Tips for 1:1 online classes, group lessons, and the classroom
Teaching ESL classes
English News For Kids articles are flexible, engaging, and ready to use in a range of English teaching settings. Whether you’re tutoring one child online or managing a full classroom, these nonfiction texts help learners build vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension while discovering fun facts about the world.
Not only do we have all the core topics covered like history, technology, sport, science and nature, but we also have current news, travel, culture and even some downright silly articles for students of all ages to enjoy.
Below are some practical tips and ideas for using our articles in different teaching formats.
1. Teaching 1:1 online
Build fluency, vocabulary, and natural conversation
Articles are ideal for one-to-one online English lessons because they combine real-world topics with a focus on building key vocabulary.
Here’s how to use English News for Kids’ articles in 1:1 online classes:
Before reading
Use the article title or image to spark a conversation. Ask questions to build curiosity and find out what your students already know: “What do you know about this topic?”, “What do you think might happen?”, or simply, “What do you see in the picture?”
You can also pre-teach a few glossary words to boost confidence before diving into the text.
During reading
You could have the student read line by line, pausing to check understanding or explain difficult words. Alternatively, they could read the whole article once, then review it together to clarify and break down tricky parts. If the student feels overwhelmed by too much reading, try taking turns reading sentence by sentence.
Encourage natural conversation whenever their interest is sparked.
After reading
Use the comprehension questions at the end of each article to check how well the student understood the text. Then, take it further by asking them to summarise what they read, share their opinion, or create sentences using new vocabulary from the list.
Many topics also make great starting points for writing or drawing activities.
To go even further, these activities can be extended into mini-projects, such as researching more facts and recording a short summary video.
2. Teaching online groups
Create interaction and shared learning moments in small group ESL lessons
Whether you’re using ClassIn, Zoom, Google Meet, BigBlueButton, or any other platform, English news articles give you a shared text that encourages conversation and teamwork.
Here’s how to get the most out of them:
Before reading
Start by getting everyone thinking about the topic. You can ask simple questions like, “What do you think this picture shows?” or “Have you heard about this before?”
If you want, do a quick poll or ask students to share one word they associate with the topic. This warms them up and sparks curiosity.
During reading
Help students stay focused by dividing the article into short sections, so the reading doesn’t feel overwhelming.
You can have students take turns reading aloud, this keeps everyone involved and builds confidence.
When you come across new or tricky words, encourage students to guess the meaning from the sentence first, then explain the word together. You could ask questions like, “Can you think of a similar word you already know?” or “How do you think this word connects to the topic?” This helps deepen understanding and makes vocabulary memorable.
After reading
Move into discussion by splitting students into pairs or breakout rooms. Give them the article’s questions to chat about, or challenge them to come up with their own quiz questions for the group.
You could also ask them to act out a short conversation or debate an interesting fact from the text. For variety, get students to vote on the most surprising thing they learned.
Extra tip
To keep everyone involved, try giving each student a different follow-up task. For example, one student can write a short summary, another can draw a picture or timeline, and someone else can share the main facts with the class. This way, everyone takes part in their own way, and hearing the information in different formats helps improve understanding and memory.
3. Teaching in the classroom
Use articles to build reading, speaking, writing, and more
English News for Kids articles are a great classroom resource. Their clear layout, interesting topics, and bite-sized paragraphs make them perfect for short lessons, pair work, or creative tasks after reading.
Before reading
Start with a class discussion using the article title or image. Ask open-ended questions like, “What do you think this is about?” or “What do you already know about this topic?” Write keywords on the board as they come up. You can also pre-teach a few glossary words to boost confidence before reading.
During reading
Read the article aloud as a class, in pairs, or small groups. Students can follow along, highlight key ideas, or underline any words they don’t know. Pause regularly to check comprehension and build vocabulary together. Ask students to share their ideas or make connections to other topics they’ve studied.
After reading
Use the built-in comprehension questions for group discussion or written work. Then try follow-up tasks like:
- Retelling the article in their own words (orally or in writing)
- Giving an opinion and explaining why
- Creating a poster or slideshow based on what they learned
Extra tip
Articles can be a great starting point for cross-curricular learning. Link them to science, geography, history, or other relevant themes to help students make real-world connections.
Ready-to-go, flexible content for real teaching
Whether you teach English online or in person, one-to-one or in groups, English News For Kids articles give you a ready-made toolkit for teaching real-world English. Each article supports:
- Vocabulary building through glossary words
- Reading fluency with suitable nonfiction texts
- Comprehension skills via built-in questions
- Engagement and creativity with relatable topics and flexible tasks
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Simply click this link to sign up for our mailing list, and we’ll provide you with the perfect materials to help you create fun and engaging classes for your students. Let us do the hard work for you.
Sinead is a writer and EFL teacher with eight years’ experience. She’s a native English speaker who loves making news stories fun and easy to understand for children around the world. Her passions include travel, animals, and helping to make the world a kinder, more sustainable place.
