First and Second Conditionals Worksheet (B1)

It goes with the Conditionals lesson plan but works on its own, in class or as homework.

Complete with the present simple or will / won't.

Example: If it rains (rain), we will stay (stay) at home.

1. If you ________ (not hurry), you ________ (miss) the bus.
2. I ________ (call) you if I ________ (finish) early.
3. If she ________ (pass) the test, her parents ________ (be) very happy.
4. We ________ (not go) to the beach if the weather ________ (be) bad.
5. What ________ you ________ (do) if they ________ (say) no?

Complete with the past simple or would / wouldn't.

Example: If I had (have) more time, I would learn (learn) the guitar.

1. If I ________ (be) you, I ________ (talk) to the teacher.
2. She ________ (travel) more if she ________ (not have) a small child.
3. If we ________ (live) near the sea, we ________ (swim) every day.
4. What ________ you ________ (say) if he ________ (ask) you?
5. They ________ (not complain) if the food ________ (be) better.

Choose the first or the second conditional, and write the sentence. Ask yourself: is this a real possibility?

Example: (my bus is late most days) If the bus ________ late again, I ________ walk. → If the bus is late again, I will walk.

1. (I have no money for a trip) If I ________ (have) the money, I ________ (go) to Japan.
2. (there is a test next week) If I ________ (study) every evening, I ________ (pass) it.
3. (I am not the head teacher) If I ________ (be) the head teacher, I ________ (change) the timetable.
4. (rain is forecast for tomorrow) If it ________ (rain), the match ________ (be) cancelled.

Write each sentence the other way round, and punctuate it correctly.

Example: If I see her, I'll tell her. → I'll tell her if I see her.

1. If you need help, ask me. → ________________________
2. I would buy a bicycle if I lived closer. → ________________________
3. If we left now, we would arrive before dark. → ________________________
4. She'll be angry if you forget again. → ________________________

Write advice for each problem using If I were you, I'd ... Then write one first conditional sentence about your own week.

• A friend is always late for class. → ________________________
• Your cousin wants to learn English quickly. → ________________________
• Someone has lost their phone at school. → ________________________
• About my week: ________________________

• Timing: Tasks 1 to 4 take about 25 minutes; Task 5 about 10, or set it as homework.
• The one to watch: will after if. It is the most persistent mistake in the whole B1 syllabus, and it appears in Tasks 1, 3 and 5. One rule on the board beats twenty corrections.
• If I were or if I was: were is the form expected in exams and in writing, and was is very common in speech. Teach were, and do not mark was wrong when a learner says it aloud.
• Task 3 is the thinking task. Learners who can do Tasks 1 and 2 but not Task 3 have the forms without the meaning, which is exactly what to spend the next lesson on.
• Extension: learners write three dilemmas of their own and swap them with a partner, who answers each with one conditional sentence.