1. Board Race
This is best played with 6 students or more - the more, the better. I’ve used it in classes ranging from 7-25. Split the class into two teams and give each team a colored marker. If you have a very large class, it may be better to split the students into teams of 3 or 4. Draw a line down the middle of the board and write a topic at the top. The students must then write as many words as you require related to the topic in the form of a relay race. Each team wins one point for each correct word. Any words that are unreadable or misspelled are not counted.
2. Simon Says
Listening comprehension; Vocabulary; Warming up/winding down class
Stand in front of the class (you are Simon for the duration of this game). Do an action and say Simon Says [action]. The students must copy what you do. Repeat this process choosing different actions - you can be as silly as you like and the sillier you are the more the children will love you for it. Then do an action but this time say only the action and omit ‘Simon Says’. Whoever does the action this time is out and must sit down. The winner is the last student standing. To make it harder, speed up the actions. Reward children for good behavior by allowing them to play the part of Simon.
3. Word Jumble Race - This game requires some planning before the lesson.
Write out a number of sentences, using different colors for each sentence. I suggest having 3-5 sentences for each team. Cut up the sentences so you have a handful of words. Put each sentence into hats, cups or any objects you can find, keeping each separate. Split your class into teams of 2, 3, or 4. You can have as many teams as you want but remember to have enough sentences to go around. Teams must now put their sentences in the correct order. The winning team is the first team to have all sentences correctly ordered.
4. Pictionary
Before the class starts, prepare a bunch of words and put them in a bag. Split the class into teams of 2 and draw a line down the middle of the board. Give one team member from each team a pen and ask them to choose a word from the bag. Tell the students to draw the word as a picture on the board and encourage their team to guess the word. The first team to shout the correct answer gets a point. The student who has completed drawing should then nominate someone else to draw for their team. Repeat this until all the words are gone - make sure you have enough words that each student gets to draw at least once!
5. The Mime
Before the class, write out some actions - like washing the dishes - and put them in a bag. Split the class into two teams. Bring one student from each team to the front of the class and one of them choose an action from the bag. Have both students mime the action to their team. The first team to shout the correct answer wins a point. Repeat this until all students have mimed at least one action.
6. Hot Seat
Split the class into 2 teams, or more if you have a large class. Elect one person from each team to sit in the Hot Seat, facing the classroom with the board behind them. Write a word on the board. One of the team members of the student in the hot seat must help the student guess the word by describing it. They have a limited amount of time and cannot say, spell or draw the word. Continue until each team member has described a word to the student in the Hot Seat.
7. Where Shall I Go?
Before the students arrive, turn your classroom into a maze by rearranging it. It's great if you can do this outside, but otherwise push tables and chairs together and move furniture to make your maze. When your students arrive, put them in pairs outside the classroom. Blindfold one student from each pair. Allow pairs to enter the classroom one at a time; the blindfolded student should be led through the maze by their partner. The students must use directions such as step over, go under, go up, and go down to lead their partner to the end of the maze.
8. What’s My Problem?
Write ailments or problems related to your most recent lesson on post-it notes and stick one post-it note on each student’s back.
The students must mingle and ask for advice from other students to solve their problem.
Students should be able to guess their problem based on the advice they get from their peers.
Use more complicated or obscure problems to make the game more interesting for older students. For lower levels and younger students, announce a category or reference a recent lesson, like "Health", to help them along.
9. What's the Question?
Form two teams. Have two players--one from each team--come to the front. Style it like a game show if you like, with the students standing side-by-side. If you have access to bells or buzzers, it's even more fun. Next, read an answer to a question and say, 'What's the question?' The fastest player to respond wins a point for her/his team. New contestants come to the front for a new round. Rationale: This game forces the students to think backwards a little, so they must provide a grammatically perfect question. All too often, they are used to answering rather than asking questions, so this is challenging and useful as review.
10. Bang Bang
Divide the group into two teams. Explain that they are cowboys and they are involved in a duel. One student from each team comes to the front. Get them to pretend to draw their pistols. Say "how do you say..." and a word in their mother tongue. The first child to give the answer and then "bang bang", pretending to shoot his opponent is the winner. He remains standing and the other one sits down. I give 1 point for the right answer and 5 extra points if they manage to "kill" 4 opponents in a row.
Editor's Note: Instead of saying the word in the students' mother tongue, it would be possible to use a picture or to say a definition ("What do you call the large gray animal with a long nose?")
11. Sentence Race
Any Level
Prepare a list of review vocabulary words.
Write each word on two small pieces of paper. That means writing the word twice, once on each paper. Organize the pieces like bundles, 2 bundles, 2 sets of identical words. Divide the class into 2 teams. get them to make creative team names. Distribute each list of words to both teams. every student on each team should have a paper. Both teams have the same words. When you call a word, 2 students should stand up, one from each team. The students must then run to the blackboard and race to write a sentence using their word. The winner is the one with a correct and clearly written sentence. This is always a hit with kids. For more advanced students, use tougher words.
12. Paper Airplane Game
Any Level
Draw a target (with points - like a dart board) on the white board or use a cardboard box in the middle of the room. Then, students make paper airplanes and launch them after they answer your question in the form of a sentence. I don't except my beginners/low intermediate students to form complete sentence so I help them to form correct sentences. To my surprise they will repeat the sentence several times (while I'm helping them) just so they can throw their airplane. For beginner and low intermediate classes, I recommend formulating questions that lead to 1 or 2 types of answers. This allows for better memorization. For example, use CAN/WILL questions and write the beginning part of the answer on the board "I can/will...".
13. The "Magic Matchbox" Game
Exponent: How many? There are� Language needed: numbers 1 to 11
Time: 10 to 15 minutes Material: 1 matchbox; 11 toothpicks per person
The students count the 11 toothpicks in his/her hand. To model the game, the teacher then puts some into the matchbox, shakes it and asks the students to guess how many are inside. The teacher explains how to play the game in the students native language if necessary. The teacher divides the class into two teams, giving each team an English name, eg. the Roosters and the Monkeys. Then the teacher write the the team names on the board for scoring during the game. Each player secretly puts no more than 11 toothpicks into his/her matchbox.
The first player from the Roosters stands up, shakes the matchbox in his/her hand. His/her team members shout together 'How many?.' The Monkeys then give the answer by replying 'There are�'. If the guess is the correct number, the Monkeys wins a point. If not, the Roosters get the point. Then switch roles. This time the Monkeys ask and the Roosters guess. The game continues until all the players get a turn. The teacher keeps a record of the points on the board. The team with the most points wins.
14. Snapshot!
Have the students slowly walk around the room until you call out a word or phrase; the students then immediately adopt a pose demonstrating the word or phrase as if they were the subject in a snapshot. Ask them to hold their pose while you walk around the room and call attention to two to three students. Give those students feedback or elicit feedback from the other students. Ask probing questions. Instruct the students to again walk around the room until the you call out the next pose.
15. Duck Duck Goose
Students sit in a circle and the teacher starts by walking round the outside of the circle tapping the students on the head saying "duck". When the teacher says "goose" the student whose head was touched must jump up and chase the teacher round the circle. The teacher must sit down in the student's spot before being tagged. If tagged, the teacher must continue tapping heads. If not, the student walks around the circle touching heads. It might be easier to use vocabulary like "cat, cat, dog" or similar, or even "duck, duck, dog" to practice awareness of 'u' vs 'o' and 'g' vs 'ck' sounds.
16. Gestures
Use western gestures in your class.
Expressions Gestures
Hello wave
Goodbye wave
It's cold put arms around shoulders
It's hot fan your face with hands
No! shake your head "no"
Come here move your index finger
Me! Touch your chest
OK make the OK sign
I don't know pull shoulders and hands up
Shhhh index finger in front of mouth
Stop hand up, palm out
Stand up raise hand slightly, palm up
Sit down lower hand slightly, palm down
