Celebrating English Language Day

You do know that English Language Day is celebrated on 23 April, right? But why? Well, this day has been chosen because it is thought to be Shakespeare’s birthday and the anniversary of his death.

If you are wondering how to celebrate this special day with your students, E-planet is here to help! Take a break from your usual routine and dedicate a fun lesson to the English language!


Our EFL Classroom  


English Language Day is a great opportunity to create a positive learning environment. Just help your young students to create a unique and eye-catching ‘English Classroom Rules’ poster with this helpful worksheet: Our English Classroom Rules! In this way, your English learners can familiarise themselves with the rules and practise their reading and writing skills. Can you think of a better way to decorate your EFL classroom? 


British English (What else?)  


Do your students realise that there are many varieties of English? For example, Londoners live in flats and New Yorkers live in apartments. A sidewalk in the U.S.A. is a pavement in the U.K. British people have biscuits with their cup of tea or coffee, but Americans eat cookies. Americans go to centers (not centres) and theaters (not theatres).  


Encourage your students to understand and embrace the differences between British and American English (you could also add Australian English to the mix!). Our blog post British and American English: We speak the same language, right? is here to help you!  


Another great idea is to focus on the entertaining side of learning English with fun and mind-blowing facts about the language we all love. For example, most English learners are impressed when they learn that Monday gets its name from an old Anglo-Saxon word which means ‘the moon’s day’ and that in Ancient Britain, girls who were born on Mondays were given the name Mona as this was the Old English word for moon. And all young learners have fun when they try to pronounce ‘pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis’, the longest word in English! Let our blog post 10+1 Facts About the English Language… that will make you say ‘Wow’! inspire you!


Discovering Shakespeare's World 

How much do your students know about the most famous playwright? Do they understand the impact that the Bard – as Shakespeare is often referred to – had on modern-day English?  

Ask your students to make a list of words and phrases that Shakespeare invented and are still used today. Have your younger learners create a poster about Shakespeare’s life or his most popular plays.You can also take a look at the Teach Shakespeare site and search for resources that will help you to teach Shakespeare by play, theme, language or character.

Happy English Language Day! 
 
How are you going to celebrate this day? Leave a comment and share your inspiring ideas with us! 

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