🧃Why I Ditched PowerPoints (and Started Using Games & AI Instead)

Let me take you back to the early days.

There I was — standing in front of a class, PalFish slide on the screen, asking the usual:
“What’s this? It’s… an apple!”

It wasn’t bad. It wasn’t great either. I was doing my job. But deep down, I knew the students were just clicking, copying, nodding… not actually learning.

So, I made a decision:

❌ Less PowerPoint.
✅ More Play.

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🎮 Enter: Games, Gadgets & AI

Fast forward a few years, and things look a little different in my classroom.

Now you’ll find me running Baamboozle battles, creating custom WordWall quizzes, and building Canva-based games faster than you can say “Present Continuous.”

My students?
They’re shouting out answers, laughing, competing, and — most importantly — actually speaking English.

And me?
I’m ranked in the Top 10 on PalFish (out of 6,500+ teachers), not because I’m following the script, but because I stopped using one.

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🧰 My ESL Teaching Toolkit (aka My Secret Weapons)

Here’s what I use now — daily:

🔹 Baamboozle

Customisable game boards. Great for vocab reviews, idioms, grammar battles — you name it.

🔹 WordWall

Perfect for time-fillers or mini-listening tasks. You can even make your own in minutes.

🔹 Canva

No, it’s not just for pretty posters. I use Canva to design pop-art-style games, visual prompts, and even full escape rooms.

🔹 ChatGPT

Yup — AI is in my staffroom now. It helps me brainstorm game ideas, reword student answers, or create lesson variations.

I still follow a syllabus when needed — but these tools give me room to breathe, adapt, and have fun.

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👂 Student Reactions (a.k.a. Why I’ll Never Go Back)

You know that moment when a quiet student suddenly shouts,
“Teacher! I win!”
Or when your shyest student says a full sentence without repeating after you?

That’s the magic I’m chasing.

Even the parents have noticed. “My child used to be shy, but now he wants to talk more in English.”

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📥 Want Some of These Tools?

I’ve started putting together the very same games and materials I use in class — all downloadable and ready to go.

👾 Escape Room Puzzles
🎲 ESL Idiom Games
🎤 Speaking Prompt Cards
✏️ Printable Worksheets for Online & Offline Use

You can grab them from my Beacon Store— all designed by me, for real students, in real classrooms.

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🛠 Teacher Tip:

If you’re feeling stuck, bored, or burned out — try flipping the script.

Let the game be the lesson. Let the students drive the energy. Let tech do the heavy lifting.

And if you ever want help?
You’re welcome in my staff room anytime.