Starter courses for each level with a suggested teaching order from the ESL Library publishing team.

Courses

Learn how to make the most of your Ellii subscription with tips from our publishing team.

Teaching with Ellii

Did you see Ellii&#39;s first video-based course on&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/packs/phrasal-verbs-and-pre-employment/materials">Phrasal Verbs &amp; Pre-Employment</a>&nbsp;earlier this year? Our follow-up course, <a href="https://ellii.com/packs/phrasal-verbs-and-employment/materials">Phrasal Verbs &amp; Employment</a>, is now live as well!

In this series of video lessons, your students will learn vocabulary and phrases that they can&nbsp;use in typical interactions while working in an office and remotely. Students will follow a new employee&#39;s journey from her first day to her first week to her first year. We specifically chose to focus on a hybrid setting since working from home&nbsp;is increasingly common.

Lessons are based on&nbsp;dialogues between a new employee, her boss, and her colleagues in the following situations:

<ul>
	<li>Onboarding</li>
	<li>Working Remotely</li>
	<li>Attending an Online Meeting</li>
	<li>Preparing for a Presentation</li>
	<li>Asking for a Raise</li>
</ul>

Each lesson&nbsp;contains a video with a dialogue and six&nbsp;phrasal verbs in the employment contexts listed above. They are all followed by&nbsp;several&nbsp;digital tasks to check comprehension, vocabulary, and grammar. The&nbsp;course also includes two assessments.

Watch the introductory video from this course to learn more:

<div class="videoWrapper"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/1006368894" width="640"></iframe></div>

Find&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/packs/phrasal-verbs-and-employment/materials">Phrasal Verbs &amp; Employment</a>&nbsp;in the&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/packs?page=1">Courses &amp; Study Packs</a> area of Ellii under the Workplace category.

From that&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/packs/phrasal-verbs-and-employment/materials">course page</a>, you can easily click on the &quot;Add to class&quot;&nbsp;button&nbsp;to assign it immediately or gradually from&nbsp;your <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/try-class-prepping-with-elliis-lesson-planner">Lesson Planner</a>.&nbsp;

On that page, you can also&nbsp;view the&nbsp;Materials,&nbsp;Overview,&nbsp;and Teachers&#39; Notes tabs for&nbsp;useful&nbsp;information and additional resources.

We hope&nbsp;your students find this course helpful whether they&#39;re planning on working in an English-speaking environment or just looking to improve their language skills.

Happy teaching!

Phrasal Verbs & Employment Video-Based Course

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<blockquote>
Q. What is Ellii (formerly ESL Library) best known for? 
A.&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/lessons" target="_blank">Ready-made lesson plans!</a>

Q. What has Ellii become known for in the past&nbsp;few years?&nbsp; 
A.&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos" target="_blank">Ready-made videos!</a>

Q. What has&nbsp;Ellii been focusing on in 2024? &nbsp; 
A.&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/packs?page=1" target="_blank">Ready-made courses!</a>
</blockquote>

Creating ready-made lesson plans for English language teachers&nbsp;continues to be a priority at Ellii as it has always been. However, each year, the Publishing team tries to add content that is new or innovative, whether its related to a trend/theme (social-emotional learning), skill (speaking), modality (videos), or need&nbsp;(workplace English).&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 
Throughout 2024, Ellii&#39;s&nbsp;Publishing team has been focusing heavily on developing full courses with a workplace theme. That does not mean we have stopped making individual lessons and videos! You can find all of our new content in our <a href="https://ellii.com/collections/new-content" target="_blank">What&#39;s New?</a>&nbsp;monthly collections, including new lessons that were released with the launch of&nbsp;our newest lesson section:&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/career-pathways" target="_blank">Career Pathways</a>.

<h2>Career Pathways</h2>

This new digital-only lesson section, available in our Academic &amp; Workplace English genre, is suitable for high-beginner to low-intermediate adult ELLs&nbsp;who are looking for work or considering job opportunities&nbsp;in an English-speaking country. These lessons are exploratory in nature and ideal for self-study. They feature real photos rather than illustrations, a common request from today&#39;s adult ed instructors.&nbsp; 
 
Each career-specific lesson includes:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>a vocabulary preview task, featuring 10 keywords with&nbsp;real photos</li>
	<li>a short reading about a specific career (with audio)</li>
	<li>a reading comprehension task&nbsp;</li>
	<li>a gap-fill listening task</li>
	<li>a quiz</li>
</ul>

<h2>Lessons</h2>

We launched this new section with popular career choices for newcomers:

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5018-working-as-a-nursing-assistant" target="_blank">Working as a Nursing Assistant</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5034-working-as-a-pharmacy-technician" target="_blank">Working as a Pharmacy Technician</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5030-working-as-a-dental-assistant" target="_blank">Working as a Dental Assistant</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5035-working-as-a-phlebotomist" target="_blank">Working as a Phlebotomist</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5016-working-as-a-custodian" target="_blank">Working as a Custodian</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5038-working-as-a-paraeducator" target="_blank">Working as a Paraeducator</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5223-working-as-a-medical-assistant" target="_blank">Working as a Medical Assistant</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5229-working-as-an-emergency-medical-technician" target="_blank">Working as an Emercency Medical Technician</a>&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

Watch for new lessons regularly&nbsp;and use the comments to let us know which career pathways your students are considering so we can add the lessons that would be most useful for you.

<h2>Workplace Courses</h2>

Our library of ready-made career-specific workplace courses is growing!

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/S2HAIBUNgKo?si=NhL0x5b7M_0So49a" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>

To find Ellii&#39;s related courses, go to our <a href="https://ellii.com/packs?page=1" target="_blank">Courses &amp; Study Packs</a><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/?page=1" target="_blank"> </a>page and filter to the <a href="https://ellii.com/packs/?category=6&amp;page=1" target="_blank">Workplace</a> category. Be sure to check back regularly.&nbsp;Here are some Workplace courses we have released (or are working on)&nbsp;in 2024:

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/phrasal-verbs-and-pre-employment/materials" target="_blank">Phrasal Verbs &amp; Pre-Employment</a> (video course)</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/phrasal-verbs-and-employment/materials" target="_blank">Phrasal Verbs &amp; Employment</a>&nbsp;(video course)</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/nursing-assistants/materials" target="_blank">English for Nursing Assistants</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/pharmacy-technicians/materials" target="_blank">English for Pharmacy Assistants</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/dental-assistants/materials" target="_blank">English for Dental Assistants</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-phlebotomists/materials" target="_blank">English for Phlebotomists</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/healthcare-vocabulary-1/materials" target="_blank">Healthcare Vocabulary 1</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/healthcare-vocabulary-2/materials">Healthcare Vocabulary 2</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-paraeducators/materials" target="_blank">English for Paraeducators</a>&nbsp;</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-custodians/materials" target="_blank">English for Custodians</a>&nbsp;</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-emergency-medical-technicians/materials" target="_blank">English for Emergency Medical Technicians</a>&nbsp;</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-medical-assistants/materials" target="_blank">English for Medical Assistants</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-home-health-aides/materials" target="_blank">English for Home Health Aides</a></li>
</ul>

<h2>Allied Health Focus</h2>

You likely noticed that many of the workplace courses in our library are related to healthcare! At Ellii, we work hard to fill the immediate needs of schools and organizations that use our content. Allied Health&nbsp;is a growing industry with a shortage of skilled workers in both the US and Canada.&nbsp;

At Ellii, we are not healthcare experts, but we are language and teaching experts. We&nbsp;teamed up with professionals in the healthcare field to help us create these non-credit,&nbsp;exploratory courses made specifically for English newcomers&nbsp;who are considering&nbsp;different career pathways. These courses may also be useful for experienced healthcare workers who&nbsp;need to upskill to&nbsp;gain employment in an English-speaking country by improving their English proficiency.&nbsp;Our materials writers and editors worked with nurses, EMTs, dentistry professionals, and others to ensure that the scenarios and objectives were realistic, authentic, and functional. These dialogue-based courses are ideal for IET programs and&nbsp;focus on key vocabulary, phrases, and common workday scenarios for a variety of healthcare careers.&nbsp;

<h3>Highlights of Ellii&#39;s Allied Health Materials</h3>

<blockquote>
<ul>
	<li>career exploration</li>
	<li>non-credit</li>
	<li>dialogue-based</li>
	<li>common scenarios</li>
	<li>WIOA compliant</li>
	<li>NRS aligned</li>
	<li>skill-building (vocabulary, phrases, grammar, soft skills)</li>
	<li>intermediate+</li>
	<li>communicative</li>
	<li>mobile-friendly</li>
	<li>ideal for self-study and pre-enrollment</li>
	<li>built-in assessments</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>

 
To learn more about Ellii&#39;s Allied Health&nbsp;content, watch the recording of this webinar!&nbsp;

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vMlFNOxnhwg?si=7oNAM-swuNBIUgmi" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>

<h2> 
Related Ellii Poll</h2>

Get your students thinking about jobs with this interactive Career Pathways <a href="https://app.ellii.com/gather/ellii-polls/career-pathways" target="_blank">Ellii Poll</a>.

Did you know that unlike Ellii&#39;s lessons and courses (which require a subscription),&nbsp;Ellii Polls are free for anyone to use?&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/blog/ellii-polls" target="_blank">Learn how to access Ellii Polls and invite students here.</a>

<h2>Related Media</h2>

<h3>Flashcards</h3>

We also have Flashcard sets related to many of these Career Pathways. Find these sets in the <a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/at-work-on-the-job" target="_blank">At Work &amp; On the Job</a> genre in the Flashcards area of our&nbsp;Media Gallery.&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/at-work-on-the-job/jobs-occupations" target="_blank">Jobs &amp; Occupations</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/at-work-on-the-job/job-actions" target="_blank">Job Actions</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/at-work-on-the-job/at-the-office" target="_blank">At the Office</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/at-work-on-the-job/community-helpers" target="_blank">Community Helpers</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/at-work-on-the-job/nursing-assistants" target="_blank">Nursing Assistants</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/at-work-on-the-job/pharmacy-technicians" target="_blank">Pharmacy Technicians</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/at-work-on-the-job/dental-assistants" target="_blank">Dental Assistants</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/at-work-on-the-job/phlebotomists" target="_blank">Phlebotomists</a></li>
</ul>

If Allied Health is the focus for your students, this <a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/body-health-medicine" target="_blank">Body, Health, &amp; Medicine</a>&nbsp;genre will have plenty of useful words for your students to learn.&nbsp; 
 
To make the best use of Ellii&#39;s supplementary visuals, check out&nbsp;these related Help Docs and videos:

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://help.ellii.com/article/63-how-to-create-flashcard-sets">How to Create and Save Flashcard Sets</a></li>
	<li>&nbsp;<a href="https://help.ellii.com/article/198-how-to-use-the-flashcard-player">How to Use the Flashcard Player</a></li>
	<li>&nbsp;<a href="https://help.ellii.com/article/246-how-to-share-flashcard-sets-with-students">How to Share Flashcards with Students</a></li>
</ul>

<h3>Silent Clips</h3>

Do you use Ellii&#39;s&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/silent-clips" target="_blank">Silent Clips</a>?&nbsp;We have&nbsp;a new&nbsp;video&nbsp;category full of action verbs related to popular jobs.&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/workplace" target="_blank">Nursing</a>&nbsp;</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/workplace/pharmacy-vocabulary">Pharmacy</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/workplace/dentistry-vocabulary" target="_blank">Dentistry</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/workplace/phlebotomy-vocabulary" target="_blank">Phlebotomy</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/workplace/manufacturing-vocabulary" target="_blank">Manufacturing</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/workplace/restaurant-hospitality-vocabulary" target="_blank">Restaurant Hospitality</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/workplace/hotel-hospitality-vocabulary" target="_blank">Hotel Hospitality</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/workplace/education-vocabulary" target="_blank">Education Hospitality</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/workplace/construction-vocabulary" target="_blank">Construction Hospitality</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/workplace/custodian-vocabulary" target="_blank">Custodian Hospitality</a></li>
</ul>

Here are <a href="http://4 Creative Ways to Use Silent Video Clips in English Class" target="_blank">4 Creative Ideas for How to Use Silent Clips in the Classroom</a>.&nbsp;

<blockquote>
Is there a job your ELLs are interested in that you would like to see added to&nbsp;Ellii&#39;s <a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/career-pathways" target="_blank">Career Pathways</a> section (or expanded into a full&nbsp;Ellii course)?&nbsp;Is there a task or activity you would like to see added to existing and future lessons in this section? Please leave a comment for our Publishing team.&nbsp;
</blockquote>

Career Pathways for Newcomers

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Each month, I&nbsp;closely review the feedback and requests that come in via Ellii&#39;s Teacher Survey.&nbsp;

We get such wonderful&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/tour/testimonials" target="_blank">testimonials</a> and helpful feedback from this survey! Here is one request that came in this week:

<blockquote>
&quot;Providing more robust training materials for teachers to maximize the use of Ellii&#39;s features and improvements would greatly enhance my ability to provide high-quality education to my students.&quot;
</blockquote>

Helping teachers maximize their use of Ellii&#39;s planning tools and other features&nbsp;is something we are focusing on heavily in 2024.&nbsp;From attending and hosting conferences&nbsp;to building out <a href="https://help.ellii.com/" target="_blank">Help Docs</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLP0N5nuiA3aM_OP18M7G9XSYjXigIuunA" target="_blank">explainer videos</a>, we are always experimenting with how best to deliver training and offer&nbsp;support. This <a href="https://help.ellii.com/article/212-how-to-use-ellii-teacher-training-module">Teacher Traning Module</a> is a great place to start! 
 
Are you an Ellii subscriber? Here are five&nbsp;things to try if you want to maximize your use of the platform:

<h2>1. Subscribe to Ellii&#39;s YouTube Channel</h2>

The Ellii for Teachers YouTube channel&nbsp;&nbsp;(<a href="http://www.youtube.com/@elliiteachers" target="_blank">www.youtube.com/@elliiteachers</a>)&nbsp;is where we post all of our helpful videos for teachers, including short explainers and long-form demos&nbsp;of&nbsp;Ellii&#39;s new features and updates.

<h2>2. Visit Ellii&#39;s&nbsp;Feature Release Blog Post</h2>

Ellii&#39;s product team releases a series of new features and&nbsp;updates every six&nbsp;weeks! These updates are often based on customer requests. Visit this <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/feature-releases-platform-updates-2023" target="_blank">post</a> regularly to see what&#39;s new and updated throughout the year.

<h2>3. Use Ellii&#39;s Help Docs</h2>

When you are logged in, you will see a menu underneath your name in the top right corner. Click on the&nbsp;<a href="https://help.ellii.com/" target="_blank">Help</a> section to find articles with step-by-step instructions and&nbsp;screencaps on how to use all of the features on Ellii. The Help&nbsp;area also has its own&nbsp;Search field for features.

<h2>4. Contact Ellii</h2>

We have a dedicated customer support team that is available to answer your emails. If you have questions or feedback that you want to give directly to a person at Ellii, you can use this <a href="https://ellii.com/contact" target="_blank">Contact</a> form. It is located in the footer of every page on Ellii.

<h2>5. Get What&#39;s New? Content Notifications &amp;&nbsp;Newsletters&nbsp;</h2>

Ellii&#39;s publishing team&nbsp;sends out a&nbsp;What to Teach This Week newsletter every Monday.&nbsp;You can also watch for new content in our <a href="https://ellii.com/collections/new-content" target="_blank">What&#39;s New Collection</a>. We also send out email updates about important features and updates. Go to your Account settings (in the menu underneath your name). Then choose Notifications and make sure you are getting the updates you want and need.&nbsp;

<blockquote>
Are you an Ellii subscriber? What feature or tool do you rely on for teaching English? Is there a feature or tool&nbsp;you want to learn more about?
</blockquote>

5 Ways to Maximize Your Use of Ellii 

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In this blog post, I&rsquo;ll share the importance of literacy skills and the benefits of using a phonics approach to teach them.

<h2>Why is literacy important?</h2>

The ability to read and write is an essential skill. It allows us to access information, communicate with others, express ourselves, and advance our careers. Reading can help us relax, boost our imaginations, and learn about the world we live in. Writing gives us the opportunity to articulate our opinions, share our expertise, and advocate for ourselves and important causes.

From a language learning perspective, learners who are developing literacy skills may be at a disadvantage to their peers with stronger literacy skills. In my classes, there was a noticeable divide between learners whose first script was Roman and those who were learning to read and write in a new script.

Learners whose first script was Roman would take notes quickly, understand meaning while&nbsp;reading more easily, and be able to write well-structured texts confidently. Learners who were developing their literacy skills in English (and perhaps in their first language too) took more time and required more support.

<h2>What are the challenges of teaching literacy?</h2>

There are many reasons why literacy skills are challenging to develop. Students may need to learn how to identify and form a whole new alphabet. They also have to develop an understanding of punctuation, sentence structure, and paragraphing. Then there&rsquo;s rhetorical styles, formality, and a diverse range of text styles with which to become familiar.

Perhaps the most difficult aspect of literacy is spelling-pronunciation agreement. English is notoriously irregular when it comes to pronunciation rules. Think about the spelling of &quot;ough&quot; for example. It is pronounced differently in &quot;though,&quot; &quot;through,&quot; &quot;thought,&quot; and &quot;tough.&quot; And the word &quot;read&quot;&nbsp;is spelled the same way in both the simple present tense and&nbsp;the simple past tense, but sounds like the color &quot;red&quot;&nbsp;in its past form.

<h2>What are the benefits of teaching phonics?</h2>

In order to develop students&rsquo; reading and writing skills, we need to work on their ability to match sounds to spelling. Teaching phonics is a great way to do this. It provides an opportunity for students to become familiar with common sound-spelling agreements as well as their exceptions.

<h2>How to teach phonics?</h2>

There are many ways to teach phonics. I like to devote time in any reading lesson to identifying a few similar sounds and ways to spell them and then have students add them to their vocabulary notebooks. You could also have them make silly sentences or short texts using the target sound or spelling.

<h2>Ellii&#39;s Phonics Stories</h2>

A great way to teach sound-spelling agreement is to use Ellii&rsquo;s collection of <a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/phonics-stories" target="_blank">Phonics Stories</a>. Each one cleverly introduces words that use the same target sound in context. Students can read, listen, and repeat the fun short stories. This raises awareness of new words, their pronunciations, and their spellings.

This collection of stories is perfect for learners of all ages and has been graded to different levels.&nbsp;

<img alt="Ellii's Phonics Stories" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3872/content_Screen_Shot_2024-07-24_at_4.05.34_PM.png" />

Let&rsquo;s look more closely at <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/3854-a-whale-with-a-veil" target="_blank">A Whale with a Veil</a>. In this lesson, students read about a whale that wore a wedding veil in a gale. It focuses on the sounds and spellings for /w/, /v/, and /e/ (long a).

<img alt="A Whale with a Veil by Tara Benwell for Ellii" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3873/content_Screen_Shot_2024-07-24_at_4.12.58_PM.png" /> 
 
The digital version of the lesson also contains&nbsp;a video of the story with captions to follow along.

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vyIcDc-9LEc?si=BVjLr7Y3t713Tm3q" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>

There are lots of possibilities for teaching and adapting this lesson (or any of Ellli&#39;s&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/phonics-stories" target="_blank">Phonics Stories</a>) in class. Here are some ideas:

1. Say the title aloud and have students predict the story.

2. Read and listen to the story.

3. Check comprehension by asking and answering questions.

4. Have students identify the sounds and spellings by circling the words in the text:

<ul>
	<li>wh - whale, white, what</li>
	<li>w - west, wait&nbsp;</li>
	<li>silent w = (ow) - blown</li>
	<li>v - vest, veil</li>
	<li>a_e - tale, whale, gale</li>
	<li>ai - tail, wait, wail</li>
	<li>ei - veil</li>
	<li>ay - way</li>
	<li>est - best, vest, rest</li>
</ul>

5. Practice pronouncing the sounds individually and the whole words.&nbsp;

6. Listen to the story again and complete a gap-fill text using the target words.&nbsp;

7. Have students read the text aloud.&nbsp;

8. Have students turn the story into a script and perform it.&nbsp;

9. Help them to find or think of other words that use this sound and spelling. Create a list on the board or in their notebooks.&nbsp;

10. Create a picture dictionary with the new words&mdash;either with drawings, digital images, or printing images to cut out and glue in the dictionary.&nbsp;

<img alt="Emily Bryson's example picture dictionary drawings" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3874/content_Screen_Shot_2024-07-24_at_4.04.47_PM.png" />

Some examples of picture dictionaries from my adult ESOL Literacy class.

11. Write definitions and find synonyms or antonyms for each word.&nbsp; 
12. Make sentences, questions, tongue twisters, or short texts with the words. 
13. Set the individual tasks for homework.&nbsp;

<blockquote>
Do you teach phonics? What are your top tips? Do you have any favorite Phonics Stories?
</blockquote>

How to Develop ESL Literacy with Phonics Stories

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Using Folders inside Ellii to organize your class content and curate your own teaching order, study packs, courses, or even curricula&nbsp;is a game-changer when it comes to having unique and engaging classes!

Introducing our new and improved Folders that are just as fun to make, simple to share, and now easy to move into any class.&nbsp;

<h2>Here&#39;s what&#39;s NEW with Folders!</h2>

Take a look at the changes we&#39;ve recently made:

<ol>
	<li>Entire Folders can now be easily pinned to any class for quick access.</li>
	<li>Ellii courses, study packs, videos, and flashcard categories can now be saved to Folders.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Pinned Folders can now be found in the Content Drawer of your class&#39;s Lesson Planner.</li>
	<li>Folders can be pinned and unpinned directly inside your class&#39;s Content Drawer.</li>
	<li>Multiple Folder items&nbsp;can be moved at the same time into the Saved, Prepping, or Teaching lane&nbsp;of your Lesson Planner.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Class content from inside your Lesson Planner can now be exported into a Folder to be used again in the future.&nbsp;</li>
</ol>

<h3>Can&#39;t wait to start using these new Folder features?</h3>

Watch this video demo to learn all you need to know about these Folder updates and more!

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ABIX4RDl8Qs?si=C-AcPqhL6n7H1Mqt" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>

Happy teaching!

&nbsp;

Create & Pin Custom Folders to Your Classes

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Introducing&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/packs/phrasal-verbs-and-pre-employment/materials">Phrasal Verbs &amp; Pre-Employment</a>,&nbsp;Ellii&#39;s first-ever video course!

In this series of video lessons, your students will learn vocabulary and phrases that they can&nbsp;use in typical interactions when they&#39;re searching for employment.&nbsp;

Each lesson&nbsp;contains a video with a dialogue and six&nbsp;phrasal verbs in various&nbsp;pre-employment contexts. They are all followed by&nbsp;several&nbsp;digital tasks to check comprehension, vocabulary, and grammar. The&nbsp;course also includes two assessments.

Watch the introductory video from this course to learn more:

<div class="videoWrapper"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/949286954" width="640"></iframe></div>

The&nbsp;course includes the following pre-employment lesson topics:

<ul>
	<li>Networking at a Job Fair</li>
	<li>Reviewing a Resume with a Career Counselor</li>
	<li>Completing a Phone Screening</li>
	<li>Arriving for a Job Interview</li>
	<li>Interviewing for a Job</li>
</ul>

Find&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/packs/phrasal-verbs-and-pre-employment/materials">Phrasal Verbs &amp; Pre-Employment</a>&nbsp;in the&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/packs?page=1">Courses &amp; Study Packs</a> area of Ellii under the Workplace category.

From that&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/packs/phrasal-verbs-and-pre-employment/materials">course page</a>, you can easily click on the &quot;Add to class&quot;&nbsp;button&nbsp;to assign it immediately or gradually from&nbsp;your <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/try-class-prepping-with-elliis-lesson-planner">Lesson Planner</a>.&nbsp;

On that page, you can also&nbsp;view the&nbsp;Materials,&nbsp;Overview,&nbsp;and Teachers&#39; Notes tabs for&nbsp;useful&nbsp;information and additional resources.

We&#39;re planning on making two more related courses on Phrasal Verbs &amp; Employment and Phrasal Verbs &amp; Post-Employment&nbsp;later this year, so we would greatly appreciate any feedback you have on this course.

Happy teaching!

Try Ellii's First Video-Based Course

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A more organized teacher is a better teacher, don&#39;t you think? 
We do! So we built a clean and simple organizational feature we&#39;re calling &quot;Lesson&nbsp;Planner.&quot;

The Lesson Planner is designed as a Kanban board with three lanes: Prepping, Teaching, and Taught. Drag Ellii content across any lane to effortlessly prepare for your classes ahead, instantly assign lessons to your students, and see what you were working on recently. It&#39;s a super simple way to stay organized and teach better.

To get content into the Lesson Planner, simply click on the Add to Class button from any Lesson or Resource page, choose the class and lane you&#39;d like to save it to, and you&#39;re done! You will immediately be able to see your selected lesson content in the Lesson Planner inside your class.

By clicking on any lesson or resource inside the Lesson Planner, you can set a due date, leave a note for your students, and edit the lesson tasks. You can also pre-schedule the release date of any lesson, making planning and assigning content to your students a breeze!

See how the Lesson Planner works in the video below:

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Lorc2EN3MEs?si=2RuZ__1RrPLB-tX2" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>

Our goal is to help make class prepping easier and more enjoyable. Give Ellii&#39;s Lesson Planner a try today.

Happy Teaching!

Try Class Prepping with Ellii's Lesson Planner

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Looking for guidance on how to teach grammar targets? We&#39;ve turned our popular grammar materials into practical and easy-to-follow courses! 
 
Each of our nine&nbsp;grammar <a href="https://ellii.com/packs?page=1" target="_blank">courses</a> is packed full of comprehensive lessons and engaging supplementary materials, all designed to help your students master tricky grammar targets. 
 
Ranging from pre-beginner to advanced, we&#39;ve designed our courses to cover the important grammar structures and uses for every learning level!

<div class="videoWrapper"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/AEpRuqwmmaY?si=95ozdGL_PHAs4W1W" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div>

We hope you love this ready-made, grammar-focused curriculum!&nbsp;Let us know what you think. Happy teaching! 💛

<ol>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/grammar-groundwork-1/materials" target="_blank">Grammar Groundwork 1</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/grammar-groundwork-2/materials" target="_blank">Grammar Groundwork 2</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/grammar-groundwork-3/materials" target="_blank">Grammar Groundwork 3</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/grammar-growth-1/materials" target="_blank">Grammar Growth 1</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/grammar-growth-2/materials" target="_blank">Grammar Growth 2</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/grammar-growth-3/materials" target="_blank">Grammar Growth 3</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/grammar-genius-1/materials" target="_blank">Grammar Genius 1</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/grammar-genius-2/materials" target="_blank">Grammar Genius 2</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/grammar-genius-3/materials" target="_blank">Grammar Genius 3</a></li>
</ol>

A Ready-Made Grammar Curriculum for Every ELL Level

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Stay up-to-date with ELT trends and ideas with articles from experts and teachers in the field.

Articles

There are many reasons to bring environmental matters into the ELT classroom:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>2023 was the warmest year on record.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Greenhouse gas levels are rising.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Ice caps and glaciers are melting.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Sea levels are rising.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>The number or extreme weather events has increased.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

This may sound like a scary list, but that is exactly why climate change is&nbsp;an important topic to discuss in class. These things are&nbsp;happening to the planet we live on right now and, consequently, the environment is&nbsp;a subject of global importance.&nbsp;

Including green-themed lessons in the ELT classroom can raise awareness of the climate crisis and inspire learners to make tiny changes to Earth.&nbsp;

In this post, I&rsquo;ll explore some ways to do this:&nbsp;

<h2>1. Follow green ELT accounts</h2>

One of the best ways to get ideas for greening your classroom is by following the experts. I always feel inspired by the content on <a href="https://eltfootprint.org/" target="_blank">ELT Footprint</a>, <a href="https://green-action-elt.uk/" target="_blank">Green Action ELT</a>, and <a href="https://renewableenglish.com/" target="_blank">Renewable English</a> socials. I also love being part of the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/eltfootprint/" target="_blank">ELT Footprint </a>Facebook group, where I can share my own ideas, ask questions, and find out about events.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<h2>2. Take action</h2>

Some of the best opportunities for students to learn English happen outside of the classroom. This can provide a chance for learners to use their language skills to work together towards a shared goal. For example:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>visiting a site of environmental importance (e.g., a recycling plant)</li>
	<li>attending a&nbsp;green event (e.g., a conference, rally, or concert)</li>
	<li>organizing a fundraiser (e.g., creating a recipe book to reduce food waste)</li>
	<li>creating something with upcycled materials (e.g., a greenhouse from plastic bottles)</li>
	<li>taking part in a community cleanup (e.g., a gardening event or litter pickup)</li>
	<li>starting a green-themed petition (e.g., to have more bicycle lanes)</li>
	<li>Plant something (e.g., trees, vegetables, fruit)</li>
</ul>

<h2>3. Get inspired</h2>

At Ellii, we absolutely love Ali Waters, daughter of ELT green guru Harry Waters. This unstoppable human has a mission, and she is on track to succeed. On her 11th birthday, Ali launched the #1millionlitterpick challenge. The goal is to collect and recycle one million pieces of plastic litter.

To get involved, get your students to collect as much litter as possible. Then count it and log it on &quot;Ali&rsquo;s Map&quot;&nbsp;app. You could also take photos&nbsp;and share your own successes with the world. This will spread the word, help Ali to achieve her goals, and make the world&nbsp;a cleaner, shinier place.&nbsp;

Learn all about <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/one-in-a-million-plastic-litter-challenge">Ali&#39;s one-in-a-million mission</a> in this post.

Here are some Ellii lessons you could use to introduce the theme of litter:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/3308-ocean-garbage " target="_blank">Ocean Garbage</a>: Discussion Starters</li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/1212-garbage-solutions" target="_blank">Garbage Solutions</a>: Discussion Starters</li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/1246-composting" target="_blank">Composting</a>: Discussion Starters</li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/1281-food-waste" target="_blank">Food Waste</a>: Discussion Starters</li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/4219-throw-it-out " target="_blank">Throw It Out!</a>: Photo Prompts</li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/1462-plastic " target="_blank">Plastic</a>: Famous Things</li>
</ul>

<h2>4. Encourage debate &amp; discussion</h2>

As with any topic of global importance, students will bring their own experiences and opinions to class. It&rsquo;s important to give them the opportunity to share their ideas in an open and respectful way.&nbsp;

<a href="https://ellii.com/gather/ellii-polls" target="_blank">Ellii Polls</a> are a great way to do this. They allow learners to anonymously share their views and&nbsp;they provide supported discussion questions.&nbsp;

Take this poll on <a href="https://ellii.com/gather/ellii-polls/water-conservation" target="_blank">Water Conservation</a>, for example:&nbsp;

Students scan the QR code to get started and then enter their name. Once everyone has joined the poll, the teacher can start the sequence of questions, discussion starters, and vocabulary.&nbsp;

<img alt="Ellii Poll QR Code Example" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3610/content_Screen_Shot_2024-02-23_at_11.00.49_AM.png" />

Students answer a question and then&nbsp;stop to discuss the responses, which they can see on the teacher&#39;s screen.&nbsp;After the responses come in, you could take the opportunity to encourage discussion around:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>whether students are surprised by the results</li>
	<li>students&rsquo; feelings about the results</li>
	<li>possible reasons for the results</li>
	<li>how to change the results</li>
</ul>

<img alt="Ellii Poll Question example" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3611/content_Screen_Shot_2024-02-23_at_11.02.07_AM.png" />

After the initiating yes/no question, you can&nbsp;continue the poll sequence to cover vocabulary input, agreeing and disagreeing, and more in-depth discussions.

<img alt="Ellii Poll Vocabulary" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3612/content_Screen_Shot_2024-02-23_at_11.03.15_AM.png" />

Next, students get a chance to agree or disagree about a set of statements related to the topic.

<img alt="agree or disagree example in an Ellii Poll" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3615/content_Screen_Shot_2024-02-23_at_12.16.23_PM.png" /> 
 
After that, students see&nbsp;further poll questions that allow them to elaborate.

&nbsp;<img alt="Ellii Poll questions" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3613/content_Screen_Shot_2024-02-23_at_11.04.36_AM.png" />

Finally, if your students seem interestsed in the topic, you can find related lessons at the end of the poll. Note that the polls are free for anyone to use; however, the lessons&nbsp;require a paid subscription.&nbsp;

 
<img alt="Related lessons in Ellii Polls" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3614/content_Screen_Shot_2024-02-23_at_11.14.03_AM.png" /> 
 
If you like the sound of this, you can check out Elli&rsquo;s ever-growing bank of<a href="https://ellii.com/gather/ellii-polls " target="_blank"> poll topics</a>.

Here&rsquo;s a few green ones to get you started:&nbsp;

<a href="https://ellii.com/gather/ellii-polls/food-waste" target="_blank">Food Waste</a> 
<a href="https://ellii.com/gather/ellii-polls/water-conservation" target="_blank">Water Conservation</a> 
<a href="https://ellii.com/gather/ellii-polls/climate-change">Climate Change</a>&nbsp;

<h2>5. Browse the collections</h2>

Finding ways to incorporate green issues into the classroom is simple when you have Ellii. All of the awesome environmentally themed lessons you can use in class are in&nbsp;this <a href="https://ellii.com/collections/global-issues/the-environment">Environment</a> collection. There is also a collection that curates Ellii&#39;s content with&nbsp;the UN&#39;s&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/collections/global-issues/sustainable-development-goals" target="_blank">Sustainable Development Goals</a>&nbsp;in mind.

<blockquote>
How do you include green topics in your classes? What tips and teaching ideas would you add?&nbsp;
</blockquote>

Greening the ELT Classroom: Tips & Teaching Ideas

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Planning and reflection are crucial for the English language classroom. For teachers, reflective practice aids development and ensures future classes are planned to meet the needs of learners.&nbsp;

From the students&#39; perspective, the ability to plan and reflect are key life skills. Supporting learners to reflect on their distance traveled and learning preferences develops their self-awareness, confidence, and ability to implement successful language development strategies. It also helps them to identify their goals and consider how to achieve them.&nbsp;

There are many graphic facilitation tools and templates to support planning and reflection. In general, these tend to be hand-drawn templates, but ready-made images and flashcards can be equally effective.&nbsp;

Here are 12 Ellii flashcards that you can use for planning and reflection. You can find each one by searching in the Ellii <a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards" target="_blank">Media Gallery</a>.&nbsp;

<a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards" target="_blank"><img alt="Ellii Flashcards" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3494/content_Ellii-flashcards-planning-reflection.png" /></a>

You can then:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>edit the title on the flashcard</li>
	<li>print it as a worksheet for each learner to add their thoughts</li>
	<li>display it on the whiteboard for students to add their opinions using Post-its or markers</li>
	<li>display it and ask students to draw it in their notebooks and add their ideas&nbsp;</li>
	<li>ask students to share their ideas and plans in pairs, in small groups, or as a presentation</li>
	<li>use it yourself to reflect on your own practice or plan your next classes</li>
</ul>

Each of these flashcards uses a visual metaphor to help learners and teachers reflect, dream, and plan. They&rsquo;re perfect for use at the beginning or end of a course, calendar year, or academic year. You can use them alone or in combination, depending on your learners&#39; needs.&nbsp;

<a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/in-at-school/skills-competencies?flashcard=5300" target="_blank"><img alt="Learner reflection flashcard" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3496/content_leaner-reflection_Ellii-flashcard.png" /></a>

<h2>1. Learner reflection</h2>

Reflection is very much related to internal thoughts. Use this thought bubble flashcard as a space to:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>add big dreams or ambitions for the future</li>
	<li>list all the positive things that happened in the past course or year</li>
	<li>write feedback or key learning points from the course</li>
	<li>make a list of future wishes or intentions</li>
</ul>

Depending on what you use it for, you could&nbsp;rename it to:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>future dreams</li>
	<li>ambitions</li>
	<li>goals</li>
	<li>things I loved about this course</li>
	<li>things I need to work on</li>
</ul>

<h2>2. Mirror</h2>

This is a visual metaphor for taking a good look at oneself in the mirror. It can be quite personal, so in this instance you may give students the option to keep some of their reflections to themselves.

Ellii has four different mirrors. You could use just one and focus on a certain aspect to reflect on, or you could assign each flashcard a different aspect to reflect on. For example:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>Mirror 1: How hard did I work this term/year?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Mirror 2: What results did I get?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Mirror 3: What would I do differently?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Mirror 4: What helped me learn the most?&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

<img alt="mirrors" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3495/content_Ellii-mirror-flashcards.png" />

<h2>3. Magic wand</h2>

The &quot;magic wand&quot; flashcard is a fun way to take the seriousness out of a reflective or planning task. You could ask students to use it to:&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>add their wishes for the next year/term</li>
	<li>add their wishes for what they&rsquo;d change about the past year/term&nbsp;</li>
	<li>discuss their BIG ambitions or long-term goals</li>
	<li>consider their wishes for the whole world</li>
</ul>

<img alt="magic wand" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3497/content_magic-wand_Ellii-flashcard.png" />

<h2>4. Protagonist &amp; hero</h2>

There&rsquo;s something quite empowering about this &quot;protagonist&quot;&nbsp;flashcard. The image shows someone working towards their goal in an enthusiastic way.&nbsp;

<img alt="protagonist" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3498/content_protagonist_Ellii-flashcard.png" />

My suggestion would be to use it alongside the &quot;hero&quot; flashcard to set goals and ways to achieve them.&nbsp;

<img alt="hero" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3499/content_hero_Ellii-flashcard.png" />

<ol>
	<li>Change the name of the &quot;hero&quot;&nbsp;flashcard to &quot;goal&quot;&nbsp;or &quot;goals&quot;&nbsp;and ask learners to add or list their goals.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Change the name of the &quot;protagonist&quot; flashcard to &quot;plan of action&quot;&nbsp;and ask students to list the steps they need to take in order to reach their goal. The &quot;clipboard&quot;&nbsp;is a good alternative image for this activity. 
	 
	<a href="https://ellii.com/media/flashcards/at-work-on-the-job/at-the-office?flashcard=2774" target="_blank"><img alt="clipboard flashcard" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3500/content_clipboard_Ellii-flashcard.png" /></a></li>
	<li>Ask students to support each other with feedback, advice, and suggestions.&nbsp;</li>
</ol>

<h2>5. Road maps</h2>

The <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/3-end-of-term-activities-for-students" target="_blank">visual metaphor of a road map</a> is ubiquitous to graphic facilitation. It&rsquo;s popular with strategic business planning to explain processes. It&rsquo;s simple to draw, but these flashcards do the hard work for you!&nbsp;You could rename each flashcard and use them in various ways.

<img alt="" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3493/content_Screen_Shot_2023-12-07_at_11.42.19_AM.png" />

To the left of:&nbsp;

This flashcard could be renamed to &quot;past,&quot; &quot;what happened,&quot;&nbsp;or &quot;reflections.&quot; You can then ask students to use it to list completed tasks and reflections on how each one went.&nbsp;

To the right of:&nbsp;

You could rename this flashcard to &quot;future,&quot;&nbsp;&quot;wishes,&quot; or &quot;road map to success.&quot; At the end of the road, add the main goal and add steps for achieving it along the way.&nbsp;

Trail map:&nbsp;

This flashcard could be used to create a study or project plan, or to reflect on distance traveled. Students could draw their own to show difficulties they have as bumps or twists in the pathway.&nbsp;

<blockquote>
These are just a few visual activities to aid planning and reflection. Have you tried any similar activities? Which visual metaphors or flashcards would you use? We&rsquo;d love to hear your suggestions! &nbsp;
</blockquote>

<h2 dir="ltr">Related</h2>

<ul dir="ltr">
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/3-end-of-term-activities-for-students">3 Awesome End-of-Term Activities for English Learners</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/3-tips-for-using-flashcards-no-prep-required">3 Tips for Using Flashcards&mdash;No Prep Required</a></li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

12 Ellii Flashcards Perfect for Planning & Reflection

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Posts describing lessons or activities for the ESL classroom.

Activities

The main goal of language teaching is getting students to communicate. This is why it might sound counterintuitive to use wordless stories and videos as a teaching tool.

However, using wordless visuals as a resource is fantastic for developing students&rsquo; creativity and critical thinking skills&nbsp;as well as encouraging&nbsp;ownership of the language. It also lets the teacher choose the target language based on the learners&#39; needs or allows language to emerge organically.

As with most visual resources, the possibilities are endless. One picture story or video can lead to multiple learning opportunities. It is essentially a classroom pick-your-own-adventure!

In this post, I&#39;ll give some activity ideas for <a href="https://ellii.com/resources/visual-learning">using wordless videos and stories, such as Ellii&#39;s</a>.

<h2>Activate schemata</h2>

As with most language teaching lessons, this is a good place to start. Schema activation sounds much more technical than it is. Put simply, it&rsquo;s about helping students to get in the zone and get them thinking about the topic they&rsquo;ll be discussing.&nbsp;

Showing them a static image from the video, a scene from the wordless story, or the whole story is a good place to start. Then you can ask questions to get them thinking about what they already know about a topic. Here are some warm-up&nbsp;questions from Ellii&rsquo;s <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/4282-birthday-celebrations">Birthday Celebrations</a> wordless video:

<blockquote>
<ol>
	<li>How are birthdays celebrated in your country of origin?</li>
	<li>What do people often do at birthday parties?</li>
	<li>How would you feel if someone threw you a surprise birthday party?</li>
	<li>Do you like going to school or work on your birthday?</li>
</ol>
</blockquote>

Another great way to activate schemata is by bringing in realia. For example, you could bring in cake, candles, or a present to show the class and generate discussions. If you bring a cake, you&nbsp;get the added benefit of eating it too!

<h2>Explore vocabulary</h2>

Wordless stories allow students the freedom to share words they know with other students and learn new ones in context&nbsp;as they emerge. Show students the video or pictures and ask them to describe what they see. Support them with any new words and make suggestions for useful language.&nbsp;

Beginner students may use basic nouns while more advanced learners may wish to use more complex adjectives or give more detail. Encourage learners to write down any new words, share ideas, and create example sentences.&nbsp;

You can use Ellii&rsquo;s online task suggestions to help. Here&rsquo;s an example from the <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/4331-first-day" target="_blank">First Day</a> Picture Story:

<img alt="Task from Ellii's First Day Picture Story Lesson" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3438/content_Screen_Shot_2023-10-04_at_3.35.33_PM.png" />

<h2>Ordering or re-ordering</h2>

As students watch a wordless video, you could ask them to take note of all the things that happen. Ask them to share their answers with a partner. To check as a whole class, play the video again, pausing it at key points and inviting students to describe what&rsquo;s happening. For an additional discussion point, you could ask students to consider what happens before and after the video.

For the wordless stories, set students the challenge of re-ordering the story. Cut each individual image out and give one picture to each student (or two to stronger students, depending on numbers). Tell them not to show their image to anyone else. Then ask them to describe it to the other learners. Their goal is to put the story in order by describing the image they have. Students stand in the order of the story at the end of the activity and retell the story together.

<img alt="Wordless video" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3437/content_Screen_Shot_2023-10-04_at_3.35.51_PM.png" />

<h2>Voiceover, dialogue &amp; role-play</h2>

Wordless stories are a perfect blank canvas for adding words! These could be in the form of writing the story, describing it, or writing a voiceover&nbsp;or even the dialogue between each character.

You could have a bit of fun by giving each student one image and asking them to add dialogue. Then&nbsp;put the story together and ask students to read out the captions they wrote for each scene. This can end in hilarity, as the dialogues may be strange or make little sense!&nbsp; As an alternative, boost students&rsquo; collaboration skills by asking them to create the dialogue as a class or small group project. Once they have created the dialogue, students can role-play it, record it, or even perform it for&nbsp;other classes.

<img alt="First Day Picture Story on Ellii" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/3436/content_Screen_Shot_2023-10-04_at_3.36.07_PM.png" />

<h2>Targeted or emergent language</h2>

Wordless stories are flexible and allow you to cover a range of language structures:

<ul>
	<li>Present progressive to describe current actions</li>
	<li>Narrative tenses (simple past, past progressive, and past perfect) to describe a past event</li>
</ul>

Time markers and sequencers such as then, next, after that, once, following, meanwhile, and at the beginning or end also occur naturally in this kind of task. Ask students to share which ones they already know and use them throughout the activities.

Other language that may naturally emerge could be describing places, appearance, or emotions. It&rsquo;s up to you whether to approach these with a linguistic plan or to go with the flow.

<h2>Personalization</h2>

As a final task, encourage learners to consider how the theme relates to their own lives. For example, ask learners to share what their first day&nbsp;of school was like,&nbsp;how they celebrate their birthday, or what their favorite wedding traditions are. The Ellii online tasks offer some ideas here.

You can access our Wordless Videos and Stories in our&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/resources/visual-learning" target="_blank">Visual Learning</a>&nbsp;section.&nbsp;

You may also like these visual-learning-themed blog posts:

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/wordless-lessons-project">Wordless Lessons Project&nbsp;</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/how-to-simplify-complex-tasks-with-visual-prompts">How to Simplify Complex Tasks with Visual Prompts</a>&nbsp;</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/how-one-image-can-develop-visual-literacy-and-critical-thinking">How One Image Can Develop Visual Literacy &amp; Critical Thinking Skills</a>&nbsp;</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/3-tips-for-using-flashcards-no-prep-required">3 No-Prep Tips for Using Flashcards</a></li>
</ul>

Create Your Own Adventure: Teaching English the Wordless Way! 

https://esllibrary-staging.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/post/title_image/2472/Emily_Create-Your-Own-Adventure-Teaching-English-the-Wordless-Way_Banner.png

<h1>&ldquo;So, what&rsquo;s your story?&rdquo;</h1>

How does one even begin? I suppose the context would be the biggest factor here, and, of course, your audience.

Are you giving some background information to a job interviewer? Are you getting to know your new colleagues in a lunchtime meeting? Maybe you&rsquo;re on a first date.

As educators, we know how critical it is to consider all of these elements (e.g., audience, tone, purpose) when telling a story. Storytelling is one of the things I enjoy teaching the most, actually, because it affords me the opportunity to see&nbsp;students&#39; wheels turning and to be there for some of my learners&rsquo; aha moments.

Storytelling skills take practice to develop and hone. We can sometimes neglect these skills in favor of more functional types of writing&mdash;like the essay or email (though these also contain an element of storytelling).

While equipping students with traditional skills remains crucial, there&#39;s an increasing recognition of the importance of fostering 21st-century skills to prepare them for an uncertain future. Among these skills, storytelling stands out as a powerful tool that not only engages learners, but also nurtures their creativity.

<h2>Storytelling: An age-old art</h2>

Storytelling is as old as humanity itself. Long before the advent of the written word, our ancestors communicated knowledge, culture, and experiences through stories. It&#39;s a fundamental aspect of the human experience, deeply ingrained in our DNA. And in the 21st century, storytelling remains a cornerstone of effective communication and education.

<h2>Enter AI: A double-edged sword</h2>

Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation have revolutionized many aspects of our lives. From virtual assistants to self-driving cars, AI is everywhere. While such technological&nbsp;advancements offer previously unimagined convenience and efficiency, they also raise concerns about the future of human work. As educators, we must prepare our students for a job market that is constantly evolving and increasingly dependent on AI.

<h2>Why storytelling matters</h2>

Creativity: Storytelling encourages students to think creatively. When crafting a story, they have to imagine characters, settings, and plots. This imaginative process keeps their creative faculties sharp and active.

Emotional Intelligence: Stories often revolve around characters and their emotions. By engaging with stories, students develop empathy and emotional intelligence, skills that are essential in the real world, where they&#39;ll interact with diverse people and cultures. One lesson that I particularly love is&nbsp;called <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/4193-think-inside-the-box">Think inside the Box.</a> This &ldquo;wordless&rdquo; story, while developed for younger learners, leaves it up to the student to decide what the characters are communicating.&nbsp;

Critical Thinking: Analyzing stories helps students sharpen their&nbsp;critical thinking skills. They learn to question motives, dissect plot twists, and evaluate outcomes. These skills are invaluable when navigating the complexities of today&#39;s world. Our <a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/detective-series-1">Detective Series</a>&nbsp;is one resource that helps improve critical thinking skills.

Effective Communication: Storytelling develops&nbsp;students&#39; ability to express ideas clearly and persuasively. In a world saturated with information, effective communication is a highly sought-after skill. Ellii&#39;s <a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/discussion-starters">Discussion Starters</a> and <a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/mini-debates">Mini-Debates</a>&nbsp;are&nbsp;a good place to start honing these skills.

Adaptability: Being able to adapt to life circumstances and reinvent yourself has never been a more important skill. Stories often revolve around overcoming challenges and change. Through storytelling, students learn that change is not something to be feared, but rather something to be embraced and navigated.

<h2>Incorporating storytelling in the classroom</h2>

Digital Storytelling: Leverage technology to enable students to create multimedia stories. They can combine text, images, audio, and video to craft compelling narratives. Our <a href="https://ellii.com/resources/photo-prompts">Photo Prompts</a> section can help launch creative ideas and debate, especially our new Photo Feuds&nbsp;prompts. Our <a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/silent-clips">Silent Clips</a>&nbsp;videos could also be used as storytelling prompts.

Storytelling Workshops: Organize storytelling workshops or invite guest storytellers to inspire and guide your students. If they can&#39;t come in person, many would love to present virtually.

Cross-Disciplinary Approach: Encourage students to apply storytelling in various subjects, from science to history. This interdisciplinary approach enhances their problem-solving abilities.

Peer Feedback: Foster a culture of constructive feedback where students share and critique each other&#39;s stories. This enhances their communication skills and helps them learn from one another. Give students something to listen for in each story&nbsp;and then report back.&nbsp;

Real-World Application: Connect storytelling to real-world scenarios. For instance, challenge students to come up with stories around social issues or entrepreneurship, encouraging them to think about solutions creatively.

<h2>As the story unfolds...</h2>

As educators, it&#39;s our responsibility to prepare students for the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century. Storytelling is a powerful tool in this endeavor. It keeps creativity alive, nurtures essential skills, and equips students to thrive in the current&nbsp;world&nbsp;and in the world that is about to be changed forever by AI. By embracing storytelling in our classrooms, we empower our students to become not just consumers of technology, but also creators and innovators who shape the future. 
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