Holiday season is upon us in the U.S. which means it’s a great opportunity to improve our ELLs’ English language using seasonal vocabulary. We can take advantage of the season and use the excitement of the holidays to engage our students and really work on their English skills. Today, I am sharing some activities I wish I would have done to take full advantage of the holidays with my ELLs.

We’ve all tied the holidays into our lessons by teaching vocabulary, playing seasonal vocabulary games, or using word searches. But are these activities making the best use of our time with our students?

In this episode, we are looking at alternative activity options to be more intentional with our instructional time while still bringing in the excitement of the holidays for our students. We are covering ideas for teaching holiday vocabulary in context, the importance of including students’ native language when teaching holiday vocabulary, using discussion prompts in your lessons, and how to help your students feel included in your classroom and connected to the holidays.

Check out more holiday resources here

ESL Christmas & Holidays Around the World

ELL Vocabulary Flashcards: Valentine's Day ESL | ESL Conversation

Download the ESL Teacher Toolkit

Check out the ELL Strategy Academy

Shop TpT resources that help with supporting your ELLs

Join the Equipping ELLs Membership

To access all resources mentioned in this episode, head to the show notes: https://www.inspiringyounglearners.com/holidays-to-improve-english-skills

---

Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/equippingells/message

My other car is a cargo bike

The Vergecast

How AI summaries affect creators and viewers

The AI-powered Podcast Player