Writing New Year resolutions with your students

The New Year is always an opportunity for a fresh start. 

We set goals and make resolutions that we hope to achieve in the year ahead. 

As the holiday season approaches, it feels fitting to bring some of this festive inspiration into our lessons. 

Why not encourage your students to write their New Year’s resolutions in English?

New Year’s resolutions are goals or promises we make to ourselves to achieve or maintain in the upcoming year. 

People usually write them a few days before New Year’s Eve. 

For example, “I want to exercise regularly” or “I want to save money for a trip to Paris in July” are not only meaningful objectives but also fantastic ideas for an English lesson activity.

Certainly, everyone understands the importance of setting goals and making promises to oneself for the New Year. 

But is it important for us, as teachers, to incorporate this as an assignment in the classroom? Absolutely!

Words and expressions related to goals, habits, and plans fit perfectly into the lesson, making it both practical and engaging.

They can see how to use new words and grammatical structures to express their own goals and desires.

Moreover, such an assignment encourages creativity and inspires students to reflect on their goals and plan for the year ahead.

For New Year’s resolutions, we often use grammatical structures like “I will” or “I won’t” to express intentions for the future. 

For instance, “I will exercise every day” or “I won’t stay up late.” 

These constructions create clear and straightforward statements. 

To add formality and elevate the resolutions, phrases such as “Before this year ends, I will…” can be used.

In terms of vocabulary, students can incorporate words and expressions they have already learned in class, such as those related to education, career, or daily routines. 

Additionally, it can be helpful to introduce new vocabulary before the resolution-writing activity, allowing students to apply it immediately in practice. 

For example: prioritise my health and well-being, enhance my skill set, focus on fostering meaningful relationships, and so on.

For instance, if a student wants to read more in the coming year, they should avoid writing, “I want to read more,” and instead specify a clear target, such as: “I will read 12 books.” 

This makes the goal more concrete and measurable. 

The student could then break it down by month, such as “one book per month.” 

This approach ensures the goal is more attainable and clearly defined, making it easier to track and achieve.

First of all, to set effective New Year’s resolutions, follow these steps:

Examples of resolutions:

If you aim to improve your skills in a specific area, such as learning English, you could set goals like:

For students finishing school and preparing for university entrance exams, more detailed resolutions may be required, depending on the subjects they need to focus on. 

For example:

These resolutions can help you organise your studies effectively and achieve significant progress in your chosen field. 

Remember, every small step brings you closer to achieving your big goals!