ESL, sometimes called EAL/D, is common in our multicultural nation. Like several resource listings, these are usable across multiple curriculum areas.
These cover areas from flashcard programs to resource directories, musical activities to information about TESL/TEFL. Unless otherwise stated they are free.
Remember some sites are not Australian. Check carefully to be sure they conform to Australian requirements before use, e.g. spelling, terminology, guidelines, … .
- EAL/D Teacher
ACARA. ‘Developed to support teachers as they develop teaching and learning programs in the Australian Curriculum: Foundation to Year 10 with EAL/D students’.
- ESL Resources
ATESOL, ACT. ‘A list of Australian only resources for teaching English to speakers of other languages’.
- ESL School EAL/D Resources
Australian Council of TESOL Associations.
- ESL Teaching Units
‘The units of work on the following pages were developed by teachers from government and non-government schools in NSW’.
- English Learning Resources
AMES, NSW. ‘The leading publisher of Australian language and literacy resources with approximately 100 titles on current release’. Filter using menu titles.
Education Departments, Boards, Museums, …
- Aussie English
for the Beginner
National Museum of Australia. Choose either Flash interactive or HTML presentation.
- English as an
DET, Victoria. Listing of resources. Also consider the Resources page for additional information.
More than 200 resources are listed. Filter using the options on the left.
- AMEP Research Centre - Resources
Macquarie University. ‘To find the resources you need to browse according to the resource type’. Includes a review of Australian resources.
- Bookery Education
‘Australia’s largest online and retail specialist for teachers and students of English as a second language [ESL, ELT, TESOL and TEFL], linguistics and foreign languages’. Fee-based.
- Boyer Educational Resources
‘Resources focus on English grammar, pronunciation, reading, writing as well as listening and speaking skills’. Fee-based.
- ESL Radio and TV
Multiple Programs and related listening activities are able to be accessed, including through the “Categories” listing in the menu at the left.
- New !
ESL-SPIN [ESL Small Publishers Independent Network]
‘We are all English language teachers, writers and now micro-publishers, living and working in Australia, who have joined together to support each other. Explore this site to find out more about us, our resources, and our publishing journeys’.
- ESL Teaching Resources
TES Australia. More than 100 annotated links to resources. Filter levels using options at the left.
- Looking Learning : A Visual Dictionary
‘Born out of the sheer necessity to create a language learning tool which is “outside the square” in its formulation. The visual dictionary has a library of over 7 000 word pages plus over 9 600 suffix additions’. Fee-based.
- Massive Open Online English Course [MOOEC]
‘An open online course focused on teaching the English language at all levels. Lessons are organised into established levels of proficiency and approved by a committee of professional English language practitioners’.
- Star Pronunciation
‘Provides online English Pronunciation training to ESL students studying in Australia and overseas’. Fee-based, but there are some free resources on the site.
- New !
The Book Next Door
‘Australian ESL materials for adults and young adults. Photocopiable Australian ESL materials that can be used by teachers and volunteers as ‘extra’ support for learners’.
- 13 Experts Share ESL Learning Advice + Over 70 Online
Resources, podcast, YouTube videos, grammar, apps, more. Plus individual recommendations and tips. USA.
- Activities for ESL Students
Information, resources, quizzes involving English and a number of languages including several Asian ones. One section includes Self-Study Grammar Quizzes about places around the world.
- New !
34 experts offer their tips for English Fluency
Short, mostly one sentence suggestions. Brief overview and information about each person involved.
- Basics of English Grammar
‘Developing a solid foundation in English grammar will not only help you create your own sentences correctly but will also make it easier to improve your communication skills in both spoken and written English’. USA.
- BBC - Learning English
‘Teaching English to global audiences since 1943, offering free audio, video and text materials to learners around the world’. Worth visiting. UK.
- Boggle’s World
Resources for ESL children. Check flashcards in particular. Korea/USA.
- Breaking News English
‘Free, ready-to-use EFL/ESL lesson plans on the latest breaking news - in 7 levels. New lessons uploaded every 2 days. Each lesson includes a 26-page PDF containing all skills, activities, a 2-page mini-lesson, 5-speed listening, multi-speed scrolled reading, interactive dictation, 30+ online quizzes’, more. UK.
- Centre for Multilingual Multicultural Research
Annotated links for resources and research articles. USA.
- Daily Grammar
‘Consists of 440 lessons and 88 quizzes. Lessons 1-90 cover verbs, nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections. Lessons 91-300 cover the parts of the sentence, such as appositives, predicate nominatives, direct objects, prepositional phrases, clauses, and verbals. Lessons 301-440 cover the mechanics of grammar, which is also known as capitalisation and punctuation’. USA.
- Dave’s ESL Cafe
Stuff for Teachers and Stuff for Students would prove the most useful sections for resources. USA.
‘Educators can simply use these materials for teaching their kids. Video slides, Powerpoint, worksheets e-books, audio readers for helping kids learn English with great ease. Combine fun, total engagement and seriously guard against boredom while learning’. China [in English].
‘Free online English reading practice for learners. Each lesson features a number of quiz questions along with downloadable PDF of the lesson and audio’.
- Effortless English Blog and Video Podcast
‘Video and blog posts teaching everything you need to know about learning English’. USA.
Free worksheets, collections for sale. Each indicates recommended time/age/type of activity. Fee-based.
Resources for teaching English. From quizzes, a great free certificate printer, to what ESL teachers do on their holidays. UK.
- English Activities
‘Select an English topic to start. Each English topic is 10 pictures with its accompanying written text and spoken English recording’. Part of a larger English Activities for ESL learners site. UK.
- English as a Second Language
‘Starting point for ESL learners who want to study English through the Web’. Separate online resources, chat rooms, bulletin boards, information about teaching English, more. USA.
- English, baby !
‘Catch the Lesson of the Day for the latest cool English lesson. Search to find thousands of other lessons on hundreds of topics, and have fun with our Vocab Quiz to study our database of over 15 000 vocabulary words’. USA.
- English Banana.com
Free worksheets, books, podcasts, resources, more. UK.
- English Gateway
‘English Gateway offers ESL students around the world a unique way to improve their vocabulary. Learn to express yourself the way the native speakers of English do with our exclusive program. Try a free lesson’. Fee-based for other lessons. Canada.
- English is a Piece of Cake
‘If you are looking for free lesson plans and English teaching resources you have come to the right place ! Find lessons for conversation classes, reading lesson plans, ESL listening exercises, lessons that use videos and multi-media, grammar lessons, tips on vocabulary revision, general teaching techniques, as well as ideas on how to write your own lesson plans’. UK.
- English Language
Language information, pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, tools, learning English, teaching English, culture, English business and more. Spain [in English].
- English Page
‘Learn English using our in-depth English tutorials featuring dozens of interactive exercises’. Check the main menu for specific areas.
Education World. Articles, free tools, resources, lesson planning, themes, reviews. Annotated links. USA.
- ESL Games World
‘This site is dedicated to helping teachers by providing fun esl games for classrooms, powerpoint game templates, printable board games, interactive games for classrooms, Games for ESL Kids, Grammar Games, Vocabulary Games, Reading Games’.
‘Over a thousand pages of free information and resources for both teachers and students. All are organised by skill and level for quick and easy access’. Available in a range of languages. USA.
- ESL Kids
‘Flashcards, worksheets, classroom games, children’s song lyrics. Free resource for teachers of ESL kids’. Japan [in English].
- ESL Lounge
Worksheets, board games, flashcards, more. 500+ resources to choose from. Free and Fee-based sections. UK.
- ESL Pages
Directories of resources and information for ESL, EFL, TESOL, TEFL, more.
‘ESL Toolbox supplies English language worksheets for the classroom to help with kids ESL learning’. Units are fee-based but costs are fairly small. New Zealand.
- ESL Treasure
‘The best online resource for teaching English as a foreign language ! Jobseekers to current teachers need not look any further for information, ideas and assistance’.
- Free Worksheets
Worksheets in several European languages, with English and another language side by side. Resources not linked to ESL, at the bottom. UK.
- Fun English Games for Kids
‘Find a wide range of free teaching resources that are perfect for students learning English, ESL classes and teachers looking for ideas online’.
- New !
A blog covering a range of topics that actually go beyond just grammar. Check not only the blog section but also the infographics and Check your Text sections as well.
‘Grammarly’s powerful algorithms check for contextual spelling, punctuation and grammar errors. For each mistake the software flags, it provides explanation cards to help the writer learn grammar rules through practice and repetition’. USA.
‘More than 800 free English games and activities’. You need to register to access material, but this appears to be free. USA.
- New !
How to Become an ESL
While not a resources for teaching, it may help understanding what is involved if you decide on this career. It may also help if you are considering taking up such a position in the US. USA.
- New !
How to speak English fluently - 34 experts give their tips
‘I asked a number of the world’s leading language learning experts for their opinions. 34 of them were kind enough to help me. I asked them to answer the following question in 140 or fewer characters : What is the most important thing to achieve English fluency ?’. These were the results.
- ICAL TEFL Teaching Materials
‘This section looks at materials for TEFL/TESOL : books, software and suchlike’. A mix of free and fee-based materials. USA.
- Interesting Things for ESL Students
‘A fun study site for learners of English as a Second Language. Word games, puzzles, quizzes, exercises, slang, proverbs and much more’. Japan [in English].
- LanguageGuide.org English
‘An English vocabulary and grammar guide’. Done in topics.
- Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day …
An American teacher’s blog where you can ‘catch [him] talking about websites that will help you teach ELL, ESL and EFL’. Among the sections are those listed below.
- My Best of Series
Done in topics rather than by time spans. Some cover more than one topic.
- The Best Resource Sites For ESL/EFL Teachers
- The Best
Web 2.0 Applications For Education
This is the initial 2014 list, but earlier lists can be accessed from this page.
- Websites of the Month
‘I regularly highlight my picks for the ten or twelve best posts for each month. Here you can find a collection of them all’.
- Websites of the Year
These are listed by year/topic from 2007 to the present.
- Learn English
‘It has been my goal to create a site that would help you learn English words easily. There are 40 learning topics to choose from with over 1 500 English words and phrases’. Israel [in English].
- LearnEnglish Kids [British Council]
‘LearnEnglish Kids has lots of free online games, songs, stories and activities for children to have fun and learn English too’. UK.
- Learn English with English4Today
A huge range of resources from grammar to videos, vocabulary to software. USA.
- Learn English with Pictures
English words and related photographs designed to help develop vocabulary. Now has audio to enhance the other contents. Israel [in English].
- Learning English as a Second Language
‘Browse our grammar glossary and references, join our busy forums, read our articles, download our teacher handouts and printables, find useful links and information on English’. UK.
- New !
Learning English with Laughter
Provides a full curriculum, teaching tips and a wide range of activities. Used in more than 100 countries. Canada.
- Listening and Speaking
Links giving Title, Level and Details for multiple resources from around the world to assist in developing these skills. Emphasis on higher education. UK.
‘Community members help each other learn in a myriad of ways : they leave comments in response to practice exercises, build mini-lessons within exercise feedback, have practice conversations via text, video or audio chat, provide language practice and culture tips, and give much-needed encouragement’. Join for free. USA.
- Mrs Hurley’s ESL
This opens on the Teachers Resources page. Annotated links grouped in topical areas. USA.
Includes jazz chants and other musical activities.
- 50 ways to use Music
and Song in the Classroom
Annotated links from an ESL blog. USA.
- Jazz Chants
Products are highly regarded. Fee-based. USA.
- Songs and Chants for
Multiple annotated links collected by CASLT. Canada.
- Song Lyrics for Teaching English as a Second Language
‘Songs that Teach Conversational English and English Vocabulary’. USA.
Links in nearly 50 area groupings, that TESOL teachers belonging to the group thought were ‘useful, helpful, interesting or just plain fun’. Not all are ESL. UK.
- One Stop English
‘With over 9 000 resources, including lesson plans, worksheets, audio, video and flashcards, onestopenglish is the world’s number one resource site for English Language teachers’. Register for Free, but to access all material it is Fee-based. UK.
- Online Writing Lab
Links to assist the ESL student. In directories. Links to other sections. USA.
- Power Thesaurus
‘A fast, convenient and comprehensive online thesaurus’. Provides synonyms, antonyms, broader and narrower and related definition words. You can even filter by parts of speech.
- Randall’s ESL Blog - For ESL/EFL Teachers and Students
‘Share ideas about learning English as a second or foreign language. Study abroad, ESL programs, accent reduction, ESL study Tips … Anything related to learning English and cultural understanding’. USA. Related sites include :
- Daily ESL : Conversation Starters for English Students
‘This site presents short conversation starters or readings that you can study and then try to apply in everyday situations’.
- Randall’s ESL Cyber Listening Lab
‘The specific goal and narrow focus of providing easy-to-use listening activities that can be used on almost any Internet connection’.
- Randall’s ESL Cyber Listening Lab
General Listening Quizzes; Basic Listening Quizzes; Quizzes for Academic Purposes; 20 minute ESL Vocabulary Lessons; Long Conversations with RealVideo; more.
- Real English
‘Utilises authentic and unique ESL videos of people speaking real English on streets across the globe’. Fee-based though there is a Free trial subscription. France [in English].
- Resources to Teach English
Fonts, clipart, worksheets, plays, photos, jokes, teacher chat rooms, forums. France [in English].
- Teach Children ESL
More than 1 300 pages of material. Lesson ideas, resources, worksheets, flashcards, games, songs, more. Canada.
‘Find free classroom materials to download, from short activities to full lesson plans, for teaching kids and adults. There are also articles on aspects of teaching, and free teacher development and teacher training materials’. BBC. Free registration recommended. UK.
- The Writers’ Workshop
Links, with those to journals, news, forums, fun ESL sites and Chatboards, would be the most useful. USA.
- 15 Video Resources
‘Enjoy this compilation of useful links addressed toward teachers and students’. Canada.
- English Central
‘Learn English while watching videos !’ Choose from difficulty levels and/or specific categories. USA.
‘Free English video lessons. 311 video lessons by experienced native-speaker teachers’.
‘Develop your fluency in English through oral reading’. USA.
- Learn English in 365 Lessons
A year’s worth of short videos. Most appropriate for those starting to learn English. USA.
- Real English ESL Videos
Video lessons covering a wide range of topics from informal greetings through to more complex topics. Each has a specific language purpose. France [in English].
Best Fun Videos For English Language Learners In 2014 [Part One]
‘Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day’.
An extensive collection from English Central. Use the “Video” link in the top menu to filter the collection into smaller sections.
- New !
‘Use YouTube to improve your English pronunciation. With more than 10M tracks, Youglish gives you fast, unbiased answers about how English is spoken by real people and in context’.
- Yo-Yee English Flashcards for Children
‘Our flashcards come in 3 levels : starter, step-up and speaker. We recommend ordering full sets with 18 core subjects. They are also great for parents who are home schooling their children’. Fee-based. Thailand [in English].