In this section there are 2,124 articles that cover essential ESL topics such as how to teach grammar, use realia, and teach young learners. There are also a lot of lesson ideas and fun activities included in the articles. This ESL article, for example, is about teaching grammar and describes five great activities. It has been given five stars by other busy teachers so it obviously has useful content. Check it out for yourself or take a look at other articles that relate better to your questions or teaching situation.
There are a lot of dos and don’ts and tips and tricks that many teachers learn through teaching.
Our ESL Essentials section will help you master the basics of teaching English and will help you start teaching like a 'pro'. Every ESL Essentials article provides clear, to-the-point instructions that can be used with the students right away.
At the moment we have 2,124 ESL Essentials.
Sometimes that is the best way to learn but the experiences of others can also help you develop your teaching skills without having to make the same mistakes. If you have a great story or activity, feel free to submit your own article so that you can share your knowledge with others. We would love to hear from you!
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ESL Articles
View our latest knowledgebase articles that will help you become a better English teacher. Learn from
professional teachers and put a bit of your own creativity into it!
Oftentimes, students are quiet simply because they have not been properly prompted to speak.
Some may have the gift of gab in their native language, others are typically shy. Whatever the case ma ...
“I’ll be teaching my first ESL class very soon, and I’m a bit nervous. I’ve completed my teacher training and certification, so I know technically ‘how to teach&rsquo ...
We’ve all been there.
Every ESL teacher has to start somewhere, and there are usually a few bumps in the road before the path becomes smooth. Most of us, despite our best intentions at the ...
“I often find it hard to connect with students once they come back from their summer vacation. It takes them a while to get their heads into the classroom. What are some good ways to connect ...
Everyone sets up their classroom a little different. Just like any other teacher, ESL teacher like to share a little bit of their personalities with what they keep in their classroom.
For some, g ...
Have you ever caught a whiff of something that brought a memory back in vivid detail?
Or have you ever heard a song and been instantly transported to the time when you first heard it? We all have ...
If you teach ESL, odds are you have some pretty standard items in your classroom.
Very few teachers will attempt educating young minds without text books, a white board or chalk board, pencils, p ...
Not exactly tech-savvy are you? But you have to admit that starting a new school year can be overwhelming, particularly for new teachers. Luckily for us, the World Wide Web offers ways in which we ...
ESL students come in all shapes and sizes.
They come into your classroom with varying degrees of motivation and even different skill levels. Most are well-behaved. And some are terribly ill-behav ...
Every teacher has experienced it: students come back from an extended break, or sometimes even a short break like a three-day weekend, and seem to have forgotten everything, from where you store t ...
Coming back to school after summer break can be demanding for both the students and the teachers.
Get back into the swing of things and motivate your students as you approach this new year! Follo ...
For some, thinking about a year’s worth of lesson planning can seem overwhelming. When you do not know what you will cook for dinner tomorrow, planning what you will teach eight and a half m ...
Help! I’m going to teach my very first ESL class soon, and I don’t know how to ‘break the ice’. I don’t want to seem like an inexperienced, boring teacher. How should ...
Icebreakers are important when you are trying to get to know your students.
They are even more important if your students do not know one another well either. Depending on how your school organiz ...
The beginning of the school year or the start of the semester is a good time for students to get to know one another.
It is also a good time to do some grammar review activities since students&rs ...
At the beginning of the year, there’s lots of information for students to keep straight. What time is class? Where is my class? Who is my teacher?
But the most important thing for students ...
It’s the beginning of a new year, and with that comes brand new students who may have never been in a classroom in English before.
Whether you have new students, beginning-level students, o ...
ESL books? ✔Check! Flashcards and illustrations? ✔Check! Back to school supplies? ✔Check! Classroom setup? Uh-oh…
You may have spent months gathering materials, planni ...
Many teachers agree that working with kids is amazing.
Their innocence, energy and natural curiosity make them irresistible to the many, many teachers who value and cherish these qualities among ...
At the start of the New Year we often give our ESL students activities related to New Year’s resolutions.
We ask them to think about what goals they have and what they want to achieve in th ...
A couple of years ago, I had a student in a reading class, a very nice young man who traced his heritage to Saudi Arabia, whose name listed on my roll sheet was “Mohammed Al-Saad.”
Ho ...
There’s always a bit of euphoria for me at the beginning of the school year in late August—a fresh start, new students, a chance to try out new routines. This truly is the New Year to ...
Another fall has rushed summer from the scene, and for teachers that means one thing: school.
Teachers have a lot of work to do to be ready before their students return to class. Make sure you ar ...
In my many years teaching English as a second language, I have had students from every corner of the world.
Many of them have come to class with an English name already claimed. Past teachers enc ...
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