✨ Wish / If only & Time Conjunctions

🎯 B1+ | Grammar through Storytelling

🌀 If I Could Turn Back Time

Master the second conditional – unreal present, imaginary futures, and regrets

🔮 Before reading – predict & prepare

1️⃣ Look at the title and image. What do you think the story is about? (Discuss with a partner.)

2️⃣ Key vocabulary preview – these words appear in the story:

📖 regret – sadness about the past ✨ imaginary – not real, only in mind 🎓 scholarship – money for study ❤️ appreciate – be thankful

👉 While reading, look for "if + past tense" and "would".

📖 While reading – “The Choice”

Maya often thought about her past. If she had more courage, she would travel the world. But today she sat in her small apartment, feeling stuck. If she studied harder at university, she would have a better job now. She remembered the scholarship she didn't apply for. If her best friend didn't live so far away, they would meet every weekend.

Suddenly, a mysterious letter arrived. It said: "You can change one decision from your past. What would you do differently?" Maya smiled. If she could go back, she would tell her younger self to take risks. She closed her eyes and imagined: If she accepted that internship abroad, her life would be completely different today. But then she realised – maybe it's never too late. If she started now, she would feel proud in five years.

🔍 What do you notice? The highlighted sentences all follow the same pattern:

• If + past simple → imaginary situation
• would + infinitive → imaginary result

📌 Example: If I had a million dollars, I would buy a house.

✅ Second conditional is used for imaginary / unreal situations (present or future).

📌 Quick check (while reading)

1. What does Maya regret about university?

2. Why doesn't Maya meet her best friend every weekend?

3. What would Maya tell her younger self?

✍️ After reading – master the second conditional

📝 Look again at these examples from the story:

✨ If she had more courage, she would travel the world.

✨ If she studied harder, she would have a better job.

👉 What verb tense follows "if"? What comes after "would"? Click to reveal.

✅ If + past simple , would + base verb
⚠️ Use "were" instead of "was" for all persons (e.g., If I were rich...).

🧩 Practice 1 – Match the halves

1. If I had more free time, ...

a) I would have passed the exam. b) I would learn to play the guitar. c) I will stay home.

2. If she had studied medicine, ...

a) she would be a doctor now. b) she becomes a doctor. c) she would became a doctor.

3. If they didn't live so far, ...

a) we visit them every week. b) we would visit them every week. c) we visited them.

🔄 Practice 2 – Complete the sentence

4. I don't speak French. If I French, I would apply for that job in Paris.

5. It's raining. If only it , we could go for a walk.

6. She didn't save money. She regrets it. If she more money, she would travel now.

🎤 Speak & record – your imaginary situation

Answer one of these using second conditional (If + past, would + verb):

• What would you do if you won a million dollars?
• If you could live anywhere, where would you live?
• What would you change about your past if you had a time machine?

Your spoken answer:

🔊 Listen to an example

📝 Creative challenge

Write 3 second conditional sentences about your own life (regrets, dreams, or imaginary changes).

📚 Vocabulary from the story

🧠 courage – ability to face fear 🎓 scholarship – money for education 💼 internship – temporary work experience 😔 regret – sadness about past actions ✨ imaginary – not real, only in mind

⚡ TEFL Elicitation Approach – Students discover patterns, self‑correct, and produce language. Teacher as facilitator.