A good source of material for your classroom can come from local English language newspapers. These will contain stories about local events in English and are good way to get students using English and to keep your lessons relevant to current events. Many newspapers have sections devoted to learning English and sometime republish articles specifically for language learners.
Magazines are good source of pictures to use in your classroom and can also be used for interesting articles and debate topics. Another use is with reluctant students, especially in one-on-one classes, where bringing in a magazine on a topic they are interested can encourage them to open up and start using English without even realising it.
Don’t forget your TEFL course materials! There are bound to be plenty of materials from your TEFL course that you can use in the classroom. Whether they were included in your course or were created by yourself for your practice lessons, it’s always a good idea to go back to the beginning when you find yourself stuck for ideas for a lesson.
The internet is obviously one big resource library for English teachers around the world with a wealth of lesson plan ideas, worksheets and activities available at the click of a button. You can also find a large number of podcasts that can be used for listening exercises. There are many podcasts on many different topics and you are sure to find something suitable for your needs. They also tend to be quite short so fit well into the average lesson. YouTube is a good source for many videos that can be used in class, from those designed specifically for use in the EFL classroom to clips of famous television shows, music videos, sporting events etc.
As well as YouTube, a good source for authentic video material to use in the classroom is your own DVD collection. Sit-coms are particularly good as they have easily identifiable characters and are also entertaining. Your music collection is another good source for authentic listening materials to use to teach various language points.
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