Looking at the Future - Activities and Achievements (Future Continuous and Perfect)

You are going to

• look at and practise the future continuous for describing future activities
• look at and practise the future perfect for describing future achievements
• watch a video which makes some predictions about the future
• order some sentences while watching the video 
• discuss future activities and achievements

1) Discuss / Practise Future Continuous
Look at the presentation and follow the instructions

Future Continuous from David Mainwood

2) Read, discuss and put in order
Read the list of predictions for the future

1. Discuss. What do you think? How many will come true?
2. Choose 10 and say when you think they will happen (Soon? In 2020? In the distant future?... )
3. The predictions are not in order. Put the 10 predictions you think will come true in order with the year you think they will happen. Two are done as examples

Our Future?

•  2015 - We will be using translating apps to speak foreign languages
•  We will be "cloud computing" (storing all our data and using apps on the internet)
•  People will be using bionic limbs
•  Petrol vehicles will have become obsolete
•  Personal flight will have become normal transport
•  We will be living on the Moon
•  Robot companions will be living with us
•  Robot servants will be working for us
•  Renewables will have overtaken fossil fuels
•  We will be travelling on interstellar spacecraft
•  Cars will be driving themselves
•  Earth population will have peaked at 20 Billion
•  Nuclear fusion will have met our energy needs
•  2050 Men and women will have landed on Mars
•  We will have discovered other Earth-like planets
•  We will be recording every moment of our lives
•  Most people will have moved to other planets
•  We will have worked out how to unify quantum theory
•  We will have become "cosmosapiens" living in the universe
•  We will be experiencing "augmented reality"  
•  All tyranny will have ended
•  We will be growing human spare parts

3) Watch the video to see if you are right.
Answers below

4) Discuss the video

Do you agree with the predictions? Why / Why not?

Can you discuss or comment on them?

For example
I can't believe that cars will be driving themselves in 2040
I hope all tyranny will have ended by 2040
If we use translators we won't need to study foreign languages
If robots do all the work what will we do?
People may / might / could be living on the Moon sooner than 2050

5) Discuss / Practise Future Perfect

Look at the predictions again. What tenses are they?
Which ones are Future Continuous?
Which ones are Future Perfect?

What's the difference between the Future Continuous and the Future Perfect?


Look at the presentation and practise the Future Perfect

Future Perfect from David Mainwood

6) Discuss your targets and predictions

What are your targets and predictions for the future?
Targets

• What will you be doing in the next 12 months?
• What will you have achieved by this time next year?

Predictions for 1 year ahead

• What will be in fashion?
• What will we be talking about and doing?
• What will be in the news?

Don't forget to use the Future Continuous and the Future Perfect where possible.

7) Writing

What are the positive and negative effects of the progress of science and technology on our lives? What influence will they have on our future?

8) Reading

What do you think are the 20 top predictions for the next 100 years?

Find out what BBC readers thought here.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-16536598
How likely are they to come true?
How many do you agree with?
Take notes and discuss or comment on them (as in ex 4)

9) More grammar practice

http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/futurecontinuous.html
http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/futureperfect.html

Answers - highlight below

1. 2015 We will be using translating apps to speak foreign languages
2. 2018 We will be "cloud computing" (storing data and using apps on the internet)
3. 2010 We will be experiencing augmented reality
4. 2015 Robot servants will be working for us
5. 2030 Robot companions will be living with us
6. 2030 Tyranny will have ended
7. 2030 Renewables will have overtaken fossil fuels
8. 2030 Petrol vehicles will have become obsolete
9. 2040 Personal flight will have become normal transport
10. 2040 Cars will be driving themselves
11. 2040 We will have worked out how to unify quantum theory
12. 2050 Nuclear fusion will have met our energy  needs
13. 2050 People will be using bionic limbs
14. 2050 Men and women will have landed on Mars
15. 2050 We will be living on the Moon
16. 2055 We will have discovered Earth-like planets
17. 2100 We will be recording every moment of our lives
18. 2100 We will be growing human spare parts
19. 2100 Earth population will have peaked at 20 Billion
20. 2500 Most people will have moved to other planets
21. 3000 We will be travelling on interstellar spacecraft
22. 10000 We will have become cosmosapiens