Lindsay Nash Last updated: June 7, 2024

The 6 Best ESL Kids Video Resources

Videos are actually a great way to engage young learners while improving their English listening, vocabulary and comprehension all at the same time.

Movies and TV programs can captivate the short attention spans of children, allowing them to take in every word or action of the characters.

Here are six great video resources you can incorporate into your lessons.

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How to Incorporate Videos in Your ESL Classroom

As long as you have the equipment (a TV, computer, or projector), incorporating videos into your English language class can be easy! Here are a few ideas on how to engage your students before, during, and after a video lesson.

Construct a small list of vocabulary words for your students. Hand them out before the video, and have your students cross them off as soon as they hear them. See which students can cross them all off first. Afterward, talk about each word and how the word was used in the video.

For young children, follow up a video or TV show with a drawing activity. Have them draw their favorite character from the video and then explain the character to the class in English using descriptive words such as colors, sizes, and emotions (happy, sad, angry, etc.).

Have your students watch the video and then describe the plot. Have them describe what they watched. Who is doing what? What objects did they see? What did the characters look like? Was there a problem in the story? What was the problem? How did they solve it?

6 ESL Videos and TV Shows That Will Capture Your Students’ Attention

Without further ado, let’s move on to some great video and TV show resources that are fantastic for children.

1. BrainPop

Beep, Beep, Boop. These endearing short videos feature the lovable robot Moby as he teaches children the ins and outs of the English language with his buddy Ben, using beeps and boops. BrainPop is an amazing resource that I’ve used countless times in my elementary ESL classrooms over the years. The site is dedicated to teaching English to young students all over the world through animated movies, study tools, quizzes and fun games. You’ll be able to find resources that will help you succeed in the classroom with BrainPop’s grammar tools, follow-up activities, word lists, and overall lesson ideas.

The regular BrainPop site is also very useful and speaks a bit faster than the ESL site. It covers all sorts of subjects such as math, science, social studies, and much more, which is great for ESL immersion learners!

2. FluentU

This platform has heaps of great videos (cartoons, ESL clips, kids’ sing-alongs and even “Sesame Street”!) that are perfect for your kiddies.

Use these videos to teach vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar basics while keeping the lesson fun and interactive. As long as a screen is in sight, they’ll be thrilled!

3. Mr. Bean

Many students of all ages (and even adults) love Mr. Bean, the goofy British gentleman trying to muddle his way through life’s everyday problems and tasks. He rarely speaks, and the show relies on physical humor which will make your students laugh out loud while practicing English.

One of the best ways to incorporate Mr. Bean into your ESL classroom is to have your students become the narrators. Have them take turns narrating the show as it plays. “Mr. Bean fell down.” It’s a great way to practice verbs in past and present tense, and to practice descriptions of people and objects.

Showing videos without sound is also great for imagined dialogue. What is Mr. Bean saying to the other characters? And, even more fun for young learners, have them act out the scene, using English dialogue.

This Mr. Bean site is a great resource for classic clips, games, quizzes, and even a new animated series due out this year!

4. Sesame Street

This children’s staple is a classic for many reasons. Not only is it wonderful for native English-speaking children, but it’s also great for ESL learners.

The show features many great topics for young learners, such as new vocabulary words, counting, and the alphabet, while incorporating fun songs and characters into the lessons. A few great video clips for ESL learners are:

Grover and Alphabet Soup: A great clip for restaurant vocabulary and the alphabet, all in four minutes.
Big Bird and the Sesame Street Alphabet: Another great alphabet clip with a fun song.
Bert and Ernie: It’s a Circle: A short clip about shapes with a fun song.

This Sesame Street website is a fantastic resource for more great video clips, as well as coloring pages, games, activities, podcasts and more.

5. LeapFrog

LeapFrog offers a range of videos featuring the fun little frog siblings Leap, Tad, and Lilly as they learn the alphabet and phonics, how to spell words, how to improve their math skills, how to prepare for school, and much more.

While LeapFrog also has a great array of high-tech products to teach young children how to read, I believe these videos are some of their best creations. Here are a few examples:

The Letter Factory. In this 35-minute film, the three siblings Leap, Tad and Lilly head to their father’s letter factory and learn the alphabet with a catch song that you’ll hear your students singing for weeks afterward.
Talking Words Factory. This 35-minute film takes Leap, Tad, and Lilly further into their alphabet learning and teaches the phonics necessary to start spelling and reading easy words.
Let’s Go to School. Another 35-minute video that prepares Leap, Tad and Lilly for their first day of school. This is a great video for school vocabulary, as well as a review of the alphabet.

6. Disney Classics

The great thing about Disney is that so many people appreciate and love its villains and monsters, princesses and kings, and all its adorable characters. And the ESL classroom is a great place to incorporate these classics in a fun, captivating lesson.

Here are a few clips that are great for young ESL learners.

Love is an Open Door. This clip is for a song, from the movie “Frozen,” “Love is an Open Door”, and is a great sing-along for ESL learners. Have your students watch and sing along.
Meet Russell, from the movie “Up”. This is the clip where Russell first meets the elderly widower Carl and tries to offer him his services as a boy scout. It’s a great scene about introductions, and a good lesson for ESL learners.
“The Little Mermaid”, at the palace. This clip shows where Ariel is at the palace with Eric, and hilariously confuses a fork for a comb. This is a great way to review household vocabulary words.

There you have it! Now that you’ve got some great ESL video resources, try these out in your classroom today. Your students will thank you!