English References
English as a Second Language (ESL) reference guides contributed by the Parlora community across grammar, vocabulary, conversation and more.
Fluency Blueprint: 2-Hour Weekly English Mastery Strategy
A comprehensive study guide designed to maximize English fluency in two hours per week across CEFR levels A2, B1, and C1, with an emphasis on active spoken output.
Character Arc & Hero's Journey Storyteller's Reference Guide
A side-by-side creative writing worksheet mapping character arc stages against the classic Hero's Journey story structure with prompt sentence starters.
Contrasting Character Arc and the Hero's Journey
A comparative breakdown illustrating the differences in focus, scope, and elements between an internal character arc and the mythic structure of the Hero's Journey.
Character Arc vs. Hero's Journey Comparison Chart
A comparative guide mapping the stages of internal character development alongside the classic Hero's Journey narrative framework, highlighting the core focus of each phase.
Character Arc Quick Reference Guide
A visual storytelling and creative writing guide outlining six essential stages of a character arc, detailing the emotional purpose and narrative tone for each phase.
The Hero's Journey Narrative Arc Overview
A visual diagram mapping the three acts and twelve stages of the Hero's Journey narrative structure, adapted from Joseph Campbell's 'The Hero with a Thousand Faces'.
Idiom Touch Base
An illustrated lesson on the English idiom Touch Base, with particular focus on its use in professional settings. – Includes a few brief exercises for you to practice.
Idiom Think Outside the Box
An illustrated examination of the idiom Think Outside the Box, especially its use in workplace environments. – Includes a few brief exercises for you to practice.
Idiom Raise the Bar
An illustrated exploration of the idiom Raise the Bar, with particular focus on how it is used in professional English – Includes a few brief exercises for you to practice.
Idiom On the Same Page
Explore how the idiom On the Same Page is commonly used in professional English – Includes a few brief exercises for you to practice.
Idiom Learn the Ropes
Learn how the idiom Learn the Ropes is used in professional English – Includes a few brief exercises for you to practice.
Idiom In the Loop
Learn when to use the idiom In the Loop, and explore how it functions in professional English – Includes a few brief exercises for you to practice.
Idiom Hit the Ground Running
Learn how the idiom Hit the Ground Running is used in daily English, especially in the workplace – Includes a few brief exercises for you to practice.
Idiom Get the Ball Rolling
Learn the uses of the English idiom Get the Ball Rolling – Includes a few brief exercises for you to practice.
Idiom Go the Extra Mile
Explore the best use of the English idiom Go the Extra Mile – Includes a few brief exercises for you to practice.
English Prepositions and Chinese Localizers: Understanding Linguistic Logic Systems
This document explores the fundamental differences and underlying logic behind English prepositions and Chinese localizers, demonstrating how each language conceptualizes and expresses relationships in space, time, hierarchy, and emotion. It aims to help learners move beyond memorization by visualizing these linguistic systems and thinking naturally in both languages.
Opening a U.S. Bank Account on a Work Visa
This guide outlines the essential requirements, necessary documentation for traditional U.S. banks, and modern digital alternatives for professionals opening a U.S. bank account on a work visa.
Everyday English Flow: Textbook vs. Real American English
This document highlights common formal English phrases taught in textbooks and provides more natural, everyday alternatives used in American English, explaining why the textbook phrases are less common.
The High-Impact Presentation Closing Checklist
This document provides a guide for effectively wrapping up business presentations, offering three action-driving closing phrases and a final sequence checklist to ensure a strong impression and drive action.
The Workplace Small Talk Blueprint
This document provides a blueprint for mastering small talk in the workplace, offering techniques and example conversations to build professional relationships and enhance career growth.
The First 30 Seconds Checklist: 5 Presentation Openers
This guide provides five 'power openers' for English-language presentations in a corporate environment, designed to establish authority and engage the audience from the outset. It includes phrases, explanations of why they work, and example templates for each opener.
The Tech Business English Blueprint: A Communication Framework for ESL IT Professionals
This guide provides an action-oriented framework for ESL IT professionals, including developers, QA engineers, and product managers, to improve communication clarity in global business environments. It covers key technical contexts and offers sentence stems and dialogue examples for various workplace scenarios.
Small Talk at the Office - Part 2: The Fluency Blueprint:
This document provides strategies and example phrases for navigating casual social interactions in the workplace, such as office lunches and after-work drinks. It covers joining groups, breaking the ice, safe conversation topics, and gracefully exiting social settings.
Small Talk in the Office: Part 1 - The Fluency Blueprint
This guide provides practical strategies and phrases for navigating small talk in an American corporate setting, emphasizing its role in building trust and networking. It covers common scenarios like Monday morning check-ins, breakroom conversations, virtual meeting icebreakers, and graceful exits.
American Job Interview Culture: A Comprehensive Navigation Guide
This guide helps international professionals and ESL learners understand the cultural nuances and expectations of job interviews in the United States, providing strategies for effective communication and common pitfalls to avoid.
Common English Pronunciation Issues for ESL Speakers
This document outlines common pronunciation challenges faced by English as a Second Language (ESL) speakers from various language backgrounds, including Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, Arabic, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Portuguese, Italian, Hindi, Vietnamese, Turkish, Thai, and Indonesian. It highlights specific areas of difficulty such as vowel sounds, consonant clusters, 'th' sounds, stress, and intonation patterns.
Grammar Guide: 40 Simple Lessons with Exercises to Master English Grammar
Are you learning English but still find grammar confusing or boring? This book makes it clear, practical, and fun. The ESL Speaking Corner Grammar Guide gives you 40 easy-to-follow lessons covering everything from present tenses and conditionals to modals, articles, and more — all explained in simple English that’s perfect for self-study or classroom use. Each lesson includes: ✅ A short, easy explanation with real examples ✅ Fill-in-the-blank, multiple-choice, and mini-dialogue exercises ✅ Answer key right after every unit ✅ Clean workbook layout with space to write your answers You’ll learn how to: Build natural, correct English sentences Use tenses and conditionals like a native speaker Master common grammar points that confuse ESL learners Speak and write with confidence in everyday life and work ✨ Perfect For Intermediate ESL learners (B1–B2 level) English teachers looking for ready-made grammar lessons Self-learners who want a simple, visual grammar workbook 📗 Format: Printable PDF (8.5” × 11”) 📄 Pages: 184 🎓 Created by: Teacher Lisa
ESL Job Interview Answer Planner
This planner helps ESL learners prepare for job interviews in English by outlining common questions, providing example answers, and offering space to draft their own responses. It focuses on building confidence and using simple, clear language.
Parlora IELTS Examiner Guide — General Training
A free Parlora guide to the IELTS General Training test: format, scoring criteria, and what examiners look for in Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking.
Parlora IELTS Examiner Guide — Academic
A free Parlora guide to the IELTS Academic test: format, scoring criteria, and what examiners look for in Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking.
English Verb Tenses: The Complete Guide
This student guide covers all 12 English verb tenses with timelines, rules, and practice exercises, suitable for learners from A1 to B2 level. It aims to clarify common confusions and help students use tenses accurately.
Present Simple vs. Continuous: A Student's Guide
This guide covers the fundamental differences between the Present Simple and Present Continuous tenses in English, focusing on habits versus actions happening now. It provides detailed explanations, practice exercises, and common mistake corrections for beginner to lower-intermediate learners.
Present Perfect vs. Past Simple: The Biggest Tense Decision in English
This student guide clarifies the distinction between the English present perfect and past simple tenses, offering a 'thread to now' test and specific time markers to help learners choose the correct tense accurately every time.
Past Tenses Trio: A Student Guide to English Past Tenses
This guide simplifies the use of past simple, past continuous, and past perfect tenses in English storytelling, explaining their interplay with a 'story layer' diagram and providing practice exercises for A2-B2 learners.
Irregular Verbs: Top 100 Grouped by Pattern
This guide provides a structured approach to learning the 100 most useful English irregular verbs, grouping them by phonetic and spelling patterns for easier memorization. It includes pronunciation guidance and real-sentence practice.
Future Forms: A Student's Guide to Talking About the Future
This guide simplifies the use of English future forms by introducing a 'certainty spectrum' to help learners choose the correct form for various situations, from spontaneous decisions to fixed arrangements. It covers 'will', 'going to', present continuous, present simple, future continuous, and future perfect tenses.
Conditionals: A Student's Guide (B1 → B2 Level)
This guide covers all five types of conditionals (zero, first, second, third, and mixed) in English, explaining their usage based on a 'reality scale' and common variations. It includes practice exercises and a mini-mock test to help students master conditional sentences.
ISA Sample Responses - Writing
This document provides sample responses for two types of writing tasks (Narrative/Reflective and Exposition/Argument) from the International Schools' Assessment (ISA), illustrating different proficiency levels and the criteria used for evaluation.
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