Theme 3 consolidation: detailed descriptions of faces and hair, Simple Present negatives and questions, short answers to question tags, possessive adjectives in real life, the school fashion show and a personal profile project

In Week 14 we learned the basic body parts and physical features. This week we describe people in more detail. A good description uses more than one adjective: not only «She has got hair», but «She has got long curly black hair». When we use two or three adjectives before a noun, we follow an order: first length or size (long, short, big, small), then shape or style (curly, wavy, straight, round, square, oval), then colour (black, brown, blonde, red, grey) and finally the noun (hair, eyes, face). For example: «My grandpa has got short straight grey hair», «Mert has got big round brown eyes». In Turkish we also say «uzun kıvırcık siyah saç», so this order is not very difficult for us!

Some body parts have got word partners (kelime eşleri). We usually say a round / square / oval face (yuvarlak / köşeli / oval yüz), a small / big nose (küçük / büyük burun), long / short legs, long thin fingers (uzun ince parmaklar) and white teeth. For a person's body and height we use the verb to be: «He is tall», «She is thin», «My uncle is of average height» (orta boylu). For hair, eyes and face we usually use have got / has got: «She has got an oval face and wavy hair». Remember: we do not say «She is long hair»; we say «She has got long hair».

Be careful with three special nouns. Hair is uncountable when we talk about the hair on our head, so it has no «-s» and no «a»: «His hair is curly», not «His hairs are curly». Tooth and foot have got irregular plurals: one tooth → two teeth, one foot → two feet. So we say «I brush my teeth every morning» and «My feet are cold in winter». Other body parts take a regular «-s»: an arm → arms, a hand → hands, an eye → eyes, a leg → legs, a finger → fingers.

We use the Simple Present Tense for habits, daily routines and general truths: «She wears her blue coat every winter», «I read a magazine on Sundays». In positive sentences, the verb takes «-s / -es» with he, she and it: wears, reads, watches, goes. Now let's make negative sentences. With I, you, we and they we use don't (do not): «I don't wear a hat at school». With he, she and it we use doesn't (does not): «My dad doesn't wear jeans at work». After doesn't, the verb loses its -s: «He doesn't wear», not «He doesn't wears».

For Yes/No questions we put Do or Does at the beginning: «Do you own a raincoat?», «Does your sister wear a headscarf?». Again, the main verb is in its base form after Does: «Does she wear...?», not «Does she wears...?». The short answers repeat do / does, not the main verb: «Yes, I do.» / «No, I don't.» · «Yes, she does.» / «No, she doesn't.» We do not answer «Yes, she wears.» For Wh- questions, the question word comes first: «What does he wear on Fridays?», «Where do you buy your shoes?».

Let's see a winter example from Türkiye. «In January, my grandma in Erzurum wears thick woollen socks and a long coat. She doesn't go out on very snowy days. Does she knit jumpers? Yes, she does! She creates a new jumper for every grandchild.» Notice that all these sentences describe habits, so they are in the Simple Present. When you listen to a text, pay attention to small words like doesn't and don't: one small word can change the whole meaning of the sentence.

We already know how to make question tags and how to say them with the right intonation. Now we learn how to answer them. A question tag is like a small Yes/No question, so we answer it with a short answer: «She reads a book every evening, doesn't she?» — «Yes, she does.» (if it is true) or «No, she doesn't.» (if it is not true). The short answer uses the same helper verb as the tag: does → does / doesn't, do → do / don't.

The tricky part is a negative sentence with a positive tag: «Your brother doesn't wear glasses, does he?». In Turkish we say «Evet, takmıyor» to agree. But in English we look only at the fact: if he doesn't wear glasses, the answer is «No, he doesn't.»; if he wears glasses, the answer is «Yes, he does.». So the rule is simple: Yes goes with a positive verb (does, do), No goes with a negative verb (doesn't, don't). We never say «Yes, he doesn't» or «No, he does».

Here is a short dialogue between two friends in the school corridor. Ayşe: «You walk to school every day, don't you ↘?» Ozan: «Yes, I do. I live near the school.» Ayşe: «Your sister doesn't like cold weather, does she ↗?» Ozan: «No, she doesn't. She always wears two jumpers in January!» Notice that Ayşe is sure in the first tag (falling ↘), but she isn't sure in the second tag (rising ↗). Ozan gives short, polite answers and adds one more piece of information. This makes a conversation natural and friendly.

Every school has got a lost property box (kayıp eşya kutusu). In January it is full of gloves, scarves, caps and umbrellas! To find the owner, we use possessive adjectives (iyelik sıfatları). Each subject has got its own possessive adjective: I → my, you → your, he → his, she → her, it → its, we → our, they → their. A possessive adjective always comes before a noun: «This is my scarf», «Is this your umbrella?», «Kerem can't find his gloves», «Selin is looking for... » — no, let's stay in the Simple Present: «Selin always forgets her cap».

We choose his or her according to the owner, not the object. «Ali loves his new jacket» (the owner is Ali → his). «Zeynep wears her silver watch every day» (the owner is Zeynep → her). For animals and things we use its: «The bag is great. Its colour is silver.», «Our cat has got a red bow on its neck.» For more than one owner we use our or their: «We wear our school uniforms from Monday to Friday», «The twins wear their raincoats on rainy days».

Some words sound the same but have got different meanings, so be careful when you write. Its means «onun» (possession), but it's means «it is»: «It's cold today. The dog wants its coat.» Your means «senin / sizin», but you're means «you are»: «You're lucky. Your boots are warm.» Their means «onların», there means «orada» and they're means «they are»: «They're my cousins. Their gloves are over there.» If you can say «it is / you are / they are» in the sentence, use the short form with the apostrophe (').

Our class is preparing a fashion show (defile, moda gösterisi) for the end of the term. Each student creates an outfit from old and new clothes, and walks on the stage while a presenter describes the clothes. The presenter uses the Simple Present and possessive adjectives: «Here is Defne! She wears her grandma's knitted jumper with a thin silver necklace. Her outfit is comfortable and trendy.» «Now, here is Can! He wears a fancy costume with a big red bow (fiyonk, papyon). His boots are black and thick.» A good description says what, what colour and what kind (comfortable, fancy, ordinary, cool, different).

Some clothes have got two parts (two legs or two lenses), so in English they are always plural: trousers, jeans, shorts, glasses, sunglasses. We say «My jeans are new», not «My jeans is new». To count them, we use a pair of (bir çift / bir tane): «a pair of jeans» (bir kot pantolon), «two pairs of trousers», «a pair of glasses». Shoes, boots, socks and gloves come in twos, so we also say «a pair of shoes», «a pair of gloves». But for one sock or one glove we can say «a sock», «a glove».

Did you know that British and American people use different words for some clothes? In British English (BrE) we say trousers, but in American English (AmE) we say pants. A jumper (BrE) is a sweater (AmE). Both are correct; just remember who uses them. At our fashion show, we also include our own culture: a girl wears her colourful headscarf with a long dress, a boy wears a traditional vest from his region, and some students wear red and white outfits that remind us of 29 October and 30 August Victory Day ceremonies. And of course, the golden rule of every fashion show: «Don't make fun of people!» Every outfit is different, and every style deserves respect.

Let's play a listening and reading game: Guess Who? (Bil bakalım kim?). The teacher reads three short descriptions and you match them with the pictures of three students. «Person A is tall and thin. He has got short straight brown hair and a square face. He always wears glasses. He rarely watches TV, but he reads adventure stories every evening. Person B is of average height. She has got long wavy black hair and an oval face. She usually wears a red coat and a pair of thick gloves in winter. She draws pictures twice a week. Person C is short. She has got curly blonde hair and big blue eyes. She never wears a hat, but she sometimes wears a colourful scarf. She goes out with her friends on Saturdays.»

Before you listen, look at the pictures and predict the words you may hear: tall, curly, glasses, scarf. While you listen, write down key details: height, hair, face, clothes and frequency words (always, usually, sometimes, rarely, never, twice a week). After you listen, check your answers with a friend using question tags: «Person A wears glasses, doesn't he?» — «Yes, he does.» · «Person C doesn't wear a hat, does she?» — «No, she doesn't.» If you and your friend have different answers, don't argue: «Let's sort out the problem! Let's listen again.»

Now it's your turn to create a personal profile poster (kişisel tanıtım afişi). Use six parts: 1) Name and age, 2) Appearance (to be + height; have got + hair, eyes, face), 3) Favourite clothes (with two adjectives and a possessive adjective), 4) Daily routine (Simple Present), 5) How often? (frequency adverbs and expressions), 6) Feelings (I love..., I'm happy when...). You can also add a special day: «On 15 July Democracy and National Unity Day, I wear a white T-shirt and I listen to the stories of our heroes with my family.» Hang your posters on the classroom wall and read your friends' profiles. When you visit a friend after school, you can say: «I'll pop round to see you later and show you my poster!»