Food Cooking Food Preferences • Is food important to you? (Why?) • What foods do you usually eat? • What kind(s) of food do you particularly like? (Why?) • (Similar to above) What's your favourite food? • How often do you eat that? • When was the last time you ate that? • Have you always liked that food? • (Similar to above) Did you like to eat that when you were a child? • (Similar to above) What food did you like to eat when you were a child? • When did you start to like that food? • Would you want your children to eat the same food now? • (Similar to above) If your children asked for that food now, would you make it for them? • If you had children, what foods would you recommend they eat? • (Similar to above) In the future, if you have children, what food will you recommend they eat? • Do you usually make that yourself or do you usually buy it? • (Similar to above) When was the last time you ate 'junk food'? (Unconfirmed question) • Do you always (or, usually) eat the same food every day? • Is there any food you don’t like? (Why?) • What food did you like (most) when you were a child? • Is there any food that you liked when you were a child but you don't like now? • What types of food do children generally like to eat? • What kinds of food are most popular in China? or, What kinds of food do Chinese people (like to) eat? • Would you like to try any food that you have never eaten before? • Do you think the food in different countries is different? (Possibly only used if you are doing the test away from your home country.) • (Similar to above) Is the food here (in this country) different to the food in your home country? (Only used if you are doing the test away from your home country.) • Do you think it's good to (often or sometimes) take children to restaurants? • How has food in your country changed since you were a child? Cooking • Do you know how to make (prepare) a meal? • (Similar to above) Do you know how to cook? • How well do you cook? • (Similar to above) How good are you at cooking? • (If answering, 'No' to the previous question) Have you ever thought about learning how to cook? • Do you like cooking? (Why?/Why not?) • What do you like to cook? • How did you learn to cook? • Who taught you how to cook? • When did you learn how to cook? • (Similar to above) Did you learn how to cook when you were younger (or, when you were a child)? • (Similar to above) Did you ever cook (or, make a meal) when you were a child? • (Similar to above) When you were young, did you learn how to make a meal (= how to prepare food = how to cook)? • Do you usually eat at home or do you usually eat away from home (= "eat out")? • Who usually does the cooking in your home (or, in your family)? • Do you (ever) do any cooking at home? (Why?/Why not?) • Have you ever thought about learning how to cook? • (Similar to above) Do you think you will learn to cook in the future? • Do you think everyone should learn how to cook? • Do you think it would be useful to teach cooking in school? • Do you think university students should know how to cook? • When was the last time you did some cooking? • Can you see yourself cooking more in the (near) future? Why? • (Similar to above) In the future, do you think you will be cooking more than you do now, or less? (Why?) Eating Places • When do you usually eat your meals? • Where do you usually eat your meals? • (Similar to above) Where do prefer to eat your meals? • Do you prefer to eat at home or in restaurants? (Why?) (What are the advantages of home cooking?) • What do you think are the benefits of eating at home, (instead of in a restaurant)? • Who do most Chinese people usually eat with? (Why?) • Do you often eat with your family? or, Do Chinese people (or you) prefer to eat with family or with friends? (Why?) • Do you think it's important for people to eat with their family? (Why?) Friends Having friends • Do you have many (close) friends? Who Your Friends Are • Are most of your friends from school (or university) or from outside school (or university)? • (Similar to above) Are most of your friends from your work or are they not connected with your work? Your Feelings about Friendship • Do you think friendship is important? • (Similar to above) Is friendship (= are friends) important to you? (Why?/Why not?) • (Similar to above) Do you like to spend time with friends? (Why?) • Do you prefer to spend time with friends or spend time alone? (Why?) • Are friends more important than family? (Why?) • What kind of people do you like to have as friends? Time With Friends • How often do you meet with (or, go out with) your friends? • (Similar to above) How often do you do something with a friend? • Do you feel that you spend enough time with your friends? • (Similar to above, but different) Do you feel that you have enough time to spend with your friends? • If you had the opportunity, would you spend more time with your friends? Activities With Friends • What do you and your friends do together? • Do you prefer to meet your friends at home or away from your home? • (Similar to above) Do you prefer your friends visit you (at your home) or do you prefer to visit them (at their homes)? • How do you keep in contact with your friends? Places to Spend Time With Friends • Where do you usually meet (= spent time with) your friends? • Do you prefer to meet your friends at home or away from your home? • (Similar to above) Do you prefer your friends visit you (at your home) or do you prefer to visit them (at their homes) or, to go out with your friends? Meeting New People/Making Friends • Do you like meeting new people? • Do you like making friends with (a lot of) people? • Do you like face-to-face conversations with people? • (Similar to above) Do you like talking to strangers? • (Similar to above) Do you like making new friends? • (Similar to above) Do you like making friends with (a lot of) people? • Have you met any interesting people recently? • (Similar to above) When was the last occasion you met someone new? • What kinds of people do you like to make friends with? • (Similar to above) What kind of people do you like to meet (or, to talk to)? • How do Chinese people make friends? (= where, in what situations, e.g. at school & at work.) • Do adults and children make friends in the same way? • How do people get to know (get to meet) new people? • Do you think it's easy to form new friendships? • How long does it take to get to know a person? • (Similar to above) How long do you think it takes before you can get to know a person? • Do you think it's possible to become real friends with the people you meet on the internet, for example, on chat sites or personal introduction sites? * • How will you make new friends in the future? • Can you remember your first (or, your earliest) friends? (Who were they?) Other Friendship Questions • What do your friends think of you? (Do your friends think that you are a good friend? Why?) Games • Do you often play games? (Include examples such as: chess; majiang (= mahjong in English), weiqi, card games, word games, drinking games, computer games etc. and children's games such as hopscotch and hide-and- seek.). Don't choose sports games such as basketball, ping-pong etc. These are most often just called "sports" in English. • (Similar to above) Do you like to play games? (Why? What games?) • (Similar to above) What games do you like to play? • Can you play this game with friends? • How do people learn to play this game? • Can you get information about this game on the internet? • Are there other ways to get information about this game? • What benefits do you get from playing this game? • (Similar to above) What benefits do people get from playing games? • (Similar to above) Why do you (or do people) play games? • Do different age groups of people like to play different games? (Give examples - What games?) • What games are popular in China? • What's the most popular game in China? • How have computers influenced the games people play? • Do you know of any games that are studied in university? (Hint: Games Theory) * • What can people learn from games? Housework Note: "Housework" and "homework" are two different things! • Do you usually do any housework? • (Similar to above) Do you often do housework? (If yes, what? How often? If no, why not?) • Who usually does the housework in your home? • Do you like to do housework? (Why?/Why not?) • What housework do you least like doing? (Why?) • When you were a child, did you ever do any housework? • Do you think it's important for children to do some housework? • (Similar to above) Do you think children should lend a hand around the home? (Why?/Why not?) • (Similar to above) Do you think it's necessary (or, a good idea) for children to do some housework? (Why?/Why not?) • If a child helps do some of the family housework, how do you think this affects the child's development? • What do you do to help the family? • Have there been any changes in the housework people do since the time when your parents were your age? • Do you think people should be paid to do household chores? Gifts Gifts and You • Do you often give gifts to people? • What was the last gift you received? • (Similar to above) Have your friends ever given you gifts? • What was the last gift you gave someone? • Do you like giving presents to other people? (Why?/Why not?) • (Similar to above) Do you often give presents to other people? (Why?/Why not?) • Do you and your friends or family members give each other gifts? • (Similar to above) Do you often buy gifts for friends or family members? • What sorts of gifts do you give to your friends? • Do you think it's easy to choose what to give other people? • When considering a present to give to someone, how do you (or, how do people) select this gift? • Do you think it's important to give expensive gifts? • Have you ever given someone a gift you made yourself? • Do you think gift-giving is very important? Gifts and People (in China) in General • Do people in China like to give gifts (to other people)? • What sorts of things do people in China usually give as gifts? • When do people in China give gifts? (On what occasions?/In what situations?) • (Similar to above) What are some of the gift-giving customs in China? • Why do they give these gifts? • In China, is it necessary to bring a gift when you visit someone? • What sorts of things do they bring? • In China, is it necessary to bring gifts when you return home after traveling to another place (such as overseas or a different part of China)? Languages • What foreign languages have you studied (or, learned)? • (Similar to above) What languages do you speak? • (Similar to above) How many languages can you speak? • What language do you usually speak? • Besides English, have you studied any other languages? • What foreign languages have you studied (or, learned)? • Why did you choose to study that language? • How did you learn that language? • When did you start to study that? • (Similar to above) How long have you been learning that language? • What do you think of your level in that language? (= Can you speak it well?) • Would you say it's a difficult language to learn • (Similar to above) Is that language hard for you? • Is it difficult to learn a foreign language? (Why?/Why not?) • What is the most difficult part about studying a foreign language? • What do you think is the most effective way to learn a foreign language? • Why do people learn a second or third language? • Do you think it's important to learn foreign languages? (Why?/Why not?) • How did you learn English? • Why did you choose to study English? • Would you say English is a difficult language to learn? (Why?) • (Similar to above) Compared to other languages, would you say English is difficult? (Why?/Why not?) • Do people in your country have many chances to practice oral English? • Do you think it's important to know more than one language? • What is the value of knowing a foreign language? • If you had the chance, would you like to learn another language? • If you had the opportunity to study another foreign language, which one would you choose? (Why?) • (Similar to above) What language would you like to learn in the future? (Why?) Leisure Time & Relaxing The Way You Relax • When do you have free time? • How do you like to relax? (What’s your favourite way to relax?) • How do you relax? • (Similar to above) What do you do in your spare time (= free time)? • (Similar to above) When you relax, what do you like to do? • How do you usually relax (in your spare time)? (= What do you usually do to relax/for relaxation?) • (Similar to above) What do you usually do in your free time (spare time/ leisure time)? • (Similar to above) What do you like doing in your leisure time? (Why?) • Do you have any hobbies or interests? (= What are your hobbies or interests?) Time for Leisure Activities and Relaxing • Do you have enough time for your hobby (hobbies)? • How much time do you spend relaxing (or, on leisure activities)? • (Similar to above) How much free time (or time to relax) do you have (per week)? • (Similar to above) How often do you relax? • What do you do on weekends? • Do you think modern people have enough time for relaxing? • What can people do to find more time for relaxing? (It's best to use, 'could', not 'can' in your answer.) Leisure Activities with Others • Do you often do things with others in a group? • Do you ever go out with your workmates/colleagues or classmates? • Do your friends ever come to your home in their free time? What do you usually do together? • Do you prefer to do things in a family group or a group of friends? • What leisure activities do you and your family like doing together? [...]... think it's important for people to spend some time relaxing? Why? • (Similar to above) Do you think relaxing is important for people? • (Similar to above) Why do people need to have some leisure time? • Do you think it's easy for people to relax (nowadays)? • (Similar to above) Do you think modern people have enough time for relaxing? • How could we (or one, or you) find more time for leisure? • (Similar... above) What can people do to find more time for relaxing? • What changes can one make to one's life in order to be more relaxed? • Do you think it's reasonable for an employer to ask his or her employees to work in their rest time? Letters & Emails The words, 'an email' or 'emails' and the words, 'a letter' or 'letters' might be interchangeable for some of these questions Your Letter-writing or Email-writing... (Similar to above) What sorts of things (or, books) do children (in China) like to read? • Do you think it's important for children to read? • Do you think children today should spend more time reading? • What would you say is a suitable amount of time for children to spend reading each day? • For children, what are the benefits of reading? • (Possible) What do you think are the benefits of reading to children?... like receiving a book as a gift? • (Perhaps the above question is this) Would you like to receive a book as a gift? • (Perhaps the above question is this) How would you feel if someone gave you a book as a gift? • Do you think it's important to have public libraries? • Do you think the government has a responsibility to provide public libraries for everyone? * Restaurants • Do you usually go out to... you think is the most important? (Why?) • Do you think breakfast is important? (Why?/Why not?) • What do you usually eat for breakfast? • Is there any special food that you particularly like? • Would you like to try any new food? (If yes, give an example &/or say why.) • Do you like cooking (or, preparing your own meals)? (Why?/Why not?) Music Your Tastes in Music • Do you often listen to music? • (Similar... learn to play a musical instrument? • (Similar to above) Do you think it's important for children to learn (to play) a musical instrument? • (Similar to above) Do you think parents should encourage their children to learn a musical instrument? • (Similar to above) What advantages (or, benefits) do you think there are for a child to learn (to play) a musical instrument? • (Similar to above) Why do some... listened to as a child and the music you listen to now? • Do you think it's important for children to learn (to play) a musical instrument? • (Similar to above) Do you think parents should encourage their children to learn a musical instrument? • (Similar to above) What advantages (or, benefits) do you think there are for a child to learn (to play) a musical instrument? • (Similar to above) Why do some... of the camera!) • Do you prefer to take photos yourself or to have other people take photos? (Why?) • How long have you liked taking photographs? (Include 'since' or 'for' in your answer E.g., ' since I was about ten years old' or ' for about 5 years'.) • How (why) did you become interested in photography? • How often do you take photographs? (You should include an approximate time, such as 'about... Your Reading Habits • Do you like reading? (Why?/Why not?) • Is reading books important for you now? • (Similar to above) Do you read a lot nowadays? • How much reading do you do everyday? • When did you learn to read? • What (kinds of ) books do you like to read? • (Similar to above) What (kinds of ) books do read for enjoyment? • (Similar to above) What kinds of books (or, what kinds of things) do... there (in your country)? • Do older people like to do the same activities? • What do people in your hometown do to relax? • In general, what activities do people in China do for relaxation? • Does your hometown have many facilities for entertainment? • How does the way Chinese people like to relax compare with western countries? • Compare the way people in China relax today and the way they used to relax . are you at cooking? • (If answering, 'No' to the previous question) Have you ever thought about learning how to cook? • Do you like cooking? (Why?/Why. cooking in school? • Do you think university students should know how to cook? • When was the last time you did some cooking? • Can you see yourself cooking