ESL WORKSHEET - Telephoning

LESSON PLAN FOR ENGLISH TEACHERS

TELEPHONE INTERRUPTIONS

LinguaHouse

Jul. 20, 2025

Level: Intermediate (B1-B2)
Type of language: Business English
Tags: Telephoning; Telephoning - Handling Difficulties; Using Diplomatic Language; Business People; Business Skills; Business Ethics; Situation Based; Useful Vocabulary; 16-18 Years Old; 18+ Years Old
Publication date: 07/20/2025

In this refreshed lesson, students practice handling phone call interruptions. The worksheet presents a number of practical expressions which can be used to encourage the caller to be quick, persuade the receiver to listen as well as diplomatically avoid speaking to the caller.

• CLICK HERE to download the student’s worksheet in American English.
• CLICK HERE to download the teacher’s lesson plan in American English.
• CLICK HERE to download the student’s worksheet in British English.
• CLICK HERE to download the teacher’s lesson plan in British English.
• CLICK HERE to download/listen to the audio (MP3).

AUDIO TRANSCRIPT

ONE
Adam: Hello, Adam Lewis speaking.
Juan: Hi Adam, it’s Juan Carlos. Have you got a minute?
Adam: Hello Juan. I’m afraid, I’m in the middle of a meeting right now. Can it wait?
Juan: Adam, I’ll only be a second. I have to catch a train in a few minutes, and I just wanted to ask you a quick question.
Adam: OK, if it’s very quick. Go ahead.
Juan: Do you know if the conference room is booked for 3pm? We are starting our English course at that time.
Adam: I’m pretty sure it’s free, but I’ll call you back in 15 minutes to confirm.
Juan: OK, thanks, Adam. I’ll speak to you later. Bye.

TWO
Abdul: Hello.
Dieter: Hi Abdul, it’s Dieter Hahn. Do you have a moment?
Abdul: Is it something urgent? I’ve got a very important conference call in about a minute.
Dieter: Abdul, this won’t take long. I just wanted to give you an update on the situation with our server.
Abdul: OK, you’ve got about 30 seconds.
Dieter: Well, we’ve managed to find the source of the problem, and it looks like it will be fixed by the end of the day.
Abdul: OK, thanks, Dieter. That’s good news. Keep me posted on the latest developments. I really have to go now. Goodbye.

Adapted from: https://www.linguahouse.com/esl-lesson-plans/business-english/telephone-interruptions. Accessed on August 19, 2025. LinguaHouse.com © 2008–2025. All rights reserved.