critical thinking games for esl

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Critical Thinking and Problem Solving ESL Activities, Games and Lessons

Intermediate ( B1 )
Upper-intermediate ( B2 )
Advanced ( C1 )

What makes you happy?

Esl happiness activity - speaking: listing, guided discussions, categorising, freer practice - pair and group work - intermediate (b1) - 40 minutes.

Island Adventure

Esl desert island survival game - reading, writing, listening and speaking activity: writing sentences, preparing and delivering a presentation - group work - upper-intermediate (b2) - 60 minutes.

My Ideal Partner

Esl critical thinking activity - speaking: asking and answering questions, expressing opinions, negotiating, ranking, communicative practice - pair work - upper-intermediate (b2) - 25 minutes.

ESL Stress Activity - Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Guided Discussion, Ranking, Survey, Poster Creation, Freer and Communicative Practice - Pair and Group Work - Upper-intermediate (B2) - 90 minutes

ESL Critical Thinking Lesson - Reading and Listening Exercises: Answering Questions, Song Gap-fill, Answering Questions - Speaking Activity: Discussion - Group Work - Upper-intermediate (B2) - 90 minutes

What's the criteria?

Esl critical thinking and problem-solving activity - speaking: ranking, guided discussion, guessing, communicative practice - group work - upper-intermediate (b2) - 30 minutes.

ESL Critical Thinking Activity - Speaking: Guided Discussion, Communicative Practice - Group Work - Upper-intermediate (B2) - 30 minutes

ESL Problem Solving Activity - Speaking: Guided Discussion, Presenting, Preparing and Performing a Role-Play, Communicative Practice - Group Work - Advanced (C1) - 40 minutes

Zero Sum Negotiations

Esl zero sum negotiations activity - speaking: negotiating, discussion, communicative practice - pair work - writing exercise: answering questions - advanced (c1) - 40 minutes.

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I use the resources from the Games Section as part of my daily 30-minute morning warm-up activities, and I've received rave reviews for using them. The games help me maintain student interest and participation and leave the students feeling happy and awake. I like everything about the site, and customer support is very effective as they respond in time.

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Creative Resources for ESL/EFL Teachers

10 Interactive ESL Online Games for Language and Critical Thinking Improvement

In today’s digital age, online games have become a popular and effective tool for teaching various skills, including English as a second language. Interactive ESL online games, such as digital escape rooms , scavenger hunts , critical thinking games , and media literacy games , are not only fun and engaging but also provide students with unique opportunities to improve their language skills .

In this article, we will explore the benefits of using interactive games for language learning, and discuss how these games can help students achieve their language goals.

1. Enhanced Engagement and Motivation

Interactive games provide a dynamic and interactive environment that makes language learning more enjoyable and memorable. This can lead to increased engagement and motivation for students to continue learning.

2. Real-Life Practice

Many games simulate real-life situations . This allows students to practice their language skills in relevant and practical ways.

3. Improved Critical Thinking Skills

Games that teach critical skills , such as spotting fake news and hoaxes , and media literacy, help students improve their critical thinking and media literacy skills. These skills are essential for success in today’s digital world and will help students in their personal and academic lives.

4. Customizable and Convenient

Interactive games offer customization options, allowing students to tailor the game to their language level and learning goals. With the ability to play these games on a variety of devices, students can access language learning opportunities from anywhere and at any time.

5. Measurable Progress

Interactive ESL online games provide students with immediate feedback , allowing them to see their progress and identify areas that need improvement. This helps students stay motivated and track their progress.

Here’s a list of 10 interactive ESL online games you should check out:

Bad news game.

The Bad News Game is all about spotting fake news and hoaxes . You’ll be presented with news articles and videos and have to figure out what’s real and what’s not. It’s a fun way to improve your critical thinking skills and learn to be a media-literate person. Get ready to be challenged and have a blast doing it!

Fake News Game

This game is similar to the Bad News Game. It will challenge you to think critically and evaluate information sources, helping you become a savvier news consumer. So, get ready to flex your brain muscles and have some fun!

Interland is a free, online multiplayer adventure game created by Google that teaches digital safety, security and citizenship skills to children. Players explore four fantastical lands, completing challenges and quests while learning how to protect their online privacy, spot fake news, and be good digital citizens.

Digital Escape Rooms

The digital escape rooms at Madison Library are a fun and exciting challenge. These online puzzles will test your problem-solving skills and critical thinking as you try to escape a virtual room within a limited time frame. Immerse yourself in a world of digital elements and clues, to make the most of your escape room experience. With a variety of themes to choose from, there’s always a new challenge waiting for you and your friends.

Escape Team

Escape Team is an online interactive game that challenges players to solve puzzles and complete tasks within a limited time frame in order to escape virtual rooms. Players must work together to find clues, decode messages, and complete challenges in order to escape each room before time runs out.

Reality Check

Reality Check teaches you to find truth online by locating the source of a story, comparing it to other sources, and using fact-checking tools and reverse image searches. Each mission presents a story from your social network feed, true, false, or in-between. Find out by clicking on magnifying glasses on the page, then decide how reliable it is and how to respond.

Spent is an online game where you play as a low-income worker trying to survive a month with limited money. You must balance daily expenses and make tough decisions that affect your finances. It’s a thought-provoking game that gives players a glimpse into the challenges faced by those living in poverty .

Trivia Crack

Trivia Crack is a fun online game to test your knowledge of different subjects . Play against others by answering trivia questions and spinning a wheel for categories like history, science, art, sports, and more.

Elevate App

Elevate is a fun online brain-training app with daily challenges to improve your memory, attention, and processing speed . Personalized to your progress, it’s perfect for students, busy professionals, or anyone looking for a mental workout.

The Meaning of Beep: Cyberbullying

This game teaches players about the effects of cyberbullying and how to stop it. Players will have fun while they learn to identify and handle cyberbullying in different digital scenarios. The game is designed to encourage positive online behavior and help players become responsible digital citizens.

Interactive ESL online games are a valuable tool for language learning. With their ability to engage and motivate students, provide real-life practice, improve critical thinking skills, and offer measurable progress, these games can help students achieve their language goals and unlock their full potential. Try incorporating interactive ESL online games into your language learning routine today and experience the benefits for yourself.

Similar resources:

47 Interactive and Online ELT Resources for Teachers

Best English Games to Play in Your ESL Classroom

Engaging Online Teaching: ESL Activities and Games

Online ESL Video Lesson Plans

Digital and Online Teaching Resources for Teachers Who Teach English from Home

ESL Taboo Cards: Printable Vocabulary Activity

Are you looking for a stimulating and entertaining method to increase your vocabulary and communication abilities in English? Take a look our ESL taboo card games below! ESL Taboo is a frequently played game that’s designed for teams of two or more players. The goal is to get your teammates…

20 Fun Discussion Questions for (Not Only) the ESL Classroom

I don’t know about your corner of the world, but here in Central Europe summer has arrived with full force. It’s scorching hot. I finally understand the 3-hour siesta they have in some countries. Who would want to move, or think in this heat? So I cut my students some…

30 Hypothetical Conversation Questions for ESL Students

Here is another set of conversation questions, this some for more advanced students as the questions are hypothetical, so it requires a knowledge of conditionals and a certain level of creativity. I’d recommend it for 16+ (B1, B2, C1). The questions for this activity are used with the kind permission…

Educationise

11 Activities That Promote Critical Thinking In The Class

Ignite your child’s curiosity with our exclusive “Learning Adventures Activity Workbook for Kids” a perfect blend of education and adventure!

Critical thinking activities encourage individuals to analyze, evaluate, and synthesize information to develop informed opinions and make reasoned decisions. Engaging in such exercises cultivates intellectual agility, fostering a deeper understanding of complex issues and honing problem-solving skills for navigating an increasingly intricate world. Through critical thinking, individuals empower themselves to challenge assumptions, uncover biases, and constructively contribute to discourse, thereby enriching both personal growth and societal progress.

Critical thinking serves as the cornerstone of effective problem-solving, enabling individuals to dissect challenges, explore diverse perspectives, and devise innovative solutions grounded in logic and evidence. For engaging problem solving activities, read our article problem solving activities that enhance student’s interest.

52 Critical Thinking Flashcards for Problem Solving

What is Critical Thinking?

Critical thinking is a 21st-century skill that enables a person to think rationally and logically in order to reach a plausible conclusion. A critical thinker assesses facts and figures and data objectively and determines what to believe and what not to believe. Critical thinking skills empower a person to decipher complex problems and make impartial and better decisions based on effective information.

Importance of Acquiring Critical Thinking Skills

Critical thinking skills cultivate habits of mind such as strategic thinking, skepticism, discerning fallacy from the facts, asking good questions and probing deep into the issues to find the truth. Acquiring critical thinking skills was never as valuable as it is today because of the prevalence of the modern knowledge economy. Today, information and technology are the driving forces behind the global economy. To keep pace with ever-changing technology and new inventions, one has to be flexible enough to embrace changes swiftly.

Today critical thinking skills are one of the most sought-after skills by the companies. In fact, critical thinking skills are paramount not only for active learning and academic achievement but also for the professional career of the students. The lack of critical thinking skills catalyzes memorization of the topics without a deeper insight, egocentrism, closed-mindedness, reduced student interest in the classroom and not being able to make timely and better decisions.

Benefits of Critical Thinking Skills in Education

Certain strategies are more eloquent than others in teaching students how to think critically. Encouraging critical thinking in the class is indispensable for the learning and growth of the students. In this way, we can raise a generation of innovators and thinkers rather than followers. Some of the benefits offered by thinking critically in the classroom are given below:

It allows a student to decipher problems and think through the situations in a disciplined and systematic manner
Through a critical thinking ability, a student can comprehend the logical correlation between distinct ideas
The student is able to rethink and re-justify his beliefs and ideas based on facts and figures
Critical thinking skills make the students curious about things around them
A student who is a critical thinker is creative and always strives to come up with out of the box solutions to intricate problems

Read our article: How to Foster Critical Thinking Skills in Students? Creative Strategies and Real-World Examples

Critical thinking skills assist in the enhanced student learning experience in the classroom and prepares the students for lifelong learning and success
The critical thinking process is the foundation of new discoveries and inventions in the world of science and technology
The ability to think critically allows the students to think intellectually and enhances their presentation skills, hence they can convey their ideas and thoughts in a logical and convincing manner
Critical thinking skills make students a terrific communicator because they have logical reasons behind their ideas

Critical Thinking Lessons and Activities

11 Activities that Promote Critical Thinking in the Class

We have compiled a list of 11 activities that will facilitate you to promote critical thinking abilities in the students. We have also covered problem solving activities that enhance student’s interest in our another article. Click here to read it.

1. Worst Case Scenario

Divide students into teams and introduce each team with a hypothetical challenging scenario. Allocate minimum resources and time to each team and ask them to reach a viable conclusion using those resources. The scenarios can include situations like stranded on an island or stuck in a forest. Students will come up with creative solutions to come out from the imaginary problematic situation they are encountering. Besides encouraging students to think critically, this activity will enhance teamwork, communication and problem-solving skills of the students.

Read our article: 10 Innovative Strategies for Promoting Critical Thinking in the Classroom

2. If You Build It

It is a very flexible game that allows students to think creatively. To start this activity, divide students into groups. Give each group a limited amount of resources such as pipe cleaners, blocks, and marshmallows etc. Every group is supposed to use these resources and construct a certain item such as building, tower or a bridge in a limited time. You can use a variety of materials in the classroom to challenge the students. This activity is helpful in promoting teamwork and creative skills among the students.

It is also one of the classics which can be used in the classroom to encourage critical thinking. Print pictures of objects, animals or concepts and start by telling a unique story about the printed picture. The next student is supposed to continue the story and pass the picture to the other student and so on.

4. Keeping it Real

In this activity, you can ask students to identify a real-world problem in their schools, community or city. After the problem is recognized, students should work in teams to come up with the best possible outcome of that problem.

5. Save the Egg

Make groups of three or four in the class. Ask them to drop an egg from a certain height and think of creative ideas to save the egg from breaking. Students can come up with diverse ideas to conserve the egg like a soft-landing material or any other device. Remember that this activity can get chaotic, so select the area in the school that can be cleaned easily afterward and where there are no chances of damaging the school property.

6. Start a Debate

In this activity, the teacher can act as a facilitator and spark an interesting conversation in the class on any given topic. Give a small introductory speech on an open-ended topic. The topic can be related to current affairs, technological development or a new discovery in the field of science. Encourage students to participate in the debate by expressing their views and ideas on the topic. Conclude the debate with a viable solution or fresh ideas generated during the activity through brainstorming.

7. Create and Invent

This project-based learning activity is best for teaching in the engineering class. Divide students into groups. Present a problem to the students and ask them to build a model or simulate a product using computer animations or graphics that will solve the problem. After students are done with building models, each group is supposed to explain their proposed product to the rest of the class. The primary objective of this activity is to promote creative thinking and problem-solving skills among the students.

8. Select from Alternatives

This activity can be used in computer science, engineering or any of the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) classes. Introduce a variety of alternatives such as different formulas for solving the same problem, different computer codes, product designs or distinct explanations of the same topic.

Form groups in the class and ask them to select the best alternative. Each group will then explain its chosen alternative to the rest of the class with reasonable justification of its preference. During the process, the rest of the class can participate by asking questions from the group. This activity is very helpful in nurturing logical thinking and analytical skills among the students.

9. Reading and Critiquing

Present an article from a journal related to any topic that you are teaching. Ask the students to read the article critically and evaluate strengths and weaknesses in the article. Students can write about what they think about the article, any misleading statement or biases of the author and critique it by using their own judgments.

In this way, students can challenge the fallacies and rationality of judgments in the article. Hence, they can use their own thinking to come up with novel ideas pertaining to the topic.

10. Think Pair Share

In this activity, students will come up with their own questions. Make pairs or groups in the class and ask the students to discuss the questions together. The activity will be useful if the teacher gives students a topic on which the question should be based.

For example, if the teacher is teaching biology, the questions of the students can be based on reverse osmosis, human heart, respiratory system and so on. This activity drives student engagement and supports higher-order thinking skills among students.

11. Big Paper – Silent Conversation

Silence is a great way to slow down thinking and promote deep reflection on any subject. Present a driving question to the students and divide them into groups. The students will discuss the question with their teammates and brainstorm their ideas on a big paper. After reflection and discussion, students can write their findings in silence. This is a great learning activity for students who are introverts and love to ruminate silently rather than thinking aloud.

Finally, for students with critical thinking, you can go to GS-JJ.co m to customize exclusive rewards, which not only enlivens the classroom, but also promotes the development and training of students for critical thinking.

4 thoughts on “ 11 Activities That Promote Critical Thinking In The Class ”

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Thanks for the great article! Especially with the post-pandemic learning gap, these critical thinking skills are essential! It’s also important to teach them a growth mindset. If you are interested in that, please check out The Teachers’ Blog!

40 Activities For Developing Critical Thinking in EFL Classes

In this article, I’m going to tackle critical thinking; what it is, what it involves, and some practical activities to develop it in EFL classes.

Critical thinking is one of the main purposes of education. Teachers should prepare their students to think critically from the first day of school. Critical thinking helps students to lead successful, fulfilling lives and become engaged citizens.

What Is Meant By Critical Thinking?

In today’s world, critical thinking is:

The ability to think about one’s thinking to recognize and improve it.
The process of applying, analyzing, constructing and evaluating information.
Making reasoned judgments using certain criteria to judge the quality of something.

What Critical Thinking Involves?

Asking questions,
Defining a problem,
Examining evidence,
Analyzing assumptions and biases,
Avoiding emotional reasoning,
Avoiding oversimplification,
Considering all interpretations,
Using higher level thinking skills; analyzing, evaluating and
Reaching creative solutions for problems.

Why Teach Critical Thinking?

Teachers should focus mainly to develop their students’ critical thinking to help them:

Be active receptors of the massive information that they receive nowadays.
Solve the complex problems that they face every day.
Make sound decisions about personal and civic affairs.

The Main Teaching Strategies To Develop Critical Thinking

Using ongoing classroom assessment.
Putting students in group learning situations to get continuous support and feedback from other students.
Presenting case studies to the class without a conclusion and using discussion and debate methods.
Using critical questions.
Using dialogues written or oral and encouraging students to analyze them.
Using comparisons to show the pros and cons of two things.

Example #1 of a Critical Thinking Activity

Using debates

Letter x Email

Broom x Vacuum cleaner

Telephone (landline) x Cell phone

Oven x Microwave

Sponge and soap x Dishwasher

Candle x Bulb

Book x Kindle

1. Ask the class who, in their own opinion, wins and why?

2. Ask students to pretend to be the item that they choose, try to list its advantages, and debate them with the other student.

3. Ask students to act out what they prepared in front of the class.

4. Ask the class to listen and take notes.

Example #2 of a Critical Thinking Activity

Using short stories

Ask students to read the following short story and answer the questions below:

Just before Christmas my father took me skiing at Mount Baker. He’d had to fight for the privilege of my company, because my mother was still angry with him for sneaking me into a nightclub during his last visit, to see Thelonious Monk.

Write an introduction to this short story.
Write the second paragraph.
Do you think they stayed up all night in the nightclub? What did they do?
What do you think about the father?
Do you think the family enjoyed Christmas?
If you were the mother, would you be angry?
What did you learn from the story?
Can you guess the best/worst case scenario of how the story will end?
Why did the father take the kid to the nightclub?
Do you think the mother wanted to go to the nightclub?
Do you like such a father?
Do you think the dad lives with the family?
What are the feelings of the kid?
Do you think the kid has siblings?
Did the kid solve the problem with his mother?
What would you do if you were in his/her shoes?
How old is he or she?
Where do they live? Country or town?
Do you think the kid is good at school?
Why did the father sneak the kid into the nightclub?
Do you think the mother was right when she got angry?
What do you think of the dad?
Should the kid apologize to the mother and how?
Does the father accompany his kid often or rarely?
What do you think happened before Christmas?
Why did the father not take the mother along? …. etc.

When asking students such critical thinking questions, the teacher should:

Keep the discussion focused.
Keep the discussion reasonable.
Stimulate the discussion with more probing questions.
Summarize periodically what has and what has not been dealt with or resolved.
Engage as many students as possible in the discussion.

More Examples of Activities For Developing Critical Thinking in EFL Classes

3. Write a title on the board, divide the students into groups, and they sit together and make a story (each group will have a different story and then share it with the whole class).

4. Use a short story, ask students about their opinions of the characters, then discuss with the whole class whether they agree or disagree asking why?

5. Draw objects and ask them about them (compare and contrast).

6. Write an essay on a certain topic or respond to an email.

7. Suggest a suitable title for a story.

8. Transfer information to others

9. Brainstorm ideas using a mind map.

10. Summarize a text and give opinions.

11. Ask what-if questions (what if you were Oliver twist/Cinderella).

12. Ask students to complete a sentence.

13. Ask about the moral of a story.

14. Give students a problem related to their environment and ask them to do research about it and give some creative solutions for it.

15. Ask open-ended questions; questions that have many possible answers (e.g. should we spend more money developing earth or exploring space?). Divide the class into groups, each thinks of answers and then shares them.

16. Give a situation and encourage students (in groups) to analyze, evaluate, and make judgments.

17. Ask students to make an end to a story.

18. Ask students to criticize a certain situation.

19. List the advantages and disadvantages of a topic.

20. Introduce some situations using (what would you do in the following situation? what if we do not have …., what would happen if …?

21. Ask students: which is different: milk, water, soda, or juice? Why? Which one is better (in pairs and students pick different sides)

22. Imagine you are the president, the mayor, a leader, a doctor etc… What decisions would you take first?

Reading Activities

Let’s brainstorm some ideas of how to promote critical thinking after reading a story, e.g. “Cinderella”.

23. Analyze characters: Do you like “Character”? Why?

24. Use what-if questions: What if Cinderella was ugly?

25. Introduce or remove a character then ask for the impact on the storyline.

26. Ask for another ending for the story.

27. Ask for their thoughts about what’s after the ending.

28. Change the setting and ask for the results.

29. Ask students to watch the movie after reading the story and then compare the characters and the storyline!

Speaking activities

30. Ask students to look at a certain picture and describe their feelings about it.

31. Ask students to compare things.

32. Introduce a problem and ask students to give as many solutions as possible for it.

33. Ask students to gather information from conflicting resources.

34. Ask controversial questions.

35. Encourage Role Plays.

36. Ask students about their priority: education/health/entertainment and why?

Listening activities

37. Prediction.

38. Making inferences.

39. Drawing conclusions.

40. Differentiating between facts and opinions.

Writing Activities

41. Writing blurbs to pictures or ads … etc.

42. Writing Commentaries.

43. Responding to emails, letters or SMS.

For setting students up for success in critical thinking activities teachers need to:

Brainstorm enough information before asking students to carry out a certain task.
Encourage them to participate.
Provide them with help and guidance (when needed).
Assure them that there are no “wrong answers”.
Accept all answers and points of view.
Appreciate their efforts.
Praise their trials.
Teach them critical thinking skills!

Here are some critical thinking skills that students need to learn:

Thinking outside the box.
Asking questions and then questioning answers.
Analyzing the reading or the listening text.
Logically addressing an issue.
Supporting their stance with evidence.
Respectfully refuting others’ opinions.
Evaluating the truth of a claim or argument.

Adapted from U.S. Department of State English Language Programs – Samar Aal

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Teaching Critical Thinking Skills in the ESL Classroom

Linda D'Argenio
December 22, 2022

teaching critical thinking skills in fluency vs accuracy

Critical thinking has become a central concept in today’s educational landscape, regardless of the subject taught. Critical thinking is not a new idea. It has been present since the time of Greek philosophers like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Socrates’ famous quote, “Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel,” underscores the nature of learning (students are not blank slates to be filled with content by their teachers) and the significance of inquisitiveness in a true learning process, both in the ESL classroom and in the wider world of education. Teaching critical thinking skills in the ESL classroom will benefit your students throughout their language-learning journey.

In more recent times, philosopher John Dewey made critical thinking one of the cornerstones of his educational philosophy. Nowadays, educators often quote critical thinking as the most important tool to sort out the barrage of information students are exposed to in our media-dominated world , to analyze situations and elaborate solutions. Teaching critical thinking skills is an integral part of teaching 21st-century skills .

Table of Contents

What is critical thinking?

There are many definitions of critical thinking. They are not mutually exclusive but rather complementary. Some of the main ones are outlined below.

Dewey’s definition

In John Dewey’s educational theory, critical thinking examines the beliefs and preexisting knowledge that individuals use to assess situations and make decisions. If such beliefs and knowledge are faulty or unsupported, they will lead to faulty assessments and decision-making. In essence, Dewey advocated for a scientific mindset in approaching problem-solving .

Goal-directed thinking

Critical thinking is goal-directed. We question the underlying premises of our reflection process to ensure we arrive at the proper conclusions and decisions.

Critical thinking as a metacognitive process

According to Matthew Lipman, in Thinking in Education, “Reflective thinking is thinking that is aware of its own assumptions and implications as well as being conscious of the reasons and evidence that support this or that conclusion. (…) Reflective thinking is prepared to recognize the factors that make for bias, prejudice, and self-deception . It involves thinking about its procedures at the same time as it involves thinking about its subject matter” (Lipman, 2003).

Awareness of context

This is an important aspect of critical thinking. As stated by Diane Halpern in Thought and Knowledge: An Introduction to Critical Thinking , “[The critical] thinker is using skills that are thoughtful and effective for the particular context and type of thinking task” (Halpern, 1996)

What are the elements of critical thinking?

Several elements go into the process of critical thinking.

Identifying the problem. If critical thinking is viewed mainly as a goal-oriented activity, the first element is to identify the issue or problem one wants to solve. However, the critical thinking process can be triggered simply by observation of a phenomenon that attracts our attention and warrants an explanation.
Researching and gathering of information that is relevant to the object of inquiry. One should gather diverse information and examine contrasting points of view to achieve comprehensive knowledge on the given topic.
Evaluation of biases. What biases can we identify in the information that has been gathered in the research phase? But also, what biases do we, as learners, bring to the information-gathering process?
Inference. What conclusions can be derived by an examination of the information? Can we use our preexisting knowledge to help us draw conclusions?
Assessment of contrasting arguments on an issue. One looks at a wide range of opinions and evaluates their merits.
Decision-making. Decisions should be based on the above.

Why is critical thinking important in ESL teaching?

The teaching of critical thinking skills plays a pivotal role in language instruction. Consider the following:

Language is the primary vehicle for the expression of thought, and how we organize our thoughts is closely connected with the structure of our native language. Thus, critical thinking begins with reflecting on language. To help students understand how to effectively structure and express their thinking processes in English, ESL teachers need to incorporate critical thinking in English Language Teaching (ELT) in an inclusive and interesting way .

For ESL students to reach their personal, academic, or career goals, they need to become proficient in English and be able to think critically about issues that are important to them. Acquiring literacy in English goes hand in hand with developing the thinking skills necessary for students to progress in their personal and professional lives. Thus, teachers need to prioritize the teaching of critical thinking skills.

How do ESL students develop critical thinking skills?

Establishing an effective environment

The first step in assisting the development of critical thinking in language learning is to provide an environment in which students feel supported and willing to take risks. To express one’s thoughts in another language can be a considerable source of anxiety. Students often feel exposed and judged if they are not yet able to communicate effectively in English. Thus, the teacher should strive to minimize the “affective filter.” This concept, first introduced by Stephen Krashen, posits that students’ learning outcomes are strongly influenced by their state of mind. Students who feel nervous or anxious will be less open to learning. They will also be less willing to take the risks involved in actively participating in class activities for fear that this may expose their weaknesses.

One way to create such an environment and facilitate students’ expression is to scaffold language so students can concentrate more on the message/content and less on grammar/accuracy.

Applying context

As mentioned above, an important aspect of critical thinking is context. The information doesn’t exist in a vacuum but is always received and interpreted in a specific situational and cultural environment. Because English learners (ELs) come from diverse cultural and language backgrounds and don’t necessarily share the same background as their classmates and teacher, it is crucial for the teacher to provide a context for the information transmitted. Contextualization helps students to understand the message properly.

Asking questions

One of the best ways to stimulate critical thinking is to ask questions. According to Benjamin Bloom’s taxonomy ( Taxonomy of Educational Objectives , 1956), thinking skills are divided into lower-order and higher-order skills. Lower-order skills include knowledge, comprehension, and application; higher-order skills include analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. To stimulate critical thinking in ELT, teachers need to ask questions that address both levels of thinking processes. For additional information, read this article by the TESL Association of Ontario on developing critical thinking skills in the ESL classroom .

Watch the following clip from a BridgeUniverse Expert Series webinar to learn how to set measurable objectives based on Bloom’s Taxonomy ( watch the full webinar – and others! – here ):

How can we implement critical thinking skills in the ESL classroom?

Several activities can be used in the ESL classroom to foster critical thinking skills. Teaching critical thinking examples include:

Activities that scaffold language and facilitate students’ expression

These can be as basic as posting lists of important English function words like conjunctions, personal and demonstrative pronouns, question words, etc., in the classroom. Students can refer to these tables when they need help to express their thoughts in a less simplistic way or make explicit the logical relation between sentences (because… therefore; if… then; although… however, etc.). There are a variety of methods to introduce new vocabulary based on student age, proficiency level, and classroom experience.

Activities that encourage students to make connections between their preexisting knowledge of an issue and the new information presented

One such exercise consists of asking students to make predictions about what will happen in a story, a video, or any other context. Predictions activate the students’ preexisting knowledge and encourage them to link it with the new data, make inferences, and build hypotheses.

Critical thinking is only one of the 21st-century skills English students need to succeed. Explore all of Bridge’s 21st-Century Teaching Skills Micro-credential courses to modernize your classroom!

Change of perspective and contextualization activities.

Asking students to put themselves in someone else’s shoes is a challenging but fruitful practice that encourages them to understand and empathize with other perspectives. It creates a different cultural and emotional context or vantage point from which to consider an issue. It helps assess the merit of contrasting arguments and reach a more balanced conclusion.

One way of accomplishing this is to use a written text and ask students to rewrite it from another person’s perspective. This automatically leads students to adopt a different point of view and reflect on the context of the communication. Another is to use roleplay . This is possibly an even more effective activity. In role-play, actors tend to identify more intimately with their characters than in a written piece. There are other elements that go into acting, like body language, voice inflection, etc., and they all need to reflect the perspective of the other.

Collaborative activities

Activities that require students to collaborate also allow them to share and contrast their opinions with their peers and cooperate in problem-solving (which, after all, is one of the goals of critical thinking). Think/write-pair-share is one such activity. Students are asked to work out a problem by themselves and then share their conclusions with their peers. A collaborative approach to learning engages a variety of language skill sets, including conversational skills, problem-solving, and conflict resolution, as well as critical thinking.

In today’s educational and societal context, critical thinking has become an important tool for sorting out information, making decisions, and solving problems. Critical thinking in language learning and the ESL classroom helps students to structure and express their thoughts effectively. It is an essential skill to ensure students’ personal and professional success.

Take an in-depth look at incorporating critical thinking skills into the ESL classroom with the Bridge Micro-credential course in Promoting Critical Thinking Skills.

Linda D'Argenio

Linda D'Argenio is a native of Naples, Italy. She is a world language teacher (English, Italian, and Mandarin Chinese,) translator, and writer. She has studied and worked in Italy, Germany, China, and the U.S. In 2003, Linda earned her doctoral degree in Classical Chinese Literature from Columbia University. She has taught students at both the school and college levels. Linda lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Critical Thinking Activities for ESL Students

Critical thinking skills are fundamental for setting up ESL students for future success.

It’s important for them to have opportunities to develop skills such as giving opinions, providing supporting evidence, debating ideas including rebuttal, negotiating, compromising and coming to conclusions.

These are skills that are necessary to be able to communicate with native speakers on an equal language level – so TESOL teachers should provide a learning environment where ESL students can practice inside the classroom to prepare for life outside the classroom.

Activity 1 – Stockland Court Case

Below there are two articles written on the same topic. The most obvious question to ask about them is, ‘Why is Text 2 shorter?’ Of course, it’s easy to see that it has less vocabulary. But what kind of vocabulary is it lacking?

The first vocabulary difference is that in Text 1, the first word is ‘struggling.’ The writer didn’t include this adjective by accident. He’s trying to create sympathy for Stanway by implying the property developer is up against forces more potent than itself.

Note the next difference. Text 1 uses the phrase ‘shot down’, whereas Text 2 uses ‘lost.’ The expression ‘shot down’ originally came from World War I where airplanes or balloons were fired on in order to destroy them immediately or force them to crash.

This concept of destruction is powerful and highly negative, whereas ‘lost’ is a far more neutral word. Why use this kind of evocative vocabulary? This question leads us to the difference between subjective and objective writing.

Subjective information is based on personal opinions, whereas objective writing is based on factual evidence. As you read through Text 1, you can see that the writer has a clear bias – and he’s trying to persuade readers to agree with his point of view.

Most people, if they see a dispute between a 63-year-old aboriginal man and a property developer, would instinctively side with the man. It’s easy to see that man as an underdog up against a bullying adversary, and therefore worthy of our support.

However, the writer of Text 1 is trying to flip our natural inclination. He wants us to see the 63-year-old aboriginal man as the ‘bad guy’ and the property developer as deserving of our sympathy.

Ask your ESL students to get into pairs or small groups, find all the vocabulary differences in the two texts, and discuss how these differences affect meaning. You can get them to finish off by debating about which article they are more inclined to believe and why.

Critical Thinking Activities for ESL Students - Stockland Court Case - Study Material - Learning Activity

Activity 2 – Mysteries

I’ve found that it’s always good for English Language Teachers to bring humour into the classroom when you can – and this activity (see below) is a sure-fire way to get your ESL students laughing and smiling.

One important point – while students should be encouraged to have fun with this, no student should be embarrassed or humiliated in the process. Make this an important rule, and make sure it’s enforced.

Like with Activity 1, ask your students to get into pairs or small groups. Encourage every member in each group to come up with their own explanation to solve the mysteries.

For each of the ten mysteries outlined, there are an infinite number of possibilities. So, each team will need to choose their best explanation for each mystery. After the discussion time, you could get each team to give a report – to share their chosen explanations with the rest of the class.

For Mystery 1 – Someone sent him/her a present, but there was no card – your students should answer all the WH questions (and to do this for all the other mysteries as well):

Who: Who sent the present? What: What was the present? Why: Why was the present sent and why was there no card? Where: Where did the student receive the present? Where did it come from? When: When did the student receive the present? When was it sent? How: How was it delivered?

Once students have answers to these questions, they are then able to construct a story. But the students must ensure that all story elements can be linked, and that there are no gaps or inconsistencies in their storyline.

Imagine that the following situations happened to one of your classmates. Explain the mysteries with sentences that start with maybe, perhaps, or probably.

1. Someone sent him/her a present, but there was no card.

2. The phone rang, but no one was there.

3. People were laughing at him/her all day yesterday and he/she didn’t know why.

4. A group of people suddenly surrounded him/her and his/her friend and began jumping up and
down and cheering wildly.

5. The TV turned off even though he/she didn’t touch the remote.

6. Last summer, he/she and his/her friends were camping in the mountains. Suddenly, he/she saw
a bright flash of light in the sky

7. There was a strange buzzing and a weird humming in his/her room last night.

8. He/she was walking downtown last Saturday when suddenly there was a strange sickly odour.

9. A famous movie star mentions his/her name in an interview.

10. An expensive car was following him/her all day yesterday.

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Group games are ideal for developing critical-thinking skills.

The link between critical thinking and one’s education is obvious – you can’t learn well unless you think well.

Critical thinking is the ability to look at problems in new ways, to analyse how parts of a whole interact with one another and to interpret information and draw conclusions.

Critical thinking and problem-solving skills were once thought to be the domain of gifted people. Today, they are necessary for every individual and group who seeks to make sensible decisions about financial, health, civic, workplace and leisure activities.

The solutions to international concerns such as climate change and global warming require highly developed critical thinking and problem-solving abilities. These skills include the ability to effectively analyse and evaluate evidence, arguments, claims and beliefs.

Benefits of Developing Critical-Thinking Abilities

The ability to solve interesting and unfamiliar problems often leads to the development of other skills such as increased engagement, higher concentration levels and improved thought processing.

Here are a few examples of experiences that occur in many programs which may provide you with an opportunity to focus on problem-solving skills:

Forming a project team to solve an existing, yet complex problem.
Thinking of a new campaign slogan to broadcast a difficult, yet important message.
Adopting a rational, analytical and evidence-based approach to investigate a conflict.
Challenging one of your group’s long-held beliefs or practices.

Naturally, one of the most powerful (not to mention, enjoyable) ways to develop and strengthen your group’s problem-solving skills is to employ the use of fun group games.

Group Activities Which Develop Critical-Thinking Skills

The images below provide links to a sample of simple group activities which may help you develop the critical thinking and problem-solving abilities of your group, drawn from playmeo’s ever-expanding activity database .

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English language teachers are trained to teach language skills, but they do not always learn how to teach the critical thinking skills that help guide learning. Critical thinking skills are part of many curriculum guidelines, but some teachers may be unsure how to teach these skills. For example, an academic reading curriculum might have the following objective: “Learners will analyze a variety of academic writing samples in an effort to determine the components, organization, and structure of academic writing texts.” Although English language teachers can think of any number of ways to teach and support reading as a skill, they may find it more difficult to achieve the first part of this objective—how to teach learners to analyze.

Critical thinking involves reflection and the analysis of ideas. Good critical thinkers are able to break a broad idea into many parts. They can examine each part, question biases, and come to a reasonable conclusion. This task is difficult for anyone and requires practice. Thinking critically is even more challenging when done in a second language.

This month’s Teacher’s Corner looks at the critical thinking skills that shape learning goals and outcomes. Each week presents a new activity that targets critical thinking skills while also encouraging language use and development. Some of the activities and tasks may seem familiar as they are based on long-established language teaching techniques. The activities are designed to support authentic language use while also encouraging critical thinking.

Brown, H. D. and Lee, H. (2015). Teaching by Principles: An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy. White Plains, NY: Pearson Longman.

Additional Resources

For additional information about critical thinking , check out the resource below and many others available on the American English website:

· A Questionnaire Project: Integrating the Four Macro Skills with Critical Thinking

It takes time to design activities and tasks that both target language skills and encourage critical thinking. Project-based learning (also known as experiential learning) is one approach you can use to integrate language-learning goals with critical thinking skills. Project-based learning tasks and activities combine language and action so that learners learn by doing (Brown and Lee, 2015). Learners must understand, examine, analyze, evaluate, and create while using English to complete a task or activity. The result is a language skills task or activity that promotes critical thinking skills.

One of the most popular types of project-based learning in the language classroom is the Language Experience Approach (LEA). LEA gives language learners a chance to recount a personal experience in their own words (Brown and Lee, 2015). This week’s Teacher’s Corner offers an LEA activity that can be conducted in the classroom using minimal resources.

High Beginning

Language Focus

During this activity, students will be able to the following:

U se English to talk about a special meal they shared with their family.
Organize th eir experience into a written story.

Paper, pencils

Preparation

Write the following prompt on the board:

o Describe a special meal you ate with your family.

When was it?
What did you eat?
Where were you?
Who was with you?
Have your own story of a special meal ready to share with students.

1. Begin class by telling students: “Today you are going to talk about a special meal you ate with your family.” Direct their attention to the prompt and questions on the board.

2. Ask students to think about a meal. You might say, “Do you remember a special meal with your family? Do you remember two?”

3. Encourage students to begin sharing what they remember. For example, one student might share that they remember a time when they had a family dinner for a birthday or holiday. Use the questions on the board to guide the discussion.

Keep the conversation moving with different students responding and sharing their memories. The more students talk, the more it will encourage and support other students to remember and share additional details.
Some student might not be able to think of all of the language required immediately. This is fine. Encourage those students to think about other parts of the meal, and tell them you will come back in a moment.
Give plenty of time for the discussion so that all students have a clear idea of an occasion that they can write about.

4. Tell students that now they are going to work on writing their story of a special meal.

Depending on the group, feel free to give them guidelines for writing, but try not to put limitations on what they write. For example, you could say that everyone needs to write at least 5 sentences, but they could write more if they choose.
Part of LEA is to encourage a learner’s autonomy over their own experience. Allow learners to share their ideas in English without worrying about grammar or spelling. In this way, you can give learners freedom to play with the language, navigate their own story, and negotiate meaning through their language choices.

5. As students write, walk around and support them by helping them write down exactly what they say.

If you have a student who wants to know how to spell something correctly, you can tell them the correct spelling. On the other hand, if a student spells some words incorrectly, do not correct them. Encourage learners to use the English they know and are comfortable using in their stories.

6. After students have written their stories, give everyone a chance to share what they have written.

One way to share the stories is to divide the students into two groups. Have one group hang their stories on the wall and stand next to them. Tell the second group that they are visiting the story gallery, and they can go around the room reading the different stories and asking the authors questions. After students have circulated, the groups can switch tasks. The second group now hosts a story gallery, and the first group gets to read stories and ask questions.

7. Keep all of the stories up on the walls so students can see their work, or encourage students to take their stories home to share with their families.

One variation of this activity is to have learners write their stories in small groups of three or four students. Have one student tell their story out loud while the other students in the group write down the story as they hear it.

An additional variation could involve a whole-class shared experience. Rather than have learners share their individual experiences, you could ask the class to recount an experience you shared as a group. For example, if the class went on a field trip recently, ask the class to recount the field trip together. The teacher becomes the scribe and writes the story on the board, and the students can see their experiences taking shape in writing.

This activity can be extended to include a visual component. Once students have written their stories, ask them to draw a picture depicting the events in the story. This could be done simply with pencil and paper or, if magazines and pictures are available, students could make picture collages to go with their stories.

Reading aloud is a popular reading task in English language classrooms. The task typically targets skills associated with reading, such as fluency, word recognition, and pronunciation. In this week’s Teacher’s Corner, a read-aloud task is used as the framework for a more demanding task that targets critical thinking skills as well. The task asks learners to process and then summarize the content of a story while reading aloud in a group.

Intermediate and above

During this activity, students will be able to complete the following tasks:

Read a story aloud.
Consider, evaluate, and plan a summary of a story while reading.
Present a verbal summary of a story.

Reading: “The Black Cat” by Edgar Allen Poe

Print enough copies of the story “The Black Cat” by Edgar Allen Poe for each student.
Place students into groups of 3-4 students before class by creating a list of students in each group.

1. Begin by putting students in the groups planned before class.

2. Tell the class that today they are going to read a story by Edgar Allen Poe called “The Black Cat.”

3. Have each group discuss what they expect the story might be about based on the title and on what they know about Edgar Allen Poe.

4. Ask the class to share what they’ve discussed in groups, and write the ideas on the board. For example, one group might say they know Edgar Allen Poe wrote scary stories so they expect this story to be scary. Another group might say that black cats are believed to be bad luck in some cultures.

5. Give each group a single copy of the story. Tell the class that one student will read three paragraphs aloud to the group. As the person reads, they will stop at the end of each paragraph to summarize the paragraph for the group. After the first student has read and summarized three paragraphs, the next student in the group will read and summarize the next three paragraphs. The group will continue reading the story by taking turns reading aloud and summarizing.

a. If possible, model the activity for students using Appendix A as a sample of reading and summarizing. For example, read the first paragraph in Appendix A aloud to the students. At the end, summarize the paragraph using the suggested summary in Appendix A.

6. Once all of the groups have completed the story, hand out more copies of the story so each student has a copy.

7. Direct students to read the story silently.

8. While students read, write the following questions on the board:

a. What was difficult about reading aloud while summarizing?

b. What part of the activity was easiest?

c. Were your group’s summaries accurate?

9. When everyone has finished reading, ask students to discuss the questions written on the board in their groups.

10. Finally, bring the class back together and ask for some responses to the questions.

Any reading can be used for this activity. The reading should be easy enough for the students to successfully complete the activity, but also difficult enough for them to find the activity challenging.

Another variation might include giving each student a different short text. For example, each student gets a different poem. Students would read aloud and summarize their text, and then the group would evaluate the reader’s performance.

Sample Annotated Read-Aloud

The Tell-Tale Heart

Edgar Allen Poe

It’s true! Yes, I have been ill, very ill. But why do you say that I have lost control of my mind, why do you say that I am mad? Can you not see that I have full control of my mind? Is it not clear that I am not mad? Indeed, the illness only made my mind, my feelings, my senses stronger, more powerful. My sense of hearing especially became more powerful. I could hear sounds I had never heard before. I heard sounds from heaven; and I heard sounds from hell!

Suggested summary:

The person has been sick, but is not crazy. The sickness made the person smarter and improved his hearing. He heard wonderful sounds and horrible sounds.

Making predictions in reading and listening activities is a great way to develop learners’ critical thinking skills. In order to make predictions, learners need to evaluate the components of the information they have while also making reasonable judgments about possible outcomes. Evaluating, reflecting, and making judgments are all part of the critical thinking skills needed for learners to fully engage in learning and to use what they learn beyond the classroom.

In this Teacher’s Corner activity, students use the first part of a comic strip as a starting point for creating their own endings. This activity is simple and fun, and can be used with any age group at any level. As you work through the activity, think about possible variations in addition to those offered below.

Beginning and above

During this activity, students will be able to do the following tasks:

Read a comic strip and make a reasonable prediction about an ending.
Plan, write, and draw their own version of the comic strip’s ending.
Comic strip from American English: Why English? Comics for the Classroom (see Appendix A)
Comic strip template (see Appendix B)
Paper, pencils, or any drawing materials available
Print enough copies of the comic for each student in the class.

1. Begin class by asking students to describe a comic strip.

Let students offer suggestions, but also ensure that they know comic strips are short stories presented through pictures and words.

2. Write the title of the comic strip on the board, “Lost in the Desert.” Ask learners what they think the comic might be about, based on the title.

3. Tell students that they will read the first part of the comic strip in class and then write new endings.

4. Hand out a copy of the comic strip to each student in the class.

5. Tell learners to look at the pictures and read the language silently.

6. After giving learners time to work individually, read the comic as a group by calling on different students to read aloud.

7. Check learners’ reading comprehension by asking the following questions of the whole class:

Where is the person in the comic?
What problem does the person have?
What does the person try to do to solve the problem?

8. Once the story has been discussed, begin a group brainstorm.

Ask learners to think about what happens next in the comic strip.
Encourage students to share some of their ideas with the class.
Write students’ ideas on the board for everyone to see. Spend at least 5-7 minutes listening and writing their ideas on the board so that students have a chance to hear from their classmates and refine their own ideas.

9. Tell students that it’s now their turn to write and draw the rest of the comic.

Give them a blank comic strip template (Appendix B) and any additional drawing materials you have available.
Tell students to use all six squares to complete the story. All six squares must have a drawing. At least three squares must include language.

10. After students have finished their comics, put students into pairs by having students work with the person sitting to their left.

11. In the pairs, students will read the comic with their new endings to their partners.

Instead of having students finish a comic strip, students can make their own comic strips. Then they give the first half of their comic strip to a partner. The partner will then write their own endings to their classmate’s comic strip.

Another alternative is to give students short stories or poems to finish. American English has both poems and short stories available for free to teachers and learners.

Academic writing teachers try to help learners understand and imitate the various rhetorical styles used in academic texts. Understanding academic writing involves careful and repeated reading, analysis, and evaluation of many texts. It then requires further analysis, synthesis, and creation to imitate the writing style. All of this work involves using critical thinking and language skills. One way to engage learners in this process and support the acquisition of advanced writing skills is to use students’ existing critical thinking skills in an activity that analyzes the components of academic writing.

This Teacher’s Corner offers a strategy to introduce learners to academic writing through the familiar task of outlining. Writers use outlining as a way to plan and organize their ideas at the beginning of the writing process. In this activity, learners use the outline in reverse as a way to break down and analyze the structure of an academic text. This process is called a reverse outline and is explained in detail here. Keep in mind that a reverse outline can be adapted to fit the needs of intermediate writers as well, as long as the reading is selected to meet learners’ language level.

Advanced (university level)

Read an academic text to identify the organization and structure of ideas.
Organize the information presented in an academic text into an outline template in order to recognize the structure and organization of an academic text.
Reading: “Helping Students Develop Coherence in Writing” by Icy Lee
Outline Template in Appendix A
Paper and pencils or pens
Print enough copies of the reading for each student.
Print enough copies of the outline template for each student.

1. Start class with a warm-up discussion to elicit ideas about the structure of academic writing. Use these questions as a guide:

What are the important parts of an academic essay?
What do we call the first paragraph(s)? The main paragraphs? The final paragraph(s)?
What have you been told to include in the first paragraph(s) of an essay?
What is included in the main paragraphs?
What is included in the final paragraph(s)?

2. Hand out the outline template (Appendix A) to students. (The outline template can be adapted and adjusted to meet the needs of essay writing in your specific class. Feel free to add components to this outline or delete components that are unnecessary.) Ask learners to review the template for similarities between what they said in the discussion and what the template lists as components of academic writing.

Is there anything on the outline template that was not mentioned in the discussion? If so, what are the differences? Is there anything that students think the outline template needs to include that is not listed?

3. Explain that this outline is a model of the structure, but that every article differs slightly as to how each of the core parts is structured. For example, one essay might have 10 body paragraphs but another essay might only have 4.

4. Tell students they are now going to use the outline to read an academic article. They will complete an outline, using the template as a model, based on the information from the article they read.

5. Give everyone a copy of the article. Explain that before trying to complete the outline, they should read the article once and make notes. Reading once will help them process the article, ask questions, and get an overview of the structure of the article.

6. Have learners read, make notes, and complete their outlines. While they are working, circulate to answer any questions they have.

7. After learners have completed the outlines, bring the class back together as a group.

8. Place students in pairs by dividing the class in half and counting off each group (for example: 1, 2, 3, 4, etc.). The two students who are assigned 1 will work together, the students assigned 2 will work together, etc.

9. Once learners are in their pairs, ask them to read over their partners’ outlines, paying attention to similarities and differences.

10. While they are reading, write these directions on the board.

Compare the two outlines and identify any areas where the information is different or where information is on one outline but not the other.
Work together to complete a new outline that combines the information from both outlines.
Work together to decide how to include information that is different on personal outlines.

11. Then give each pair a new outline template. Explain that students will work together to create a new outline, using the directions on the board.

12. When pairs have finished, bring the class back together to discuss what they learned from the outline activity.

What information on the outline did they expect to see? What information was unexpected in the article’s structure? What else did they learn about how academic writing is structured?

One simple variation is to have students read the text at home and take notes before working on the outline in class. This variation allows students to read at their own pace so that when students come to class, they are all familiar with the text.

Another alternative to this assignment is to have students work in pairs from the beginning of the process. After everyone in the class reads the article, put students in pairs and have them work together to complete the outlines. This variation ensures that learners will vocalize, discuss, and negotiate what is included on the outline and what is not.

A possible extension to this activity is to revisit the reverse outline when students are writing their own essays. During the revision process students could complete a reverse outline of their own work or complete reverse outlines of their classmates’ work. For example, if students have written a first draft of an essay, before they revise it or write a second draft, they could do a reverse outline of their first draft. By doing so, they could recognize areas in their writing to improve. Then, students could use their reverse outline for help in preparing and writing a second draft.

Outline Template

I. Introduction

Attention grabbing device
Background/Contextual information
Thesis statement

II. Main Paragraphs (repeat for each paragraph)

Topic statements/ideas
Supporting evidence (data, anecdotes, stories, definitions, etc.): paraphrase, summary, quotes
Connections to thesis

III. Conclusion

Final thoughts
Implications and areas for future analysis
Suggestions for next steps
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10 Minute Critical Thinking Activities for English Classes

Hannah wahlig.

Critical thinking activities engage students' logic, rationality and judgment in problem-solving inquiries. English classes benefit from critical thinking activities because the activities activate students' prior knowledge, encourage creative thinking and stress the importance of evidence-based problem solving. Ten-minute critical thinking lessons serve as engaging and thought-provoking opening assignments that tune students in to the day's lessons.

Explore this article

Logic Puzzles
Judge and Jury
Character Critique

1 Logic Puzzles

Simple logic puzzles require application of logic, reason and creativity to identify the correct answer. Riddles, brain teasers and logic games activate students' creative and critical minds and prepare them for a day of critical inquiry. Write a few brain teasers on the board; students immediately sit and begin to write down their answers. Sample brain teasers might include, "Do they have a Fourth of July in England?", "What is boiled then cooled before being sweetened and soured?" or "How many books can you put in an empty bag?" Include more difficult brain teasers for older students and simpler puzzles for younger students. Invite students to share and debate their answers before revealing the correct answer. See Resource 1 for a comprehensive list of brain teasers and logic puzzles.

2 Judge and Jury

Evaluation, analysis and judgment are all critical thinking skills that are particularly useful in an English classroom that requires close reading and analytical writing. Invite students to introduce to the class perceived injustices occurring in their school. Students may feel angry over a new dress code, a shortened lunch period or a new discipline policy. The student gives a one-minute summary of the problem and then has two minutes to prepare his best arguments against the infraction. Another student serves as a challenger and has two minutes to prepare her best arguments in support of the policy. The students each have one minute to present arguments. The class then votes on which student presented the best argument. If time permits, allow students to discuss why one set of arguments was more appealing than the other. The student debater who wins the class over receives a prize, such as extra points on an assignment.

3 Character Critique

Draw from the material used in the classroom to craft opening assignments that stimulate critical thinking. Select a character from the current text and ask students a series of analytical or self-reflective questions about the character. You might ask, "If this character were a student in our classroom, would you want to sit near her? Why or why not?" or "Would this character make a good friend? Partner? Parent? Why or why not?" Questions should require students to evaluate the characteristics of the character and apply them to real-life situations or contexts beyond the context of the book. Students share and debate their responses with the class.

About the Author

Hannah Wahlig began writing and editing professionally in 2001. Her experience includes copy for newspapers, journals and magazines, as well as book editing. She is also a certified lactation counselor. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Mount Holyoke College, and Master's degrees in education and community psychology from the University of Massachusetts.

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Thinking Outside the Blank: 8 Critical Thinking Activities for ESL Students

At times, language learning can be straightforward. students memorize lists of vocabulary and rules for grammar..

This type of thinking, though, isn’t very complex. Recall and memorization only require surface level thinking. If you are teaching ESL to children, teaching critical thinking is particularly important because it will serve them in their futures no matter what language they are speaking. Teaching critical thinking, though, isn’t always easy. The following are some ways to integrate critical thinking exercises into your ESL lessons while still meeting the language goals you set for your students.

Try These 8 Critical Thinking Activities with Your ESL Students

Ask questions.

Sometimes an easy answer isn’t much of an answer at all. Getting your students to think about how they came to the answer that they did will challenge them to think critically, and it gets them using more language and using it in practical ways. For example, in an activity for using the simple future , you might ask your students what they will be doing in five years. One student might answer that he is going to be a movie star. You can ask questions like the following to get your student to think more critically: What makes you think that? What evidence do you see in your life now that will make that true in the future? By asking these questions, you challenge your student to think about his thinking. At the same time, you provide an opportunity for him to use English to express his ideas.

Open Ended Questions

In classes like grammar, one answer to a question is usually the right one. But giving these types of answers often doesn’t require anything more than memorization and recall. When you can (and it might not be during a grammar lesson) ask questions that don’t have a “right” answer and challenge your students to think on a deeper level. For example, if you were doing a vocabulary unit on food , you might ask a recall question about what a waiter says when taking someone’s order. ( What will you have? ) An open ended question that will challenge your students to think more deeply might look like the following. If you were a server in a restaurant and worked the night shift, how would your life be different? How would you balance school and work? Encourage this type of thinking and expression and your students will benefit in more ways than one.

Give a Minute

Part of your role in getting your students to think critically is giving them the time and the encouragement to do so. When you ask a question, giving your students a few minutes to think before they have to answer can mean the difference between a short easy answer and one that comes from serious thought. Doing this is easy. Simply count to sixty after asking a question to give your students a chance to think before they answer . You can also teach your students phrases like, “ Can I have a minute to think…Give me just a minute ” when they would like time to process their ideas. When they use these phrases, it tells you that they are actively trying to answer your question and gives them the space they need to put their ideas and words together before speaking. In addition, using this technique with native speakers will help those not familiar with ESL students know that your students are not unable to answer their questions but that they need a bit of time before they do.

Encourage More

For students of English as a second language, giving a quick answer is often appealing. A quick answer does the job and shows you can use language appropriately. However, a quick answer doesn’t necessarily encourage critical thinking. Using phrases to get your students to say (and think) more will help them use deeper thinking. You can say thinks like the following: Tell me more about that. What else do you think? Why is that good/bad/scary/difficult/or not? What part is most interesting to you? Why? Asking these questions challenges your students to say more.

Provide Scaffolds

When learning something new or tackling a new problem, all people sometimes need support. You can support your ESL students as they are learning new skills by giving them tools to help them. Giving examples, breaking tasks into smaller more manageable steps, giving hints or clues, and providing reminders can all help your students by giving them temporary supports in a new and challenging task. As your students become more adept at that task, remove these supports and encourage their successes, big and small. In the meantime, be patient and give them the assistance they need to reach success.

Encourage Argument

Encouraging argument doesn’t mean letting your students go for one another’s throats. Critical thinking means being able to make an argument for your beliefs or opinions. You can encourage your students to express logical and reasonable supports for their opinions during discussions and for writing assignments. Doing so will help them think analytically which is part of thinking critically. Have students give reasons or examples that support their ideas, and they will learn to support their arguments naturally.

Make Predictions

Making predictions is a tool that is quite useful in the ESL classroom. You can ask your students to take a guess at what comes next in reading assignments (fiction, essays, informational articles) as well as video segments you play in class ( movies , television shows , recorded dialogues). When they make these predictions, they not only have to think critically, they will be using the language skills they are learning. The next time your students are reading a passage or listening to a segment, hit pause and ask them what they think will come next.

Take Two Sides

Thinking about both sides of an argument will challenge your students to think beyond their own opinions and beliefs. A simple way to do this is to take a controversial statement and challenge your students to list some reasons in support of the statement as well as some reasons against it. Take the thinking a step further and teach your students how to make a refutation, either spoken or in writing, a skill that is often useful in the academic world.

In some ways, critical thinking may seem out of place in the language classroom.

After all, so much of language learning is rote memorization. But critical thinking can and does fit in the language classroom. Getting your students think more gets them saying more, and saying more is using language creatively and communicatively. Try one or more of these techniques with your students and see how well they can express their thoughts with the language they are learning.

How do you encourage your students to think critically?

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Analyze this: how to use student critical analysis for language development in the esl classroom.

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5 Critical Thinking Activities That Get Students Up and Moving

More movement means better learning.

Students engaged in critical thinking activities

It’s easy to resort to having kids be seated during most of the school day. But learning can (and should) be an active process. Incorporating movement into your instruction has incredible benefits—from deepening student understanding to improving concentration to enhancing performance. Check out these critical thinking activities, adapted from Critical Thinking in the Classroom , a book with over 100 practical tools and strategies for teaching critical thinking in K-12 classrooms.

Four Corners

In this activity, students move to a corner of the classroom based on their responses to a question with four answer choices. Once they’ve moved, they can break into smaller groups to explain their choices. Call on students to share to the entire group. If students are persuaded to a different answer, they can switch corners and further discuss.

Question ideas:

Which president was most influential: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, or Abraham Lincoln?
Is Holden Caulfield a hero: Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree, or Strongly Disagree?

Gallery Walk

This strategy encourages students to move around the classroom in groups to respond to questions, documents, images, or situations posted on chart paper. Each group gets a different colored marker to record their responses and a set amount of time at each station. When groups move, they can add their own ideas and/or respond to what prior groups have written.

Gallery ideas:

Political cartoons

Stations are a great way to chunk instruction and present information to the class without a “sit and get.” Group desks around the room or create centers, each with a different concept and task. There should be enough stations for three to five students to work for a set time before rotating.

Station ideas:

Types of rocks
Story elements
Literary genres

Silent Sticky-Note Storm

In this brainstorming activity, students gather in groups of three to five. Each group has a piece of chart paper with a question at the top and a stack of sticky notes. Working in silence, students record as many ideas or answers as possible, one answer per sticky note. When time is up, they post the sticky notes on the paper and then silently categorize them.

How can you exercise your First Amendment rights?
What are all the ways you can divide a square into eighths?

Mingle, Pair, Share

Take your Think, Pair, Share to the next level. Instead of having students turn and talk, invite them to stand and interact. Play music while they’re moving around the classroom. When the music stops, each student finds a partner. Pose a question and invite students to silently think about their answer. Then, partners take turns sharing their thoughts.

How do organisms modify their environments?
What is the theme of Romeo and Juliet ?

Looking for more critical thinking activities and ideas?

Critical Thinking in the Classroom is a practitioner’s guide that shares the why and the how for building critical thinking skills in K-12 classrooms. It includes over 100 practical tools and strategies that you can try in your classroom tomorrow!

Get Your Copy of Critical Thinking in the Classroom

5 Critical Thinking Activities That Get Students Up and Moving

"Critical thinking" written on sticky notes

10 Tips for Teaching Kids To Be Awesome Critical Thinkers

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20 Critical Thinking Activities For Elementary Classrooms: Navigating Fact And Fiction (+Resources)

December 1, 2023 // by Seda Unlucay

With the barrage of mainstream news, advertising, and social media content out there, it’s vital for students to think independently and learn to differentiate between fact and fiction.

This series of critical thinking activities, STEM-based design challenges, engaging Math puzzles, and problem-solving tasks will support students in thinking rationally and understanding the logical connection between concepts.

1. Teach Students How to Obtain Verifiable News

There’s probably no 21st-century skill more important than differentiating between real and fake sources of news. This editable PowerPoint bundle covers traditional media, social networks, and various target audiences and teaches students how to find verifiable facts.

Learn More: Teachers Pay Teachers

2. Watch and Discuss a Critical Reasoning Video

This kid-friendly video teaches students to break arguments down into claims, evidence, and reasoning. Armed with this lifelong learning tool, they will be able to make more informed decisions when consuming all types of information.

Learn More: Brain Pop

3. Complete a Critical Design Challenge

This science and designed-based classroom activity challenges students to find ways to prevent a falling egg from breaking. Pairing it with the classic Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme is sure to inspire many creative ideas.

Learn More: Education

4. Critical Community Engagement Activity

This community engagement activity requires analytical skills to determine what items can be recycled in the classroom and in their neighborhood. By creating recycling bins from reusable cardboard boxes, students have an opportunity to contribute to the environmental well-being of their community while practicing social responsibility.

Learn More: Kaboom

5. Develop Logical Skills with a Then and Now Activity

We may no longer use candles for reading or quill pens for writing, but can your students identify the objects that have replaced them? This activity engages their writing, drawing, and logical skills while giving them a chance to reflect on all the changes in our modern world.

Learn More: Education

6. Play a Critical Thinking Game

This active learning activity requires students to use their critical thinking skills to make comparisons and create meaningful analogies. The fun animal safari theme is sure to inspire many funny and creative ideas!

7. Develop Social-Emotional Problem-Solving Skills

Through this lesson, students will understand that while conflicts are a normal part of life, it’s vital to have problem-solving skills to resolve them. This is also an excellent opportunity for developing their social awareness and relationship skills.

Learn More: ED Foundations

8. Desert Island Survival Game

This classic game is sure to inspire student engagement, as they use their critical thinking skills to survive being stranded on a desert island. Students have to watch out for ideological assumptions and question ideas in order to determine the appropriate items to bring.

9. Play a Problem-Solving Treasure Hunt Game

This exciting game for kids requires them to use key math skills to break a series of codes. With ample time, designated progress monitors, and sharp critical thinking skills, students are sure to find the hidden treasure.

Learn More: Twinkl

10. Use Writing to Increase Critical Empathy

This activity builds writing fluency while giving students a chance to show appreciation for each other. As they reflect emphatically on their classmates’ contributions and character, their base level of kindness and sense of ethical responsibility is bound to increase.

Learn More: Edutopia

11. Learn How to Make Logical Inferences

This activity for kids teaches the critical academic skill of making inferences from a series of texts. Students will surely enjoy playing the role of detective in order to draw their own logical conclusions.

Learn More: Study

12. Think Critically About Cultural Assumptions

This engaging activity for students challenges them to think critically about why people from a variety of cultures decorate their bodies. It helps them to break through cultural assumptions while comparing and contrasting the different forms of hand and body painting around the world.

Learn More: Harmony

13. Big Paper Silent Reflection Activity

After posing some open-ended questions, students silently write their responses with colored markers on large chart paper. After each group has circulated around the room, students can share their critical reflections and learn from the various perspectives of their classmates.

Learn More: Slideshare

14. Watch a TED Video About the Socratic Method

Socrates is one of the forefathers of critical thinking, who focused on making his students thinking visible by questioning their logic and reasoning. The accompanying quiz and discussion questions are an excellent way to reinforce student learning.

Learn More: Ted Ed

15. Brainstorm Ways to Help a Homeless Person

This lesson in civic responsibility teaches students about the causes of homelessness and guides them to find ways to help the homeless in their communities. It develops key problem-solving skills while building critical empathy.

Learn More: National Homeless.org

16. Guess the Object Game

This video features a series of twenty zoomed-in mystery objects. Students will love using their critical thinking skills to guess each one!

Learn More: Andy – The ESL Guy

17. Solve Some Challenging Math Brain Teasers

This abundant series of brain teasers is the perfect choice if you’re looking to test your children’s memory and problem-solving skills. Encourage them to use their knowledge of numbers to complete these tricky math problems that are not only designed to challenge your little brainiacs but are also compiled in an easy-to-use format.

Learn More: Mental Up

18. Complete a STEM Elevator Challenge

In this design and engineering-based lesson, students have to build a functional elevator that can carry an object to the top of a structure. It’s a terrific way to encourage cooperative learning while sharpening their problem-solving skills.

Learn More: Georgia Youth Science and Technology Centers

19. Create the Perfect Farm

There’s no better way to develop critical thinking skills than by solving real-world problems. This video encourages students to think about ways to feed a growing global population in an environmentally sustainable way.

20. Solve Logic Grid Puzzles

These logic grid puzzles will motivate students to use logical reasoning skills and the process of elimination to solve a series of clues. But be warned, they are highly addictive and difficult to put down once you get started!

Learn More: Puzzle Baron’s Logic Puzzles

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Premium esl teaching resources, critical thinking & problem-solving.

Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving ESL Teaching Resources

Here you will find our ESL activity worksheets on critical thinking and problem-solving. Here is the first in a forthcoming series of new brain-teasing activities and games for your ELLs. We’re currently still redesigning all our content – please bear with us.

Critical Thinking – Guess the criterion

88,939 English ESL worksheets pdf & doc

Critical Thinking – Lesson Plan for ESL

Critical Thinking: A Comprehensive Free English Lesson Plan for ESL (Online and In-Class)

Free lesson plans are valuable resources for educators and learners alike. These lesson plans provide structured outlines for teaching specific topics or skills, offering a roadmap for instructors to follow and ensuring a comprehensive learning experience for students . They are designed to be accessible and adaptable, catering to a wide range of educational settings, including classrooms, online platforms, and homeschooling environments.

Objective :

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

Understand the concept of critical thinking and its importance in various aspects of life.
Identify and analyze different types of arguments, including deductive and inductive reasoning.
Evaluate the credibility and reliability of sources of information, such as articles, websites, and media.
Demonstrate the ability to identify logical fallacies and biases in arguments.
Develop effective problem-solving skills by applying logical reasoning and evidence-based thinking.
Apply critical thinking strategies to analyze and interpret information from various perspectives.
Engage in discussions and debates , expressing opinions and supporting them with logical reasoning and evidence.
Demonstrate the ability to ask thoughtful and probing questions to deepen understanding and challenge assumptions.
Engage in activities that require creative and innovative thinking , encouraging students to think outside the box.
Reflect on their own thinking processes , identifying areas for improvement and implementing strategies to enhance critical thinking skills in their everyday lives.

Level: Intermediate – Upper intermediate – Advanced

Time: 60 minutes.

Digital whiteboard software: Video and Online Games
Handouts with exercises : Free eBook and PDF

Play video and talsk about the 5 tips to improve critical thinking

Improving your critical thinking worksheet

Go through the worksheet

All downloads are in PDF format

Browse the ebook worksheet or download the pdf for free, breaktime activity.

Watch the video and start a class discussion on fallacies

Marfa Lights Mystery

Watch the video and start a class discussion Marfa Lights misteries

Wrap – up

Mini battles.

Break class into two teams. Students must answer your revision questions. If they get 2-3 right they can play ‘12 mini battles’ for their team.’

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ESL Brains Critical Reading Club

We’re happy to announce that we are going to create new teaching materials with you: the Critical Reading Club (CRC) worksheets. They are available in addition to all the regular ESL Brains lesson plans on our website, so there will be more worksheets for you to use every month.

The idea behind the worksheets is that students read an article before the class and then discuss its content and share their thoughts in the classroom . Previously, we only shared articles and a few discussion questions on our Instagram account. Thanks to your active participation and feedback, we’ve been able to develop these brand new CRC worksheets.

How does CRC work?

It’s very simple. Before each lesson, you just need to visit the ESL Brains website and copy a link to an article for your students to read.

Then, share the link with your class and set the reading task as homework. The ‘in-class’ part is based on a short worksheet , which typically contains four or five tasks related to the content of the article. The activities focus on some relevant language followed by speaking practice , and they take about 30-45 minutes to complete. It might actually take longer, as learners tend to get highly engaged with some topics!

The articles we curate for every lesson are authentic texts published by reputable online news resources (not adapted!). These original, up-to-date materials in English not only spark discussion, but also serve as a rich source of new language for students to learn. The CRC worksheets do not contain reading comprehension questions such as those often found in ESL course books. Instead, their purpose is to inspire critical discussion while at the same time improving students’ speaking fluency . Each CRC lesson is available in the form of printable worksheets (both teacher’s and student’s versions), as well as an e-lesson plan.

Why should you get your students involved in CRC?

We’re all aware of the benefits of continuous reading practice whilst learning a foreign language. It stimulates the brain, increases vocabulary and even helps develop writing skills. However, there is often too little time for learners of English as a foreign language to read long texts and do extensive comprehension activities in class. Although we recognise the invaluable role of the teacher in helping students acquire reading skills, we have decided to focus on boosting students’ motivation to read outside the classroom. We want to achieve this goal by selecting interesting and thought-provoking texts as well as designing stimulating questions for in-depth discussions.

How does this lesson model benefit students?

It helps you make the most of every minute of lesson time. Each class should give students the feeling of having learnt new language while maximising their speaking opportunities .
Being able to tackle authentic texts in English will result in enhancing students’ self-esteem and create more interest in exploring the English language and culture on their own. (Just remember, it is your job as a teacher to make sure your students’ language level matches the level of the article you want them to read, so they don’t get frustrated.)
The ultimate goal is for students to become autonomous, self-motivated language users , in charge of their own learning process.

What if students don’t do the prep work?

There’s no reason to skip out on Critical Reading Club worksheets if students don’t read an article. You can pair up students, letting those who’ve done the reading summarize for those who haven’t. And if nobody cracks open the article, you can adjust exercises based on extra tips we offer in some worksheets. You can also engage students by making them guess the article’s content from the title which is often sufficient for them to do the rest of the tasks. And our topics are so captivating students will jump into discussions even without knowing all the details of the article. Over time, showing up unprepared might lead students to realize the value of completing readings, nudging them to own their learning journey.

You can see all the worksheets here . We wish you lots of exciting and stimulating lessons with our Critical Reading Club!

Read other teaching tips posts

Using speaking fluency activities for better English

Five no-prep speaking fluency activities for ESL students

Getting started with ESL Brains e-lesson plans

5 websites that will take your ESL lessons to the next level

Five grammar and vocabulary revision games and exercises

My tips for teaching English to seniors (60+)

How to make the most of group activities in one-to-one classes

How to apply flipped classroom for teaching English with ESL Brains lesson plans

How teaching with authentic materials benefits your students

How to use interactive videos for teaching English

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COMMENTS

Critical Thinking Problem Solving ESL Activities Games Lessons
ESL Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Activity - Speaking: Ranking, Guided Discussion, Guessing, Communicative Practice - Group Work - Upper-intermediate (B2) - 30 minutes. In this communicative critical thinking and problem-solving activity, students guess what criteria was used to put a list of ten jobs in order.
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6. Start a Debate. In this activity, the teacher can act as a facilitator and spark an interesting conversation in the class on any given topic. Give a small introductory speech on an open-ended topic. The topic can be related to current affairs, technological development or a new discovery in the field of science.
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1. Ask the class who, in their own opinion, wins and why? 2. Ask students to pretend to be the item that they choose, try to list its advantages, and debate them with the other student. 3. Ask students to act out what they prepared in front of the class. 4. Ask the class to listen and take notes.
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Draw conclusions, make decisions, prioritize them; Take action and create steps to make your decisions applicable to the initial question. It might not always be possible to follow all steps in the language classroom, depending on the activity. That should not mean we should not teach critical thinking, even (and especially) to young students.
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Critical thinking is a key skill needed for everyday life. It should be applied to all aspects of a learner's studies, no matter their age or ability. It's a way of adding perspective, questioning intent and understanding ways of improving. Take a minute to watch this short video. It will help you to understand what we mean by Critical ...
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9. A famous movie star mentions his/her name in an interview. 10. An expensive car was following him/her all day yesterday. Critical thinking skills are fundamental for setting up ESL students for success. The skills are necessary to be able to communicate with native speakers on an equal level.
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Critical thinking is the ability to look at problems in new ways, to analyse how parts of a whole interact with one another and to interpret information and draw conclusions. Critical thinking and problem-solving skills were once thought to be the domain of gifted people. Today, they are necessary for every individual and group who seeks to ...
Kialo Edu
A unique tool for teaching critical thinking. Kialo Edu is a custom version of Kialo ( kialo.com ), the world's largest argument mapping and debate site, specifically designed for classroom use. Its clear, visually compelling format makes it easy to follow the logical structure of a discussion and facilitates thoughtful collaboration.
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Strategies for Cultivating Critical Thinking in ESL Learners. 1. Promoting Questioning Techniques: Encourage students to ask and answer open-ended questions. Incorporate activities where students have to articulate their thoughts, provide justifications, and evaluate different perspectives. Questioning Technique.
Sharpen your critical thinking (CAE Speaking Part 3)
CONJUNCTIONS & CAE SPEAKING PART 3. In the activity, students read nine sentences and choose the correct conjunctions (e.g. whereas, since, and yet). Then, they need to rewrite arguments using the words in brackets and make any necessary changes to the statements. After that, students need to evaluate the validity of the arguments they ...
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428 Critical thinking English ESL worksheets pdf & doc. SORT BY. Most popular. TIME PERIOD. All-time. Poohbear. Shipwrecked - A Surv. The classical surviv. 10818 uses. Kisdobos. Lost at Sea - A Surv. Students always enjo. 7535 uses. Zsuzsapszi. Logic game (41st) - If you know my logic. 6872 uses. reginaze. 6 Logic Games for Yo. 6 easy logic ...
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You can encourage your students to express logical and reasonable supports for their opinions during discussions and for writing assignments. Doing so will help them think analytically which is part of thinking critically. Have students give reasons or examples that support their ideas, and they will learn to support their arguments naturally. 7.
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Check out these critical thinking activities, adapted from Critical Thinking in the Classroom , a book with over 100 practical tools and strategies for teaching critical thinking in K-12 classrooms. Four Corners. In this activity, students move to a corner of the classroom based on their responses to a question with four answer choices.
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Improve your critical thinking. This lesson focuses on a video looking at the Socratic Method of questioning and ends in an opportunity for students to analyse their own beliefs using that method. Students need to be of a very advanced level to deal with this material and think quickly. Exercises focus on related vocabulary, rephrasing and ...
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This series of critical thinking activities, STEM-based design challenges, engaging Math puzzles, and problem-solving tasks will support students in thinking rationally and understanding the logical connection between concepts. 1. Teach Students How to Obtain Verifiable News ... Learn More: Andy - The ESL Guy. 17. Solve Some Challenging Math ...
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24 Critical thinking English ESL worksheets pdf & doc. SORT BY. Most popular. TIME PERIOD. All-time. osmanmohdar. Critical thinking. Lesson to sharpen cr. 475 uses. dakooles1. ... Critical thinking wo. 127 uses. Monicabbb. Love and attachment. Reading and critical. 297 uses. Amrmohammed4111. A reading comprehens. for Advanced level s. 365 uses.
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Engage in discussions and debates, expressing opinions and supporting them with logical reasoning and evidence. Demonstrate the ability to ask thoughtful and probing questions to deepen understanding and challenge assumptions. Engage in activities that require creative and innovative thinking, encouraging students to think outside the box ...
Critical thinking exercises for ESL teachers:eslflow webguide
Lateral thinking & other critical thinking exercises. Linguistic lateral thinking puzzles (PDF) Classic lateral thinking puzzles 1 (PDF) Classic lateral thing puzzles 2 (PDF) Classic lateral thinking puzzles 3 (PDF) Think outside the box puzzles (PDF) Critical thinking exercise (PDF) Odd one out (PDF)
ESL Brains Critical Reading Club
Then, share the link with your class and set the reading task as homework. The 'in-class' part is based on a short worksheet, which typically contains four or five tasks related to the content of the article.The activities focus on some relevant language followed by speaking practice, and they take about 30-45 minutes to complete.It might actually take longer, as learners tend to get ...