Digital Wellbeing: Is a Digital Detox Realistic?

What is this lesson about?

This free advanced digital wellbeing ESL lesson plan explores the pressures of constant connectivity, persuasive design, and the ethics of digital detox. Using a thought-provoking reading text, students learn high-level vocabulary (e.g. set boundaries, digital distraction, information overload, seek balance) and practise debating whether a digital detox is realistic in today’s world.
 

How do students learn the new language?

Learners progress through a structured, discussion-first sequence:

• Warm-up with a real quote about technology.

• Challenging reading text with comprehension and critical thinking questions.

• Vocabulary matching and gap-fill tasks with digital wellbeing collocations.

• Useful debate expressions grouped by function (e.g. hedging, weighing trade-offs).

• Structured debate rounds with teacher prompts.

• Reflection and a scaffolded letter-to-the-editor task.
   

Why is this lesson useful?

By the end, students can:

• Debate digital wellbeing, detox, and responsibility with nuance.

• Use advanced debate expressions to hedge, concede, and speculate.

• Express complex opinions on technology, ethics, and lifestyle.

• Build fluency in high-level discussions relevant to real life.
   

What makes this lesson special?

This free digital wellbeing ESL lesson plan is designed for advanced, communicative practice. It combines authentic ethical dilemmas with practical debate tools, enabling learners to express abstract ideas naturally in English. Flexible for online or in-person teaching, it keeps lessons engaging and thought-provoking.
 

Who is it for?

Perfect for adult learners at C1–C2 who want to sharpen their fluency in debate, ethics, and advanced vocabulary. Suitable for teachers seeking meaningful, high-level free materials that merge wellbeing, technology, and real-world communication.

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Read our blog post about Digital Wellbeing here.