ESL questions about work-life balance: twelve for adult classes and teams

Phrases to put on the board first

A short phrase list before the questions lets students spend their effort on ideas instead of searching for words. The eight phrases below cover most of what comes up.

• work-life balance: how time and energy split between job and the rest of life
• to switch off: to stop thinking about work after hours
• overtime: hours worked beyond the contract
• a commute: the trip between home and work
• flexible hours: choosing when the working day starts and ends
• to work from home: to do the job away from the office
• a day off: a working day with no work
• to burn the candle at both ends: to work late and start early for too long

Ask students to mark the phrases they’ve used in their own language. Those are the ones they’ll want to say first.

Why the topic can go quiet in class

The topic is easy to understand and still hard to answer in front of others. A student may not want classmates to hear how many hours they work, or what they think of their boss. In a team session, a manager may be in the room. And a mixed class can hold different ideas of normal hours, so a student may hold back an answer that sounds strange to the group.

Language anxiety adds a second layer. Horwitz and colleagues described foreign language anxiety as its own kind of anxiety, tied to the language classroom and separate from anxiety in general (Horwitz et al. 1986). A personal question in a second language asks for two things at once: an opinion and the grammar to carry it. The lesson shape below gives students time and a choice of angle, so they can answer one before they’re asked for both.

A five-step lesson shape

The steps below run in the order of the lesson. Fit their length to your class and your timetable.

1. Phrases. Put the eight phrases on the board. Students mark the ones they know.
2. Warm-up in pairs. One question from the B1 list. Each partner answers, then reports the other’s answer to the class in one sentence.
3. Small groups. Groups of 3–4 take one level’s questions. Each student picks the question they want to answer.
4. One word. Write “Balance” on the board, or put a card on the table. Students choose a side and talk about it.
5. Last round. Each student names one thing they discovered about a classmate today.

After you ask a question, wait. Rowe’s research on wait time found that when teachers gave students a few more seconds to think before answering, the quality of the answers improved (Rowe 1987). In a second language those seconds matter more. Let the silence run a few seconds before you rephrase.

Twelve questions about work-life balance

The questions below are grouped by level. Each one invites a story from the student’s own life, so there’s no right answer to check. Students can pass or pick another question.

B1: daily routine

1. What time does your working day start and end?
2. How do you get to work or class, and how long does it take?
3. What do you do on your day off?
4. What’s the first thing you do when you get home?

B2: habits and choices

5. Is it easy for you to switch off after work? What helps?
6. Would you rather work four long days or five short ones? Why?
7. What’s one thing you stopped doing because you had no time?
8. How did your parents’ working day look different from yours?

C1: opinions and change

9. Who should decide when an employee answers emails: the company or the employee?
10. Has working from home made balance easier or harder for you?
11. What would you change about working hours in the country you live in now?
12. If you got one extra free hour every day, what would you do with it?

Question 8 moves from habits to family, which invites a story. Question 11 suits a mixed class: each student can talk about two countries.

Follow-up questions that keep the answer going

A short answer in a second language can be a first draft. The rule card in Thesis gives three follow-ups that work at any level:

What did that feel like? Who else was there? Has it always meant that to you?

They’re short enough for a B1 student to ask a classmate, which moves the questioning from the teacher to the group. The same card says: “A short answer is a full answer. You can always ask for more.” Read that line to the class before the small groups start.

One word instead of a question

A single word gives students room to pick their own angle, which helps when a direct question feels too personal. Thesis has 50 double-sided cards: an idea on one side, an everyday thing on the other. A student can talk about the idea or the thing. Three cards fit this lesson.

Balance has Watch on the back. A B1 student can describe a watch: who gave it, when they wear it, whether they check the time at work. A C1 student can take Balance and talk about hours, money, or family. Both sides bring out the time phrases from the board.

Rest pairs with Clock. This card brings out the switch-off phrases from the board. A student who’d rather not talk about their job can talk about the clock instead: the alarm in the morning, the kitchen clock at home, being late.

Home sits behind Spoon. In a class of people who’ve moved countries, Home can lead to the other side of work-life balance: what the “life” part looks like. The spoon side gives an easy start, a meal or a kitchen, before the bigger word.

For a second angle, the deck has a die with six words: MEMORIES · BODY · PEOPLE · VALUES · CHILDHOOD · FUTURE. Look at the word from that side. CHILDHOOD and Balance together can lead back to question 8 without anyone asking it.

In a team that works in English, run the same shape in a shorter slot: skip the phrase list and start with step 3. Agree at the start what stays in the room. The rule card in Thesis says: “What is said at the table stays at the table.” When a manager takes part, they answer too, and they answer first.

Before your next class

Write “Balance” and the eight phrases on the board before students arrive. Open with question 1 in pairs, and end with the last round. Keep the twelve questions for the weeks after; one level per lesson is enough.

See the rules and the box. The three words have their own pages: Balance, Rest and Home. For class and team sessions, see Thesis for teams and classes. For a lighter first lesson, try icebreakers that aren’t cringe. The research behind the deck explains where the words came from. For a work team that dreads the opener, see why people hate icebreakers. For a lesson on two more words, see ESL questions about success and failure.