Conversations / Birthdays
Birthdays Conversation Questions for Adult ESL Classes
Use these 20 discussion questions about Birthdays to run a full speaking lesson with adult learners (A1–A2). Each part opens with a vocabulary warm-up, every question is labelled with the thinking skill it practises, and each part fills roughly thirty minutes of class time on its own.
Reviewed by Brando Oxley · 17 Aug 2026
Part 1
My Birthday and Celebrations
Focus: talking about birthdays, favorite food, family, friends, gifts, and simple celebrations
Think of one birthday food, one birthday activity, and one thing people give on birthdays.
Describe each word without saying it directly. Your teacher or partner must guess the word.
EXPERIENCE
When is your birthday? Sentence starter: My birthday is in/on ...
PREFERENCE
Do you like birthdays? Sentence starter: I ... birthdays.
PEOPLE
Who do you usually celebrate your birthday with? Sentence starter: I celebrate with ...
PLACE
Where do you usually celebrate your birthday? Sentence starter: I usually celebrate at ...
FOOD
What birthday food do you like? Sentence starter: I like ...
ITEM
What birthday gifts do you like to receive? Sentence starter: I like to receive ...
ACTIVITY
What do you like to do on your birthday? Sentence starter: On my birthday, I like to ...
FEELING
How do you feel on your birthday? Sentence starter: I feel ...
PHOTO
Do you take photos on birthdays? Sentence starter: I ... take photos.
PLAN
What do you want to do on your next birthday? Sentence starter: On my next birthday, I want to ...
Part 2
Birthday Parties and Gifts
Focus: talking about parties, cake, invitations, presents, simple problems, and birthday plans
Choose one word from each group: Person: friend, child, parent, grandparent; Action: eat, open, sing, dance; Place: home, restaurant, park, school; Feeling: happy, excited, surprised, tired. Use the words to make one or two simple sentences.
PREFERENCE
Do you like small birthday parties or big birthday parties? Sentence starter: I like ... parties.
FOOD
What cake flavor do you like? Sentence starter: I like ... cake.
PEOPLE
Who do you invite to a birthday party? Sentence starter: I invite ...
ITEM
What is a good birthday gift for a friend? Sentence starter: A good gift is ...
ACTIVITY
What games or activities are fun at a birthday party? Sentence starter: It is fun to ...
PLACE
What is a good place for a birthday party? Sentence starter: A good place is ...
PROBLEM
What can you do if you forget a friend's birthday? Sentence starter: I can ...
PROBLEM
What can you do if you do not know what gift to buy? Sentence starter: I can ...
ADVISE
What is one easy way to make someone happy on their birthday? Sentence starter: I can ...
PLAN
Whose birthday do you want to celebrate next? Sentence starter: I want to celebrate ...