ESL Learners

Cultural Bridges

Teaching ESL

English skills

Lesson Planning


Lesson Materials

Further Resources


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Lesson Preparation

The first step of preparation is to plan your lesson. Once you have decided what to teach and how to teach it, look at your lesson and think about ways to expand it, and make note of what else needs to be done before your class. What can you bring to add interest? What will you photocopy and how many copies will you need? If you copy double-sided and have an odd number of pages, is there something fun like a cartoon or tongue twister you can put on the last blank side?

In addition to preparing a specific lesson every day or week, it's helpful to build yourself a collection of potential ESL resources to draw on as needed. Think about upcoming holidays or future themes in your textbook. Create an organized storage system from the beginning or you may find your growing collection of pictures, handouts, and games becoming unmanageable. Label all important personal items with your name. Here are some ideas for lesson preparation: