When we think of summer lessons, travel, holidays, and hot weather are often the first things that come to mind. These are all useful and engaging topics, and they definitely deserve a spot in your summer syllabus. But what if you’re tired of teaching the same lessons every year?

If you’re ready to shake things up, here are seven versatile topics that work brilliantly for summer and offer plenty of scope for meaningful language practice.

1. Sports

Summer is full of major sporting events - football tournaments, Wimbledon, and more. If your students are even slightly interested in sport, it’s a fantastic opportunity to dive into this theme. You can explore vocabulary for different sports, practise describing games and results, and even debate sporting controversies.

Check out our Sports Pack for ready-to-use lessons and materials.

2. Money

Summer often comes with extra spending - holidays, festivals, days out, so why not make it the focus of a lesson? There’s so much you can do with the topic of money, such as:

• tips for saving money on holiday
  
• spending wisely while travelling
  
• talking to children about money
  
• planning a holiday on a budget
  
  

3. Health

Health problems are common when travelling - sunburn, colds, stomach bugs, jet lag—making this a practical and relevant summer topic. You could cover symptoms, remedies, and prevention strategies, or use role-plays to practise visiting a doctor or asking for help in a pharmacy.

This topic blends functional language with real-life scenarios, perfect for summer.

4. Environment

Let’s be honest, the environment isn’t always the most exciting topic to teach. But summer offers a new angle. Try focusing on:

• the environmental impact of tourism
  
• how to be an eco-conscious traveller
  
• reducing waste during summer holidays
  
  

It’s a great way to make the topic more relatable and timely.

Need support? Our Environment Pack includes ready-made lessons and teaching ideas.

5. Happiness

Summer often brings with it a sense of joy and freedom, so why not build a lesson around happiness? This topic offers opportunities for:

• Vocabulary building (e.g. idioms and collocations)
  
• Grammar (e.g. conditionals: I’d be happy if...)
  
• Thoughtful discussions about what happiness means to your students
  
  

It’s a light but meaningful theme that works well at any level.

6. Food

Food is always a hit in the classroom, and in summer it gets a seasonal twist. You could create lessons around:

• light and easy summer recipes
  
• refreshing drinks
  
• picnic food and outdoor meals
  
• how to adapt traditional dishes for hot weather
  
  

It’s also a great excuse to get students talking about their own favourites.

7. Work & productivity

For many people, work slows down in summer, or they use the season to reset and refocus. This makes it a great time to talk about:

• setting personal or professional goals

• managing your time better

• changes in workplace routines during summer

• improving your work-life balance

It’s a practical and thought-provoking topic, especially for adult learners.

 

Ready to try something new this summer?

We hope these ideas help you refresh your lesson planning and bring something a little different to your summer teaching.

☀️ Looking for more inspiration and ready-made materials?

Explore our Convo Lessons series for practical, conversation-based resources you can use right away.