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Teaching curriculum

C2 English — Proficiency

A unit-by-unit teaching sequence with classroom-ready lessons — can-do objectives, target language and tasks — for ESL, EFL and TEFL teachers.

General English — C2

General English

Proficiency (C2) General English: eight units taking learners to mastery - precise word choice, nuance and subtext, register and style, concision, figurative language, rhetoric and synthesis, and a C2 exit review.

Published Oct 6, 2026Updated Oct 6, 2026

Unit 1: The Right Word

precision, meaning and word choice
  1. 1.Shades of Meaningspoken production50 min
  2. 2.The Company Words Keepspoken production50 min
  3. 3.Almost but Not Quitespoken interaction50 min
  4. 4.The Right Word: Review & Communicationspoken interaction50 min

Unit 2: Between the Lines

implication, nuance and subtext
  1. 1.What's Not Saidspoken production50 min
  2. 2.The Art of Understatementspoken production50 min
  3. 3.Agreeing to Disagreespoken interaction50 min
  4. 4.Between the Lines: Review & Communicationspoken interaction50 min

Unit 3: A Matter of Style

register, tone and stylistic range
  1. 1.High and Lowspoken production50 min
  2. 2.Setting the Tonespoken production50 min
  3. 3.Same Message, Different Clothesspoken interaction50 min
  4. 4.A Matter of Style: Review & Communicationspoken interaction50 min

Unit 4: Saying More with Less

concision and elegance
  1. 1.Cut the Paddingspoken production50 min
  2. 2.Leaving It Outspoken production50 min
  3. 3.Elegant and Economicalspoken interaction50 min
  4. 4.Saying More with Less: Review & Communicationspoken interaction50 min

Unit 5: Figuratively Speaking

idiom, metaphor and figurative language
  1. 1.Off the Beaten Trackspoken production50 min
  2. 2.A Sea of Troublesspoken production50 min
  3. 3.Street Smartspoken interaction50 min
  4. 4.Figuratively Speaking: Review & Communicationspoken interaction55 min

Unit 6: The Art of Persuasion

rhetoric and persuasion
  1. 1.Three Is the Magic Numberspoken production50 min
  2. 2.The Power of the Questionspoken production50 min
  3. 3.Building the Casespoken interaction50 min
  4. 4.The Art of Persuasion: Review & Communicationspoken interaction55 min

Unit 7: Grasping the Whole

synthesis, abstraction and summary
  1. 1.The Gist and the Detailspoken production50 min
  2. 2.Weaving It Togetherspoken production50 min
  3. 3.From Concrete to Abstractspoken interaction50 min
  4. 4.Grasping the Whole: Review & Communicationspoken interaction55 min

Unit 8: C2 Review & Communication

consolidating C2 and communicating with full control
  1. 1.Precision and Nuancespoken production50 min
  2. 2.Style and Registerspoken production50 min
  3. 3.Persuading and Synthesisingspoken interaction50 min
  4. 4.C2 Review & Communicationspoken interaction60 min

Teaching resources for C2

worksheet

Precise Collocation: C2 Worksheet

A classroom-ready C2 worksheet on natural collocation - delexical verbs, intensifier pairings, adjective+noun and set ph

activity

The Right Word: C2 Text-Upgrade Activity

A C2 activity: learners upgrade a flatly-worded text for connotation, collocation and near-synonym precision, justifying

assessment resource

C2 Unit 1 The Right Word: Progress Check

A short end-of-unit progress check for C2 Unit 1: vocabulary precision (connotation, collocation, near-synonyms), a shor

article

The Right Word: C2 Student Study Guide

A self-study guide for C2 learners: choose words for precise connotation, use natural collocations, and distinguish near

worksheet

Implication & Understatement: C2 Worksheet

A classroom-ready C2 worksheet on inferring implied meaning and using understatement, litotes and overstatement, with a

worksheet

Diplomatic Disagreement: C2 Worksheet

A classroom-ready C2 worksheet on disagreeing diplomatically - concede, hedge, soften, invite - and reading tone, with a

activity

Reading Between the Lines: C2 Interpret & Respond Activity

A C2 speaking activity: learners interpret the subtext of delicate messages and respond diplomatically, using inference,

assessment resource

C2 Unit 2 Between the Lines: Progress Check

A short end-of-unit progress check for C2 Unit 2: implication/inference, understatement, diplomatic disagreement, a shor

article

Between the Lines: C2 Student Study Guide

A self-study guide for C2 learners: infer implied meaning, use understatement and overstatement, and disagree diplomatic

worksheet

Register & Formality: C2 Worksheet

A classroom-ready C2 worksheet on identifying register from its markers and recasting a message up and down the formalit

worksheet

Tone & Recasting: C2 Worksheet

A classroom-ready C2 worksheet on controlling tone (warm/cool, authoritative/tentative) and recasting one message across

worksheet

Connotation & Near-Synonyms: C2 Worksheet

A classroom-ready C2 worksheet on connotation vs denotation and distinguishing near-synonyms by slant, degree, shade and