Three everyday descriptions:

• "My sister's really good at languages — she picks up new words in minutes."
• "Dad's quite proud of how far my brother's come with his guitar playing."
• "Honestly, I'm a bit worried about the interview tomorrow."

Before you check: what comes straight after "good", "proud" and "worried" in each one?

1. Your little cousin won't go anywhere near next door's dog, even on a lead.

Explain why: "He's afraid dogs, especially big ones."

2. Your colleague never gets lost, even in a city she's never visited before.

Tell a friend: "She's really good reading maps and finding her way around."

3. Your neighbour keeps mentioning she wants to try growing her own vegetables this year.

Describe it: "She's interested a vegetable patch in the garden."

Three everyday habits:

• "I still depend on my parents for a lift to the airport sometimes."
• "We always listen to the radio in the car on long drives."
• "Could you look after my plants while I'm away next week?"

Same question: what's the pattern here?

1. Whether the picnic happens or not really comes down to the forecast.

Say it plainly: "It all the weather tomorrow."

2. Your uncle never misses the football commentary, every single Saturday.

Describe his habit: "He the match on the radio every Saturday."

3. Your friend turned up forty minutes late and felt terrible about it.

Report what happened: "She being so late."

Three everyday nouns with their prepositions:

• "The real reason for the delay was a problem with the trains."
• "There's been a small increase in the rent this year."
• "I still don't know the answer to that question."

What's the pattern this time?

1. Your friend can't work out why the flight got cancelled — nobody's explained it yet.

Say it: "Nobody's told us the reason the cancellation yet."

2. The exam had one tricky maths question that nobody could finish, not even the teacher.

Say it: "Even the teacher wasn't sure of the answer that last question."

3. House prices in the area have gone up noticeably this year. Choose the right option: "There's been a big ___ house prices this year."

Think about yourself right now — your interests, the people or things you depend on, something you're a little worried about, something you're proud of.

Talk about yourself out loud for one minute. Try to use:

• Something you're good at, or interested in
• Someone or something you depend on, or look after
• The reason for something you're doing at the moment

Write a short message (3–5 sentences) introducing yourself to a new colleague or neighbour. Use at least one adjective + preposition, one verb + preposition, and one noun + preposition — the checker will tell you which ones it finds.

1. "She's good in maths, especially algebra."

2. "This all depends of the weather forecast."

3. "I never listen the radio before nine in the morning."

4. "He's afraid from spiders, even tiny ones."

5. "My nephew's really ___ learning to skateboard — he practises every afternoon."

6. "Could you ___ my cat while I'm at the conference next week?"

7. "I totally ___ you — we should leave earlier next time."

1. A preposition you already knew before today — complete it: "We landed the airport just after midnight."

2. Say it out loud: give one example with "in" for a period of time, and one example with "on" for a day or date.

3. Your grandmother won't get in a lift, ever, not even for one floor.

Explain why: "She's afraid small spaces."

4. Whether you go camping this weekend depends entirely on one thing.

Say it: "It whether it stops raining."

5. Your friend won't say why they cancelled dinner at the last minute.

Say it: "They haven't given a reason cancelling."

Which practice helped you most today — fixing the mistakes, choosing the right preposition, or the speaking tasks? Say why you think that one worked for you.