Dancing ESL Lesson Plan

OBJECTIVE & OVERVIEW

This dancing ESL lesson plan contains activities, PDF worksheets, and digital materials for B2 upper intermediate students. By the end of the lesson, students will develop a basic background and understanding of dancing, its purpose, history, and benefits, as well as learn some words and phrases to describe dancing and other sports or hobbies.

PREVIEW & DISCUSSION

To engage students on the topic of dancing, students start this lesson by describing some different types of dances using some images. There are some discussion questions about dancing prepared for students who dance often/sometimes, as well as rarely or never. There is then a short section for students to complete ideas about dancing using some words that come to mind. These are phrases and ideas that they’ll hear in the video, so they can refer back to it and later check after the viewing.

VIDEO & LISTENING COMPREHENSION

Students watch a video from BBC about the power of dancing. They’ll answer a few questions about dancing, as well as do an activity containing some true and false statements. In the final activity of the viewing, students listen out for some ideas about dancing in connection to a variety of topics in the video.

DISCUSSION & VOCABULARY

To follow up the video, students do engage in some additional discussion about dancing. They then proceed to do a few activities about some of the vocabulary phrases used in the video in relation to dancing, which can also be used in the context of other sports, activities, and hobbies in the final stage of the lesson.

HOBBY & DANCING: DISCUSSION & PRESENTATION

In this final activity, students can choose between any type of dance, hobby or sport that they do. They then research/prepare some information about this dance, hobby, or sport on a variety of different topics, that include the origins, benefits, skills, and more. Students then engage in an in-depth conversation and discussion about these dances, hobbies, or sports, and use some of the phrases they learned in the lesson to ask and talk about it.

If you’re looking for a lesson plan about dancing, or have any students interested in dancing, then you’re in the right place. Even if students aren’t interested in dancing, this lesson can still bring a lot of value to your ESL classroom due to its focus on hobbies and other sports.

Benefits of using this dancing ESL lesson plan:

Dance is an essential part of various cultures around the world, and introducing students to different dance styles exposes them to the diversity and richness of various cultures, promoting cultural awareness and understanding. However, one of the best parts about using this lesson is that it introduces specific dance-related vocabulary and phrases that students could apply in other context to other hobbies, as they'll get to practice in the activation phase of the lesson described above. It provides an opportunity for students to expand their vocabulary and practice using language in a context relevant to their interests.

The last point is that conversations about physical activity like dancing integrates language learning with cultural, physical, and social aspects, making it an enjoyable and rewarding educational experience. If you're looking for a lesson plan on dancing and hobbies, give this one a download and let us know what you think in the comments below.