Author: Brooke Hamler

The Complete Guide to ESL Placement Testing: Assessing English Levels with Confidence Choosing the right level for an ESL student is one of the most important decisions a teacher, tutor, language school, or English program can make. Place a student too low, and they may become bored, unmotivated, or frustrated. Place a student too high, and they may struggle to keep up, lose confidence, and develop gaps in grammar, vocabulary, reading, writing, listening, and speaking. That is why an accurate English placement test is essential. Whether you teach ESL, ELL, EFL, or ESOL learners, a comprehensive English level assessment helps…

If you’re looking for Halloween ESL activities that feel fun while still supporting language learning, the good news is that you do not have to choose between a classroom party and meaningful instruction. The best Halloween classroom activities combine speaking practice, vocabulary development, grammar review, movement, and student interaction in ways that feel more like games than lessons. Halloween is one of the easiest times of year to increase student engagement. Even reluctant speakers are often willing to participate when activities include mysteries, scavenger hunts, costumes, charades, games, and problem-solving challenges. Instead of relying on worksheets alone, teachers can use…

Boom Cards for Summer Grammar Practice If you want an easy way to keep grammar skills fresh over the summer, Boom Cards for summer grammar practice are one of the simplest options. They feel more like a game than homework, students get instant feedback, and you can assign short, no-prep practice without printing a single worksheet. This is especially helpful for ESL grammar review because students can practice independently at their own pace. Get the bundle here: ESL Beginner + Elementary Grammar Concepts Boom Card Bundle (Hot Chocolate Teachables) or Boom Card Bundle on Teachers Pay Teachers. Why Summer Grammar…

The best icebreaker activities for the first week of school are simple, structured, and easy for students to join. Instead of putting students on the spot with awkward introductions, use fun back-to-school icebreakers that help students talk, move, laugh, and learn about one another in a low-pressure way. The first week of school is not just about rules, routines, and supplies. It is also the time when students begin to decide if your classroom feels safe, welcoming, and comfortable. A strong first week can help students feel more confident speaking, asking questions, making friends, and participating in class discussions. As…

Beginning blends can be tricky because students must learn to hear and say two consonant sounds smoothly together without adding extra syllables. Many students can identify individual letter sounds but still struggle to decode words like frog, clap, or stop. The good news is that students usually improve faster when they get repeated practice with engaging, hands-on phonics games instead of relying only on worksheets. In this post, you’ll learn a simple step-by-step approach for teaching beginning blends and discover easy phonics games that help students build decoding confidence through repetition and play. What Are Beginning Blends? Beginning blends are…

R Blends Activities for First Grade Phonics Practice If your students can read CVC words but stumble when a word starts with R blends, they don’t need another worksheet packet—they need short, repeatable decoding reps with quick feedback. R blends task cards and R blends clip cards help students hear the blend, say both sounds correctly, and recognize the pattern in print. This is a hands-on routine you can use in phonics centers, small groups, intervention, morning tubs, and early finisher bins all year. Get the resource here: R Blends Phonics Task Cards (Hot Chocolate Teachables) or R Blends Task…

This or That Speaking Task Cards for Critical Thinking and Discussion If your students go quiet when you ask an open-ended question, give them a choice instead. This or That task cards are an easy, low-pressure way to get real conversation going because students only need to pick one option—and then explain why it works better. The result is more confident ESL speaking, stronger reasoning, and fewer one-word answers. Get the resource here: This or That Task Cards (Hot Chocolate Teachables) or This or That Speaking Task Cards (TPT). Why This or That Questions Work So Well for Speaking Practice…

If your students freeze when they have to “think of something to say,” give them a story choice instead. These Choose What Happens Next task cards make speaking feel low-pressure because students pick an option (A/B/C), explain why, and continue the story in their own words. The structure builds confidence fast—especially for ESL speaking and mixed-level classes—while still targeting real skills like prediction, inferencing, and storytelling. Get the resource here: Choose What Happens Next Task Cards (Hot Chocolate Teachables) or Choose What Happens Next Task Cards (TPT). Why Prediction Activities Help Students Think More Deeply Prediction is more than guessing.…