Sustainable hotels FREE
Lesson plan overview
This FREE intermediate ESL lesson explores the topic of sustainability in the hospitality industry, with a focus on sustainable features in hotels. Students learn essential vocabulary, weigh the pros and cons of various sustainable practices, and watch a video about an eco-friendly hotel. Other lessons you might like are: “Corporate Social Responsibility,” “Cruise ships,” “Accessible tourism,” “Stop food waste,” “Green offices,”,and “Greenwashing.”
Speaking: The lesson begins with conversation questions about sustainable travel and accommodation, encouraging students to share their thoughts and experiences.
Vocabulary: Next, students expand their vocabulary by learning terms related to sustainable features such as toiletries, low-flow showerhead, food waste, rooftop, insulation, solar panels, fertilizer, and motion sensor. They then categorize practices as sustainable or unsustainable and discuss their impacts on the environment and hospitality industry.
Speaking: In the second speaking activity, students examine photos of various accommodations (e.g., glamping site, all-inclusive resort, hostel) and rank them from most to least sustainable, justifying their rankings with detailed explanations.
Listening: During the listening segment, students watch a video titled “Sustainability at Grand Hyatt Singapore” and complete two listening comprehension tasks. This is followed by a post-listening discussion where they analyze the video and share insights.
Speaking: The lesson concludes with a practical activity: students are presented with hotels in different locations and tasked with brainstorming suitable sustainability measures tailored to each setting.
For additional speaking practice, printable conversation cards are available.
Who is this lesson suitable for?
This lesson is ideal for intermediate ESL learners interested in sustainability, eco-friendly practices, and the hospitality industry. It can be used as a Business English lesson for professionals working in the hotel industry. The content provides practical insights and vocabulary that can help hospitality professionals discuss sustainability initiatives, implement eco-friendly measures, and communicate with environmentally conscious guests.
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:
To send the pre-class activities to your students, copy the link below.
In-class activities
Conversation cards PDF
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.
Teacher’s lesson plan
Student’s worksheet
Student’s interactive PDF
Conversation cards PDF
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