Best ESL Worksheets for Beginners (+50 Free Resources)

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Teaching beginners the English language can be a tricky task. Sure, they may know how to say their first name and how they are today, but what then?

The good news is that plenty of resources are online regarding this topic. You can find multiple ESL websites with worksheets for beginner students, whether they are adults or children.

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ESL Worksheets for Beginners

Here are 12 places online where you can find ESL worksheets for beginners. Help your students gain the knowledge they need and learn effectively with the following resources:

1. ISL Collective Worksheets

ISL Collective has plenty of beginner worksheets that will benefit your students. Teachers have created these worksheets, so they are not free from errors (unfortunately, I’ve found many mistakes, even in the popular downloads section). 

Nevertheless, it’s a great free resource and time-saver for the busy teacher. The worksheets cater to adults and children.

Here’s a quick sample of the resources you can find (among many more options):

• Verb: to be – Present Simple
• Telling the Time
• Family
• Feelings
• -ing vs -ed

2. Oxford Owl

Oxford Owl is a great free resource because they have a free e-book library designed for young learners. You can enjoy reading about the adventures of Biff and Chip, among many other tales!

The e-books are suitable for children and divided by ages: 3-4, 4-5, 5-6, 6-7, 7-9, 9-11. Teachers can also browse by reading level.

They also have free PDF downloads:

• Shapes and Sizes
• What Letter am I — Riddles
• Homophones Wordsearch
• Counting Objects 0-100

3. ESL Kids Stuff

ESL Kids stuff has 1000+ worksheets and craft sheets for kids, available in American English and British English.

They have many free samples to choose from. Teachers can access their entire library for a low subscription fee.

Here are some of their free lesson plans, ready for download:

• Colors: Lesson Plan
• Can for Ability: Lesson Plan
• The Alphabet
• Zoo Animals

You may also be interested in: 27 Free Online ESL Games

4. English 4 Kids

English 4 Kids has a ton of ESL worksheets for beginners. They endorse many websites, such as ESL Kids, Lab, Kiz School, ESL Games World, and ESL Kids, so you can find links to their content.

English 4 Kids has a variety of printable ESL/EFL worksheets, all for free!

• Days of the Week
• School Supplies
• Zoo Animals
• Numbers: 1-10 Flashcards
• Numbers: 10-11

5.  Teach This

Teach This has bundles of ESL resources for all kinds of learners, including beginners.

There are over 1500 printable files for teachers, and more are always added.

Most of the resources on this site are pre-intermediate (A2) and higher from what I can see. So it may not be the best place to count on for all your beginner lessons.

• There is/ There are
• Find someone who
• Articles: a, an, the
• Adjective-noun dominoes
• What’s the weather like

You may also be interested in: Free ESL Worksheets for Adults (48 Great Resources)

6. ESL Library

ESL Library has suitable quality lessons that can be downloaded and printed for the ESL classroom.

ESL Library has an array of lessons on all subjects, all arranged in a similar layout style, which offers a bit of consistency.  

Each PDF has a student version and a teacher version. Teachers can find the answer key at the end of the PDF file.

• Simple Past – Past Regular
• What’s your Name – Dialogue
• Simple Present
• Prepositions of Place
• Phonics: Letter R

7. Busy Teacher 

Busy Teacher has many exercises you can sort through and print. You have to do a bit of scouring to find the most appealing resources, but it’s all entirely free!

It’s useful for finding parts of activities but not whole lesson plans. The best way to use this is to decide what kind of lessons you are looking for (speaking, reading, listening, etc.) and sort by level. 

I’d recommend Busy Teacher for classroom teachers who need more ideas or need to fill a bit of time.

Classroom Activities

You may also be interested in: 19 ESL Warm-Up Activities (Simple and Fun)

8. Pinterest

Pinterest is actually a hidden treasure trove for ESL lessons. Who would’ve thought that your favorite place to get inspired by furnishings and home decor could also be used to find fun lesson plans?

You can sort your favorite pins by creating an account and some Pinterest boards. Label the Pinterest Board with “ESL Beginner” and add any helpful resources.

Use the Pinterest search bar to find relevant lessons.

Some lessons I’ve found after minutes of doing a simple search:

• The Simpsons: Comparatives 
• Feelings
• Good Morning/ Good Afternoon/ Good night
• Clothes
• Beginners Challenge

9. British Council

The British Council has an array of high-quality, free lessons for teachers. They have an adult learning section suitable for adults learning beginner English.

These lessons are interactive with audio and visual images.

• Holidays
• Shopping at the supermarket
• Nature
• Body Parts

10. British Council: Learn English Kids

The British Council also has resources for kids. These worksheets are free and have other sections where you can print song worksheets and games. 

They even have a ‘teens’ section, so you can check it out for all age groups and levels!

Some ESL worksheets for beginners found at the British Council:

• Directions
• Doing Chores
• Cooking
• Christmas

11. Kahoot

Kahoot is a fun game for ESL teaching, and there are plenty of resources to choose from, depending on the student’s level.

Kahoot can be played by many different players or independently. They can be played online or in the classroom. It is a good listening exercise for beginners.

• An Exciting Day for a school project
• Having Lunch
• At the Toy Shop

You may also be interested in: 17 ESL Icebreaker Activities

12. Cambridge English

Cambridge English has lots of PDF downloads for teachers. 

You can find many resources on this page to help prepare students for the Cambridge English exams. They can also be used as lesson plans and downloadable worksheets.

• Classroom Warmer Activities
• Describing Pictures
• Pre A1 Listening Exercises
• Describing Differences

13. Abridge Academy

Abridge Academy has lesson slides that are particularly useful to online freelance teachers. They also have a Teaching in China course to assist you in setting up your business abroad. Teachers are said to earn approximately $50 per hour teaching English online to Chinese learners.

The teaching resources feature a core and ultimate curriculum suitable for kids and teens at the A1-C2 level. Check out their free lessons here.

14. Crystal Clear English

Crystal Clear English was recently set up to support freelance online teachers with a ready-made curriculum. They have a variety of lessons for beginners, both adults and children.

The lesson slides are interactive and clickable and require screen sharing. Crystal Clear English provides phonic lessons, kids’ curriculums, Business English, and more.

15. English W Sheets

English W Sheets have a similar feel to ISL Collective worksheets. The worksheets are categorized by topic rather than by level. If you want some reading exercises, grammar gap exercises, or additional vocabulary practice, you may want to consider checking out this site.

Best of all, the worksheets are free!

Check out some of their goodies:

• American and British English Worksheets
• Space
• Asking Questions
• Quantifiers
• Jack and the Beanstalk

How should I teach English to beginners?

• Keep your sentences short and sweet.
• Give them lots of time to practice and repeat keywords several times.
• Show them what you mean by using TPR, props, pictures, drawings, etc.
• Use positive reinforcement by praising them even if they make a mistake, and make the necessary correction. 
• Check that they understand the material by asking them concept-checking questions. 

In Conclusion

There are many ESL worksheets for beginners on the internet. Use the above websites to find activities and resources for the beginner level.

Need more resources for not just beginners? Check out our top websites for teachers here. Good luck! 

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Useful Links

• How to teach English online
• How I use Manycam for Online Teaching
• ESL Jobs List
• Resources for Teachers 
• Best Countries to Teach English
• Online ESL Games
• Online Teacher Reward Systems

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