Teaching adult ESL with no materials or time?
Here’s what works when nothing else does.
Most recent posts:
- Hey TpT Buyers, Are You Leaving Perks on the Table?
Teaching adult ESL and getting great resources from TpT? Here are some TpT tips for buyers that you might not know but really should. - 6 Reasons to Switch Off the Slideshow and Pick Up the Flashcards.
I know…I know. You went through all that trouble learning the new apps. You’ve got your Canva templates, your carefully curated Google Slides, those PDF presentations you purchased from your favorite adult ESL seller↗ on TpT. And here I am, telling you to go back to…gussied-up index cards. Made of paper. Don’t click away. Hear… Read more: 6 Reasons to Switch Off the Slideshow and Pick Up the Flashcards.
Older Posts:
How to Assess Adult ESL Students in Intensive English Programs (IEPs)
I’ll be honest: when I first started teaching in an IEP (Intensive English Program), I had no idea how to assess my students effectively. I…
Task Cards: Why Aren’t More Adult ESL Teachers Using These?
Getting Adult ESL Students to Talk About the Environment
The environment is everywhere in the news. Microplastics in our water. Fast fashion waste filling landfills. Wildfires and extreme weather events. Rising sea levels. Your…
7 Great Ideas for Teaching Weather Vocabulary in Adult ESL
“Teacher, what is ice storm? Like hail, no?” Reem held up her phone, showing me a weather alert that had just lit up her screen….
7 Fun Activities for Opposite Adjectives
Years ago, I had this quirky Korean student who assigned friendship and enemy status to words when he couldn’t remember the English term he wanted….
8 Fun and Interactive Modal Activities for Adult ESL Grammar
Years ago, after hearing a co-worker complain about how much they hated teaching modals, I decided right then to make it one of the most…
10 Practical Ways to Teach the Alphabet to Adult ESL Students
So, you’re teaching adult ESL true beginners, and you need to teach the alphabet. You know there are millions of resources and ideas for teaching…
Teaching ESL Students Who Have Nothing to Say
“I can’t speak because I don’t have anything to say.” Hui wailed this in class one day, and honestly? I felt that in my bones….
Teaching /b/ and /p/ Pronunciation to Adult ESL Students
If you’ve ever taught adult ESL students whose first language is Arabic, you already know what’s coming. The b and p sounds. They sound harmless…
5 Steps to Make Causative Verbs Relevant to Your Adult ESL Students
Ever walked into your classroom after getting your hair done and had a student greet you with “You cut your hair!”? You smile because you…
Teaching Time Clauses to Adult ESL Students: Make It Fun with Photo Captions
You know how some of your adult ESL students write everything in these tiny, disconnected bursts? I’m talking about short sentences with no flow…just fact…
When Your Students Want to Reduce Their Accent (And Why That’s Okay)
“Teacher, I need to fix my accent. Nobody understands me.” Zara pulled me aside after class, frustrated and exhausted. She’d been in the US for…
Conditionals Worksheets: 6 Quick Ways to Make Them FUN!
I was scrolling through a teacher Facebook group the other day, and someone had posted a photo of their student’s answers in a conditionals grammar…
Springtime Activities That Channel Your Adult ESL Students’ Restless Energy
The days are (finally) getting longer and your adult ESL students have energy again. You know what I’m talking about. That fidgety, restless, can’t-sit-still energy….
Your Adult ESL Students Can Recite the Days of the Week. So What?
I’m rolling my eyes right now just remembering it. My students would dutifully memorize the days of the week, recite them back to me in…
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