Good and bad designs

Richard | Jun 05, 2026Jun 05, 2026

LESSON OVERVIEW

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

• engage in discussing good and bad designs and functionality;
• practise collocations for interacting with objects;
• watch a video excerpt on a new product. 

In this lesson, students talk about design issues in common objects, explore descriptions of design of everyday items and review collocations (e.g. rest my arms, push a door, adjust the seat). They work with reviews of products, share their experiences and analyse the design of various setups. Students watch a video (from 00:25) about a laundry chair product, discuss unusual inventions and debate multi-functional objects. They also create their own multi-functional product and write a promotional radio advert for it.

WARM-UP AND COLLOCATIONS

This lesson focuses on discussing good and bad designs and starts with a warm-up. Students examine everyday objects (e.g. a wardrobe, an office chair, a door) and say what design problems they could have. After that, they read object descriptions featuring verbs (e.g. rest, fit, bend) and guess what they are. Then, students use the verbs from the previous task to complete the gaps in reviews of products and places. Afterwards, they share similar personal experiences. Moving on, students complete more collocations (e.g. rest your wrist, reach the switch, push a button). They then think of one more collocation for each verb. Next, students examine pictures of different places and items. They answer questions, using words in the pictures (e.g. steering wheel, shelves, monitor) and the verbs and collocations from the previous task.

VIDEO AND DISCUSSION

In this part of the lesson, students examine features of good design (e.g. it looks good). They discuss when each matters most, considering a target audience and a possible product. Afterwards, students watch a video about a new product and decide which idea from the previous task is most important for it. Following that, they watch the video again and say why specific points are mentioned. Moving on, students discuss the market potential of unusual inventions. After that, they engage in discussing good and bad designs by examining products (e.g. a sofa bed, a suitcase scooter, a chair backpack) and discussing their pros, cons and utility. Next, students look at different objects (e.g. camera, helmet, lamp). They choose two, combine them into one new product and discuss its core elements. Finally, students prepare a radio advert for their product, using the target collocations from the lesson.

HOMEWORK/REVISION

This lesson also includes an additional task that you can use as homework or revision. In the task, students choose the correct words to complete sentences discussing good and bad designs. They then say which statements they agree with most and why. The task is available in the teacher’s version of the worksheet. You can print it and hand it out to your students. It’s also included in the e-lesson plan.

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