Improve your speaking and listening skills in English with our helpful FREE ESL parenting discussion questions.
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Parenting – Discussion Questions for ESL Classes
Discuss the following questions about parenting with a partner or small group:
- Do we need parents? Why? / Why not? Tell me about your parents. What do / did you call them, e.g. mum / mother, dad / father, etc. What are / were they like? If you could sum them up in one sentence, what would it be? What about in one word?
- Do / did you get on well with your parents? Why? / Why not? Are / were they the best parents in the world? Why? / Why not? Do you love them? Do you love them both equally? Tell me about times when they have embarrassed you.
- What advice from your parents do you always follow? What advice from them have you discarded? What was the result? What genetic gifts have they given you, e.g. skills, interests, appearance, etc. How like them are you? Do you ever try to avoid being like them? Why? What traditions do you always follow that your parents began?
- Are you a parent? If yes… why did you want to become a parent? How easy is it to be a parent? What are the highs and lows, the joys and sorrows? How has it changed your life? Would you rather you weren’t a parent? Why? As a parent, what are you missing out on? How did you feel when your first child was born? If you could erase mistakes you have made as a parent, what would they be?
- If you are not a parent… would you like to be a parent? When do you think it will happen? How will it change your life? What are you doing to make it a reality?
- What rules do parents make? How effective are they? What training do parents have in your country? Do you think it is sufficient? Do you think people should have to pass a test before they become parents? Would you like somebody to judge your parenting skills? Have you ever been on a parenting course? Would it be useful? Can we learn to be parents from a stranger?
- What laws do parents have to follow in your country? What is the right number of children to have? Would you like being told how many children you can have? Why do some couples choose to have many children and others have just one or two? What would be the difference, in your opinion?
- Should parents discipline their children? If yes, how? What forms of discipline work the best? Is it right for government to ban smacking?
- Is it a parent’s job to give their child whatever they want to make them happy? Why? / Why not?
- How do you celebrate Mothering Sunday, Father’s Day, Grandparents’ Day? Are they useful traditions or just for the benefit of card companies?
- Tell me about your grandparents. What are / were they like? Do you remember your great-grandparents? Would you like to be a grandparent? Do you think you could ever be a great-grandparent? What are the main differences between being a parent and being a grandparent?
- Why are some people taken into care? How would it feel not to have parents and be… a) in care, b) in foster care, c) adopted? How would it feel to… a) foster a child for six months, b) adopt a child? Compare them.
- Compare the different roles and responsibilities: a) mother / father, b) mother / grandmother, c) father / grandfather, d) mother / mother-in-law, e) parent / foster parent / adopted parent, etc.
- Why are some people unable to become parents? Why do some people not want to be parents? Why are some people not suited to being parents? Should everybody have the opportunity to be a parent? Is it a basic human right?
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