Boost Motivation & Learning: 5 Powerful Tips for Planning Engaging Online ESL Games for Teens
Nowadays, there is tremendous pressure on every student, especially teen students to perform well in their academics while balancing their school schedule and social life on top of that if they are attending online ESL classes then it leaves them exhausted and have little or no motivation.
However, if you are an ESL teacher and looking for different ways to improve the engagement of your teen students in your online ESL classroom then introducing online ESL games in your online ESL classroom is the best way.
In this blog post, we will be exploring some of the best strategies to plan various online ESL games for your teen students, which will not just improve their engagement rate in online classes but also align with their various learning goals and interests.
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So, without any further delay, let’s get started.
1. Aligning Online ESL Games With Long-Term Goals
To serve your students better in your ESL online class, it’s best if you first figure out the reason and motive behind every ESL student learning the English language. Some students might be learning English to perform better in school, and make their parents proud, they might have a future goal to clear English proficiency tests like IELTS, TOEFL or perhaps they have a childhood dream to study and become a permanent resident of any foreign destination like- U.S, U.K, etc. Doing this will further help you to know which ESL games will be the right fit for each student.
For example- You can use online platforms like “QuizWhizzer” which is an online quiz platform within which you can create quizzes to test your student’s language skills, which will ultimately help them to achieve their set language goals.
Learn some of the fun and engaging collaborative ESL games for your students here:
2. Aligning Online ESL Games With Short-Term Goals
Once you know the bigger reason, your teen students for learning the English language then you can help your students reach the language proficiency milestone that they are aiming for by achieving one short-term goal. Those short-term goals can be-
- Improve Vocabulary
- Improve Spelling
- Improve Learning Skills
- Learning New Language Concepts like- Forming sentences using Past tense.
For example- Students might have short-term goals like improving Vocabulary and spelling. You can conduct games like “Spelling B” to test your teen students spelling knowledge. You can divide students into two teams and give them familiar and unfamiliar words to spell. If any students fail to spell it right then they will be eliminated and the last student standing will win the game.
Note: Once students complete the game you conducted then after they should feel confident about the concept they have learned and if not then you should consider conducting the same game or others by adapting online ESL games for different learning styles.
3. Consider Creating Online ESL Games For Mixed-Level Teen Classes
In your online ESL classes, every student may have different strengths and weaknesses. For example- Some teen students might be proficient in English writing skills but they lack proper English speaking and comprehension skills.
On the other hand, some students might be proficient in speaking and comprehension skills but lack writing skills.
To cater to this kind of situation you can consider adapting online ESL games for different learning styles. By conducting adaptable games, you can ensure that those students who struggle to grasp any particular topic, according to that you can make certain adjustments to make their language-learning journey easier.
Example- You can conduct adaptable games like-” Sentence Maker”
In this game, you can give a handful of words and instruct students to make as many logical sentences as they can. This game also gives the liberty to adapt at any point of the game according to various language points or language levels.
4. Adapting Online ESL Games For Different Learning Styles
While teaching English to teen students you must consider creating online ESL games for mixed-level teen classes with different learning preferences and personalities. You can ask questions from yourself like:
- How many students have a reserved type of personality?
- How many students have an outgoing type of personality?
- What do your students like outside of school?
- Do they enjoy working alone or in a competitive environment?
Example: For outgoing teen students you can conduct “The Brag Game.” You can instruct students to pick their partner and come up with brag sentences turn by turn and if any student isn’t able to come up with any sentence then they can end it by saying “WOW’.
For Example-
Student 1: I have eaten lunch with Tony Robins.
Student 2: So what? I have spent the whole day & learned many life lessons from him.
Student 1: Wow.
5. Ensure Every Student Has Right Resources For Online ESL Games
As a responsible ESL teacher, you must understand every ESL student's learning environment and make sure that they have all the resources they need. Below we have shared some points that you must consider to understand student’s environment:
- If your students have noisy backgrounds and environments full of distraction then suggest they attend class in a pleasant and noise-free environment.
- Check whether students are attending your online ESL class with full energy and concentration or they are distracted and exhausted. If the latter situation is true, then be patient and try to make your ESL class more engaging for them.
- Check whether every student has a stable internet connection while attending your ESL class online or not. If the latter situation is true then consider conducting engaging online ESL games for teens with low internet connection.
End Your ESL Online Class on a Positive Note
The beginning of your Online ESL Games for Teens is important but the ending is also equally important. You can consider using five major points while you conduct your Online ESL class and end it on a positive note by giving positive feedback and fun activities that will motivate students to attend the class again with full enthusiasm.
Additionally, if you are new to the ESL industry or even if you have experience you can consider pursuing courses like Advanced Diploma in TESOL/TEFL, which will not just help you to come up with effective strategies to conduct ESL games online in your ESL class but also makes you an capable ESL teacher by getting guidance from a top expert trainer.
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