Lesson: Describing Personalities and Appearances
Activity I: Vocabulary
- Personality – The combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual's distinctive character.
- Appearance – The way that someone or something looks.
- Trait – A distinguishing quality or characteristic, typically one belonging to a person.
- Outgoing – Friendly and socially confident.
- Reserved – Slow to reveal emotion or opinions; introverted.
- Generous – Showing a readiness to give more of something, as money or time, than is strictly necessary or expected.
- Optimistic – Hopeful and confident about the future.
- Build – The proportions of a person's body (e.g., slim, muscular).
- Impression – An idea, feeling, or opinion about something or someone, especially one formed without conscious thought.
Activity II: Reading
Describing people, both their personalities and physical appearances, is a common and essential skill in any language. It allows us to introduce friends, talk about characters in books or movies, and share our impressions of others. For intermediate English learners, this topic provides an excellent opportunity to expand vocabulary with descriptive adjectives and practice constructing more detailed sentences. Moving beyond simple descriptions helps create a richer picture and facilitates deeper understanding in conversations.
When describing someone's appearance, we often start with general features like height and build (e.g., tall and slim, short and athletic). Then we might move to more specific details such as hair color and style (e.g., long curly brown hair, short blond hair), eye color, and any distinguishing features like glasses or a beard. Using a variety of adjectives helps to paint a clearer picture. For instance, instead of just "nice eyes," one might say "bright, expressive blue eyes." The goal is to provide enough detail so the listener can form a mental image.
Personality traits describe the inner qualities of a person – how they tend to think, feel, and behave. Someone might be described as outgoing and sociable if they love meeting new people, or reserved and thoughtful if they are quieter. Other common personality adjectives include generous, optimistic, humorous, patient, or ambitious. It's often useful to provide examples of behavior to support your description of a personality trait. For example, "My friend is very generous; she always shares whatever she has." Understanding these nuances is key for intermediate learners.
When discussing people, it's important to be respectful and considerate. While physical descriptions are sometimes necessary for identification, focusing too much on appearance can be superficial. Describing personality often gives a deeper insight into who a person truly is. Being able to articulate both aspects allows for well-rounded descriptions. Practicing this skill will not only improve your English but also enhance your ability to connect with and understand the people around you in a more meaningful way.
Activity III: Role Play (Talking About a New Colleague)
Instructions: Practice this dialogue with your teacher. One person is Maria, and the other is David.
Activity IV: Let's Practice
Describe Someone to Your Teacher.
Think of a person you know well (a friend, family member, or even a famous person). Describe this person to your teacher. Talk about their physical appearance (height, build, hair, eyes, style) and their personality traits (e.g., outgoing, reserved, generous, optimistic). Explain why you chose those particular traits, perhaps by giving a short example of their behavior. Ask your teacher to describe someone they know too. Focus on using a variety of descriptive adjectives.