Starting a new term is the perfect time to build routines, boost confidence, and make English feel fun and achievable. These seasonal ESL activities use autumn themes and back-to-school moments to increase speaking time, vocabulary growth, and participation—without hours of prep. Teachers can adapt them for different age groups, mix them into warm-ups or full lessons, and use them to encourage both collaboration and independent practice. Whether you’re teaching in person or online, these ideas are simple, effective, and designed to help students stay motivated throughout the fall season.
1) Seasonal ESL Activities: Quick Icebreakers to Warm Up (5–10 minutes)
Short, low-pressure games help students feel safe and talk more:
- Find Someone Who – Fall Edition: Students mingle to find someone who likes hot chocolate, has a red backpack, enjoys rainy days, etc.
- Two Truths & a Wish: Two facts + one fall wish (e.g., “I want to go apple picking”).
- Name-Chain With Actions: “I’m Leo and I like leaf-raking” (mime raking). The next student repeats and adds their action.
Helpful tools:
- Mini dry-erase boards (class set) — perfect for quick answers and pair work.
- Magnetic classroom whiteboard + magnets — rotate speaking prompts or student names fast.
2) Build a Seasonal Word Bank (10–15 minutes)
Create a Fall Word Wall with categories like weather, clothing, food, places, verbs.
- Students sort picture/word cards into categories.
- Use I can… frames: I can wear a sweater. I can jump in leaves.
- Add a daily “mystery word” students guess using 3 clues.
Handy resources:
- Picture/ESL flashcards set
- Hanging pocket chart to display and reorder words during lessons.
3) Listening & Storytelling With Fall Themes
Choose short stories about back-to-school, harvest, or first-day feelings.
- While listening, students sequence picture cards or draw what they hear.
- In pairs, they retell the story with First, Then, Next, Finally frames.
- Extension: record a voice note summary on tablets for confidence building.
Make it interactive:
- Story sequencing cards
- Visual timers help keep mini-tasks tight and focused.
4) Speaking Games That Feel Like Play
- Pass the Pumpkin (or ball): Music plays; when it stops, the holder answers a question (teacher cue: Tell us your favorite fall food).
- Would You Rather? (Pumpkin pie or apple pie? Rainy day or windy day?)
- Question Corners: Label classroom corners Food, Weather, Clothes, Activities. Call a question and students move to the best answer corner and explain why.
Upgrade with props:
- Foam soft ball for Pass the Pumpkin.
- Classroom microphone toy — shy students speak more when it feels like a show.
5) Seasonal Writing That Scales for Any Level
Writing is a skill that can be easily adapted to any level, and seasonal themes provide a fun way for students to practice expressing ideas with the right amount of support.
Beginner: sentence frames + word banks
- In fall I wear… / I see… / I like…
Intermediate: paragraph frames
- Topic sentence → 3 details → closing. Example topic: Back-to-school traditions in my country.
Advanced: opinion or compare/contrast
- Is fall the best season for learning? / My first day this year vs last year.
Short on prep? Grab ready-to-use writing prompts from my store:
👉 Seasonal ESL prompts & activities
6) Low-Prep Projects That Wow
- Leaf Adjectives: Students choose a leaf color/shape and describe it using 3 adjectives, then present it to a partner.
- Class Calendar & Jobs: Build routines with a magnetic job chart and student helper roles.
- Class Survey: Poll the class (hot chocolate vs tea, rainy vs windy), then make a chart and present results.
Project helpers:
Bonus Hack: Reward Participation & Effort
Behavior improves when effort is noticed. Keep it simple and consistent:
- Sticker charts for speaking, teamwork, and homework.
- Good Job Certificates for weekly effort (print, sign, celebrate!).
- Token boards for small goals with a bigger reward at 5/10 tokens.
