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 donts 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!
Prepositions of time, like prepositions of place, can be challenging for students who have difficulty recognizing when to use certain words.
These little words are so important when speaking Engl ...
Teaching weather vocabulary early on in the course is a good idea because it is something that students can practice regularly.
During your daily warm ups, if you decide to ask students questions ...
Preschool is so much fun. It can be difficult to teach a second language to children still trying to grasp their own and who cannot yet read. It can also be really enjoyable because these students ...
How old were you when you learned to deal with money?
Depending on the age of your students, they may or may not have learned how to do this in their own language and with their own currency so i ...
In an ESL classroom, the emphasis should be and often is on speaking because being able to communicate is the goal of learning another language. On the other hand, the ability to listen, read, and ...
While Valentine’s Day has religious roots, these are not as commonly observed as they once were and the holiday has become a different celebration altogether. Now this is an occasion to shar ...
While students certainly need practice reading material in English, it is important that you include in your reading lesson:
Short speaking
Listening
Writing activities
The focus of the ...
For intermediate and advanced learners it is important to dedicate time to discussing topics so that students have practice organizing their thoughts and expressing their views. Lessons focused on ...
When learning the Present Perfect tense, students often struggle with using the words for and since appropriately.
To assist them with this aspect of the English language, dedicate some time and ...
It is best to review often throughout the course to keep material fresh in students’ mind and especially before major exams which cover a lot of topics. Reviewing will help students feel mor ...
Worksheets can be used in many lessons to not only practice material and prepare for exams but also to allow students to have fun.
You can create worksheets to go along with listening, reading, w ...
Whether you choose Christmas stories, carols, or crafts to share with your ESL students during this very special time of year, don’t forget to also include a Christmas lesson with video! V ...
Effective error correction is one of the things ESL teachers struggle with the most.
If you correct them too much, you might make them feel discouraged and compromise their fluency for the sake o ...
Even those ESL teachers who are not artistically inclined must admit that no Christmas lesson is complete without fun Christmas crafts.
They are as important as the stories you read and the carol ...
If your students are currently living in a city that is not their hometown, would they say they've lived there or they've been living there for a while? Either tense will do if they wish to convey ...
Christmas time is a great time to cuddle up with a good book by the fire.
Although you won’t be able to get a good fire going in class, you might still be able to recreate this cozy atmosph ...
In the northern hemisphere, there are lots who dream of a white Christmas, whereas in the south of the world the holiday season is best enjoyed by the pool while sipping cool drinks. No matter w ...
We have already discussed teaching Present Continuous earlier. Here's another angle.
The present continuous tense is one that students will learn after learning the first three simple tenses that ...
We have already looked into teaching Present Perfect in the recent article ‘How to Teach Present Perfect: Activities and Examples’; now it’s time to review another approach to do ...
Encouraging student participation can be difficult.
Students who generally perform well will be more willing to volunteer and more confident when completing exercises whereas students who struggl ...
A wide variety of games can be used when teaching English.
The key is to ensure that everyone fully participates and has enough practice with the lesson material to play. If students are not conf ...
Giving advice may not be an entire chapter in your textbook so devoting just one lesson to it may be sufficient.
If this is the case, introduce only the very simple “you should ~.” or ...
Christmas is another excellent holiday to plan a cultural lesson around.
It is a holiday in many countries and the traditions associated with it vary quite a lot from one country to another. It ...
Also known as Indirect Speech, Reported Speech is essential in everyday spoken English to basically “report” on what another person has said.
Whether we are relaying a message or sim ...
In your classes, you have probably used the imperative form when giving directions to your students so they will be familiar with at least one of its uses. This lesson will make students more awar ...
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