Formula 2: What do you usually/ normally do?

Aims

In this lesson you’ll master the formular for what do you usually/ normally do? Type questions.

What do you do on an average day?

What is your normal daily routine?

Can you describe your typical day?

What do you usually don on weekends?

The formula

When the examiner asks you what do you usually/ normally do? Type questions, you must:

Answer order:

Say what you do at the time the examiner asks you about.
Say how often you do these things.

Language steps

Use adverbs of frequency like a native speaker to show how frequently or infrequently you do things.

I often meet up with my classmates.

I sometimes go shopping.

Use the present simple tense and times of day correctly for general habits.

I ride my bike every day at 2 o’clock.

We have dinner together in the evening.

Show that you can use one or two common sequence markers.

Before class starts we talk.

We then go to bed.

Model answer.

Interview: Tell me about your usually daily routine.

Alice: Well, usually I wake up around 8 a.m. I always have a cup of coffee while I review my study notes over breakfast. Then I normally ride my bike to school, apart from in winter, when it’s way too cold. Before class starts, I often meet up with my classmates in the corridor and we gossip a bit about life and school. After school, I always go straight home and then start on my homework while my mum cooks me dinner; I usually go to bed at about 10 p.m.

Interview: Do you do the same thing at the same time every day?

David: During the week, I have a very regular schedule because of my job. I always wake up just after 7 in the morning, then eat my breakfast on the way to the subway station. I get to work at 8 o’clock sharp, and usually work until 5, sometimes I work overtime until 7 or 8. After I get home, I normally eat dinner with my wife and after that either hang out with friends or watch TV before going to bed at about 11.

Language step 1 Adverbs of Frequency

You must use adverbs of frequency well in your test, and if you can master using a variety of different adverbs of frequency, it will make your English more interesting and much more like a native speaker.

Let’s look at two different kinds of adverbs of frequency.

Adverbs that go after the subject and before the verb.

Always

I always go out partying every night when I’m on holiday.

Often

She often goes running after class.

Never

She never rides her bike in winter.

Almost never

We almost never go out dancing.

Rarely

He rarely eats rice.

Hardly ever

She hardly ever exercises.

Adverbs that can go before or after the subject.

Usually

Usually I wake up around 8 a.m.

I usually wake up around 8 a.m.

Normally

Normally I help my mum with the cooking.

I normally help my mum with the cooking.

Sometimes

We sometimes go shopping.

Sometimes we go shopping.

Hint: almost never, hardly ever and rarely mean almost the same thing.

Language step 2 The present simple and times of day.

Let’s look again at Alice’s and David’s answers to see how they use the present simple tense and times of day.

Interview: Tell me about your usually daily routine.

Interview: Do you do the same thing at the same time every day?

The present simple is used to describe what we do every day or very frequently:

I get up at 7:30 in the morning.

She often goes to the moves.

They eat noodles for lunch.

Hint: do not overlook the usage of present simple tense as many students have lost their points on basis tense errors.

The present simple is often used together with times of day, so make sure you are aware of the following:

At + hour + o’clock.

My mum makes me go to bet at 10 o’clock.

I get up at 6 o’clock.

At + dawn/ noon/ midnight.

I never get up at dawn.

I always eat lunch at noon.

At + hour + a.m./ in the morning.

I usually wake up at 8 a.m.

I usually wake up at 8 in the morning.

At + hour + p.m. / in the afternoon/ evening.

My father often comes home at 9 p.m.

My father often comes home at 9 in the evening.

At/ on the weekend.

I normally just relax at the weekend.

I normally just relax on the weekend.

Hint: make sure that you can use time expressions accurately. Common mistakes such as at 8 a.m. o’clock, in noon, on weekend… should be avoided.

In everyday English, the 12 hour clock system is the most commonly used time notation. Therefore, with 23:00 you should say 11 o’clock or 11 p.m. not 23 o’clock.

Extra language point Sequence markers.

Let’s take a look at how Alice and David use sequence markers in their answers.

Interview: Tell me about your usually daily routine.

Interview: do you do the same thing at the same time every day?

To talk about your usual or normal routine, you should use sequence markers. These help you logically link the different activities that you do together and also make things much clearer for the listener.

Remind yourself of the following sequence markers:

Before

Then

After(activity)

After that.

Hint: besides then and after that, Alice and David use other sequence markers to indicate the other of their actions. This is typical of native speaker’s speech.

Source: 31 High-scoring Formulas to Answer the IELTS Speaking Questions