LESSON OVERVIEW

The main objectives of this ESL lesson on giving instructions to:

• build vocabulary related to email interface;
• watch a video with instructions;
• practise giving instructions on how to use a website or an app.

Students discuss technology use, share experiences and work with collocations for using email and web tools (e.g. click on ‘Compose’, add a link). They watch part of a video on how to use Gmail, explore texts of instructions and learn vocabulary for key parts of an email interface (e.g. ‘Send’ button, ‘To’ field, subject line). Students also explore phrases for describing positions (e.g. in the bottom right-hand corner) and work on giving instructions for using websites and apps.

WARM-UP AND VIDEO

This ESL lesson on giving instructions starts with a warm-up. Students discuss questions about helping or getting help with technology. After that, they look at activities (e.g. install antivirus software, edit a Word document, cancel a subscription) and decide which of them are easy or difficult to do. Students explain why, based on their experience. Moving on, they choose words or phrases that do not go with verbs (e.g. add: on ‘Compose’, a link, an attachment). Students then watch a video with instructions on how to use Gmail. First, they look at the collocations from the previous task and guess what activity the instructions are for. Then, they watch part of the video (to 01:33) and check their ideas. Afterwards, students look at the instructions and complete the missing words. They watch the video again and check. Following that, they discuss questions about using and managing emails.

VOCABULARY PRACTICE

In this part of this ESL lesson on giving instructions, students match descriptions (e.g. ‘Send’ button, Subject line) with the elements in a picture of an email window. After that, they say where some elements are located (e.g. ‘Close’ button, ‘Delete’ button,) using phrases for describing positions on a screen (e.g. in the top left corner, on the left-hand side). Students then read more instructions on how to use Gmail and complete them by choosing the correct words. After that, they complete instructions on how to write an email. Students use steps and prompts (e.g. First,… . Click… . Type in… .) and add details (e.g. the position of buttons). Finally, students choose a website or an app they often use and imagine giving instructions to a new user. Students explain how to log in and use the main features, using the target phrases from the lesson.

HOMEWORK/REVISION

This lesson plan also includes an additional task that you can use as homework or revision. In the task, students read instruction sentences and correct a mistake in each. They then put the sentences in the correct order. The task is available in the teacher’s version of the worksheet. You can print it and hand it out to your students. It’s also included in the e-lesson plan.