The Zero Prep Series
Elevate your instruction with our best-selling books, featuring ready-to-go activities for in-person and remote language teaching!
Created by: Michal Marell, Natalie Hess, Jan Herron, and Laurel Pollard
About the Books
Supercharge your language teaching and say goodbye to endless planning with the ultimate Zero Prep Series! Featuring two incredible, best-selling volumes—Zero Prep: Activities for All Levels and Zero Prep: Activities for Beginners—this powerhouse duo is an absolute must-have for busy educators who want to instantly maximize classroom energy while completely slashing their prep time!
These expanded second editions of our beloved classics are bursting with engaging, ready-to-use activities that seamlessly build all four critical language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing, all while reinforcing essential vocabulary and grammar. Designed for teachers of any language, this dynamic series ensures you are completely equipped no matter who is sitting in your classroom. Whether you need highly scaffolded, confidence-boosting tasks specially tailored for your absolute beginners or wildly adaptable exercises to challenge a diverse, mixed-level group, you will find exactly what you need right at your fingertips!
Every single activity is brilliantly organized to make your life infinitely easier. With clearly defined levels, targeted aims, minimal material lists, and simple step-by-step procedures, these activities are completely effortless to implement immediately—whether you are teaching face-to-face or navigating a remote virtual environment! These thrilling new editions feature fully updated instructions and brilliant tech-friendly adaptations for seamless online teaching, plus an entirely dedicated section packed with fun icebreakers and community-building games designed to get your students talking and connecting from day one.
Whether you are searching for a full, highly interactive lesson plan to anchor your day, a high-energy warm-up to wake up a sleepy morning class, or a quick, spontaneous practice session to fill those last five minutes of the period, the Zero Prep books are your ultimate secret weapon. They empower you to consistently deliver dynamic, student-centered learning experiences that your classes will absolutely love—without ever spending hours chained to your desk planning!
Videos from the series creator, Laurel Pollard!
1. Introduction to the Zero Prep Series:
Discover the origin story and core philosophy behind the Zero Prep books, learning how a strict three-tier filtering process can help you reclaim your time and embrace a sustainable, high-impact teaching approach.
2. Teach Better and Enjoy it more!
Discover three simple, stress-free habits—like focusing on one change at a time and using one-minute exit tickets—to continuously grow as an educator without burning out.
Learn a dynamic, student-centered reading and speaking routine that gets every learner fully engaged in collaborative pairs with virtually zero teacher preparation.
Tap into your students’ cognitive depth with a lively, low-prep comprehension game that uses quick pair-and-share mechanics to check understanding and spark critical thinking.
Boost speaking fluency and classroom engagement with a high-energy visual memory game that encourages productive student collaboration while giving you a well-deserved breather.
Unlock the power of visual learning and imaginative storytelling by using a simple “picture file” to activate multiple intelligences and let learners take the lead.
7. Highlights of My Life Activity
Build a safe, supportive classroom community with a low-prep icebreaker where students share personal stories through chronological sketches and specific captions.
Save time and build student self-reliance with the brilliant “Ask Three Before Me” strategy, encouraging learners to seek help from their peers before relying on the teacher.
Transform ordinary group work into a highly collaborative learning experience by establishing clear parameters, time limits, and assigned student roles to boost accountability.
Master the Progressive Cloze technique, a powerful, multi-stage scaffolding method that turns classic fill-in-the-blank exercises into massive confidence boosters for language learners.
11. Think Time
Improve student responses and lower classroom anxiety by extending your wait time and using low-prep strategies like the “Silent Count” to give learners the mental breathing room they truly need.
12. The Whole World Is My Classroom
Empower your students to turn everyday community interactions into rich language practice by brainstorming and selecting real-world learning strategies to try outside of class.
Combat the chronic stress of modern teaching by guiding yourself and your students through the “Two-Minute Vacation,” a restorative mental exercise utilizing deep breathing and sensory imagination.
14. Resetting Student Expectations
Shatter passive learning mindsets on the very first day of class with a bold, memorable exercise that empowers students to take active ownership of their language education.
15. Beating Burnout
Discover a powerful perspective shift on managing the overwork-stress cycle by prioritizing physical stress reduction first, allowing your mind to clear and your creativity to return.
Eliminate disruptive classroom volume during group work with “Elephant Ears,” an easy physical posture trick that helps students hear themselves clearly while speaking in hushed tones.
Features
- Over 160 pages of activities organized by skill: Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing, Vocabulary, and Structure
- Special section of icebreakers and warm-ups for classroom community-building
- Step-by-step instructions with level, aim, materials, and procedures clearly outlined
- Adaptations for both in-person and online/remote teaching
- Suitable for all levels and any language classroom
- Promotes active learning, pair/group interaction, and spontaneous communication
- Ideal for new and experienced teachers seeking quick, engaging lesson ideas
Sample Materials
ISBN
- 9780866475785 (All Levels)
- 9780866475822 (Beginners)
