In July 2025, the UK announced a major change to its election laws: 16- and 17-year-olds will soon get the right to vote in all UK elections. This reform will add around 1.5 million new young voters to the electorate and is being called a “seismic change” in the UK’s democratic system.
For ESL teachers, this news is a perfect opportunity to bring real-world topics into the classroom and help students practice political vocabulary, improve reading comprehension, and develop speaking fluency on global issues.
In this lesson plan, students will learn about the UK’s voting age reform, discuss democracy and elections, and express their opinions on civic topics, all while practising English at a comfortable B1 level.
Includes:
- Vocabulary activities + warm-up discussion
- Reading with a gap fill exercise
- True or false comprehension activity
- Discussion questions
- Answer key
- Vocabulary list
Happy teaching & learning!
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