In our previous post, we looked at how best to create an online teacher introduction video but the next step to potentially getting students is to prepare and deliver a quality trial lesson. It is important for potential learners to get a taste of your online teaching. In this post, I will share how to prepare a 25 minute online demo lesson to students.

You may also want to watch the following video where I share the process of preparing updated demo lesson slides for use during the initial lesson with such potential students.

For YouTube Channel members, you can access a copy of the slides that I have created for trial lessons of 25 minutes.

1. Getting To Know Students

The first part of any trial lesson is for both the student and the teacher to get to know one another. I usually spend 10 minutes on this so that I truly get to know my potential student, and I also allow the student to get to know me as their teacher. This will help everything fit into place and something that I was taught immediately on my CELTA course was that rapport is the most important element at the beginning.

I usually ask students the following questions:

  • What do you do? Are you working or studying?
  • Where are you from? Could you describe your hometown?
  • What do you like to get up to in your free-time? What hobbies have you recently taken up?
  • When was the last time you went on holiday? Where did you go?

While I listen to the student answer, I make a note of their utterances and any key positive answers or corrections that I would like to address later on. Next, I give the student a chance to ask me any questions. I give some topics for potential students to consider asking me.

After introductions have been shared, I give some feedback to the student on Google Docs and share a dedicated Google Folder for students to access this and all future feedback.

2. The Demo Lesson

The second step in the trial lesson is delivering an example demo lesson suitably based for the level of the student. In the slides that I have composed, I created three levels of demo lesson depending whether students are either elementary, intermediate, or an advanced level. During the first stage of the trial lesson, I usually get a good sense of the student’s potential level.

The aim of the demo lesson is for the student to get an idea of your style of teaching and whether it is compatible for potential lessons. You may want to focus on a particular topic or a grammar point. In terms of my choice of demo lessons dependent upon the level of potential learners, I have decided on the topic of routines and the present simple for elementary students, the topic of kindness for intermediate learners, and the topic of toys from the 1990s and inverted sentences.

During the demo lesson, I tend to spend around 10 minutes on this and not really have much chance to focus too much on the content, but the learner is aware that I am fully prepared and deliver quality lessons, despite the rather limited time available.

3. Course Focus

The third and final part of the trial lesson is for both the learner and the teacher to agree upon the focus of the potential course. This is critical, so that you are able to organise, plan and deliver lessons which best suits the aims and objectives of the student. I usually spend a total of 5 minutes on this stage of the trial lesson and the following questions are what I tend to refer to:

  • What are your aims with English?
  • How often would you like to have lessons in a week?
  • How long would you hope to have lessons for?
  • What would you like to focus on in our next lesson?

Once the student has answered these questions, we can then agree upon the next steps and get the student to book a course.

After the Trial Lesson

After the trial lesson, there is a little more administration to complete. For example, I usually send self-study material to the student afterwards which aligns with the course aims and objectives, as confirmed by the student. In the next synchronous online lesson, we review self-study material together and focus on conversation questions. I would recommend that you also consider flipping the lesson, particularly if it is delivered online.

The other things to consider sending to the student is their dedicated Google Folder, all feedback from the first lesson, as well as a copy of the slides from the trial lesson. This gives clear indication to the potential student that you are professional and fully prepared.

I hope the following helps and let me know if you have any ideas in the comments regarding trial lessons. What would your recommendations be for those that wish to deliver a successful trial lesson?

As ever, thanks for reading!