Effective Bell Ringers for ESL Classrooms: Improve Language Skills and Engagement

If you're like me and always looking for ways to make your classroom routines more effective while keeping ESL students engaged, daily bell ringers or Do Now activities might be the perfect solution. These quick, focused tasks help students build important language skills while providing a consistent routine. In this post, I’ll explain why bell ringers are so important for ESL students, how they can cover everything from vocabulary to grammar, and how they improve classroom management. By the way, if you’re looking for ready-made resources, my membership includes a variety of pre-made bell ringers to save you time!

What Are Bell Ringers and Do Now Activities?

Let me start by explaining what bell ringers and Do Now activities are. These are short, focused tasks—usually 5-10 minutes—that students complete right at the beginning of class. They serve as a transition from whatever students were doing before to focusing on the lesson. For ESL students, this is especially useful because it gives them a predictable routine and helps reinforce what they’ve been learning.

I like to use bell ringers for a variety of activities: vocabulary practice, reading comprehension, writing prompts, and grammar exercises. Having this structured start to the class helps students feel more comfortable and confident as they ease into learning English. You can find a selection of ready-to-use activities that include bell ringers specifically designed for ESL students at different proficiency levels in the ESL Teacher Membership.

Why Are Bell Ringers Important for ESL Students?

Bell ringers are one of the easiest ways to improve student engagement and success, especially in an ESL classroom. Here’s why I find them so effective:

1. Reinforcing learning: Bell ringers are perfect for reviewing key concepts from past lessons. This constant repetition helps ESL students retain information and apply what they’ve learned in new contexts.

2. Building confidence: These short, manageable tasks give students repeated practice without overwhelming them. The more they succeed, the more confident they become in their language abilities.

3. Providing quick assessments: Bell ringers are a great way to quickly assess how well students are grasping the material. If they’re struggling, I know where to focus more attention in future lessons.

Types of Bell Ringers for ESL Classrooms

The best part about bell ringers is their versatility. You can design them to meet different language goals, depending on what your students need the most practice with. Here are some of my favorite types of bell ringers for ESL students:

Vocabulary Practice Bell Ringers

For vocabulary practice, I keep things simple but effective. Here are some examples:

• Have students write a sentence using a new vocabulary word.

• Ask them to match vocabulary words with their definitions.

• Provide fill-in-the-blank exercises where they use words from previous lessons.

If you want a variety of vocabulary-focused bell ringers at your fingertips, the membership offers print and digital versions for different levels of ESL learners.

Reading Comprehension Bell Ringers

When I focus on reading comprehension, I give students a short passage with a couple of questions. I might ask them to:

• Summarize the main idea in one sentence.

• Answer questions about the text to ensure they understand key details.

• Identify new or unfamiliar vocabulary from the reading.

This builds their reading fluency and helps them become more comfortable with written English.

Writing Prompt Bell Ringers

Writing prompts are great for getting students to think creatively and practice sentence structure. Some of the prompts I use include:

• "Write about your weekend using three new vocabulary words."

• "Describe your favorite food in three sentences."

Writing prompts encourage students to put their thoughts into words, helping them develop stronger writing skills over time.

Grammar Practice Bell Ringers

Grammar can be tough for ESL students, so I use bell ringers to reinforce specific rules. Some activities include:

• Correcting sentences with common grammar mistakes.

• Filling in the blanks with appropriate verb forms.

• Practicing verb tenses like the simple past or present continuous.

This consistent grammar practice helps students understand how English works at a deeper level. Need pre-planned grammar activities? The ESL Teacher Membership includes grammar-focused bell ringers that are aligned with key ESL topics.

Figurative Language Bell Ringers

For more advanced students, I like to introduce figurative language (expressions like idioms or metaphors). Some of my go-to activities are:

• Defining an idiom and using it in a sentence.

• Identifying metaphors or similes in a short passage.

• Creating their own figurative language examples.

Figurative language is important for students to understand cultural references and add depth to their communication.

How Bell Ringers Improve Classroom Management

One of the best things about bell ringers is how they improve classroom management. Starting class with a predictable routine like a bell ringer helps students focus immediately. They know what’s expected of them as soon as they enter the room, which cuts down on wasted time and classroom disruptions.

For ESL students, having a routine at the start of class can also help reduce any anxiety they might have about learning in English. The consistency of bell ringers gives them a sense of control, helping them settle into the lesson smoothly.

How to Use Bell Ringers Effectively

If you’re ready to start using bell ringers, here are a few tips to help you make the most of them:

1. Plan ahead: Prepare a week’s worth of bell ringers in advance so they align with your lesson goals. This makes sure the activities are purposeful and relevant.

2. Stay consistent: Make bell ringers a daily routine. When students know they have a task to complete right away, it creates structure and keeps them focused from the beginning.

3. Keep it simple: Bell ringers should be quick and to the point. The goal is to warm students up for the lesson, not overwhelm them with too much information.

4. Review together: Spend a few minutes going over the bell ringer as a class. This reinforces the content and helps clear up any misunderstandings. (If you want pre-made bell ringers that cover vocabulary, grammar, and reading skills, check out the membership. It’s designed to make your prep time easier while boosting student success.)

Conclusion: How Bell Ringers Can Boost ESL Student Success

Daily bell ringers and Do Now activities are one of the simplest yet most effective tools for boosting ESL student engagement and success. Whether you're focusing on vocabulary, reading, writing, or grammar, these short tasks provide consistent practice and help students build confidence.

If you’re looking for ready-made bell ringers that are specifically designed for ESL students, I offer a membership that includes differentiated resources for all proficiency levels. These activities come in both print and digital formats, making them easy to use in any classroom setting. Check it out and see how they can make a difference in your ESL teaching!