The secrets to effective learning
Lesson plan overview
This FREE intermediate ESL lesson will help students reflect on their learning strategies, discuss effective learning techniques, and introduce them to the concept of the forgetting curve and spaced repetition. Students will also learn useful expressions related to learning, as well as expressions with the word “learn”. In the teacher’s PDF, you will also find a few tips on how to use The English Flows material to combat the forgetting curve and help your students retain information. You can use this lesson in combination with the following lessons: “How to set effective language learning goals”, “English as a lingua franca”, “Phrasal verbs: learning and education”, “Idioms: learning and education”, and “Idioms: memory”.
Speaking: The lesson starts with 2 speaking activities. Students are given 4 quotes about learning and they talk about how they understand the quotes. Then they discuss 7 conversation questions, aiming to discover their experience with learning and what they have found to be effective and what they are struggling with.
Vocabulary: Students learn a few useful words related to learning (retention, feedback, assessments, engagement, cramming) by looking at 6 opinions about effective learning. They match the words to their definitions and then discuss the opinions.
To expand on that, students are given 10 learning strategies to discuss whether they think each learning strategy is effective or not.
Listening: Students watch a short video called “Spaced repetition: the most powerful study technique” and answer 5 questions in their own words. After that, students engage in post-listening discussion, talking about the concepts presented in the video (the forgetting curve and spaced repetition) as well as ways to implement this knowledge in their English learning journey.
Vocabulary extension: As an optional vocabulary extension, students learn expressions with the word “learn” by looking at 5 short dialogues (learn by heart, learn the basics, learn by doing, learn the hard way, learn your lesson) and engage in a final discussion related to their learning experiences, including the expressions given.
To reinforce the vocabulary from this lesson, you can use the printable set of conversation cards.
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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