Lesson plans and other resources for your online beginners’ classes (CLB 1-4).
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THIS WEEK’S FEATURED POST
Week of Dec. 15/25
Teach your beginner ESL students about preparing for a traditional Canadian Christmas and encourage them to share their own cultural traditions.
The lesson includes interactive vocabulary activities, a short video, and reflection questions to…
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Focus on content: Making Christmas shortbread
Watch this short video to teach your students to follow a short Christmas recipe. This video is part of a full lesson plan, “Following a recipe: Making Christmas shortbread” below.
Christmas
Lesson plans
Following a recipe: Making Christmas shortbread
Learn the basic vocabulary used in making a Christmas treat.
Christmas and other feasts
Learn about a traditional Canadian Christmas dinner and discuss other cultural traditions.
Preparing for Christmas
Learn how many Canadians prepare to celebrate Christmas and discuss other cultural traditions.
Resources
Links to helpful external resources …
- Games4ESL: Seven fun Christmas games
- LearnHip: Christmas and New Year’s activities and exercises (LearnHip is a free site, but you may need to login to access these activities.)
- Live Worksheets: Christmas Day and Christmas Dinner
- Discussion questions:
Lunar New Year
Resources
Links to helpful external resources …
Victoria Day
Lesson plans
Victoria Day: Learning to sing “God save the king”
Learn why Canadians celebrate Queen Victoria’s birthday and how to sing our royal anthem.
Canada Day
Lesson plans
Learning to sing “O Canada”
Learn how to sing Canada’s national anthem.
Understanding Canadian symbols
Learn the names of some famous symbols of Canada.
Learning “This land is your land”
Learn about a Canadian version of a famous folk song.
Resources
Links to helpful external resources …
- Catholic Social Services (Edmonton): Citizenship (Join a free online citizenship class for permanent residents.)
- ESOL Courses: Canada Day online crossword puzzle
- Government of Canada:
- Historica Canada: Heritage Minutes (Short videos on important people and events in Canadian history.)
- Janis’ ESL: Canada (Resources on many Canadian topics.)
- My Canadian English: Canada Day 2022 | Easy explanations for English language learners
Thanksgiving
Lesson plans
A Canadian Thanksgiving
Learn about a traditional Canadian Thanksgiving dinner and discuss other cultural traditions.
Resources
Links to helpful external resources …
- All Things Topics: Thanksgiving video and worksheets
- Aparna Gupta: Thanksgiving Celebration Reading/Writing CLB 1 (This resource is on Tutela — a resource-sharing website for Canadian ESL teachers. Tutela is free, but you do need to create an account to access resources.)
- ESOL Courses: Words and activities for Thanksgiving
- Learning Chocolate: Thanksgiving Dinner vocabulary
- The Internet TESL Journal Archives conversation questions: Thanksgiving
Celebrating Halloween
Lesson plans
Celebrating Halloween
Learn about Halloween’s origin and traditions.
Resources
Links to helpful external resources …
- LearnHip Halloween activities (LearnHip is a free site, but you may need to create an account to access these activities.)
- The following resources are on Tutela — a resource-sharing site for ESL teachers. (The resources are free, but you do need to create an account.):
Remembrance Day
Lesson plans
Why do we celebrate Remembrance Day?
Learn about Canada’s role in World War I and why we celebrate Remembrance Day on November 11 each year.
Resources
Links to helpful external resources …
- The HISTORY® Channel Canada: History of Remembrance Day (A short video with many images of World War I.)
- CTV News: Remembrance Day 2022 | WATCH: Last Post played at National War Memorial (A Remembrance Day ceremony in Ottawa.)
General holidays
Resources
Links to helpful external resources …
- Shona Nichols: My Canadian English (Shona’s YouTube channel has several videos and Google slides on holidays such as Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day, etc.).
- LearnHip discussion questions (Scroll to the “Holidays” category.)
- Learning Chocolate: Celebrations/holidays (Vocabulary and practice activities.)
RELATED PAGES
Introducing Canadian citizenship
This page provides simplified and shortened lesson plans for beginner ESL students on topics related to Canadian citizenship. The page is…
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Alberta
This webpage offers online lesson plans and other resources for ESL beginner classes on Alberta topics. Lesson plans cover Alberta’s history…
Keep readingCANADA YOUTUBE PLAYLIST
Click the small arrow at the top right of this video to play the videos or go to the YouTube Canada Playlist.
CANADA WORDWALL ACTIVITIES
Wordwall is a very useful interactive lesson-creation site. If you sign up for a free Wordwall account, you will be able to see our “Canada” folder, which includes ESL Directions activities that you can add to your lessons.
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ABOUT ESL DIRECTIONS
ESL teacher, movie buff, constant reader, and former editor and communications pro. Now a graduate of the Teaching English as a Second Language program at the University of Manitoba and a TESL Canada certified ESL teacher in Edmonton, Alberta, I specialize in teaching online classes of beginner ESL students.
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