Feb 7

How to Smash Your First CELTA Teaching Practice (Even If You’re Terrified)

celta tips
Nervous About TP1? Watch This Before Your First CELTA Lesson...
Your first TP can feel huge. Your heart’s racing. Your hands are shaking. You’re convinced everyone else knows what they’re doing.

Here’s the truth: at the beginning of CELTA, the bar isn’t perfection - it’s participation!

In this video, I explain:
  • Why it’s genuinely difficult to fail TP1
  • What tutors are really looking for at this stage
  • The few things that actually matter in your first lesson
  • How to manage nerves and project confidence.

Video transcript

Your first Teaching practice. It’s here. You’re nervous. And that’s completely normal.

But let me tell you a secret that might just change how you feel about it…
It’s quite difficult to fail TP1. It can happen but it’s very rare.

Unless you fall in a weeping heap on the floor and refuse to teach...you’re going to pass this lesson.

Every lesson in CELTA is graded ‘To standard’ or ‘Not to standard’ FOR THIS STAGE IN THE COURSE’. So, at this stage of the course, right at the beginning, the bar isn’t perfection. It’s participation.

By the end of the course, there are a lot of criteria to fulfil. The goalposts of what’s expected of you keep moving forward as you go through. But at the beginning, you’ve only just started and your tutor knows that.

You won’t be thrown in the deep end without a paddle either. You’ll get your teaching points beforehand and these aren’t vague suggestions. They’re detailed, structured and your tutor will talk you through them before the lesson.
It’s painting by numbers at this stage.

And if something’s unclear, ask!
Seriously. No one expects you to mind-read.
Questions show that you’re engaging with the process. They’re not a sign of weakness.

Here’s what does matter for your first TP:

  • Know what you’re teaching.
Practice your instructions out loud. Trust me, it helps.
  • What else? Smile. Make eye contact. Build a bit of rapport with your learners.

  • Try not to talk too much and get your learners doing something.
  • Act confident, even if you don’t feel it.
That old ‘fake it till you make it’ bit? It works.
Stand tall. Breathe. Speak clearly.
Half the battle is simply looking like you belong there.


Finally, try to enjoy it.
Yes, really. Teaching can be a joy, such a joy and your first TP is a glimpse of what’s to come.


You’re here to learn, not to be perfect.
So breathe, smile and just start!

If you want more CELTA support, check out my website and if you’re currently thinking about starting a CELTA course, my preparation materials will help you hit the ground running, take (some of) the stress out of the course and help you achieve the best result you can.

Thousands of CELTA trainees have used my material and it’s trusted and recommended by centres all over the world.

There’s lifetime access to the material. You can take it at your own pace and I’m always available to answer questions. Check out the full CELTA Preparation Package at ELT-Training.com and take the stress out of starting CELTA.

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