How do I know every gap can be filled?

After each activity is made, a check reads only the two sheets and confirms that every blank on one sheet is filled on the other, and that nothing is blank on both. The line under the result says whether it passed.

Why is a column missing from the student sheets?

The last column of the key — arrival time, reorder, or end time — follows from the others, so it is kept for the teacher as a follow-up question rather than given away.

Can I print just the Student A sheets for a whole class?

Yes. Choose Student A only under What to print, print as many copies as you need, then switch to Student B only.

Are the places and shops real?

No. Every town, shop, item list, centre and person's name is invented for this page, so the sheets do not depend on any real timetable being right.

Information Gap Activity Generator

In an information-gap activity two students hold the same table with different boxes left blank, and can only complete it by asking each other. This makes one: a departures board for an invented town, a stockroom list for an invented shop, or a week of activities at an invented centre. The whole table is made first, with facts that agree with each other — arrival times follow from departure and journey time, no room hosts two sessions at once — and only then are the two sheets cut from it, so neither sheet ever contains a fact the other contradicts. Each student gets their own questions, an example exchange and the same number of gaps; the teacher's key shows the complete table with every gap marked. Each part prints on its own page.

Kind of activity

Rows in the table

4 to 10.

Gaps on each sheet

2 to 12 with 6 rows. Both students get the same number.

Activity code (optional)

Leave empty for a new activity. Type a code from an earlier sheet to make that activity again while the generator is unchanged.

What to print

Paper size

Print size

Margin

Millimetres of blank edge, 5 to 40.

Turn the paper sideways

How to print this, or save it as a PDF

There is no PDF to download, and there does not need to be. Open the print command in your browser and choose “Save as PDF” as the destination. The page addresses and dates a browser normally prints across the top and bottom are already kept off.
Set the scale to 100%, not “fit to page”. This sheet is already the exact size of the paper you chose, so anything that resizes it makes every measurement on it wrong.
Leave the paper size in the dialog set to the same one you chose here.

The activity will appear here.

What this generator does

Builds a complete table of invented but self-consistent facts, then cuts two student sheets from it so that each is missing facts only the other has. The discussion question generator and conversation starter give prompts to talk about; this gives a task with a definite, checkable result — a completed table — that two people can only reach by exchanging information.

How to use this tool

Choose the kind of activity and how many rows the table has.
Choose how many gaps each student gets; the hint shows the most the table can share fairly.
Press Make the activity and read the check line under the result.
Choose what to print — all three parts, or one at a time — and print.
Note the activity code on the sheets: typing it again makes the same activity for another class.

Understanding the controls

Kind of activity: A departures board (where each service goes, when it leaves, the platform and the journey time), a shop stockroom (price, stock and aisle of each item) or an activity week (day, start time, length, room and leader of each session). All names, places and items are made up.
Rows in the table: From 4 to 10. More rows mean more facts to exchange and a longer activity; the first column, the row's name, is always on both sheets so every question can say which row it is about.
Gaps on each sheet: Both students get the same number. A box can be blank on one sheet only, never on both, so the most gaps each is half the boxes that can be asked about — the hint gives the number for the chosen size.
Activity code (optional): Every activity has a code printed on its sheets. Typing the same code with the same kind, rows and gaps makes the same activity again while the generator is unchanged. It is a label for repeating an activity, not a secret.
What to print: All three parts, each starting on its own page, or just Student A, Student B or the key — useful for printing class sets of one sheet.

Worked examples

Departures board, 6 rows, 4 gaps each — code lantern: Services R15 to Rookstead (08:45) through E26 to Nettlebank (18:40). Student A asks 'What time does service F4 leave?' and Student B answers 'It leaves at 12:15.' Student B asks, among others, 'How long is the journey on service R15?' — 90 minutes, which only A's sheet shows.
Shop stockroom, 6 rows, 4 gaps each — code lantern: Six items from rice (£1.75, 8 in stock, aisle 6, reorder Yes) to peanut butter. Student A asks 'How many bags of rice are in stock?'; the key's reorder column is on neither sheet and makes a follow-up question.
Activity week, 6 rows, 4 gaps each — code lantern: Drama games on Monday at 10:30 through orienteering on Friday at 16:00. Student A asks 'What day is the bird watching session?' — On Tuesday — and Student B asks 'Which room is the orienteering session in?'

Common use cases

Speaking practice for language learners asking about times, prices and places
A pair-work starter that forces both students to talk, because neither can finish alone
Cover lessons: three printouts and a key, ready in a minute
Several different activities of the same kind, so neighbouring pairs cannot copy each other

How this generator works

The master table is built first, from lists of invented names written for this page. On the departures board, departure times fall between 06:00 and 21:00 in five-minute steps, no two leave at the same time, no platform has two departures within ten minutes, and the arrival time is worked out from departure and journey. In the stockroom the reorder column says Yes exactly when fewer than ten are in stock. In the activity week nothing runs past 17:00 and no room or leader is in two sessions that overlap. Then the boxes that can be asked about are dealt out a row at a time, so each sheet's gaps spread across the table, and alternately given to Student A and Student B to leave blank. Each blank gets a question naming its row and a model answer. A separate check then reads only the two sheets and the key: every blank on one sheet must be filled on the other, no box may be blank on both, every box both can see must agree, every question must name its row and be answerable, both students must have the same number of gaps, the two sheets together must give back the key box for box, and the key's own rules — arrivals, double-booking, reorder flags — are worked out again.

Randomness and fairness

Every choice — the names, the times and quantities, and which boxes are blank — comes from one repeatable sequence started from the activity code. When no code is typed, a new code is drawn from your browser's cryptographic random source, so the code printed on the sheet is always enough to make the activity again.

For how randomness is produced across the whole site, see how Generate Random works.

Assumptions this tool makes

Students sit in pairs and do not look at each other's sheets.
The questions are a model to read from; students can ask in their own words.
The facts are invented. They are consistent with each other, not with any real timetable, shop or centre.

Limitations and good to know

Three kinds of table only, in English, with fixed question patterns; custom tables and vocabulary cannot be typed in.
No level, age or curriculum is claimed. The language is simple questions about times, numbers and places, and whether that suits a class is the teacher's judgement.
The check proves the activity can be completed from the two sheets; it cannot tell whether a pair actually communicated or just copied.
Up to 10 rows, so one table fits a page; longer activities need two activities.

Common mistakes

Giving both students the same sheet: The A and B sheets look alike but have different blanks. Print them on different colours of paper, or check the heading, before handing out.
Asking for more gaps than the table can share: A box blank on one sheet must be filled on the other, so each sheet can have at most half the askable boxes. Add rows for more gaps.

Practical tips

Do the example exchange aloud with one student before the class starts.
Finish with the key's last column — arrival times, reorder flags or end times — as a question neither sheet answers directly, so pairs have to work it out together.
Keep the activity code with your lesson notes so the same activity can be used with another group.

Privacy and your data

The activity is made in your browser and nothing you type is stored or sent anywhere: the activity code stays on your device. Usage counts record only that an activity was made and how many gaps it had.

Frequently asked questions

How do I know every gap can be filled?: After each activity is made, a check reads only the two sheets and confirms that every blank on one sheet is filled on the other, and that nothing is blank on both. The line under the result says whether it passed.
Why is a column missing from the student sheets?: The last column of the key — arrival time, reorder, or end time — follows from the others, so it is kept for the teacher as a follow-up question rather than given away.
Can I print just the Student A sheets for a whole class?: Yes. Choose Student A only under What to print, print as many copies as you need, then switch to Student B only.
Are the places and shops real?: No. Every town, shop, item list, centre and person's name is invented for this page, so the sheets do not depend on any real timetable being right.