Small Talk Mastery
Build confidence in everyday conversations with practical frameworks and real-world practice
Who it's for
Written for A2 (elementary) students who manage simple everyday exchanges and need more of them.
Small talk, public speaking and the techniques that keep a conversation going. More Conversation Skills lesson plans
Skills it practises
- Speaking: discussion questionsevery lesson
- Reading: a text or news storyevery lesson
- Controlled practice: gap-fills, matching, sorting and moreevery lesson
- Role-play: a dialogue to act outevery lesson
- An answer framework to structure what they sayevery lesson
Lessons
- Breaking the IceGoal: start a conversation with anyone using the FORD Method — Family, Occupation, Recreation, Dreams — plus the ice-breaking phrases to do it.48 minFree
- Keeping It GoingGoal: keep any conversation alive with the Echo Technique — listen for a keyword, echo it, and ask a follow-up question.48 minOutline
- At a Party or Social EventGoal: meet someone new at a party using the 3-Question Rule — three genuine questions before you talk about yourself.48 minOutline
- Small Talk at WorkGoal: make easy, professional small talk at work — safe topics, smooth transitions to work talk, and reading the room.48 minOutline
- With Neighbours and StrangersGoal: turn everyday moments — queues, bus stops, dog walks — into natural conversations with the Comment-Question Combo.48 minOutline
- Graceful ExitsGoal: end any conversation politely with the Wrap-Up Formula — signal, reason, positive close, and an optional future hook.48 minOutline
- Cultural Small TalkGoal: make small talk across cultures — safe topics everywhere, the questions to avoid, and how to recover from a faux pas.48 minOutline
- Small Talk Confidence BuilderGoal: put the whole course together — rapid-fire practice of starting, keeping, and ending conversations across four different scenes.48 minOutline
How to use it in a lesson
- Lessons run 48 minutes, with a timing on every stage, so you can see before you start what fits your slot.
- Start with "Breaking the Ice": its whole plan is on this site, stage by stage, with the target vocabulary, free to read and to teach from on any video call.
- For a shorter slot, skip a practice stage or cut the discussion short: the stages are a guide, not a script.
Teach Small Talk Mastery with your student
Lesson 1 of this course is free. A free account opens it in the interactive player, and the rest of the course is included with Starter. Teaching it live with your student in the Tuton classroom starts with a 7-day free trial.
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