Teaching English as a second language can be both rewarding and costly. But teaching ESL doesn't have to mean breaking the bank. With the right tools, it's possible to create an engaging, interactive classroom without breaking the bank. Here, we'll explore 5 essential products for the ESL classroom that cost less than €10. These resources have been tried and tested by teachers from all around the world and have a track record of increased engagement and improved test scores. So don't worry about your budget—you'll find practical and affordable tools to give your ESL classroom the boost it needs. These products are sure to save you time and money while providing a fun, engaging learning environment.
Over my many years of teaching (over 10 actually!) I have bought many things for my ESL classroom with my own money. We all know how that goes huh? Some things I have bought have been absolutely terrible and some things have lasted me years and helped my students really connect with what they are learning. So I’m here to pass on my favourite purchases to you. Saving you time on researching for ideas and saving you money too, as I’ve tried and tested every single thing in this list.
So, without further ado, here are the 5 must have resources I can’t live without in my ESL classroom.
*Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are our own. This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission. Thanks
I love these magnetic letters as they can be used for all ages and levels of students. These foam letters are great for using with a whiteboard or on the table too. They are in really bright colours and this pack contains upper and lowercase letters too which is very helpful for recognition and grammar. They are a good size for both big hands and little hands and they are versatile. I have had mine for a few years now and they are still as clean and bright as the first day. The ones in particular that I’m writing about and will include a link to below come with a handy little pull string bag for storage. So they are easy to get out and tidy up.
Some Ideas for how to use them.
I like to play three games in particular with these magnetic letters. The first is where I show the class a flashcard and the student must make the name with the letters. The second game, we pull 10 letters from the bag and then have X amount of minutes to make as many words as possible. (Change the minutes depending on who is playing, making it more difficult or easy for them). The third, I describe something (animal, object, food etc…) the students listen, and when they know what it is I’m talking about then they spell it out with the letters. Fast, fun and great for improving English.
If you don’t know about these you are really missing out! For ESL students these little Story Cubes are great for improving fluency in English. There are 9 dice or cubes in a set and each side of the dice has a picture or symbol on it. There are a couple of ways to play. If my class is doing a writing exercise I like to go 1 cube at a time. Students roll one cube and write about it, then throw the next and write about that etc… This really helps students to link ideas together and have enough time to use extra vocabulary such as adjectives, adverbs and different tenses.
Another way we play is by speaking. This way you can shake all the dice out and then look at what pictures you have got. Then you can choose which order you take the pictures in. This works well with groups because 1 set of dice can tell 6 different stories because the events happen in different ways. This is a really interesting and creative activity for ESL’s. I especially like the Story Cubes listed below as they have so many different themed sets to buy. My students NEVER get bored with playing with these and I highly recommend using Story Cubes to add some fun to your classroom.
Here are my favourites - Story Cubes Emergency
REMEMBER - If your students are preparing for exams, especially the Cambridge English exams, They have to write a story. So this is a great way to practice and the students don’t even notice, they think it’s so fun!
COLOURS OF THE WORLD
This range of art supplies are perfect for any classroom in the world. Crayola have created a Colours Of The World set of crayons, pencils and felt tip pens, all with different skin tone colours. It includes all shades of pinks, peaches, browns and blacks, making your art supplies inclusive of every student you will have.
Obviously for me teaching in Spain, these are very useful as I teach native English, Spanish and other mixed nationalities such as German, Cuban, Mexican, Bulgarian and also Chilean. Having these colours available for all is great as no one gets left out and children learn that their nationalities are represented. Well done Crayola!
Get your crayons here or if you’re like me and prefer pens, check out the felt tip pens here.
SILLY SAUSAGE ACTIVE GAME
Seriously addictive guys! Your class will ask you to play ALL. THE. TIME.
So….. What is it? It’s a sausage that talks! It says commands such as run, jump, freeze. poke me and dip me and if you are holding the sausage you have to do that action it says. There are 5 different game functions, some for single players (which gets very competitive) and some for groups, which I find better to play in class.
How does this benefit ESL students? Well, it improves their listening skills of course! And it’s so much fun for all ages. I’ve had my baby groups, my teens and even my adults play this game and we even have a scoreboard up in the classroom for all to see. Absolutely recommend this game! See what I’m talking about here.
VERB GAMES
All ESL’s need help with verb changes, especially those pesky irregular verbs. A great way of practising either at the start of class or end of the class is with grammar games. If student’s learn to use verbs in an active, immersive way, then they are going to be able to use them in real life with ease too. These games improve fluency in speaking and writing as well as in different tense use.
They are really easy to set up and explain, and best of all they are reusable. So you can use them class after class, year after year and only print them once saving you time and money.
My students love to play Irregular Verb Dominoes for practising all verb forms of irregulars.
They also like playing my Past Simple or Past Progressive/Continuous board games for reading and speaking practice and another popular game is Irregular Verb BINGO! Yep, students have a bingo card with past tense verbs on. I say a verb in the infinitive form and students cross it off if they have it. First to complete all their verbs wins a cool winners bracelet (also included in the game).
And there we have it, my teacher friends. That is the list you need to get ASAP.
Our classrooms today are filled with students who are ready to learn and thrive. As teachers, it is our responsibility to provide the best possible environment for that to occur. By providing tools such as sensory tools, art supplies, games, and fun, we can create a classroom that fosters growth and development in even the youngest minds. With these five essential products, teachers can create an atmosphere that encourages learning and success. Ultimately, a quality classroom environment is the first step to creating a successful future for our kiddos. Have I missed anything from the list? Tell me your classroom faves below and don't forget to share this with your teacher besties!
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