Choose the exercise from what learners need to do with the language: notice it, manipulate it accurately, or use it more freely. Order a worksheet from recognition to production.
| Stage | Exercise | Tests / practises | Design rules |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recognition | Matching (word-definition, picture-word, halves, Q-A) | Meaning | 5-10 pairs; one or two extra options on the right reduce guessing; keep definitions shorter than the words' level |
| Recognition | Multiple choice | Meaning, form contrast | One clearly correct answer; plausible distractors from real learner errors; similar length options; no "all of the above" |
| Recognition | True/false/not given | Reading detail | Paraphrase, do not copy the text; "not given" only from B1 |
| Recognition | Odd one out | Lexical sets, sounds | Accept justified alternatives |
| Recognition | Categorise / sort | Word classes, sounds, formality | 2-4 categories, 12-20 items |
| Recognition | Find and underline in a text | Noticing a form | Text where the form appears naturally 5+ times |
| Controlled | Gap-fill with word bank | Form in context | Bank words used once; add 1-2 distractors at B1+; gap words, not whole clauses |
| Controlled | Gap-fill with verb in brackets | Tense form | Bracket gives the base form: She ______ (go) |
| Controlled | Open cloze | Grammar words (articles, prepositions, auxiliaries) | Every 7th-9th word, first sentence intact; check each gap has one answer |
| Controlled | Sentence transformation | Form and meaning together | Key word given; 2-5 words; meaning must stay the same |
| Controlled | Word formation | Prefixes, suffixes | Stem in capitals at the end of the line |
| Controlled | Reorder words | Word order, questions | 5-9 words; capital letter on the first word gives a hint |
| Controlled | Error correction | Accuracy | Each sentence has 0 or 1 error; mark "correct" sentences too |
| Controlled | Complete the sentence | Collocation, grammar | Stems that force the target structure |
| Freer | Answer questions about you | Personalisation | Questions that need the target language |
| Freer | Write sentences that are true for you | Personalisation | Give 3-5 prompts |
| Freer | Short writing task | Production | Clear genre, reader, word count, checklist |
| Freer | Picture description / story | Narrative, description | Clear pictures; useful-language box |
Instructions
- Imperative, short, at a level below the content: "Complete the sentences with the past simple."
- Give an example (item 0) answered for every exercise.
- Say how: "Use each word once." "There are two extra words."
- Number items; letter options.
Answer keys
- Every exercise has a key. Open tasks get model answers marked "possible answers".
- Transformation and cloze keys list acceptable alternatives (isn't / is not).
Difficulty dials
| Easier | Harder |
|---|---|
| Word bank | No bank |
| First letter given | No hint |
| Bank in the order of the gaps | Bank shuffled with distractors |
| Sentences | Continuous text |
| Recognition | Production |
| 5 items | 10-12 items |
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Turn authentic material (news articles, podcasts, videos, songs, menus, timetables, adverts, social media posts, forms, infographics) into language lessons by grading the task rather than the text. Selects texts for interest, relevance, exploitability, coverage, cultural load and rights; finds the 4-6 words to pre-teach, words to gloss on the page and words learners can ignore, plus names and cultural references to explain, with reading time by level; and builds a lesson shape (lead-in, pre-teach, gist or scanning, graded detail task, language focus on chunks and register, response) with task ideas per material type and level from A1 to C1. Covers copyright, fair dealing and fair use, Creative Commons and attribution.
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Write and review can-do statements for language courses, units, lessons and learner self-assessment, CEFR or NCSSFL-ACTFL style: action (observable verb) + text or situation + level-specific conditions, learner ('I can') and descriptor ('Can') versions, progressions of one activity from A1 to C1, and coverage of reception, production, interaction and mediation. Includes a verb bank by mode and level and condition and text-type banks. Lints statements for teacher-centred phrasing, knowledge instead of use (learn, know, understand the passive), missing context, two skills in one statement, vague quality words, grammar items as outcomes, overlong statements and missing modes in a set.
cefr-aligned-syllabus-builder
Build language course syllabuses aligned to the CEFR (A1-C2, plus levels, Companion Volume 2020): entry and exit levels, guided learning hours and course length (with an L1-distance adjustment), syllabus type (topic, functional-notional, task-based, skills-based, multi-strand), unit-by-unit can-do outcomes, grammar from a core inventory by level, vocabulary, functions, pronunciation, balance of reception, production, interaction and mediation, recycling and assessment points. Checks a syllabus for units without can-do statements, core grammar for the level not covered, items above the course level, skills missing from most units and units with no vocabulary or functions.