English prepare me for exams?
The curriculum integrates Exam Skills Trainers after every two units, covering reading comprehension (multiple choice, true/false, missing sentences), listening (multiple matching, multiple choice), use of English (open cloze, multiple-choice cloze, word formation, banked cloze), and speaking (picture description, picture comparison, situational role-play). These trainers provide focused practice for typical exam formats, ensuring you're well-prepared for official tests.