8th March February 2025
Data literacy is becoming an essential skill for almost any occupation. Students and language learners need to be able to talk about data that they encounter daily. These exercises explore various vocabulary associated with graphs, spreadsheets, tracking applications, data visualization tools, trend analysis, datasets, information filtering, digital dashboards, reporting metrics, predictive models and distribution patterns.
The art of in-person customer service has become more valuable than ever. This post consists of a variety of customer service scenarios and listening/speaking activities.
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Scaling is a Business English topic related to logistics. It has become more important recently because because global supply chains and digital services have grown increasingly complex, requiring companies to efficiently expand their operations – whether that’s handling more website traffic or shipping more products – while maintaining quality and managing costs.
Learning cybersecurity vocabulary in English is important because it helps people handle everyday digital challenges, from reporting suspicious emails to understanding security warnings. Having these language skills makes you more valuable in the workplace, where English is often used for technical communication.
Artificial intelligence has become such a big topic that each field or topic requires its own specialized set of language exercises. Three important areas transformed by AI are: personal daily activities (from social media to home automation), AI in the workplace, and AI in healthcare. These lessons help students learn the language of AI through listening practice, discussions, and speaking activities. Each topic has about 10 easy-to-follow exercises, with all the answers and audio materials included
Artificial Intelligence Lessons
As AI and automation reshape the 2020s workplace, soft skills have become more valuable than ever. While machines excel at technical tasks, distinctly human abilities like emotional intelligence, adaptability, and creative problem-solving set successful professionals apart. Interpersonal competencies – from effective communication and leadership to resilience and empathy – are highly sought after across industries. In a world where technical tasks are increasingly automated, acquiring these uniquely human skills provides a significant competitive advantage.
I have created a focused set of 10 exercises that explore how soft skills and AI may interact and evolve together in future workplace environments. Find the complete set at:
Navigating “The Era of Self-Service” – A practical guide designed to help language learners master everyday digital interactions. With self-service technology becoming increasingly prevalent—from digital restaurant kiosks to mobile banking apps—students need both language skills and technical confidence to handle these situations independently. This collection features 10+ targeted activities developing listening comprehension, critical thinking, and essential vocabulary for the digital age. Find the complete set of activities at:
Digital Self Service: Advantages and Disadvantages
Self Service Critical Thinking Exercises
Decision Making Critical Thinking Exercises: Critical thinking exercises add variety to a lesson and often are a more enjoyable, interesting and engaging way to teach students than traditional vocabulary exercises.
Expressing Opinions about Food: This exercise format combines visual and critical thinking elements.
The Business English Listening/Speaking page has been updated with content relating to Hybrid Work , the Creator Economy and the Gig Economy. This content is highly relevant, covering contemporary topics like social media content creation, freelancing, and modern work trends. These topics are highly engaging for students and young adult learners.
Business English Listening/Speaking
The environmental issues page has been updated with exercises for decarbonization and the water crisis.
Environmental issues home page
The kitchen, cooking and utensils vocabulary and expressions page has been improved with extra exercises for each topic.
Kitchen, cooking and utensils vocabulary
These are the latest in a series of lessons focusing are hot topics.
Cybersecurity lesson (with video, audio and PDFs)
See the Cybersecurity language exercises video on YouTube
Fast Fashion lesson with audio and PDFs
The exercises below explore idioms and contemporary business vocabulary. “Making requests” is a total reworking of an older exercise. It’s so much better now. And the “Supermarket enquiries role play” is a new exercise that practices (fairly) elementary everyday English.
Idioms for running a business video
Idioms for running a business (video, audio and PDFs)
Contemporary business vocabulary video
Contemporary business vocabulary language exercises (video audio and PDFs)
Making requests: office dialogues
Supermarket enquiries role play
I think it’s important to teach topics that are relevant to the 2020s. A lot of textbooks for ESL are unbelievably behind the times. Especially as things are happening so quickly these days. So these are the first in a series of lessons about trending topics. Next, we’re going to tackle climate change (decarbonization, renewables, electric vehicles, self-driving vehicles).
Semiconductors lesson ( see the YouTube video)
Inflation lesson (see the YouTube video)
This is an older exercise that now has been improved with a video. Also, the job interview role play exercise has been improved.
This page explores the language of fears and phobias with a variety of exercises.
Sport and exercise is a universal topic with many teaching possibilities.