Poland

This free ESL lesson plan on Poland has been designed for adults and young adults at an intermediate (B1/B2) to advanced (C1/C2) level and should last around 45 to 60 minutes for one student.

Poland is a country in Central Europe with a population of 38 million people, making it the fifth most populous country in the EU. Poland takes its name from the Polans, a Slavic tribe that settled in the area in the 10th century, after which the country began` to form and develop under the Piast Dynasty. Today, Poland is home to beautiful medieval towns and breathtaking landscapes. In this ESL lesson plan on Poland, students will have the opportunity to discuss and express their opinions on Polish history, culture and tourism.

This lesson plan could also be used with your students for Poland Independence Day, which takes place in November. For more lesson plans on international days and important holidays, see the calendar of world days to plan your classes for these special occasions.

For advice on how to use this English lesson plan and other lesson plans on this site, see the guide for ESL teachers.

PRE-CLASS ACTIVITIES

Reading activity
Before the English class, send the following article to the students and ask them to read it while making a list of any new vocabulary or phrases they find (explain any the students don’t understand in the class):

IntoPoland | HISTORY OF POLAND

The article gives a brief history of Poland, from the settlement of Slavic tribes to the 1997 constitution. What do they think about the issues raised in the article? Do they agree with what was said? Can they think of any ways they might disagree with the content of the article?

Video activity
To save time in class for the conversation activities, the English teacher can ask the students to watch the video below and answer the listening questions in Section 3 of the lesson plan at home. The questions for the video are styled in a way similar to an exam like the IELTS.

The video for this class is a called “Top 10 Places To Visit In Poland” by Ryan Shirley which explores the best places in Poland to visit including Kraków, Gdansk and Warsaw.

IN-CLASS ACTIVITIES

The focus in the class is on conversation in order to help improve students’ fluency and confidence when speaking in English as well as boosting their vocabulary.

This lesson opens with a short discussion about the article the students read before the class. Next, the students can give their opinion on the quote at the beginning of the lesson plan – what they think the quote means and if they agree with it. This is followed by an initial discussion on Polish culture including the best places to visit, the best Polish food, and the best Polish music and films.

After this, students will learn about some important Polish people, which is accompanied by a speaking activity. In this activity, students will speak about famous Polish people they know about, and what they think about Polish people in general.

If the students didn’t watch the video before the class, they can watch it after the vocabulary section and answer the listening questions. Before checking the answers, ask the students to give a brief summary of the video and what they thought about the content.

Finally, there is a more in-depth conversation about Poland’s place in the world. In this speaking activity, students will talk about issues such as what Poland gave to the world, how Poland compares to other countries, and what the future has in store for the country.

HOMEWORK

After the class, students will write about their opinion of Poland. This could be a short paragraph or a longer piece of writing depending on what level the student is at. The writing activity is designed to allow students to practise and improve their grammar with the feedback from their teacher.