A selection of English ESL desert printables

Reading comprehension. Topic- Food Deserts: what are they and why do they exist? Ideal for more advanced students (B2 to C2 level). Two vocabulary tasks plus additional questions

What are the Food Deserts?

This is an oral activity where your students discuss what items they need in order to survive after a plane crash in the desert.

Problem solving #1 - The Desert Dilemma

This reading comprehension gives beginners some reading practice. They first have to read the passage, then complete all the activities that follow. I hope you find it useful.

Reading Comprehension: Stuck in the Desert 

This text is suitable for elementary to pre-intermediate level. The students have to read the text and answer the questions.If you need more easy readings, you can find them here:

https://en.islcollective.com/mypage/my-creations?search_key=easy+readings&type=printables&option=published&id=5163&grammar=&vocabulary=&materials=&levels=&studentTypes=&skills=&languageExams=&dialect=&functions=&page=1&sorting_type=most_newest&filter_type=filter_all&view_type=list&view_length=12



Easy reading - Stuck in the desert

Flashcards to practice animal vocabulary. You can use them in many ways. Instructions for the teachers are inclided.

I If you want other flashcard sets, you can find them here:

https://en.islcollective.com/mypage/my-creations?search_key=flashcards&type=printables&option=published&id=5163&grammar=&vocabulary=&materials=&levels=&studentTypes=&skills=&languageExams=&dialect=&functions=&page=1&sorting_type=most_newest&filter_type=filter_all&view_type=list&view_length=12



Flaschcards - animals - desert, mountain and sea

This speaking-based worksheet focuses on a classic survival ranking activity set in a desert plane-crash scenario. Students imagine they have survived a crash in a hot desert and must decide which of 15 available items are most important for survival while waiting for rescue. The task encourages learners to rank items individually and then negotiate their choices in pairs or small groups, using justification and comparison rather than guessing. The worksheet includes a full item list with Czech translations to support lower-level learners, along with clear sentence starters that scaffold discussion and help students express opinions, agreement, disagreement, and conditional thinking. After the discussion phase, students compare their decisions with an expert survival ranking based on real desert survival logic, leading to reflection on common misconceptions such as overvaluing navigation tools or food. The activity naturally practices comparatives, conditionals, modal verbs, and functional speaking language, making it suitable for A2–B1 learners, older teens, and adults. It works particularly well as a high-engagement speaking lesson, a problem-solving task, or a soft skills activity focused on communication and decision-making. The scenario is adaptable to different class sizes and can be used as a standalone speaking lesson or as part of a wider unit on survival, travel, or real-world problem solving.

Lost in the desert survival: Speaking

The document uploaded is an reading text that gives interesting facts about the amazing creature living in hottest places in the world , desert.It has been tried to be in harmony with the subject and the picture. 

It is prepared by Ms. P. salahshour from the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Camel, The Big and Awkward Desert Animals

Students imagine that they're stranded on a desert island. What things do they think they would need? What would they do to survive? They make a list of five things they can take with them and describe how they would survive on a desert island. 

This is a fun exercise where kids can let their imagination run wild and can easily be enjoyed at home. 

This worksheet was created by www.primaryleap.co.uk 

Creative Writing - Stranded on a Deserted Island

students have to locate and label the deserts of the world on the map

Label Map of Deserts of the world

The students have to find the correct word for the pictures. The answers are on the second page. It can be used as a classroom poster or you can give it to the students so that they can form a picture dictionary

If you want to find more picture dicionaries, they are here:

https://en.islcollective.com/mypage/my-creations?search_key=picture+dictionary&type=printables&option=published&id=5163&grammar=&vocabulary=&materials=&levels=&studentTypes=&skills=&languageExams=&dialect=&functions=&page=1&sorting_type=most_newest&filter_type=filter_all&view_type=list&view_length=12



Picture dictionary - Desert, Mountain and Sea Animals

First, students have to tell the story of the little guy using all the words on the right side of the worksheet. Next, they have to add some more details to the story based on the 10 questions provided. Finally, students add to the story some of the “story phrases” at the bottom. Page 2 suggests follow-up tasks. Page 3 features my sample stories (1 short+1 long version). This story telling task could be used for almost all levels. Students on more advanced levels simply add more elaboration and a broader range of vocabulary to the story. Bless up, Kisdobos 

Desert Island Story -Storytelling Basd on Picture Prompt

Fun activity to practise the second conditional and improve the students imagination. The objective is to fix the structure of the 2nd conditional. 

I divided the class into different groups and gave them 20 minutes to choose the items and to find arguments to defend their choice. Then they stood up and explained their choice. 



Hope you enjoy it!!!

If I were stranded on a desert island...

Culture, intercultural communication, cross-cultural communication

Adjectives to describe feelings, emotions

Adjectives to describe personality and character

Adjectives: Gradable / Non-gradable adjectives

Articles: Definite or indefinite article (a, an or the)

BE + infinitive structures (e.g. he was to become famous)

Clauses of contrast (e.g.  although, while)

Clauses of purpose (e.g. in order to, so that, so as to)

Clauses of reason (e.g. because, because of, due to, as, since)

Cleft sentences (e.g. It's Joey we're looking for)

Comparison: Comparative adjectives and structures

Comparison: Superlative adjectives and structures

Conditional 2 (second conditional) - would

Conditionals: Conditional phrases (e.g. unless, provided that, as long as)

Conjunctions (aka connectives, e.g. and, but, or, so, then)

Contractions (shortened forms, e.g. don't, aren't, etc.)

Determiners (words that can come before nouns)

Formal and informal English (politeness or colloquial language)

Future perfect continuous (progressive) tense

Future perfect simple and continuous (progressive) tense

Future phrases (e.g. be about to, bound to, likely to, due to, set to + INF)

Homonyms (two words with the same pronunciation - homophones and homographs)

It as preparatory subject (e.g. it's raining, it's nice of you to)

Linking verbs (aka copulas, e.g. I am a student)

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how to accuse somebody of something in English

how to apologize, say sorry, forgive and express regret in English

how to ask for information and make inquiries in English

how to ask for something, make requests in English

how to blame somebody for something in English

how to defend yourself from criticism in English

how to deny or admit something in English

how to describe things or people in English

how to emphasize important things in English

how to encourage or discourage people in English

how to evaluate people or progress in English

how to express agreement /disagreement in English

how to express approval and disapproval  in English

how to express cause and effect in English

how to express interest in something in English

how to express likelihood, probability in English

how to express likes and dislikes in English

how to express sequence and chronology in English

how to express shock and disbelief in English

how to express sympathy and condolences in English

how to give permission, authorization in English

how to inform somebody about some news in English

how to interpret what was said in English

how to keep a conversation going in English

how to make guesses about something in English

how to make, accept and refuse offers in English

how to order or make a booking in English

how to persuade, convince people in English

how to praise people and express appreciation in English

how to reassure somebody of something in English

how to refuse and object to something in English

how to remind people of something in English

how to rephrase, paraphrase what was said in English

how to say thank you, express gratitude in English

Nouns: Collective nouns (team, class, family, committee)

Nouns: Proper nouns (names of people, cities, companies)

Oxymorons (phrases with words of contradictory meaning, e.g. living dead)

Participles: Past participle (e.g. HAVING DONE)

Participles: Present participle (e.g. DOING)

Parts of Speech (aka word classes, e.g. nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs)

Past perfect continuous (progressive) tense

Phonetics (pronunciation, IPA, phonetic symbols)

Plural nouns: regular plurals with S ending

Prefixes (e.g. A, UN, IM, DIS, MIS, EN, etc. )

Prepositions vs adverbs (e.g. before me, saw him before.)

Prepositions: Double prepositions (e.g. out of)

Prepositions: Participle prepositions (e.g. pending, concerning)

Prepositions: Phrase prepositions (e.g. by means of)

Present perfect continuous (progressive) tense

Present perfect simple or present continuous tense

Present simple tense: S for third person singular verbs

Present simple vs continuous (progressive) tense

Pronouns: EACH OTHER, ONE ANOTHER (reciprocal pronouns)

Pronouns: Possessive pronouns (e.g. my, mine)

Pronouns: Reflexive pronouns (e.g. myself, yourself))

Pronouns: SOMEBODY, ANYBODY, EVERYBODY, NO ONE, NOTHING, etc.

Pronouns: THIS, THAT, THESE, THOSE (demonstratives)

Pronouns: YOU and THEY to talk about people in general

Quantifiers (e.g. some, many, much, any, few, little)

Questions: WH questions (open-ended questions)

Reported speech: reported questions (indirect questions)

There is / there are / there was / there were / there will be, etc.

Verbs: Transitive or intransitive verbs (words that can or cannot stand with objects)

Working with Paragraphs: ordering, titling

Role play, miming, drama activity or improv game

Pictionary (picture dictionary) or picture matching

Writing an opinion essay (persuasive essay)

Learners who are Pre-A1 have just begun learning English and will first learn how to:<ul><li>Say the letters in the alphabet and numbers</li><li>Say hello, talk about names and age</li><li>Name the colors and dates, express likes and dislikes</li></ul>

Absolute beginners who have begun to learn the letters and numbers

Learners taking the A1 Elementary exam should be able to:<ul><li>Introduce themselves and ask and answer questions about personal details such as where he/she lives, things he/she has, people he/she knows.</li><li>Communicate using very basic phrases as long as the other person talks slowly and clearly and is prepared to help.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: common adjectives & adverbs of frequency, going to, how much/how many, imperatives, I'd like, 's – possessive, common prepositions of place and time, present simple & continuous, there is/are</li></ul>

A very basic tourist level, which is enough for buying food and a bus ticket

Learners taking the A2 Pre-intermediate exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand sentences and frequently used expressions (e.g. very basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment).</li><li>Complete tasks that are routine and exchange information about familiar matters.</li><li>Describe matters of immediate need in simple terms.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: countable/uncountable nouns, adverbs of frequency, future will/going to, much/many, present perfect, past simple, past continuous, common phrasal verbs, common modals: can/should</li></ul>

A tourist who can do basic conversations about the past, present and future

Learners taking the B1 Intermediate exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand points regarding family, work, school or leisure-related topics.</li><li>Deal with most travel situations in areas where the language is spoken.</li><li>Create simple texts on topics of personal interest.</li><li>Describe experiences, events, dreams, and ambitions, as well as opinions or plans in brief.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: question tags, intensifiers: too/enough, future tenses, past tenses, modals, conditionals, wh-questions in the past</li></ul>

Learners who can deal with both familiar and routine situations, in friendly and work contexts

Learners taking the B2 Upper-intermediate exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in his/her field of specialization.</li><li>Interact with fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without difficulty for either party.</li><li>Produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain an opinion on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: perfect tenses, mixed conditionals, modals in the present, phrasal verbs, reported speech, wish, relative clauses</li></ul>

The level where you can be a tour guide for your foreign friends and talk about a lot of topics, even abstract ones, with ease and fluency

Learners taking the C1 Advanced exam should be able to: Express ideas fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions. Use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes. Understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts. Produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, using linking phrases (=words that connect ideas between sentences). Main grammar points to know: inversion, mixed conditionals, modals in the past, all passive forms, phrasal verbs (all patterns), wish/if only for regrets

Learners who can smoothly communicate in every walk of life, read long texts and write well

Learners taking the C2 Proficient exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand almost everything read or heard with ease.</li><li>Summarize information from a variety of sources into a coherent presentation.</li><li>Express themselves using precise meaning in complex scenarios.</li><li>Can express him/herself spontaneously, very fluently and precisely, differentiating finer shades of meaning even in the most complex situations</li></ul>

Get here and you are ready to study in English at university

56 Desert English ESL worksheets pdf & doc