ESL Lesson Plans
Free for everyone, no password needed. Each of the seven units has a Listening, Speaking and Reading activity, plus a Project Based Writing project for every grade band. Choose a grade band to see its projects.
Download all 7 lesson plans (PDF)
Unit 1: Me, My Family & My School
Oct 26 – Nov 27
Goal: Introduce myself and talk about my family and school.
Listening: Listen to a short “meet my family” recording and mark the family words you hear. Younger students point to picture cards; older students also note ages and jobs.
Speaking: Partner interviews using sentence frames: “What’s your name? How many people are in your family?” Older students add follow-up questions.
Reading: Read a short family description or profile and match sentences to pictures or answer comprehension questions.
Project Based Writing:
K-2: “My Family Book” with drawings and labeled words.
Grades 3-6: “Family Poster” with five complete sentences.
Grades 7-9: “Personal Profile Page” with a photo and a paragraph.
Grades 10-12: Autobiographical bio in three paragraphs.
Unit 2: Community & Traditions
Nov 30 – Jan 15
Goal: Describe celebrations and family traditions.
Listening: Listen to people describe a celebration and put the events in order.
Speaking: Show-and-tell about a family tradition, followed by classmates’ questions.
Reading: Read two short descriptions of celebrations and compare them with a Venn diagram.
Project Based Writing:
K-2: “Celebration Picture Dictionary.”
Grades 3-6: Tradition brochure with headings and pictures.
Grades 7-9: Photo essay with captions and an introduction.
Grades 10-12: Cultural feature article with an interview quote.
Unit 3: Food, Health & Daily Routines
Jan 18 – Feb 19
Goal: Talk about food, healthy habits and daily routines.
Listening: Listen to a cafeteria or doctor dialogue and fill in a menu or routine chart.
Speaking: Role-play ordering food, and a “daily routine chain” where each student adds a step.
Reading: Read recipes and healthy-habit posters and scan them for key information.
Project Based Writing:
K-2: “My Favorite Foods” menu with drawings.
Grades 3-6: Class recipe book with steps in order.
Grades 7-9: Healthy week plan and a short blog post.
Grades 10-12: Health campaign article or public service announcement script.
Unit 4: Animals & Nature
Feb 22 – Mar 26
Goal: Describe animals, habitats and how to protect nature.
Listening: Listen to animal facts or a nature clip and decide if statements are true or false.
Speaking: “Guess the animal” riddles, then a short habitat presentation.
Reading: Read fact files and short articles, such as about the axolotl or the monarch butterfly, and find the main idea.
Project Based Writing:
K-2: Animal ABC mini-book.
Grades 3-6: Animal fact file with a drawing and five facts.
Grades 7-9: Report on an endangered species from Mexico.
Grades 10-12: Persuasive conservation proposal or letter.
Unit 5: Around Town & Travel
Mar 29 – Apr 30
Goal: Give directions and describe places in my town.
Listening: Listen to directions and trace the route on a map.
Speaking: Tourist and local role-plays: asking for and giving directions.
Reading: Read maps, signs and short travel texts and answer where/how questions.
Project Based Writing:
K-2: Labeled neighborhood map.
Grades 3-6: Travel postcard and mini guide.
Grades 7-9: Tourist guide to my city.
Grades 10-12: Travel blog entry with itinerary and review.
Unit 6: Stories & Heroes
May 3 – May 28
Goal: Understand, retell and create stories.
Listening: Listen to a read-aloud, predict what happens next, then retell it.
Speaking: Act out the story with a story map, or “hot seat” interviews with a character.
Reading: Read graded stories and identify characters, setting, problem and solution.
Project Based Writing:
K-2: Draw and write a new story ending.
Grades 3-6: Comic strip story.
Grades 7-9: Short story with dialogue.
Grades 10-12: Narrative essay or character analysis.
Unit 7: Our Future & Class Showcase
May 31 – Jun 18
Goal: Talk about goals and share a year of learning.
Listening: Listen to classmates’ presentations and take simple notes.
Speaking: Present a final project and give peers kind, specific feedback.
Reading: Read classmates’ work in a class portfolio and write a reflection.
Project Based Writing:
K-2: “When I grow up” page.
Grades 3-6: “My Dream Job” poster and paragraph.
Grades 7-9: Letter to my future self.
Grades 10-12: Personal statement and portfolio reflection.