World Language Center

English as a Second Language

Your guide to English as a Second Language (ESL) resources includes ESL/EFL Education,
Bilingual Education, ESL Portals, Literature and Storytelling Music and Songs, Professional Resources, Student Learning Activities, Teacher Created Web sites and more!

Edutopia: Lost in Translation November, 2005 article on ESL.

Top Pick

Eric Clearinghouse on Urban Education This site is a MUST for teachers of minority students, and features links to publications targeting issues such as dropout prevention, after school program models, academic achievement, testing, immigrant education - to name just a few.

ESL/EFL Education Resources

About.com - Teaching Writing ESL, EFL, TEFL teacher's guide and introduction to planning and writing lessons.

CARLA Lots of information to support ESL teaching at the Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition site. Click on the Assessment link and then on Developing Speaking and Writing Tasks for Second Language Assessment. You will then be able to download an outstanding guide, including tools and worksheets, that can be tailored to a variety of classroom contexts and a range of student needs.

Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services-Early Childhood Research Institute The goal of CLAS is to identify, evaluate, and promote effective and appropriate early intervention and preschool practices that are sensitive and respectful to families from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. This dual language site is loaded with useful information for the early childhood teacher.

Glossary of English Language Terms Cross-referenced glossary of grammatical terms to do with the English language, explaining both the meaning and usage of each expression. Created by Using English.com.

Literacy Information and Communications System (LINCS) LINCS is the literacy community's gateway to the world of adult education and literacy resources on the Internet.

National Center for ESL Literacy Education The National Center for ESL Literacy Education (NCLE) is a national information center focusing on the language and literacy education of adults and out-of-school youth learning English.

Optimnem - Fluid Thinking Online This Web site offers a variety of low-cost educational courses on-line, promoting key skills such as literacy, numeracy and language acquisition through spatial learning strategies for subjects including English, Math, French and German.

Self-Study English Vocabulary Quizzes Links to easy, medium, and difficult tests on grammar, idioms, homonyms, group names, categories, etc., as well as to activities for ESL students.

Western-Pacific Literacy Network-CNN SF Learning Resources The Western/Pacific Literacy Network and the CNN San Francisco bureau have partnered to develop an online literacy site that benefits all learners and instructors.

Bilingual Education

Blue Ribbon Schools Links to schools across the country with outstanding bilingual education programs.

CNN.com - Bilingual education challenged in Colorado - June 20, 2001 CNN article on controversy over bilingual education. Site contains links to related stories and web sites.

Houghton Mifflin – Bilingual Links This library contains an extensive collection of thoroughly researched links to great bilingual and Spanish-only educational web sites.

NABE – National Association for Bilingual Education The National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE) is the only national organization exclusively concerned with the education of language-minority students in American schools.

ESL Portals

Aardvark's English Forum Comprehensive web portal for students and teachers of English (ESL/EFL). The site contains interactive exercises, message boards, language schools, world news, links, resources, and more! Try the interactive exercises.

Dave's ESL Cafe The web’s most popular virtual cafe for ESL students and teachers around the world.

Intercultural E-Mail Classroom Connections The IECC mailing lists are provided by St. Olaf College as a free service to help teachers and classes link with partners in other countries and cultures.

Teach-nology Bilingual Education Bilingual education links collection.

Literature and Storytelling

Folk and Fairy Tales from Around the World Over 75 fairy/folk tales arranged by country or region.

Poetry Archives This site features classical poetry from hundreds of authors.

Storytelling Activities and Lesson Ideas A collection of activities developed by Heather Forest to enhance speaking, listening, reading and writing skills.

Music and Songs

Ernie’s EFL Song Pages Provides techniques and procedures for the effective use of music in
the ESL classroom with direct links to leveled activities for a number of popular songs.

ESL Through Music This site provides online resources to facilitate the integration of music in ESL teaching, including music clip art and lots of song lyrics.

Teaching English with Songs and Music Ian Hewitt brings us more ideas on how to use song and music in the ESL classroom.

Professional Resources

Center for Applied Linguistics: K-12 Resources Articles and resources for K-12 teachers on educating English language learners.

Center for Multilingual Multicultural Research From the University of Southern California, this site offers current news, a live chat room, and research materials on multicultural issues.

Classroom Management Lots of useful classroom management techniques and activities from experienced teachers.

English Language Institute Eisen-ELI Eisenhower Grant Projects The purpose of the project is to bring together classroom teachers and ESOL/bilingual professionals in the elementary and middle school levels to develop tools for effective instruction of English language learners. The focus is on math and science instruction in particular.

Flo-Joe - Cambridge Examination Resources An online service for teachers and students preparing for Cambridge First Certificate in English (CFE), Certificate in Advanced English (CAE) and Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE).

Internet TESL Journal The Internet TESL Journal is a monthly web magazine for teachers of English as a Second Language. It includes lesson plans, classroom handouts, links of interest to ESL teachers and students, articles, research papers and other things that are of immediate practical use to ESL teachers.

TESOL Online! TESOL (Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, Inc.), is an international professional association for ESL/EFL/ESOL teachers and educators.

Student Learning Activities

50 States and Capitals Provides lots of useful information on all the states of the Union.

1000 Most Common Words in English - Vocabulary for ESL A listing of the 1000 most common words in American English for ESL teachers and learners.

Breaking News English.com Ready-to-use EFL / ESL lesson plans based on current affairs. Graded news articles, listenings and communicative activities uploaded daily.

CIA World Factbook A wealth of information provided by the Central Intelligence Agency on countries of the world from A to Z, including flags, maps, history, geography, peoples and economy.

Computer Skills Lesson Plans Grades 6-8 lesson plans for student-created spreadsheets.

Conversation Questions for the ESL/EFL Classroom This site offers a wide range of topics, each with a set of questions, to use as a springboard for oral production practice or as prompts for writing assignments.

Craig Mclaughlin: Accents in English! Listen to authentic English speakers and test English skill.

Electronic Elementary Magazine This online magazine is a non-profit, educational project that highlights interactive projects and creations of elementary grade students around the world. Check out the Hot Sites archives for some really wonderful Web quests and other activities

English Club Classroom activities, student handouts and lesson plans for teachers and students of English as a second language.

English to go Visit this site to download sample ready-to-use instant lesson plans and student worksheets for teaching English from news stories.

Interesting Things for ESL Students A fun study site for English as a Second Language students with Computer Assisted Language Learning activities.

Making Jigsaw Activities Using Newspaper Articles Step-by-step directions by David Dycus for a generic interactive activity – reading, listening, mastering new vocabulary - suitable for intermediate to advanced language learners.

Monticello This site provides information about Thomas Jefferson and his home, Monticello. There are also free lesson plans and curriculum resource packets that can be purchased for a small charge.

Multimedia Guide to the Ancient World This is an exceptional site offering lesson plans and a huge amount of information about ancient Greece, Rome and Egypt.

New York Times Lesson Plans Provides hundreds of free lesson plans for grades 6 - 12 categorized by subject.

Periodic Table of the Elements This is an extremely user-friendly site. Students will be motivated to click on an element and get a description, historical facts and other information.

Puzzle Choice Crosswords, word searches, brainteasers, wordplay, quizzes, teacher resources. Students can learn a lot of vocabulary using these fun activities.

Raconteur Listening This activity from Christopher Dugdale helps improve listening comprehension by working on skills such as note taking, making inferences and listening for detail.

Randall’s ESL Cyber Listening Lab This ESL language Web site, created by Randall Davis, helps ESL students improve their English listening comprehension skills through practice with self-grading quiz pages.

SEA Shedd Educational Adventures offers a treasure trove of aquatic science resources for K - 12 teachers and students; printable standards-based lesson plans, interactive activities with video and sound clips, and fact sheets in Spanish and English about plants, animals, people and places.

Seaworld Educational Resources Extremely detailed lesson plans and teacher guides relating to ocean life. A truly wonderful resource.

Teach With Movies Provides extremely detailed teaching guides for historically accurate and culturally significant movies as a supplement to school curriculum. Some free samples, otherwise small annual fee involved.

The Space Place This kid-friendly site includes activities and information relating to space and general physics in both English and Spanish.

Using CNN News Video in the EFL Classroom Alan Mackenzie provides ideas on using CNN video segments with all levels of English Language Learners.

Your Sky This fascinating interactive planetarium site will enable students to track asteroids or comets, configure their own sky maps, or get an horizon view for any location on the globe. Lots of useful links.

Washington, D.C. vs. Washington State - ESL WebQuest by Katherine Haffner-Zoccatelli for high school and higher.

World Heritage List This site features monuments and regions throughout the world that have been designated by the World Heritage Committee as Heritage sites. The list contains more than 500 wildlife, historic, and architectural sites considered to be of outstanding universal value. There's sure to be something from every student's country of origin.

World of Money This site, created by the British Museum, is loaded with information about money and its origins.
More Student Learning Resources

Teacher Created Web Sites

Teachers Helping Teachers This invaluable site created by teachers for teachers and updated weekly provides lesson plans, teaching tips, and links to other educational resources

E.L. Easton: English online An ESL teacher for many years, Eva Easton has compiled a huge number of resources for fellow educators.

Lesson Plans and Resources for ESL, Bilingual and Foreign Language Teachers ESL links, lessons, and activities from Professor Marty Levine at California State University, Northridge.

Philip Benz: Lycée Astier, Aubenas, France A rich resource site for ESL teachers which includes links on teacher training and professional development.

Vance Stevens: ESL Home - A Web Resource for CALL Managers This site is being prepared from the point of view of one responsible for implementing computer-based learning for ESL language learners.

            
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Last Updated: Friday, November 16, 2007