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    Free Daily English · Level A2 (Elementary) · Topic: preparing a presentation for a team meeting

    Leila Gets Ready for the Team Meeting on the Rooftop

    Name: ______________________   Date: ____________

    Leila works in a big office. Her team has a meeting every week. This week, Leila has to give a presentation. She feels a little nervous. She decides to prepare on the rooftop terrace. The rooftop terrace is a quiet place at the top of the building. There are some chairs and small tables up there. Leila takes her laptop and her notes. She also takes a bottle of water. She sits down at a table near the wall. The sun is warm but not too hot. A small breeze moves through the air. Leila opens her laptop. She looks at her slides. She wants everything to be clear and easy to understand. Leila reads her notes again.

    She writes some new ideas on a piece of paper. She wants to talk about the team's progress this month. She also wants to show some charts. She practices saying her words out loud. At first, her voice is very quiet. She takes a breath and tries again. This time, her voice is louder and clearer. She smiles. She checks the slides on her laptop. One slide has too many words. She deletes some sentences. Now the slide looks much better. She adds a simple chart to another slide. She checks the time on her phone. She has one more hour before the meeting starts. Leila stands up and walks around the terrace.

    She looks at the sky and takes a deep breath. She feels more confident now. She reads her opening sentence again. "Good morning, everyone. Today I want to share some important updates with the team." She says it three times. Each time, she sounds better. Her colleague Dani comes up to the rooftop. "Are you ready for the meeting?" Dani asks. "I think so," Leila says. "I practiced a lot up here." Dani smiles. "You will do great," Dani says. Leila packs her laptop and her notes. She walks to the elevator. She feels ready.

    Key vocabulary

    presentation (noun)a talk you give to a group of people, often with slides or notes“Leila prepares a presentation for her team meeting.”
    terrace (noun)a flat outdoor area, often on top of a building or next to one“She works on the rooftop terrace because it is quiet.”
    nervous (adjective)feeling worried or a little scared before something important“Leila feels nervous before her presentation.”
    slide (noun)one page or screen in a presentation, shown on a computer or screen“She checks each slide on her laptop.”
    progress (noun)movement forward or improvement over time“Leila wants to talk about the team's progress this month.”
    confident (adjective)feeling sure about yourself and your abilities“After practicing, Leila feels more confident.”
    chart (noun)a picture or graph that shows information clearly“She adds a simple chart to one of her slides.”
    colleague (noun)a person you work with“Her colleague Dani comes up to the rooftop to see her.”

    Useful phrases

    • out loud — using your voice so others can hear, not just in your head“Leila practices saying her words out loud on the terrace.”
    • take a breath — to breathe in slowly, often to calm yourself down“She takes a breath and tries again.”
    • try again — to do something one more time after it did not go well“Her voice is too quiet, so she tries again.”
    • too many — more than is needed or wanted“One slide has too many words, so she deletes some.”
    • look better — to appear improved or more attractive than before“After she deletes some words, the slide looks much better.”
    • share updates — to tell a group the latest news or information“Leila wants to share some important updates with the team.”
    • do great — to perform very well at something“Dani tells Leila, "You will do great."”
    • pack up — to put your things together and get ready to leave“Leila packs her laptop and notes before she goes to the meeting.”

    Word search

    Find all 8 key words from the story. They can read forwards, backwards, up, down or diagonally.

    ABCDEFGHIJKLMN
    1NTDZDEDILSGZOS
    2XBNJQFBNVAPPEH
    3BRUOKWPKPGGNCP
    4TRYVIWDMGBPEAC
    5BKYEHTLRCHUJRO
    6PPRHXFAOOABBRL
    7PRKLKCNTTIHSEL
    8FMOEIFDANSCBTE
    9AWQGIKDSUEQEXA
    10KHJDRVOOTHSBMG
    11GAEQHEVTROLEFU
    12VNYPTRSCAGMNRE
    13TPQEEDISHCPYIP
    14WXSNQMTGCRPEWY

    Comprehension quiz

    1. Where does Leila prepare her presentation?

      • A) In a coffee shop
      • B) In the elevator
      • C) In her apartment
      • D) On the rooftop terrace
    2. What does Leila take to the rooftop terrace?

      • A) A printer and some pens
      • B) Her laptop and her notes
      • C) A whiteboard and markers
      • D) Her phone and a book
    3. What does Leila want to talk about in her presentation?

      • A) A new office building
      • B) Her new laptop
      • C) The team's vacation plans
      • D) The team's progress this month
    4. Why does Leila delete some sentences from one slide?

      • A) The slide has the wrong color
      • B) The words are too small
      • C) The slide has too many words
      • D) The chart is missing
    5. How does Leila feel after she practices on the terrace?

      • A) More confused
      • B) More tired
      • C) More nervous
      • D) More confident
    6. What does the word 'colleague' mean in this story?

      • A) A student in a class
      • B) A neighbor in an apartment
      • C) A person you work with
      • D) A family member
    7. What does Dani say to Leila on the rooftop?

      • A) "Come back inside now."
      • B) "The meeting is canceled."
      • C) "You need more slides."
      • D) "You will do great."
    8. Leila says her opening sentence three times. True or false?

      • A) Not stated
      • B) Not mentioned
      • C) False
      • D) True
    9. Which word is closest in meaning to 'nervous'?

      • A) Angry and loud
      • B) Tired and bored
      • C) Worried and a little scared
      • D) Excited and happy
    10. How does Leila get back inside the building after she finishes on the terrace?

      • A) She takes the stairs
      • B) She takes the elevator
      • C) She walks through the parking lot
      • D) She calls a colleague to help her

    Answer key (A2 (Elementary))

    1. D 2. B 3. D 4. C 5. D 6. C 7. D 8. D 9. C 10. B

    Word search answer key (A2 (Elementary))

    Columns are lettered from the left, rows numbered from the top. The arrow shows the reading direction from the word's first letter.

    chart: I14 ↑ · colleague: N4 ↓ · confident: I5 ↙ · nervous: D14 ↗ · presentation: N13 ↖ · progress: A6 ↘ · slide: J1 ← · terrace: M8 ↑

    Free Daily English · Level B1 (Intermediate) · Topic: preparing a presentation for a team meeting

    Leila's Rooftop Preparation Before the Big Presentation

    Name: ______________________   Date: ____________

    Leila has been asked to lead the team presentation at this week's meeting, and the responsibility is making her stomach flutter with nerves. Rather than preparing at her desk where interruptions are constant, she decides to take her laptop and notes up to the rooftop terrace. The terrace is rarely busy in the late morning, and the open air and wide view help her think more clearly. She settles into a chair near the low wall, spreads her materials across the table, and opens her presentation. As she scrolls through the slides, she realizes that several of them are cluttered with too much text, which would make it difficult for her colleagues to follow along during the actual meeting. Leila spends the next forty minutes revising her slides with care.

    She cuts unnecessary sentences, replaces long paragraphs with clean bullet points, and adds a bar chart to illustrate the team's monthly progress in a way that is immediately visual and easy to interpret. Once the content feels solid, she begins practicing her delivery out loud, paying attention to her pace and tone. Her first run-through is hesitant and a little rushed, but she takes a slow breath, resets, and starts again. By the third attempt, her voice sounds steady and assured, and her transitions between sections flow naturally. She checks the time and realizes she still has a comfortable margin before the meeting begins. As Leila is reviewing her opening lines one final time, her colleague Dani steps out onto the terrace carrying two cups of coffee.

    "I thought you might need this," Dani says, setting a cup on the table beside Leila's laptop. "How's it going?" "Much better than I expected," Leila admits. "I was really anxious at first, but getting away from the office and practicing out here made a huge difference." Dani glances at the laptop screen. "Those slides look really sharp," Dani says. Leila smiles, feeling a wave of genuine confidence that she had not felt earlier in the morning. She closes her laptop, gathers her notes, and heads for the elevator, ready to make an impression.

    Key vocabulary

    cluttered (adjective)filled with too many things in a messy or disorganized way“She notices that some slides are cluttered with too much text.”
    revise (verb)to look at something again and make changes to improve it“Leila spends forty minutes revising her slides before the meeting.”
    delivery (noun)the way someone speaks or presents something to an audience“She practices her delivery to make sure her tone and pace are right.”
    hesitant (adjective)slow to act or speak because of uncertainty or nervousness“Her first run-through sounds hesitant, so she takes a breath and starts again.”
    assured (adjective)confident and certain, showing no doubt“By her third attempt, Leila's voice sounds steady and assured.”
    transition (noun)a change or movement from one part to another“Her transitions between sections of the presentation flow naturally.”
    interpret (verb)to understand or explain the meaning of something“The bar chart makes the data easy to interpret at a glance.”
    margin (noun)an extra amount of time or space beyond what is needed“She checks the time and finds she has a comfortable margin before the meeting.”

    Useful phrases

    • follow along — to understand or keep up with something as it happens“Too much text makes it hard for colleagues to follow along during a presentation.”
    • out loud — spoken with the voice so that others can hear“Leila practices her presentation out loud to improve her delivery.”
    • run-through — a practice session where you go through something from start to finish“Her first run-through is hesitant, but she improves with each attempt.”
    • make an impression — to have a strong, positive effect on someone or a group“Leila heads into the meeting feeling ready to make an impression.”
    • a wave of confidence — a sudden, strong feeling of self-assurance“She feels a wave of genuine confidence just before the meeting.”
    • pay attention to — to focus carefully on something“She pays attention to her pace and tone while practicing.”
    • get away from — to leave a place or situation, especially for a change of environment“Getting away from the office helped Leila focus on her preparation.”
    • at a glance — understood or noticed immediately, with only a quick look“A well-designed chart shows key data at a glance.”

    Word search

    Find all 8 key words from the story. They can read forwards, backwards, up, down or diagonally.

    ABCDEFGHIJKL
    1IUHFHSEACFEA
    2NSNDFXWKLXYD
    3TUEIQRPHULNE
    4ERJIEVEATFLR
    5RLAVLSUBTDYU
    6PAINIJDJEYOS
    7RSPTSMHLRCBS
    8EOARAIILEHUA
    9TNURTVTADRFL
    10TRGNEPYIERHQ
    11VIIRTDOBONTZ
    12NEYSULDVJNOU

    Comprehension quiz

    1. Why does Leila choose to prepare on the rooftop terrace instead of at her desk?

      • A) There are too many interruptions at her desk
      • B) The meeting is held on the terrace
      • C) Her laptop does not work inside
      • D) Her desk is broken
    2. What problem does Leila notice when she first looks at her slides?

      • A) The slides are in the wrong order
      • B) The charts are missing
      • C) Several slides are cluttered with too much text
      • D) The font is too small to read
    3. What does Leila add to her presentation to show the team's monthly progress?

      • A) A photograph
      • B) A written summary
      • C) A video clip
      • D) A bar chart
    4. In this story, what does the word 'hesitant' mean?

      • A) Clear and well-prepared
      • B) Slow and uncertain due to nerves
      • C) Speaking too loudly and quickly
      • D) Angry and impatient
    5. How does Leila's delivery improve over her practice attempts?

      • A) She removes all the difficult words from her script
      • B) She reads from her notes more carefully each time
      • C) Her voice becomes steady and her transitions flow naturally
      • D) She asks Dani to help her with the words
    6. What does Dani bring to Leila on the rooftop terrace?

      • A) A printed copy of the slides
      • B) Two cups of coffee
      • C) A phone charger
      • D) Extra notes for the meeting
    7. Leila feels more confident after preparing on the rooftop terrace. True or false?

      • A) Not stated
      • B) False
      • C) Not mentioned
      • D) True
    8. What does the phrase 'at a glance' mean as used in this story?

      • A) Difficult to understand without help
      • B) Understood immediately with just a quick look
      • C) After reading carefully for a long time
      • D) Explained in detail by a colleague
    9. How many practice run-throughs does Leila complete before she feels ready?

      • A) Two
      • B) Three
      • C) One
      • D) Four
    10. Dani tells Leila that her slides look sharp. What does 'sharp' mean in this context?

      • A) Written in very small text
      • B) Clear, well-designed, and impressive
      • C) Difficult and confusing
      • D) Too short and incomplete

    Answer key (B1 (Intermediate))

    1. A 2. C 3. D 4. B 5. C 6. B 7. D 8. B 9. B 10. B

    Word search answer key (B1 (Intermediate))

    Columns are lettered from the left, rows numbered from the top. The arrow shows the reading direction from the word's first letter.

    assured: L8 ↑ · cluttered: I1 ↓ · delivery: J5 ↙ · hesitant: H3 ↙ · interpret: A1 ↓ · margin: F7 ↙ · revise: F3 ↙ · transition: A3 ↘

    Free Daily English · www.freedailyenglish.com/stories/leila-gets-ready-for-the-team-meeting-on-the-rooftop-2026-10-11