Spring Into English with a May Day EFL Lesson!

We’re exploring the history and cultural significance of May Day and how it can be integrated into the classroom to enhance language learning. May Day is celebrated on the first day of May each year, holding a special place in the hearts of many around the world in its association with springtime and workers’ rights. Let’s uncover the origins of this international holiday and discover how we can use it in the classroom for a fun May Day EFL lesson to explore language in context.

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Pancake Day EFL Lesson Ideas

Pancake Day EFL Lesson ideas - pancake with berries

Pancake Day is just around the corner, which means everyone in the UK will be preparing to make delicious crispy pancakes! The proper name for Pancake Day is of course Shrove Tuesday. This is the day when people traditionally used up all their luxury foods – milk, sugar and eggs – to make pancakes before they began fasting for Lent.

In 2024, Shrove Tuesday falls on Tuesday 13th February. Read on to find out all about this mini celebration day and its religious origins. We’ve included an easy pancake recipe, plus we have some great ideas for Pancake Day EFL lessons!   Continue reading

Movember Brings Moustaches to the EFL Classroom

Movember EFL LessonHappy Movember everyone! Movember is the annual moustache-growing charity event that takes place every November. The Movember Foundation raises funds to support the fight against men’s cancers, while raising awareness for men’s health.

Although many of us are in lockdown right now due to the Coronavirus pandemic, we hope you can still enjoy this famous November event and wear your ‘taches with pride.

Many universities and colleges are joining in the event this month with students either growing their own moustache or wearing a false one. As English language teachers, we can get in on the act by raising awareness for the charity event in our lessons. Now where is my stick-on curly ‘Poirot’?
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Halloween EFL Lesson Plans: Ghostly Games and Eerie Ideas

Halloween EFL Lesson PlansHalloween EFL lesson plans at the ready – it’s that spooky time of year again! The ghosts and ghouls come out to play on 31st October and pumpkins with scary faces will adorn many a doorstep. Halloween is that one night a year when it’s OK to frighten your neighbours. You might even get sweets!

Halloween is about to be unleashed and this is one of those celebrations that has its own vocabulary. This is therefore the perfect time to think about Halloween EFL lesson plans and inject some fun Halloween vocabulary games into your EFL class. Continue reading

European Day of Languages

European Day of LanguagesThe celebrations will start soon to mark the European Day of Languages! This annual event is all about celebrating other cultures through language learning.

Since the Council of Europe in Strasbourg initiated the special day in 2001, the European Day of Languages has been celebrated every year on 26th September and throughout the week with a range of events organised across Europe.

From international conferences and TV programmes to language clubs, games, talks and home celebrations, everyone can get involved – teachers, students, universities, schools and individuals.

Decorate your house with flags, cook up some tasty food, open your phrase books and check out the special events taking place near you as we get ready for this multi-cultural and multi-lingual day! Continue reading

The FA Cup Final Inspires a Football-Themed EFL Lesson

The FA Cup Final will see Manchester City play Watford on Saturday! Who do you think will lift the coveted trophy? With all the excitement over the big match, this week is a great time to teach football vocabulary and use the theme of football to practice the English language.

There are so many football phrases that students can learn to help them enjoy watching the game on English TV. Teachers can use the matches to create fun FA Cup EFL lesson plans for speaking, listening, reading and writing exercises.

There are many collocations distinct to football, so the FA Cup Final is a great opportunity to get students enjoying an exciting footy-themed EFL lesson. Continue reading

English Tongue Twisters for Pronunciation Practice

English Tongue Twisters - She Sells Sea ShellsEnglish tongue twisters are great for pronunciation practice as they really help you to enunciate your words properly. They are also good for showing you just where you need help with your letter formation.

For English language learners, tongue twisters can seem like hard work, but its worth mastering a couple in your target language because they are fun ways to learn more about the relationships between words and sounds. She sells sea shells, anyone? Continue reading

Bingo Your Way to a Fun and Innovative Vocabulary Lesson

Using bingo to teach English might sound like a strange idea. However, using games in EFL lessons is a great way to make classes more fun and keep students entertained. Games are useful for introducing vocabulary in context, in an innovative way. There are many ways to use bingo to teach English.

Bingo is one game everyone has heard of and a fun game that can be used to teach new vocabulary, numbers and grammar points, depending on how you create your bingo cards.

It is easy to use bingo to teach English. All you need is paper and a pen – so grab your bingo dabbers and let’s prepare an innovative bingo game for EFL learners! Continue reading

St Patrick’s Day EFL Lesson: Visiting the Emerald Isle!

Happy St Patrick’s Day! This special day is celebrated every year on 17th March and it is a great time to present some new vocabulary relating to Ireland and Irish folklore. Our St Patrick’s Day lesson includes interesting words and phrases relating to Ireland along with lots of interesting facts about this Irish holiday. We have even prepared a tasty recipe for making your own traditional ‘boxty’ – Irish potato pancakes! Read on to discover more about St Patrick’s Day. Continue reading

Valentine’s Day EFL Lesson Ideas – Love is in the Air!

Valentine's Day EFL Lesson - I love YouValentine’s Day vocabulary will be making its way into EFL classrooms this month! Love is in the air as the 14th February quickly approaches. With so much vocabulary linked to this most romantic of days, this is the perfect time to introduce some new words and phrases to the class.

English vocabulary can be brought into an EFL Valentine’s Day lesson plan in various ways, including listening to songs, reading poems or letters, talking about activities or writing love letters and greetings cards. There are lots of ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day in the EFL classroom this week. So go ahead and light the pink candles – it’s time to explore Valentine’s Day vocabulary in a romantic EFL lesson! Continue reading