We did this activity a few weeks ago as an intro to our module on environmental problems/issues. It’s a context builder more than anything, and introduced some of the language that the learners needed for their final task (produce a… Read More ›
Lesson Ideas
Lesson idea: Celebrities, morals and ethics
This is a discussion task to introduce a sequence of lessons on fame and celebrities. One of the set reading texts in the sequence included some comments on celebrity ethics. I thought this was a good springboard, so after a… Read More ›
Lesson idea: Viral videos
This was a context builder for a sequence of lessons on viral videos, viral ad campaigns, viral marketing, etc. It’s similar to the idea I shared for introducing recipes. Anyway, used this with B1+ teens, worked well. Task 1 Find… Read More ›
Wordwall with young learners
I wrote an overview of Wordwall last year. Here’s a more practical example of how I actually use Wordwall, rather than just as a load of games… Well, still as a load of games actually, just in a more purposeful… Read More ›
Writing lesson: online dating profiles
This is a lesson based around authentic texts from the eHarmony website. It is aimed at adult pre-intermediate level plus, but these texts are full of rich language so it would ideally suit intermediate level students. Aims: · Share personal… Read More ›
Lesson idea: the ideal classroom
My secondary class (age 14+, B1) are exploring education in our latest module. We are building up to a ‘design your ideal school’ task. The first step was to consider what makes a good classroom/learning environment. Step 1: General discussion… Read More ›
Learning to read the world through other eyes
I’ve just come across this booklet as part of the reading on the PGCEi at the University of Nottingham. It’s a brilliant open access resource for exploring global citizenship. It offers a series of cross-cultural exercises, which help learners to…… Read More ›
Lesson idea: Great British Bake Off
It’s the penultimate week of term. State schools are on holiday, so the students have already requested something ‘fun’ and ‘light’ for lessons this week. The current topic is food. It’s lacked a creative task so far, and I don’t… Read More ›
Lesson idea: ‘used to’ for describing past appearance
I made this activity up in class and it worked well! Really creative, loads of interesting language, and also a good way to practice ‘used to’ for describing past appearance. Procedure: Students work in pairs Everyone has some scrap paper… Read More ›
IELTS: identifying attitudes and opinions
Another ‘making things up as I go along’. This time in my IELTS Teens class. Topic: Environment and the natural world Context: We’d just done some vocabulary review / building activities. We’d also dipped into the book for some listening… Read More ›
ELT Planning 