Shopping lessons from the supermarket to online orders
A shopping ESL lesson plan for beginners starts with the things students carry and buy every day. From A2, the lessons move into the situations where English really matters: the checkout, the delivery and the return.
| Level | Lessons to start with | What students can do after |
| A1-A2 | What's In My Bag?, Best Gifts, Sell it! | Name everyday things, describe them in the right adjective order and choose a gift |
| A2-B1 | Grocery Shopping, Online Shopping, Add To Cart | Shop for food, order online and talk to customer service |
| A2-B1 | How Much Do You Spend? | Talk about monthly expenses and the cost of living in a city |
The Grocery Shopping lesson is a complete grocery shopping ESL lesson plan for A2-B1 students, with vocabulary and listening. Online Shopping works as an online shopping ESL lesson plan built on real scenarios, from placing an order to sorting out a problem with customer service.
Role-plays for real shopping situations
Shopping is the easiest topic for role-play, because every student has been both the customer and the person who wants a better deal. Bargaining, a free B1-B2 lesson and the most popular one on the page, teaches the language of offers, flexibility and reaching an agreement. Writing a Complaint gives A2-B1 students polite and clear phrases for refunds in emails, messages and face to face, and Buying a Used Car goes from checking documents to negotiating the price.
For an ESL shopping role play, give one student a short card with a product and a lowest price, and give the other a budget. They have five minutes to agree. Then swap the cards and run it again with a complaint instead of a sale. The second round is always better, because students reuse the phrases from the first.
Money, budgets and spending habits
A money ESL lesson plan gives adults the language for the decisions they make every month. Financial Mistakes You May Be Making is a B1-B2 lesson with real-life finance vocabulary, and it also works as a saving money ESL lesson plan. Price Hike is about the rising cost of living, Getting a raise practices asking for more money at work, and Why We Buy Luxury explores the psychology behind expensive purchases at B2-C1.
Money is a personal topic, so let students talk about prices and habits in general before they share their own. A question such as What do people in your city spend most money on? works better than How much do you earn? The same shopping ESL lesson plan can then move to students' own choices once the group is comfortable.
These lessons also teach the small words that matter in a store: prices, a discount, a receipt and how to ask for a refund. Students who know them shop with more confidence the first time they do it in English.
For a debate about money and fairness, such as how rich is too rich, see the society and news page.
Black Friday, trends and consumerism
Black Friday comes every year, and it gives a shopping lesson a real event to talk about. What To Buy This Black Friday is a free A1-A2 lesson with two short texts about shopping wishes, and Black Friday Shopping Tips teaches A2-B1 students practical phrases for the sales. Anti-Black Friday turns the same topic around and asks what all this buying costs the planet.
Trends shape how people shop the rest of the year too. Deinfluencing looks at influencers who tell their followers what not to buy, and The Taylor Swift Effect, free to try, shows how one star can move whole industries.
The Black Friday lessons work as a series in late November. Start with tips for the sales, then switch to Anti-Black Friday and let the class decide whether all the buying is worth it.
Questions about shopping and money
These shopping ESL discussion questions go from easy to B2:
- Where do you usually buy food?
- Do you prefer shopping online or in a store? Why?
- What was the last thing you returned to a store?
- Do you make a shopping list, or do you buy what you see?
- Have you ever bargained for a better price?
- What is one thing you never spend money on?
- Do sales make you buy things you don't need?
- Is it better to save money or to spend it on experiences?
Shopping and money lessons FAQ
Where should I start with a beginner?
Start with What's In My Bag? or Best Gifts at A1-A2, then move to Grocery Shopping and Online Shopping once students can ask simple questions.
Are there role-plays in the lessons?
Yes. Bargaining, Writing a Complaint and Buying a Used Car are all built around a final role-play, and most other lessons end with a speaking task.
Are any of the lessons free?
Yes. Bargaining, What To Buy This Black Friday and The Taylor Swift Effect are free to try. More are on the free lessons page.
Do these lessons work for Business English?
Some do. Bargaining, Getting a raise and Why We Buy Luxury suit professionals well, while the grocery and online shopping lessons are general English.
Every shopping ESL lesson plan on this page comes with a teacher subscription, together with the rest of the library.