Can You Swim?
Abilities & skills with can / can't. Everyone in the group has different talents — Maya paints, Leo cooks, Omar plays chess, Jess runs marathons.
📖 Reading: Talents and Skills
Everyone in the group has different talents and skills.
Maya can draw and paint beautifully. She can also speak three languages: Mandarin, English, and a little Japanese. But she can't swim! "I'm scared of deep water," she admits.
Leo can cook amazing Mexican food. He can also drive and play the guitar a little. But he can't dance. "I have two left feet!" he laughs.
Omar can play chess very well. He is also very good at maths. He can speak Arabic, English, and French. But he can't cook at all. "I can only make toast!" he says.
Jess can run very fast. She ran a marathon last year! She can also take beautiful photographs. But she can't speak any language except English.
"We should teach each other!" says Maya. "I can teach you to swim, Omar. Leo, you can teach me to dance. And Jess, you can teach me photography!"
"Deal!" says everyone.
🔑 Vocabulary Box
Eight key words from this lesson.
| Word | Meaning | Note |
|---|---|---|
| talent | A natural ability to do something well | n. — Everyone has different talents. |
| skill | An ability you learn through practice | n. — Cooking is a skill, not just a talent. |
| admit | To agree that something is true (often reluctantly) | v. — She admits she can't swim. |
| marathon | A running race of 42.2 kilometres | n. — Jess ran a marathon last year. |
| chess | A board game for two players with pieces on a grid | n. — Omar can play chess very well. |
| scared | Feeling fear or being frightened of something | adj. — Maya is scared of deep water. |
| except | Not including; apart from | prep. — She can't speak any language except English. |
| deal! | An expression of agreement to a proposal | excl. — Deal! Let's teach each other. |
📚 Key Verbs in This Lesson | |
can (ability) | I can swim. / She can speak three languages. |
can't (inability) | He can't dance. / I can't cook at all. |
can (question) | Can you swim? / Can she drive? |
could (past ability) | I could swim when I was a child. / He couldn't read before school. |
📚 Grammar Focus
📚 Can / Can't — Present Ability | |
Positive | I can swim. / She can speak French. / They can drive. |
Negative | I can't swim. / He can't dance. / We can't cook. |
Question | Can you swim? / Can she drive? / Can they cook? |
Short answer | Yes, I can. / No, I can't. / Yes, she can. |
Could — Past Ability (Introduction)
📚 Could — Past Ability (Introduction) | |
Could (past +) | I could swim when I was six. |
Couldn't (past -) | He couldn't read before school. |
Now vs. before | I could run fast as a child. Now I can't! |
🎭 Dialogue: What Can You Do?
Maya and Omar compare what they can and can't do. Maya can swim; Omar can play chess. They agree to teach each other.
Omar, can you swim?
No, I can't! Can you teach me?
Of course! I can swim well. Can you cook?
No! I can only make toast. But I can play chess. Can you?
Ha! No, I can't. Chess is too difficult for me!
I can teach you chess if you teach me to swim!
Deal! And Leo can teach us both to dance.
Does Leo know that yet?
Practice Exercises
3 questionsNew exercises to reinforce what you learned. Different from the lesson material.
How many languages can Maya speak?
What can't Leo do?
What is Omar very good at (besides chess)?
Practice Exercises
3 questionsNew exercises to reinforce what you learned. Different from the lesson material.
Maya ___ swim — she is scared of deep water.
Leo ___ cook — he makes amazing Mexican food!
___ you play chess? (question)
🎭 Now It's Your Turn — Role Play
Practice with a partner. Use the dialogue as a model.
- Student A: Ask your partner about 5 abilities. Use: Can you…? Could you… when you were young?
- Student B: Answer honestly. Use: Yes, I can / No, I can't / I could before but now…
- Find 2 skills you can both do and 2 that only one of you can do.