My Superhero Teacher: no-prep lesson plan

One of the most popular lesson plans on my blog is the one where students imagine they’re superheroes. They create their super suits, and design their superpowers. They can even come up with their own school for super students. Recently I reread it and I realized this lesson plan lacks one vital aspect: a superteacher! So, I want to present a short no-prep lesson plan you can enjoy with your students.

Are you ready to see what super powers your students would expect of their ESL teacher?

Introduction (5 minutes)

Divide your students into three or four groups and ask them to name as many superheroes as they can in 3 minutes. Once they finish brainstorming, encourage them to choose 5-6 superheroes they think would make good teachers. Write the names of these superheroes on the board, and explain that this will be the topic of the lesson: a superhero teacher.

Of course, you might need to explain that it doesn’t mean you will somehow turn into a superhero teacher.
But then again, it also doesn’t quite rule out the possibility, does it?

What makes a superhero teacher? (10 minutes group work)

Divide your students into groups. Ask them to create a list of superpowers that would make superheroes exceptional teachers. For example, consider Batman’s immense wealth. How could this translate to teaching? He could invest in his students and take them on extraordinary educational excursions!

Now, let’s think about Doctor Strange. His ability to teleport would allow him to transport students to any location on Earth for a unique lesson experience. And imagine Catwoman as a teacher – the classroom filled with adorable kittens! Spiderman? Oh…
Well, you get the idea.

After 5 minutes of this activity ask your students to switch their focus from superpowers to personality traits. For example, Batman is moody yet would make quite a reliable teacher. Doctor Strange is surprisingly patient, and Ironman is definitely pretty creative.

Then ask your students to share the superpowers and character traits that would make superheroes superteachers.

What would Batman do? (10 minutes group work)

Ask your students to come up with a list of recently discussed grammar constructions and write them down on small scraps of paper. At the same time, you make a list of superheroes on small scraps of paper. Then ask each group to draw two scraps – one with the name of a superhero, second with the grammar construction.

The task is simple: they must explain the given grammar construction in the style of their assigned superhero.

How would Superman teach the Present Perfect? How would Hulk explain the Third Conditional? Urge your students to prepare explanations incorporating their chosen superhero’s mannerisms. Encourage them to have as much fun as possible by using examples from their superhero’s adventures to illustrate the grammar points.

Presentation (10 minutes)

Once your students have prepared their mini-lessons to be delivered by the superheroes, ask them to present them to the whole class. Encourage other students to address the presenters using their superhero names, such as saying, “Yes, Thor” or “Really, Robin?”

You may also ask for feedback from the class. Did the students find it easier to review the material by pretending to be their superheroes while teaching?

Remember this part of the lesson. This simple activity may come useful in various moments of your course! Whenever you feel like your students might need some extra grammar revision, you may ask them to explain the troublesome aspect of grammar in the style of their chosen superhero

A twist (5 minutes)

Ask your students to critically look at the superheroes they’ve chosen. After all, even superheroes have flaws, and some of their character traits could make them possibly terrible teachers. Ask your students to think about the negative aspects of their chosen superheroes and how they could translate to a classroom setting. I’ve used the word moody to describe Batman before, but to be honest his downright pessimistic and he’s not really fun to be around. Ironman sounds like a passionate teacher but he’s so self absorbed that most of the lesson would be focused on him and not on the lesson topic.

Summary (5 minutes)

Sum up the class by making a list of the superpowers and character traits that turn out to be the most unusual, amazing, and fascinating in a superteacher.

If you want to give homework to your students, you may ask them to create a teacher development plan – from mundane academic to superteacher! They should give the details of the actions and the exercises the teachers should follow to be proper superheroes.

After all, who doesn’t want to be a superteacher?