Integration and Citizenship ESOL teacher resources created by MESH
These teaching resources have been developed by MESH to support ESOL tutors across Yorkshire and Humber. They focus on practical topics that help learners understand everyday life in the UK, from healthcare and council services to volunteering and community participation.
Topics covered in these resources include:
- Healthcare and the NHS
- Community life and local services
- Volunteering and civic participation
- Volunteering and civic participation
- Employment and education pathways
- News, media and current affairs
- News, media and current affairs
- Voting, democracy and citizenship
How to use these resources help you teach Integration and Citizenship:
- Introduce real-life topics such as healthcare, council services, volunteering and everyday community activities
- Support speaking and discussion activities through prompts, questions and shared classroom conversations.
- Build vocabulary for everyday situations learners may encounter outside the classroom.
- Encourage learners to share experiences and compare life in different countries and communities.
- Provide flexible lesson materials that can be used as full activities, discussion starters or supplementary tasks.
Resource links
Teach English the Yorkshire Way – Cooking and Food Resources
Resources developed by MESH to provide ESOL tutors with a selection of activities to teach about cooking and food.…
Teach English the Yorkshire Way – Health Care in England
Resources developed by MESH to complement the Healthcare in England literature, which was developed to give new arrivals in the …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way – Video-based Resources
Resources created by MESH to showcase initiatives in Yorkshire & Humber that support migrants. These resources focus on food support services, …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way – Working in the UK Toolkit
Resources developed by MESH to complement the ‘Working in the UK Toolkit’ document produced by Migration Yorkshire. This document has …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way: Childcare Choices
Resources developed by MESH to help familiarise learners with the Childcare Choices website. This is a government website that tells …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way: Council Services
Resources developed by MESH to help familiarise learners with Council services and local council websites.…
Teach English the Yorkshire Way: Dialect Poem
A Yorkshire Dialect poem written by Migration Yorkshire, including resources for teaching with it, audio files and an overview with …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way: Enrolling at College
This Learning Resource is focused on enrolling for a course at an FE college. …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way: ESOL Outside the Classroom
This Learning Resource is focused on the ways you can learn English by doing things outside of a classroom. The …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way: Foodbanks & Food Support
This Learning Resource is focused on local food support. The resource includes a film made by MESH that showcases The …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way: Visitors Map Resource
Resources developed by MESH for use with Visitors maps. It can be adapted for use with any city’s Visitors …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way: Volunteering
Resources developed by MESH to complement various volunteering websites with the aim of giving learners an idea of what opportunities …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way: Warm Spaces
In this Learning Resource we focus on the provision of Warm Spaces – what they are and how you can access …
Teach English the Yorkshire Way: What's on?
Resources developed by MESH to give learners an understanding of activities and events in their area and encourages them to …
Integration and Citizenship ESOL teacher resource links curated by MESH
These external resources have been selected by ESOL practitioners working through the MESH project to support classroom discussion and learning around integration and citizenship.
They include lesson materials, podcasts, videos and accessible reading materials that can help learners explore real-world topics and develop language skills in meaningful contexts.
Topics covered in these resources include:
- News and current affairs resources
- Podcasts and video-based learning
- Citizenship and democratic participation
- Community life and social issues
- Environmental and global topics
- Accessible reading and easy-read resources
- ESOL teaching frameworks and lesson materials
Using these curated resources to support Integration and Citizenship teaching
- Bring real-world topics into the classroom using news stories, current affairs materials and discussion prompts.
- Support speaking and listening activities through podcasts, videos and audio-based learning materials.
- Introduce authentic reading materials that help learners practise understanding real English used in media and everyday contexts.
- Explore citizenship and community themes such as democracy, public services, environmental issues and social topics.
- Access lesson plans and teaching frameworks created by
- ESOL specialists and education organisations.
Resource links
AramcoWorld
A series of videos about places, people and culture in the Arabic world. There are some resources to go with …
Books Beyond Words
A set of picture-focused stories for people who may struggle to read words. Every story is co-created with …
Breaking News English
ESOL resources at 7 levels, based on news stories. Uses US English.…
ELT Footprint
A site for English learning about environment themes. A collection of links to posts and sites sharing lesson plans and …
Bromley by Bow ESOL resources
ESOL teaching resources to help learners improve their language through Health and wellbeing themes. The free resource explores common health …
New Internationalist: Easier English Wiki
ESOL resources on climate change and other global themes. Includes many ready lesson plans and resources on topics such as …
Football – Premier Skills English
Premier Skills is the British Council’s international partnership with the Premier League operating in 19 countries across Asia, Africa …
Introduction to Ukrainian Language and Culture
This free online course by the Open Universtiy is for everybody who is interested in finding out about Ukraine and …
How to register to vote
ESOL teachers can use this site to help learners understand how to vote in the UK, including a step by …
Happy and Healthy in Hull
A wonderful free PDF download of a magazine made by and for ESOL learners. Includes topics such as the NHS, …
ITN Archive
With more than a million video clips available, the ITN Video Archive covers a wide range of genres, including UK …
National Literacy Trust
Literacy resources for school age children, but includes some free themed resources that will be useful for ESOL learners ie. …
It Takes a Community – Un/Documented Podcast
Un/Documented offers a well-needed dose of hope by celebrating all the amazing people working in communities to create …
Language Teaching for the Planet
A collection of English lesson plans all themed on Climate change and environmental themes. Created by ELT Sustainable.…
Millenium Square Leeds Treasure Hunt
A treasure hunt with answers for learners to do in Millenium Square, Leeds. Made for the Yorkshire Intergration Festival 2022, …
Modern Day Slavery Awareness Film
These films can be used in ESOL classes to raise awareness of modern slavery. The Leeds City Council Migration team …
NHS Easy Read 111 Materials
Easy to read leaflet about the 111 service with illustrations. Useful in the ESOL classroom when teaching about health issues …
SAVTE Mental Health Resources
Mental health stories in simple readers for E1 and E2 with vocabulary cards and information sheets. These are free to …
The Times – News Literacy Resources
An inspiring programme giving students the journalistic tools to think critically and confidently about the news. The programme is aimed …
Creative Language Practices Through a Translingual Lens: A Toolkit
A creative language toolkit developed for multi-lingual classrooms, using arts-based methods and creative practices.…
The Big Picture: Materials and Resources for ESOL tutors
A great set of resources for ESOL tutors to use with learners with literacy issues. Focused on themes such as …
The Bell Foundation Prison and Community ESOL Program
Free ESOL worksheets for independent learning in prisons and community settings. If you are delivering ESOL classes or have contact …
The ESOL Podcast
Regular podcast contributed to by ESOL learners, often exploring current topics. There are associated materials and ideas for lessons.…
News in Levels
World news stories for learners of English at 3 different levels of difficulty. There is also an app that students …
The Guardian Foundation
Downloadable resources for teaching secondary, which can be adapted for Adult ESOL learners – some very useful topics.…
The Other Side of Hope
the other side of hope: journeys in refugee and immigrant literature is a UK-based literary magazine edited by immigrants & …
Topical Talk from The Economist
Free teaching resources for weekly classroom discussions about the news. It’s free to sign up and offers interesting reading …
Transnational Families: Family challenges
This resource is focused on the challenges faced by young people when fulfilling care roles in families. The resources can …
Trinity College London Integration
Materials to support integration. All levels including new to ESOL.…
UK Parliament Learn Live Hub
Resources all about how Parliament works; democracy; voting and law-making. View films and download resources designed for use by …
VOICES Network Podcast
The VOICES network is a collective of refugees and people seeking asylum. Together, they speak out about issues that affect …