ESL Activities for Beginner Students

This activity helps students understand and use contractions correctly by combining subject pronouns and auxiliary verbs (e.g., I am → I'm, they will → they'll) or negative forms (do not → don’t). Students will practice forming contractions, identifying them in sentences, and using them in conversation to improve fluency and comprehension. Student Level: Beginner, Intermediate Age Group: Kids, Adults [printfriendly] Contractions ESL Activity Preparation: Prepare a set of sentence strips, some with contractions (e.g., She’s going to the store), and others with the full forms (e.g., She is going to the store). Also, create a matching activity where students pair full phrases with their contracted forms. Provide a worksheet with sentences missing contractions, requiring students to rewrite them correctly. For an interactive component, prepare a set of flashcards with contractions…

This activity focuses on helping students learn different types of pronouns (subject, object, possessive, and reflexive) and how to use them correctly in sentences. By replacing nouns with pronouns, students will practice making their sentences smoother and avoiding repetition. Student Level: Beginner, Intermediate Age Group: Kids, Adults [printfriendly] Pronouns ESL Activity Preparation: Prepare a worksheet that lists simple sentences with repeated nouns, such as “Lisa likes Lisa’s cat because Lisa’s cat is very cute.” Leave space for students to rewrite these sentences using pronouns (e.g., “Lisa likes her cat because it is very cute”). Create a chart that categorizes pronouns into subject (e.g., he, she, they), object (e.g., him, her, them), possessive (e.g., his, her, their), and reflexive (e.g., himself, herself, themselves). Additionally, gather a set of flashcards with nouns…

In this activity, students will learn how adverbs add detail to sentences by modifying verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. By practicing the correct placement and use of adverbs, students will gain confidence in making their sentences more descriptive and specific. Student Level: Beginner, Intermediate Age Group: Kids, Adults [printfriendly] Adverbs ESL Activity Preparation: Prepare a list of common adverbs of manner (e.g., quickly, slowly, carefully), time (e.g., yesterday, today, soon), place (e.g., here, there, everywhere), and frequency (e.g., always, often, rarely). Create a worksheet with simple sentences that lack adverbs, such as “She walked to the store,” “They finished their work,” and “He speaks.” Leave space for students to add suitable adverbs to complete each sentence. For a more interactive element, gather some action cards with verbs like "jump," "draw,"…

This activity focuses on helping students use adjectives to add detail and description to their sentences. By learning to identify and place adjectives correctly, students can make their sentences more vivid and informative, which is especially helpful in both spoken and written communication. Student Level: Beginner, Intermediate Age Group: Kids, Adults [printfriendly] Adjectives ESL Activity Preparation: Gather several images of people, places, or objects that are rich in detail (e.g., a busy street scene, a peaceful beach, or an elaborate meal). Print these images or display them on a projector. Create a worksheet with a list of common adjectives categorized by type, such as color (e.g., red, blue), size (e.g., big, small), shape (e.g., round, square), and emotion (e.g., happy, sad). Leave space next to each adjective type for students…

This activity helps students understand and practice common prepositions of place (such as "in," "on," "at," "under," "next to") and time (such as "before," "after," "during," "until"). Through interactive tasks, students will learn how to describe where things are located and when events occur, building their accuracy in everyday conversation. Student Level: Beginner, Intermediate Age Group: Kids, Adults [printfriendly] Prepositions ESL Activity Preparation: Prepare a set of flashcards or visual aids with images depicting various locations or arrangements (e.g., a cat sitting under a table, a ball on a shelf). Additionally, create a list of sentences with missing prepositions for students to complete, focusing on prepositions of both place and time. These materials provide a hands-on way for students to visualize and practice different prepositional uses. Print a classroom map…

This activity focuses on helping students identify and use uncountable nouns correctly. By distinguishing between countable and uncountable nouns, students will learn how to discuss quantities, use appropriate quantifiers, and avoid common errors. Student Level: Beginner, Intermediate Age Group: Kids, Adults [printfriendly] Uncountable Nouns ESL Activity Preparation: Prepare a list of common uncountable nouns, such as "water," "sugar," "information," and "advice," as well as a few example sentences that demonstrate their usage. Additionally, gather a few images or objects that represent both countable (e.g., “apple,” “pencil”) and uncountable (e.g., “milk,” “money”) nouns to visually reinforce the differences. Print a worksheet or display a series of sentences with blanks where students need to choose appropriate quantifiers, such as “a little,” “some,” or “a piece of,” to complete each sentence. Uncountable Nouns…

In this activity, students will practice using the articles "a," "an," and "the" accurately, improving their ability to describe nouns in specific and general terms. This exercise helps clarify when to use each article, particularly when introducing new information versus referring to something specific. Student Level: Beginner, Intermediate Age Group: Kids, Adults [printfriendly] Article Usage ESL Activity Preparation: Prepare several sentences with missing articles, where students need to insert "a," "an," or "the" correctly. Print these sentences on strips or display them on a board for easy visibility. Additionally, create a list of objects or places commonly used with each type of article (e.g., “a car,” “an umbrella,” “the ocean”) to serve as examples during the activity. Arrange the sentences and objects in a way that encourages interaction and group…

Playing the Have You Ever ESL Game will get students to practice new vocabulary that they have learned in class. You can use new words covered in your course textbook and other vocabulary that you would like to reinforce. Student Level: Beginner, Intermediate Age Group: Kids, Adults [printfriendly] Have You Ever ESL Game Preparation: To prepare for the game, collect a list of words that you would like your students to practice. Make sure to have several verbs and nouns. If you are using a course textbook, it is a great idea to use words from each chapter so they can review the course content. You may want to print out the list for your own personal reference during the lesson. Pick up some dice at a dollar store. Have…

To help with students’ reading skills, this TV guide ESL activity can improve their ability to find information by scanning for information from a list of television programs. Student Level: Beginner, Intermediate Age Group: Kids, Adults [printfriendly] TV Guide ESL Activity Preparation: First, find a listing of television programs from a popular TV station online. You can find many TV guides by going directly to the broadcasting company’s website, such as HBO, CBC, or NBC. Try to find one that has a long listing of times, shows, genres, and a brief description of the programs. Ideally, try to find one that has a long listing of times, shows, genres and even a description of the programs if you can. Print out the program listings and prepare them for class. Alternatively,…