Prizes are useful tools to keep ESL classes motivated, as well as reward students for their hard work. Although candy, stickers and pencils are generally the foundation of an ESL teacher's prize arsenal, there are plenty of ways to motivate students without spending money. Reward your students' accomplishments with tangible, free prizes that will not break the bank but will encourage them to continue their studies.

Signature Sheet
Instruct your students to create a signature sheet on the inside cover of their textbook by writing their name at the top and creating 30 spaces on the page for the teacher to sign. Students can draw outlines of shapes, such as circles, stars or hearts, and the teacher will sign one when a student does something to warrant a signature, such as volunteering in the classroom or getting a perfect score. Teachers can also sign students' assignments directly when the work contains no errors or when a student finishes early.

Decision Making
As a reward, allow students to make decisions in the classroom. For example, students can be in charge of picking the next topic to study or the next ESL game to play. Students can also choose an ESL song to study.

Alternatively, allow students to choose an English movie, television show or music video to watch, as long as it is age-appropriate. This can be shown purely as a reward or use the videos to teach English phrases and sentences as they watch. Students will be more engaged since the video is something they chose personally.

Games
Games are an effective reward for ESL classes and can be used to reward a class that has done exceptionally well. Depending on the class, a game can be played during the entire class period or during the last portion of a class. Choose a game that incorporates English so students can continue learning as they play. Use hangman to study by having the class guess vocabulary words. Charades can be used to study verbs by giving a student a verb and having her act it out in front of the class.

With a little preparation, the class can play a version of Jeopardy as a reward. Create six categories with five questions each based on what the class has learned. Only the teacher should see the questions. Then, draw a Jeopardy board at the front of the classroom with monetary values that correspond to the prepared categories and questions. Groups take turns choosing categories and monetary values and the correct answers win the money for their groups. The group with the most money at the end is the winner.

Praise
Praising a class can help foster good feelings about their accomplishments and motivate the class to continue to do well. Before implementing praise in the classroom, decide which actions merit praise and which actions are expected of students. Praise students for going above and beyond what is expected in the classroom and for doing exceptional work. For example, praise the class if, overall, they score exceptionally high on an exam or comprehend a complex topic quicker than expected. Do not praise the class for actions that are expected, however, such as turning in homework or completing assignments. Praise should be reserved for when the class exceeds expectations.