A1 WritingA1 Elementary

My hobby – A1 English writing

Exercise 3

Exercises:1 2 3

Complete these sentences with the words in the box.

Writing about my hobby

In this lesson, you will learn how to write about your hobby. Before you start writing, think about what you want to say. These questions will help you:

What is your hobby?

My favourite hobby is…
I love doing/playing…

Where do you do it?

I play the guitar in my room.
I love hiking in the woods near my house.

When do you do it?

I practise at the weekend and sometimes in the evening after school.

How often do you do it?

I do it two or three times a week.
I go running every morning before work.

How long do you do it for?

I play the guitar every day for one or two hours.

🔍 Note: Use for + a time word to say how long you do something.

Who do you do it with?

I sometimes play video games with my little brother.
I play football with my friends.

When did you start?

I started singing when I was five years old.

Do, play, and practise

Use do for general hobbies like yoga, gardening, or exercise that you do alone and that are not games or sports.

I love painting and I do it every day.

Use play for sports (like football, golf, and tennis), games (like chess, cards, and video games), and musical instruments (like the guitar, piano, and drums).

I play chess and I play the guitar.

Use practise (US: practice) when you do something often to learn or improve.

I practise painting every day.
I practise the piano at the weekend.

How to say that you like something

You can use different verbs to say that you like something. For example:

Like: I like gardening.
Enjoy: I enjoy fishing at the lake in summer.
Prefer: I like watching movies at home, but I prefer going to the cinema.
Love: I love football.

🔍 Note: When we use a verb after like, enjoy, love, or prefer, we use the -ing form.

You can also say that something is fun or a lot of fun.

Playing video games is a lot of fun.

Connecting sentences with simple linking words

We can connect two ideas using linking words like and, but, because, and so.

➟ Use and to add similar information. It means ‘too’ or ‘in addition’.

I feel happy when I finish a picture and it helps me relax.

➟ Use but to show contrast — when the second idea is different or surprising.

I’m not very good at painting, but I enjoy it.

➟ Use because to give a reason.

I like painting because it’s fun and relaxing.

➟ Use so to show a result. The second idea is the result of the first one.

My brother likes painting too, so we sometimes paint together.

➟ You can also use like or for example to introduce examples of something.

I enjoy painting nature, like animals, flowers, and trees.
Painting is very important in my life. For example, when I feel stressed or sad, it helps me feel better.

💡 Tip: Using these small words helps your writing sound more natural and clear.

Plan your paragraphs

When you write, it’s important to organise your ideas into paragraphs. Each paragraph should talk about one idea. For example, you can follow this structure:

‣ Paragraph 1: Describe your hobby. Say what it is, how often you do it, when, etc.

‣ Paragraph 2: Describe when you started doing it and why or how.

‣ Paragraph 3: Say what you like about your hobby.

Example essay:

My hobby

My favourite hobby is painting. I do it in my room at the weekend, and sometimes in the evening after school. I usually paint two or three times a week, for one or two hours. I enjoy painting nature, like animals, flowers, and trees. My brother likes painting too, so we sometimes paint together.

I started painting when I was very young. I loved drawing and using colours. My parents gave me a painting set for my birthday, and I started to paint more. I liked it very much, so I took some lessons to learn more. At first, it was difficult, but I practised a lot and got better.

I like painting because it’s fun and relaxing. I prefer using bright colours, like yellow and red. Painting is very important in my life. For example, when I feel stressed or sad, it helps me feel better.

➟ Use the first sentence to introduce the main idea of each paragraph.

➟ Use linking words to connect your ideas.

➟ You can add examples with like or for example to make your writing more interesting.

➟ Use different verbs of liking (like, love, enjoy, prefer).

Ready to practice?

Put your knowledge to the test with interactive exercises (3 exercises available).