Parents are great at finding ways to make sure their children are engaged with learning English. From my experience, though, the best results come when parents join in with their children!

Speaking English at home is highly beneficial, especially when your child is still young. This makes the language feel stress-free and fun, rather than a chore they need to get through at school. Over time, you’ll see the positive effect as your child internalises the language and it flows out naturally in their speech and writing.

Here are 7 fun topics that you can talk about with your child to get you started:

1. If you won the mark six, what would you do with your fortune?
Children often have a very different concept about money than adults. You might be surprised by their impractical yet adorable financial ideas. Older children can practice conditional sentences while imagining their rich lives. ‘If I were a millionaire, I would…’

2. What is your first memory?
This is a great chance for you to share your early memories with your child and walk down memory lane together. Your child can share their first memory of you and other members of the family. Remind them to use past tense to talk about memories! ‘When I was five, I saw…’

3. When you are an adult, how will you parent differently?
This is a question directed to the kids. It is also a perfect chance to practice the future tense! Don’t take their answers too seriously, but you never know what good ideas they might come up with. ‘When I am a dad, I will…’

4. If we all lived in a zoo, what animals would we be?
This is a topic more suitable for preschool kids. Feel free to add in some animal imitations throughout the discussion! The sounds of animals and the names for their babies are often the first topics taught at school, so it’s great to learn these early on. ‘Daddy lions roar at their cubs if they’re naughty.’

5. What three things would you bring to a desert island?
Most adults will have heard this question before, but it’s probably new to your child, and it’s always fun to hear the answers to this one. Encourage your children to make as many Type 2 conditional sentences as they can! ‘If I were going to a desert island, I would bring…’

6. If your life was a movie, which celebrity would you choose to play yourself?
Feel free to alter this question according to your child’s age. They could also pick a cartoon character or fictional character to be themselves. This is a chance for your kids to practice using adjectives to describe appearances and personalities. ‘I want Harry Potter to play me because we both have glasses.’

7. Can you compliment each of your family members?
This is an opportunity for your kids to express their gratitude to you and for you to acknowledge their achievements. It’s also a chance for children to practise using positive adjectives and expressing appreciation. ‘Mummy is very hard-working and helpful.’

Don’t be afraid to have fun and be creative with your answers. Practise speaking English out of the classroom with your family and it will soon be second nature to all of you!

We love having students come to i-Learner to prepare their Hong Kong Speech Festival performances. It gives us a great chance to see students express themselves in new and exciting ways. Our Gavel Club and Public Speaking Classes also give us a fantastic opportunity to help students communicate their ideas to the world.

Keep an eye out for the rest of the articles in this Public Speaking Series! We’ve got insights from our expert teaching team into how you can improve your child’s speaking in a whole host of interesting ways.