Diwali
Lesson plan overview
This intermediate ESL lesson plan is about the Hindu festival of lights, Diwali. Students will learn about this celebration and will discuss Diwali and celebrations in their culture. Other lessons you might like are “Day of the Dead”, “Halloween”, and “Thanksgiving”.
Speaking: The lesson starts with a few conversation questions about India, Indian culture, celebrations, and festivals.
Vocabulary: Next, students look at vocabulary words (warrior, banish, kidnap, overjoyed), and say how they think these words are related to the origin of Diwali. Then they complete a short text about the origin of Diwali and watch the first part of the video called “What is Diwali” to check their answers.
Listening: Next, students watch the rest of the video and complete 2 listening comprehension activities. After that, they engage in a post-listening discussion.
Vocabulary: Students create short expressions from the video (e.g., to scare away (drive away) evil spirits, to welcome guests, to bring good luck, to light lamps, to exchange gifts, to share a feast, to commemorate the festival). To practise, they complete a gap-fill activity.
Speaking: Finally, students discuss a few conversation questions about their culture and traditions.
For more speaking practice, you can use the conversation cards.
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Teacher’s lesson plan
Student’s worksheet
Student’s interactive PDF
Conversation cards PDF
Pre-class activities
All video-based ESL lesson plans include online pre-class activities, which are FREE and can be completed without registration. Perfect for teachers who wish to embrace the blended learning approach. By providing students with resources and engagement opportunities before the actual class session, educators can foster active participation, enhance comprehension, and optimise in-class discussions.
The pre-class activities are optional: if you choose not to assign them, or your students don’t complete them, it will not disturb the flow of the class. You can find and review the pre-class activities for this lesson plan here:
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In-class activities
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Additional resources
Each video-based lesson plan includes links to additional resources (videos and articles), which are FREE can be found online (in the pre-class activities page. These links aim to extend the learning experience, enabling students to connect classroom knowledge with real-world applications.
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Teacher’s lesson plan
Student’s worksheet
Student’s interactive PDF
Conversation cards PDF
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