A new student joins your class in October. She is bright, curious and quick with a smile — and she speaks almost no English. The rest of the class is halfway through a reading unit, and you have one afternoon to find something she can do tomorrow that is not just sitting and watching. That is the everyday reality of teaching English learners in an elementary classroom, and it is what the tools below are for.
The list mixes the two kinds of help an ELL teacher needs. Some tools are for the students: short lessons, songs, stories and games that build English step by step. Others are for you: ready-made lesson plans, teaching strategies and family letters in home languages. All eight were checked on their own official sites on November 5, 2026, and five of the eight cost nothing at all.
We picked tools that fit PreK–6 classrooms and homeschool families: a dedicated ESL lesson library, free sites from the British Council and a public television station, a speaking program built for multilingual learners, and small independent libraries of multilingual books and teacher-made worksheets. No tool here was paid to appear, and every one of them has something a teacher can use this week.
Key takeaways
- Best free starting point: LearnEnglish Kids, with games, songs, stories and printable worksheets for ages 5–12.
- Ellii is the only dedicated ESL lesson library here: 4,000+ ready-made lessons, flashcards and videos for English teachers.
- Lexia English is the speaking specialist, with speech-recognition feedback and academic conversations for grades K–6.
- Unite for Literacy and Colorín Colorado are free, small and independent — multilingual picture books and bilingual family resources with no login needed.
- Flocabulary and ISLCollective cover vocabulary two ways: hip-hop songs for Tier 2 words, and free teacher-made worksheets for every grammar topic.
Quick comparison
| # | Tool | Best for | Grades / audience | Pricing | Free plan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ready-made ESL lessons | K–12, all ESL levels | Paid | No | |
| 2 | free games, songs and stories | Ages 5–12 | Free | Yes | |
| 3 | speaking and listening practice | Grades K–6 | School license | No | |
| 4 | free early reading and phonics | Ages 3–8, PreK–1st | Free | Yes | |
| 5 | teaching strategies and family help | Teachers and families of ELLs | Free | Free (nonprofit) | |
| 6 | free books in many languages | Birth–age 8, new English readers | Free | Yes | |
| 7 | vocabulary through hip-hop songs | Grades K–12 | Freemium | Trial only | |
| 8 | free teacher-made ESL worksheets | ESL teachers, all levels | Freemium | Yes |
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Request a listingThe 8 best picks
- Pricing
- Paid
- Free plan
- No
- Grades / audience
- K–12, all ESL levels
Ellii, formerly ESL Library, is a subscription library of ready-made English lessons, flashcards and videos built for English teachers. Lessons are searchable by topic, level and audience, cover grammar, vocabulary, functional English and everyday topics, and come in printable and digital form with a broadcast tool for live classes and a task player for assignments. The K–12 section is built for school classrooms.
What we like
- 4,000+ lessons, 6,000+ flashcards and 900+ videos in the library
- Lessons searchable by topic, level and audience, with new materials added daily
- Digital task player and PDF broadcast tool for live classes and assignments
- Class-management tools, student sub-accounts and reporting tools
Watch out for
- No free plan — every plan is a paid subscription
- School pricing is per teacher, so costs rise with each teacher who joins
Pricing: A private-teacher plan costs $14/month for one teacher and up to 35 students; school plans cost $250/year per teacher.
LearnEnglish Kids
Best for: free games, songs and stories
- Pricing
- Free
- Free plan
- Yes
- Grades / audience
- Ages 5–12
LearnEnglish Kids is the British Council's free site for children learning English, with games, songs, stories, videos and grammar and vocabulary activities for ages 5–12. Activities are organised into three levels, from first words and short phrases to longer stories, and the site includes a parents section with advice on supporting English at home. Members can download hundreds of printable worksheets free.
What we like
- Free games, songs, stories and videos for ages 5–12
- Three levels, from first words to longer stories and texts
- Hundreds of free printable worksheets for registered members
- A parents section with articles and videos on learning English at home
Watch out for
- British English spellings and vocabulary throughout
- The Playtime app's extra songs and videos need a paid subscription
Pricing: Free — games, songs, stories and worksheets cost nothing; a separate Playtime app offers a paid subscription for extra songs and videos.
- Pricing
- School license
- Free plan
- No
- Grades / audience
- Grades K–6
Lexia English is an adaptive blended-learning program for Emergent Bilingual students in grades K–6. Students practise academic speaking and listening through conversations in math, science, social studies, general knowledge and biographies, with speech-recognition technology giving immediate corrective feedback. Teachers get real-time data and reports, and the program fits a 30-minute period five days a week, with three online and two teacher-led conversations per week.
What we like
- Adaptive speaking and listening practice in math, science, social studies and general knowledge
- Speech-recognition technology with immediate corrective feedback
- Real-time data and reports for teachers and administrators
- Fits a 30-minute period, five days a week, with online and teacher-led conversations
Watch out for
- No price is listed — request a quote from Lexia
- Built for grades K–6, so it does not cover older students
Pricing: Paid — a school license; no price is listed on the official site.
- Pricing
- Free
- Free plan
- Yes
- Grades / audience
- Ages 3–8, PreK–1st
Duolingo ABC is Duolingo's free app for learning to read and write in English, built for ages 3–8. It offers more than 700 short, game-like lessons on the alphabet, letter sounds, phonics blending, sight words and handwriting, with read-along stories and tracing games. It is free with no ads and no in-app purchases, and lessons work offline.
What we like
- More than 700 hands-on lessons on phonics, sight words and stories
- Letter tracing and handwriting games for young learners
- Read-along stories with pictures, built for preschool to first grade
- Free with no ads and no in-app purchases; lessons work offline
Watch out for
- Ages 3–8 only — it does not teach grammar or writing for older grades
- An app, not a website, so it needs a phone or tablet
Pricing: Free — no ads, no in-app purchases and no subscription.
- Pricing
- Free
- Free plan
- Free (nonprofit)
- Grades / audience
- Teachers and families of ELLs
Colorín Colorado is a free, bilingual website from WETA, the public television station in Washington, DC, for educators and families of English language learners. It offers research-based articles, teaching strategies, tip sheets and videos on reading instruction for ELLs, plus parent content in Spanish and several other languages and a resource library organised by state.
What we like
- Free research-based articles and teaching strategies for ELLs
- Bilingual English/Spanish site, with parent content in several languages
- Tip sheets on reading instruction for educators of English learners
- A resource library with guides, toolkits and ELL resources by state
Watch out for
- No student accounts or practice activities — it is a guide for adults
- Most classroom strategies are written for reading instruction
Pricing: Free — a nonprofit public-media project; everything on the site costs nothing.
- Pricing
- Free
- Free plan
- Yes
- Grades / audience
- Birth–age 8, new English readers
Unite for Literacy is a free online library of original picture books for young readers, narrated in more than 50 languages. Children can read a short picture book in English and hear it narrated in their home language, which makes it a gentle first library for new English learners. The books are free with no login or registration, and the library holds more than 600 titles.
What we like
- More than 600 original picture books, free to read with no login
- Narration in more than 50 languages by native speakers
- Books reflect the languages, cultures and communities of many families
- Text can be shown in English, Spanish or Ukrainian, with more languages being added
Watch out for
- Picture books only — no grammar or writing practice
- Narration languages vary by book, so check the language list on each title
Pricing: Free — the whole library costs nothing, with no login or registration.
- Pricing
- Freemium
- Free plan
- Trial only
- Grades / audience
- Grades K–12
Flocabulary teaches vocabulary and core subjects through educational hip-hop songs and videos, with lesson activities and assessments built around each one. Its Word Up program teaches Tier 2 vocabulary for grades K–8 through songs, reading passages and writing activities, and the music gives English learners repeated, memorable exposure to academic words. Teachers can sign up for a free trial; the full library needs a digital subscription.
What we like
- Hundreds of hip-hop songs and videos across ELA, math, science and social studies
- Word Up vocabulary program for grades K–8, with songs and activities for Tier 2 words
- Every lesson pairs a video with vocabulary activities and assessments
- Lyric Lab lets students write their own rhymes with the words they learned
Watch out for
- No price is listed on the site — check plans before budgeting
- Songs are the hook, so plan a follow-up activity for the vocabulary to stick
Pricing: A digital subscription unlocks the full library; individual plans exist for teachers and parents, with group plans for schools and districts. Teachers can start with a free trial; no price is listed on the site.
- Pricing
- Freemium
- Free plan
- Yes
- Grades / audience
- ESL teachers, all levels
ISLCollective is a community of ESL teachers who share the worksheets they made, and it is free to browse. The English section holds more than 190,000 printable worksheets, video lessons, quizzes and PowerPoints, searchable by grammar topic or theme, in Word, PDF and PowerPoint formats. Downloads use free credits, and a paid subscription removes the limits.
What we like
- More than 190,000 teacher-made English worksheets, video lessons and quizzes
- Searchable by grammar topic or general theme, from beginner to advanced
- Worksheets in Word, PDF and PowerPoint formats, ready to print or project
- A community project running since 2009, with teachers uploading their own lessons
Watch out for
- Free downloads are limited by credits — heavy users need the subscription
- Worksheets are teacher-made, so check the level and accuracy first
Pricing: Free to browse and download with free credits; a paid subscription removes the download limits.
How we chose
We started from tools PreK–6 teachers actually use and checked every one against its official website, pricing page and feature pages on November 5, 2026. We kept tools that fit elementary classrooms, noted whether a free plan exists, and wrote down honest limitations next to the strengths. Nobody paid to be included, and we don't use affiliate links on this page.
- Fit for PreK–6 classrooms, special education or homeschool
- Clear information on the official site about what the tool does and who it is for
- Free plan or free-for-teachers option noted where one exists
- Still active and maintained, with rebrands noted
How to choose the right tool
Match the tool to the skill that is weakest. A student who understands but will not speak needs Lexia English or Flocabulary's songs. A student who cannot yet read needs Duolingo ABC or LearnEnglish Kids. A student who reads but cannot write needs Ellii's lessons or ISLCollective's worksheets.
Start with the free tools and spend only when you know what is missing. LearnEnglish Kids, Duolingo ABC, Colorín Colorado, Unite for Literacy and ISLCollective cost nothing to try, and together they cover games, reading, family help and worksheets. Pay for Ellii or Flocabulary when you want ready-made lessons every day, and for Lexia English when the school wants speaking data.
Check the level before you assign anything. LearnEnglish Kids has three levels and Ellii's lessons are tagged by level, but ISLCollective's worksheets are teacher-made and vary. Preview one activity at the level you need before the whole class sees it.
Use the home language as a bridge, not a barrier. Unite for Literacy lets a child hear a book in their home language first, then read it in English. Colorín Colorado has parent letters and guides in Spanish and other languages. A child who reads well in their first language will learn English faster, not slower.
Pair the screen with something students can hold. A song about new words lands better when the class then writes the words on cards, sorts them, or uses them in a sentence. The printables in the box below are built for exactly that step.
Best pick by situation
- A new student arrived who speaks no English: Unite for Literacy — books narrated in their home language
- You need a ready-made ESL lesson for tomorrow: Ellii — 4,000+ lessons searchable by level and topic
- Your students understand English but will not speak it: Lexia English — guided speaking practice with instant feedback
- You want free English games for ages 5–12: LearnEnglish Kids — songs, stories and games at three levels
- You need a vocabulary routine that sticks: Flocabulary — songs and activities for Tier 2 words
- You want a printable worksheet for tonight's grammar point: ISLCollective — teacher-made worksheets for every topic
Pair it with printables
These printables from our store pair with the tools above — bilingual mini books, letter-sound cards, a bilingual family craft and conference forms in English and Spanish that turn screen learning into hands-on work.
Día de los Muertos Bilingual Mini BooksPreK, Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd grade$3.25 · 38 pages
Letter Sound Movement CardsPre-K, Kindergarten, 1st grade$5.49 · 49 pages
Thanksgiving Table Talk Spoon CraftKindergarten, 1st, 2nd, 3rd grade$4.49 · 68 pages
Parent Teacher Conference FormsKindergarten–5th grade$4.49 · 31 pagesFrequently asked questions
What is the best free ESL tool for elementary school?
LearnEnglish Kids is the strongest free starting point, with games, songs, stories and printable worksheets for ages 5–12. Duolingo ABC is the best free pick for the youngest learners, and Unite for Literacy is the best free book library.
Which tool helps English learners practise speaking?
Lexia English, built around academic conversations with speech-recognition feedback. Flocabulary also helps, because singing and repeating song lyrics gives shy speakers a low-pressure way to practise new words out loud.
Can I use these tools without student accounts?
Yes, for most of them. LearnEnglish Kids, Colorín Colorado, Unite for Literacy and ISLCollective need no student account. Ellii and Lexia English work best with teacher accounts so you can assign work and see progress.
What should I use for a new arrival who speaks no English?
Start with Unite for Literacy so the child hears stories in their home language, then Duolingo ABC for letter sounds and first words, and LearnEnglish Kids Level 1 for games and songs. Add Ellii's beginner lessons when the child is ready for structured work.
Which tool is best for vocabulary?
Flocabulary, whose Word Up program teaches Tier 2 words through hip-hop songs and activities for grades K–8. LearnEnglish Kids and ISLCollective are the free backups for vocabulary games and worksheets.
Make a tool for teachers?
Built something teachers love? We keep these guides fresh, so send us a new tool, updated pricing or a featured spot request.
Request a listingDisclosure: no tool on this page paid to be included and we don't earn commissions from these links. Featured placements, if we ever offer them, will be clearly labeled "Sponsored". Details were checked on each provider's official website on November 5, 2026 and can change.