ESL Lesson Plans Online

Jokes make us laugh but they can be very serious for English Foreign Language students. They don’t understand the subtle references or the play on words.

How can we help them?

Riddles with a picture are the easiest for beginner or high beginner students. You’ll find riddle books available in the children’s section of the book stores.

When we move into real jokes the challenge will be to get the students laughing and not feeling embarrassed because they don’t “get it”. We suggest that you start with something easy – a joke where you will act out the story. Some jokes need to be acted and they’ll laugh even if they don’t “get it”. You’ll end up being the joke but they’ll love you for it.

Another way to help them is to start with a picture. People who tell jokes don’t usually show pictures, but this is an English class and the students will need all the help they can get!

A truck driver had a job to take some penguins to the zoo in the next town. His truck stopped on the way. He was fixing it when another trucker came. “Can I help you?” he asked. “If I give you $100, will you take these penguins to the zoo in the next town?” The trucker said that he would. Later, when his truck was going, he drove into the next town and saw the man walking down the road with the penguins. “Didn’t you take them to the zoo?” he asked. “Yes, we went to the zoo, and there was money le left over, so now we’re going to the movies.”

A man met his friend. “What’s new?” asked the friend. The man had just bought a new hearing aid, so he was anxious to tell his friend about it. “I just bought this new hearing aid,” he explained. “It’s the very latest technology, and is the very best you can buy. It was terribly expensive, though, it cost over $5000.00.” “That’s interesting,” said his friend. “What kind is it?” The man looked at his watch and replied: “It’s a quarter to twelve.”

This joke requires a lot of acting out by the teacher.

A man went into a Men’s Wear store to buy a new suit, because he saw a sign on the door that said “Suit Sale! Three Piece Suits For $59.95.” He found a suit that looked pretty good, so he tried it on. As he looked at it in the mirror, he noticed that the left lapel wouldn’t lie flat. “Look at this lapel,” he said. “It won’t lie flat!” The clerk answered: “Don’t worry about that, that’s not a problem! Just lay your chin on the left lapel and that will hold it down flat. (The teacher should demonstrate by holding his/her chin on his/her left lapel.) Then the man noticed that when he put his chin on his left lapel, it pulled up his right sleeve. “Now look at my right sleeve!” said the man. Putting my chin down on the left lapel makes this sleeve too short!” “Don’t worry about that!” said the clerk. “Just hold on to your right sleeve with your hand and keep your arm straight. That will hold the sleeve down.” (The teacher can show how to hold his/her chin down on the left lapel and keeping the right arm stiff.) Now the man noticed that when he held his right arm stiff it seemed to shorten the left pant leg. “But look at my left pant leg!” the man said. When I hold my chin down and my right sleeve down I have to stand kind of funny, and my left pant leg is too short.” (The teacher demonstrates how the man has to stand.) The clerk replied: “That’s no problem! You’re getting a really nice suit for $59.95! Just keep your left leg bent a little and the right leg stiff! Then everything looks just right!” (The teacher holds his/her chin down on the left lapel, holds the right sleeve down with a stiff arm, bends the left leg, and stiffens the right leg, and walks around a little.) The man tried it all, and decided to buy the suit.

Three men were on the subway in London, and they were very drunk.

1st drunk: “What station was that?”
2nd drunk: “Wembley.”
3rd drunk: “No, it’s Thursday!”
1st drunk: “I’m thirsty too! Let’s get off at the next stop and get another drink.”

• Student book - 37 pages
• Teacher's Guide Book - 28 pages
• Glossary -- 142 new words
• Practice Book - 24 pages
• Colorful games and activities

• Student book - 42 pages
• Teacher's Guide Book - 30 pages
• Glossary -- 153 new words
• Practice Book - 28 pages
• Colorful games and activities

Castles and Things - Book 2A

• Student book - 43 pages
• Teacher's Guide Book - 24 pages
• Practice Book - 28 pages
• Colorful games and activities

Friendly Aliens - Book 2B

• Student book - 42 pages
• Teacher's Guide Book - 54 pages
• Practice Book - 28 pages
• Glossary -- 137 new words
• Colorful games and activities

Visitors From Saturn - Book 3A

• Student book - 43 pages
• Teacher's Guide Book - 48 pages
• Practice Book - 28 pages
• Glossary -- 153 new words
• Colorful games and activities

Adventures in Canada - Book 3B

• Student book - 44 pages
• Teacher's Guide Book - 69 pages
• Practice Book - 28 pages
• Glossary -- 141 new words
• Colorful games and activities

The Trip to Saturn - Book 4A

• Student book - 62 pages
• Teacher's Guide Book - 71 pages
• Practice Book - 28 pages
• Glossary -- 131 new words
• Colorful games and activities

A Dangerous Encounter - Book 4B

• Beginning grammar - verbs
• Vowel and consonant digraphs
• Comparatives
• Punctuation
• Role plays
• consonant blends

• Student book - 37 pages
• Teacher's Guide Book - 28 pages
• Practice Book - 28 pages
• Glossary -- 142 new words
• Colorful games and activities

The Mysterious Island - Book 5A

• Beginning grammar - nouns, verbs, pronouns
• Sentence structure
• Past and present tense
• Comparatives
• Vowel and consonant digraphs
• Punctuation
• Role plays
• Consonant blends

• Student book - 70 pages
• Teacher's Guide Book - 77 pages
• Practice Book - 28 pages
• Glossary -- 145 new words
• Colorful games and activities

Lost on The Mysterious Island - Book 5A

• Beginning grammar - nouns, verbs, pronouns
• Sentence structure
• Past and present tense
• Comparatives
• Vowel and consonant digraphs
• Punctuation
• Role plays
• Consonant blends

• Student book - 70 pages
• Teacher's Guide Book - 77 pages
• Practice Book - 28 pages
• Glossary -- 145 new words
• Colorful games and activities