These 30 Christmas conversation questions for adults are written for A2 to C1 classes, in six sets of five. The sets follow the holiday season in order: the decorations, the gifts, the meal, what has changed since childhood, the films and songs, and the end of the year. Each set has one rule that stops one-word answers, a mistake to listen for and a way to run it with a single student.
The last set works for students who don't celebrate Christmas, so nobody has to sit out. All 30 questions come as free printable cards, and each set leads to a full lesson in our holiday lesson section. Plan about 10 minutes for a set at A2-B1 and 15 minutes at B2-C1.
Levels in this post:A2-B1: sets 1, 2B1-B2: sets 3, 4B2-C1: sets 5, 6
1. The Run-Up
1of 6A2-B1pairs10 min - When do the first Christmas decorations appear where you live, and what do you think about that?
- What is the most over-the-top decoration you have seen in a shop, a street or an office?
- Which is better, a real tree or an artificial one, and why?
- What do shops and ads do in December to make people buy more?
- What sound, smell or song tells you that December has really started?
| The rule Every answer includes a time and a place, like "Last year, in the mall near my office..." It turns a one-word opinion into a short story. These also work as Christmas conversation starters for adults who don't celebrate, because everybody has noticed the festive decorations. |
| Listen for In December, on December 1, at Christmas. Students mix these up all month, and this set brings out all three. |
| One to one Let the student ask you the same five questions first. Answer with a time and a place, so they hear the pattern before they use it. |
Christmas Decorations (A2-B1) opens the same way, with students describing a family decorating a house and sharing their own memories. Then it teaches vague language for describing objects, which is what question 2 needs. For A1-A2 classes, Advent Calendars has students decide whether a calendar is overpriced or a waste of money. |
2. The Gifts
2of 6A2-B1pairs10 min - Have you ever bought a gift at the very last minute? What did you buy?
- Have you ever received a gift you didn't understand? What was it?
- Have you ever taken part in a Secret Santa? How did it go?
- Have you ever given away a present you didn't want? Who got it?
- Have you ever made a gift by hand instead of buying one? What was it?
| The rule A yes needs the story: when it happened, who was there and how it ended. A no gets one follow-up from the partner: "Would you?" |
| Listen for "Yes, I have. Last year I bought..." The question is in the present perfect, but the story moves to the past simple as soon as there is a time. Many students say "Yes, I have bought it last year." |
| One to one Swap roles after question 3, so the student asks the last two and has to react to your stories. |
Christmas Gift Guide (A2-B1) teaches adjectives for gifts through a This or That game, with choices like a handmade scarf or a designer perfume, and ends with students writing their own wish lists. Question 4 has a lesson of its own. Is It OK To Regift? (B1-B2) builds an hour around it, with the passive ("It was given to me"). |
3. The Table
3of 6B1-B2groups of three15 min - What does a big holiday meal look like where you are from, from the first dish to the last?
- Which holiday dish would you be happy never to eat again, and which could you eat every week?
- How is the work of a big meal shared out, from shopping to washing up?
- What question do guests often ask at the table that people would rather not answer?
- How do you change the subject politely when a conversation at the table gets uncomfortable?
| The rule Describe it so a partner from another country could picture it. A dish name on its own doesn't count. In a mixed class, students teach each other the most here. |
| Listen for "I'd rather not talk about that." Students often add "to" after would rather. Questions 4 and 5 are about polite answers to nosy questions, so keep the talk away from real family arguments. |
| One to one Play the guest. Ask one nosy question and let the student change the subject. |
Christmas Food (A2-B1) starts with a two-minute race to list Christmas foods and ends with groups planning an international Christmas dinner menu. For questions 4 and 5, Surviving Family Dinner (A2-B1) adds a short dinner scene on video and phrases like "That reminds me..." for changing the subject. |
4. Then and Now
4of 6B1-B2pairs15 min - What did December mean to you as a child, and what does it mean now?
- Which tradition from your childhood have you stopped, and why?
- Which tradition would you like to start, or bring back?
- How have the holidays changed where you live in the last twenty years?
- Which tradition from another country would you happily borrow?
| The rule Every answer compares two times: "When I was a child... Now..." Students who would rather not talk about their own childhood can compare their town or their country instead. |
| Listen for used to and would for old habits, as in "We used to open one present on the 24th." Watch for "I use to" about the present, which doesn't work. |
| One to one Bring one tradition from your own childhood and compare it with the student's. |
Christmas Around The World (B1-B2) has students guess traditions from five countries from pictures, then turn an ordinary product into a Christmas tradition, the way KFC did in Japan. For the history behind these traditions, Christmas Story (B1-B2) follows the Christmas tree back to where it started. |
5. Screens and Songs
5of 6B2-C1pairs15 min - Would you rather watch a Christmas film you know by heart or one you have never seen?
- Would you rather spend December without Christmas songs or without Christmas films?
- Would you rather have a quiet holiday at home or a busy one full of plans?
- Would you rather get a gift chosen for you or the money to choose your own?
- Would you rather be in charge of the holiday music or the holiday food?
| The rule Pick one and give two reasons. "Both" and "it depends" aren't allowed. The second reason is where B2-C1 students start to disagree with each other, which is the point. |
| Listen for "I'd rather watch a film I know than see a new one." Students say "I would rather to watch" or add "to" after than. |
| One to one Take the opposite side every time, so the student has to defend the choice. |
Christmas Movies (B2-C1) has students read why Christmas films are so popular and learn phrases like "an escape from reality" to say how a film makes them feel. For lower levels, the free lesson Christmas Songs (A2-B1) is built on "Last Christmas" and "All I Want for Christmas Is You". |
6. Christmas and New Year, or Neither
6of 6B2-C1, works from B1pairs or groups15 min - What do people where you live do with time off at the end of the year?
- What is the best way to spend a long winter evening?
- How do you know a year is really over: a date, a party or something else?
- What would your ideal New Year's Eve look like, and how close is it to real life?
- Which month of this year would you happily live again, and why?
| The rule Every question works for a student who doesn't celebrate anything in December, and students can always answer about people where they live instead of themselves. In a mixed class, these Christmas and New Year conversation questions are a safe way to open, and they work as winter holidays ESL questions in January too. |
| Listen for "At the end of the year" is a time. "In the end" means finally. Question 3 brings out both. |
| One to one Answer question 5 about your own year first. It makes the question feel safe. |
Year In Review (B2-C1) opens with a Wheel of Life, where students rate parts of their year, and ends with each student writing a year-in-review post. New Year's Traditions (B2-C1) has students rank traditions from around the world from cutest to cringiest and invent one of their own. For A1-A2, Winter Vacation covers winter break plans with be going to. |
Free Christmas Conversation Question Cards
All 30 Christmas conversation questions for adults are in one free PDF. The cards fill three A4 pages, two sets to a page, each set in its own color, with the level printed on every card. Hand a set to each group, or deal one card at a time to the whole class. One page is enough for a 15-minute speaking round, and the level on each card helps in a mixed-level group.
The Christmas conversation questions PDF is a direct download. There is no sign-up and no email form.
Lessons That Go With These Questions
Every set of Christmas conversation questions for adults above leads to a full lesson. Free first, then by level.
For more lessons, see our list of interactive Christmas and New Year lessons.
What you get with each plan | StandardLesson PDFs and a Quizlet set for every lesson | PlusEverything in Standard, plus homework | ProEverything in Plus, plus Miro boards, interactive homework and games |
Compare plans |
Christmas Conversation Questions FAQ
How many Christmas conversation questions for adults fit in one lesson?
One set of five fills 10 to 15 minutes with follow-up questions. Two sets make a strong half of a lesson, and the cards let groups work through different sets at the same time.
What if some of my students don't celebrate Christmas?
Start with set 6, which works for every student, and let students answer about people where they live. Our Christmas activities post has a full section for classes that don't celebrate Christmas.
Can I use these with teens?
Yes. In set 1, swap "office" for "school". The would-you-rather set works well as Christmas would you rather questions for teens, and every rule stays the same.
