One-to-one Methodology: Ten activities

By Nicola Meldrum and Lindsay Clandfield

Type: Teaching notes
Print
Email
Share
Comments (3)
Rate

Ten activities for teaching one-to-one classes

1. Guess the news story
Collect a weeks worth of newspapers (in any language) and cut out pictures of news stories from each one.
Aim for a selection of five or six topical news pictures from that week. Then take an A4 or letter size sheet of
heavy paper (or card). Cut a small square out of the middle of this card. When you come to class, place a
picture from the news under the card so that only some of the picture is visible. The student must 1) speculate
about what the picture is about, and 2) tell you as much as they know about the news story.

2. Written conversation or role play

Conduct a conversation but only in written form. Take a piece of paper and write a question to your student and
give him or her the paper to write an answer on. Go back and forth like this until you have a good sized sample
of writing. This can be used as the basis for correcting written mistakes and planning further classes.

3. Post-it mania
Bring a pack of Post-it notes to the class one day. Look around the room and write a word of something that is
in the room on a post it note. Give it to the student and ask him or her to stick the post it note on the correct
object. Do this until you have labelled many things in the room. At the end of the lesson call out things and ask
the student to bring you back the post it note (unless they would like to leave it on the object as a memory aid!).

4. Sight translation activities

Many one to one students are business people who are expected to learn English for their job. One typical area
that people at work need English for is sight translation. Someone comes into the office waving a piece of
paper and asking if anyone can tell them what it means. Do this from time to time with your student. Give them
a document related to their work and ask them to explain it quickly to you in English. If you speak your
students L1, give them a document in English and ask them to give you a quick translation into their language.

5. Get out of the class

One-to-one classes are often extremely mobile, and teachers can take advantage of this. Ask your student to
take you on a guided tour in English of their home or workplace. Do a shopping class, where you and your
student go to several shops together. Or just go for a walk outside with your student and do your class like that
one day. A change of environment is very good for refocusing the mind, and there are lots of new topics for
language study that you can get just from walking down the street.
6. Questionnaires
Prepare a series of question prompts on a topic. For example, if your topic was sports you could have the
following question prompts:

- / like sports?
- what / sports/play?
- what / sports / watch on television?
- ever / win / sports award? etc.

First interview the student using the prompts. Then ask the student to do the same for you. When you have
finished, review any special vocabulary or grammar that came up. Tell the student that for the next class he or
she must prepare a similar list of questions on a different topic to interview you.

7. Cuisinaire rods
Cuisinaire rods are little coloured wooden sticks that are used in teaching maths. With one-to-one classes and
very small groups, there are lots of things you can do with cuisinaire rods. Ask the student to make a
representation of the company structure using the rods (like an organigram). You can also use rods to teach
word stress (rods for every syllable, a different coloured rod for a stressed syllable). Jim Scrivener has more
information on Cuisinaire rods in his book Learning Teaching.

8. Index cards
One piece of equipment that is particularly useful for a one-to-one class is a set of index cards. Use them to
keep track of new vocabulary. The cards can then be used from time to time to review this. You can also use
index cards as cue cards for a presentation. Help the student write their cues for a mini presentation on a topic,
then get them to give you the presentation using only their cues. You can also write different conversation
topics or role plays on individual cards. Ask the student to choose one at random and talk about or act out the
situation on the card.

9. Think of someone who ...

Many teachers of one-to-one classes are frustrated by coursebook or resource material that is only suitable for
large groups. However, some of these activities can be adapted. For instance, the classic Find Someone
Who activity can be changed to a Think of Someone Who and used with only one student. Using a Find
Someone Who worksheet, ask the student to write the names of people that he or she knows who match each
category. The student must do this without telling you anything. He or she must also write the names down in a
different order than they appear on the worksheet. Do the same yourself with another copy of the same sheet.
Then swap papers. The objective is to ask and answer questions to find out which person written down on the
paper matches which category.

You and the student will therefore be asking and answering the questions several times, just like in a Find
Someone Who activity with a large class.

10. Speaking lessons on onestopenglish

Let us take some of the pressure off you. There are several lessons on onestopenglish that can be easily used
with one to one or very small classes. Specifically, the deck of conversations and the deck of business
conversations are two speaking classes which are ideal for small groups or just one student.
 One-to-one: Teaching tips - Ten practical
tips
By Tim Bowen
Type: Teaching notes
Print
Email
Share
Comments (4)
Rate

Ten practical tips for making one-to-one teaching work

1. Logistics | 2. Visual materials | 3. Use the student | 4. Give feedback | 5. Authentic material | 6. Use the
internet | 7. Presentations | 8. Audio and video | 9. Homework | 10. Using silence

1. Logistics
Think about your position in the classroom and about where the student sits. In a group classroom, the teacher
often stands at the whiteboard or sits at the front of the class. In a one-to-one class, this may not be the most
appropriate solution. A round table is ideal for one-to-one. Try sitting next to the student as a variation on sitting
opposite each other. This will enable you to work together on visual materials and language tasks. Remember
too that sitting in one place for an hour or more can be tiring. Try breaking up the lesson by moving around a bit
and encourage your student to do the same thing. This can have noticeable benefits in terms of concentration
and motivation.

2. Visual materials
Visual materials work very well in most one-to-one situations. Materials such as photographs, graphs, maps,
pictures and so on provide a rich source of vocabulary and conversation and can be used by the teacher to
focus on a particular structure. Maps and atlases are particularly useful as most people find them interesting
and are ready to talk about places they have visited. A simple map-based discussion could focus on questions
such as Where were you born?, Where did you grow up?, Where did you study?, then Where do you live
now? and Have you been to X?. The student can also be asked to ask the questions as well as answer them.
This can provide very focused (and fairly communicative) practice of the structures in question.

3. Use the student

Most one-to-one classes tend to be with adult professionals. Many such students want a job-related content in
their one-to-one lessons and some have very specific needs. It would generally be inappropriate for the teacher
to attempt to teach them their job (e.g. pharmaceutical research) but some brief research beforehand can pay
dividends. Find out what the students company does. If its a large company they will almost certainly have a
website. Access the website and download the latest company news. If you are informed about the general
activities of the company, this will enable you to ask informed questions. In the case of pharmaceuticals, the
latest products and their general areas of treatment will normally be listed on the website. You can then get the
student to explain in detail what each product does.

4. Give feedback
Many one-to-one lessons can develop into a pleasant and interesting chat that fills the lesson time amazingly
quickly. No doubt this is useful fluency and listening practice for the student and some students may even ask
for conversation and nothing else. What this doesnt do, however, is deal with persistent errors or address
weaknesses in grammar and vocabulary. Make it a regular practice to have a blank sheet of paper and note
down any significant or persistent errors or obvious gaps in the students language knowledge. This will enable
you to spend 10 minutes or so at the end of the lesson focusing on these errors and, where possible, getting
the student to self-correct. Students often appreciate this approach because it is very focused and deals
precisely with the errors that they make. You can also use any gaps you notice as the basis for future lessons.

5. Authentic material
If the student works for a company, ask them to bring in examples of the English material they need to work
with. This may range from reports they have to write to forms they have to fill in or documents they have to
read. Using authentic company material will help you to plan your course and keep it focused on the students
real needs.

6. Use the internet

Almost everyone uses the Internet in business these days. It is a superb resource for one-to-one lessons,
providing material related to the students company (see above) and also a wide range of material from the
students field of expertise that can be used as a basis for homework and then for a variety of useful classroom
activities such as summarising, making a short presentation, working on vocabulary and working on grammar.
Many students will also need to write e-mails in English. A regular e-mail writing activity with the student writing
job-related or simulated e-mails to the teacher and vice-versa can be very beneficial and also presents an
alternative to the normal classroom routine.

7. Presentations
A lot of students will need to make presentations in their work. These can range from a presentation of their
latest product to a presentation of a piece of research or giving a paper at a conference. The one-to-one
situation is an ideal forum for the student to practise this in a relaxed environment with the teacher giving
feedback on the language used and the effectiveness of the presentation. You can help the student with the
language of presentations and with presentation techniques, such as using visuals and graphs.

8. Audio and video

Both are very useful tools in the one-to-one classroom. Apart from providing the obvious listening skills
benefits, they are also an opportunity for the student to hear different voices and accents and for the teacher to
move out of the limelight. As an alternative, try making the student responsible for the activity by giving them
control of the tape-recorder or video remote-control. They will then pause or rewind the tape when they need to
do so not when you think its necessary.

9. Homework
A lot of useful language work (both grammar and vocabulary based) can be prepared as homework and then
checked in class. This gives you the opportunity to deal with any problems and the student can ask you to
clarify any areas of difficulty. It may also be a more realistic approach to dealing with grammar on a one-to-one
course than up-front teaching, followed by some form of controlled practice. Regular homework can also help
to give the course a coherent shape.
10. Using silence
Dont be afraid of silence. All learners need space and thinking time. It is very hard to maintain a discussion in a
foreign language for an hour or more. Try breaking up the lesson with a short writing activity, or perhaps ask
the learner to research a few words in the dictionary. You might even leave the room for a few minutes just to
vary the pace of the lesson. Above all, get to know your student and their preferred learning style. Talk to them
about your approach and ask them regularly if what you are doing is what they want and need. It may be a
case of feeling your way at first but in the long term this should ensure that you both get the maximum out of
the course.

One To One Teaching Activities

People watching
Go for a walk outside or look out of the window and analyses passers-by. Have your student
create crazy stories about people and be creative.
Picture analysis
Take in pictures for your students to analyses. Take the pressure off yourself and get them
thinking.
Dialogue
Prepare some dialogues or co-write some which are relevant to the topic of your lesson. Go
through them together, playing a part each then switching roles.
Reading comprehension
Use reading materials in your one to on lessons. This gives you some breathing space and gets
them speaking. Analyse the text, teach them what new words mean, ask them questions about it,
play grammar games, have them re-write part of it or anything else you can get out of it.
Hangman
This is a classic word game whereby you think of a sentence, set out the underscores on the
paper where a letter goes and have them attempt to guess the phrase.
Word cards
Prepare some word cards to make sentences with. Give them a piece of paper and take one
yourself. Draw a 10 squares grid and write a verb in each of yours and have them put a noun in
each of theirs (for instance). Tear them into individual cards and get them into 2 piles face down.
Turn the top card from each pile and have them make a sentence with the words.
Battleships
Give your student a blank piece of A4 paper. Have them draw a grid as demonstrated below:
Swim Run Drive

You
 He

She

They

Use the relevant vocabulary according to your grammar point. Instruct them to draw a happy
face in any 3 squares and to keep the locations of their faces hidden from other students. In pairs,
have them battling to get rid of their opponents happy faces by asking questions. For instance, in
the above example, by asking questions Can I/you/he/she? If there is a face in the
corresponding square, the response is positive and the face is eliminated. If not, student gives a
negative response.

Brainstorm
Pick a theme or grammar point and brainstorm examples and ideas together on the board. When
youve finished go around each word and have them make a sentence.
Using because
If your student has reasonable English ability but is a bit limited in terms of speech, tell them that
it is incredibly important to use the word because when you speak English- in order to justify a
statement. Every time they make a statement ask them why? This helps to get them speaking
more and thinking in more depth about their language use.
Vocabulary pass
Set the topic, you say a related word then they say another, keep going backwards and forwards.
Throw out new words along the way to teach them.
Board games
There are hundreds of board games you can play with your one to one students to break the ice
and break the monotony. Use some of the old favourites like Scrabble and Guess Who or design
your own.
News stories
After each class tell them to find a news story to tell you about in the next class. You can also
bring some materials in to act as reading material and hopefully to set up some discussion.
Family trees
Teach your student the terminology for family. Draw an imaginary family tree on the board
using celebrity names etc to make it humorous. Quiz them the relationships between any 2 given
people. Have them create one for their own family.
Job interview
Role-play a job interview scenario with your student. Take turns to play the parts of interviewer
and interviewee.
Roll the dice
Bring a dice to the lesson. Allocate a task or forfeit for each role such as spelling a word, saying
a grammar point etc. Take turns with them to roll the dice and carry out the task for the number it
lands on.
Ball passing
Simply stand at different sides of the room and pass a ball back and forth. Each time you throw
it, ask a question, when you catch it give a response. This works as a good ice breaker.
A-Z
Set them the challenge of giving you a word beginning with each letter of the alphabet. After
doing it once, limit their options by telling them to only use words within a certain setting i.e. the
classroom you are in.
Shiritori
You start by saying a word. Your student has to say a word which begins with the last letter of
your word and the process continues back and forth.
Tic Tac Toe
Play this game as an ice-breaker and keep the conversation flowing throughout.
Card games
There are many card games you can play with just two people. Use the cards as an ice breaker to
distract them from the fact that they are practising their English and they may be more willing to
open up.
Go for a walk
You dont necessarily have to stay in the classroom or teachers office to teach a student one to
one. Go to the local shop and have them try to name items, go to the park and do some people
watching or go and have a coffee and relax in a nearby cafe.
Lie to me
Tell your student to tell you complete lies about their life. They may feel less limited than just
talking about their actual life which probably revolves around school and computer games.
Encourage them to exaggerate about what they have done earlier in the day etc.
Truth, truth lie
Tell them to write and/or say 3 things about themselves- two of them are true and one of them is
a lie. You do the same and try to guess each others lies.
20 questions
Write a word on paper and dont show it to your student. Give them 20 questions to ask
questions in order to ultimately guess your word. Only give them yes or no answers.

Grammar & Vocabulary Activities For Older Students

Back and forth
Divide students into two teams. Get a student form each time to stand up. You set the category
i.e. days of the week or fruit etc. The students must say one word then the next student quickly
says another related word. When one of them breaks the order (A: Monday B: Tuesday A:
Wednesday B: Saturday), takes more than 5 seconds to respond or says an irrelevant word to the
category they lose.
Battleships
Give each student a blank piece of A4 paper. Have them draw a grid as demonstrated below:
Swim Run Drive

You

He

She

They
Use the relevant vocabulary according to your grammar point. Instruct them to draw a happy
face in any 3 squares and to keep the locations of their faces hidden from other students. In pairs,
have them battling to get rid of their opponents happy faces by asking questions. For instance, in
the above example, by asking questions Can I/you/he/she? If there is a face in the
corresponding square, the response is positive and the face is eliminated. If not, student gives a
negative response.

Bingo
Give each student a blank sheet of paper. Have them draw a grid of 6 boxes. Tell them to write a
word in each. Depending on the students level you can have them pick 6 months of the year or
6 common nouns etc. Call out related vocabulary at random. If a student has 1 of the words they
can tick it off. The first student to tick off all of their words shouts BINGO and wins.
Chair Swap
Make one student stand up and turn their chair around so that nobody can sit on it. Ensure that
any spare chairs are also turned around. There are many variations of this game, largely
depending on the ability level of your students. Generally speaking, you will ask the student
standing up if a question. If you ask, for example, what do you like? and the student replies I
like playing computer games, the students who also like computer games must swap chairs (the
standing student must attempt to find an empty chair). There will always be a student in the
middle to answer the question.
Charades
Bring a student to the front of the class. Show them a flashcard or word without anyone else
seeing it. Have the student mime the action and the rest of the class try to guess the vocabulary.
Concentration words
Make a set of word only cards and do a copy. Lay the cards out on the floor face down. Students
take turns to stand up and turn over two cards- shouting out the card after they turn it over. If the
cards match they get to keep the cards. Student with the biggest collection at the end wins the
game.
Grab the card
Make 2 lines of students, one on either side of the room. Draw lines that they must stand behind
until they can go. Have a pile of flashcards in the middle. When you shout out the two students at
the front of each line must race to grab to right card and say it.
Look! What?
To explain this game an example needs to be used.
Grammar point: Can you? Yes I can/ No, I cant.
Vocabulary: Swim, dance, run, climb.
First of all give each student 4 credit card sized pieces of paper. Get them to write each new
vocabulary word on them (1 on each). Then explain to the students that when the teacher says
go! they will all stand up and immediately say Look! and point to another student. The
student who is pointed at should say What? the 1ststudent should then choice a vocabulary
word and used the grammar too Can you swim? If the other child still has the paper with
swim on then they say yes I can and hand it over, if they dont have it they say No, I cant.
1. Look!

2. What?

3. Can you swim?

4. Yes I can-then hand over piece of paper or No, I cant and then move on to another
student.

Each student will be doing the same thing at the same time so any discrepancies as to who said
Look! first get them to play rock, paper, scissors. The student with the most cards at the end
wins.

Memorizer
Students sit in a circle. Lay out the flashcards in the middle. Choose 1 student to be the
memorizer. Each of the other students in turn chooses a word to be theirs for that round but they
cannot take the card from the middle. After all the cards have been selected, the memorizer must
try to give the cards out to the correct owners.
Pass the card
Get the students into a circle. Pass a flashcard around. Each student has to say the word then pass
it around. To make it more lively try to have several cards circulating simultaneously.
Sentence betting
Hand out some fake money or another form of counter to each student. Stand at the front and say
a sentence which is not overly easy for them (in fact the more confusing yet grammatically
correct the better). After each sentence, students have a brief opportunity to bet a sum of their pot
on whether the sentence is grammatically correctly/true or false. Other students can bet against
them if they wish. Reveal the validity of your sentence and settle the bet. You can also allow
students to earn extra money from you by correcting the sentences. The student with the most
money after a given time wins.
Time bomb
Sit your students in a circle. Pass the flashcard around the circle and countdown from 15
seconds. The student holding the cards at the end has to say.
A what?
Pass around an object or flashcard. Tell the students what its called. Say to the first student this
is a the student must answer a what? you say a The card or object is then quickly
passed to the next student and the same dialogue ensues. Develop the game by passing round
different objects and cards at the same time.
People watching
For more advanced classes or one to one lessons, have your students look out of the window and
analyse the people outside. Have them discuss anything from what they are wearing and what
they look like to creating crazy stories about what they are doing, where they are going etc.
Team hangman
Have students put into pairs of one student per team in the pair. Team 1 begins by setting up the
puzzle and team 2 have to guess it. The winner gets a point for their team then the roles switch.
Find a vocabulary partner
Have your students make word cards with new vocabulary. Tell them to keep one on their desk
and put the others on the floor. When you say go they have to go around the class asking
questions to determine who has the same card. Eventually they will get into groups.
Gambit
Write 6-8 words on the board. Students from one team write a word from the bored, without
showing anyone else and put their writing book face down on the floor. The other team chooses
3 words from the board. If any of the students wrote these words they must stand up and say a
sentence using the word. The students who didnt have their word guessed win a point for their
team.
Balancing act
Split the class into two teams. Give each student a blank piece of paper and have them write their
team name on it. Have them stand up and balance the paper on their head. Call out some actions
etc and get them moving around. If they drop their paper they must freeze where they are.
Another member of their team can pick up the paper and put it back on their head- whilst trying
not to drop their own paper. Set a time limit of 3 minutes- the team with most people balancing
their paper at the end are the winners.
Catch it/drop it
Get the students in a circle with one in the middle of it. Give the one in the middle a ball and tell
the others to cross their arms. The ball holder must look at a student and say either catch it or
drop it before throwing them the ball. If they say catch it, the student must unfold their arms
and catch the ball. If they said drop it, they should keep their arms crossed and make no
attempt to catch the ball. If they make a wrong move or fail to catch the ball at the right time they
are out.
Escape the circle
Students are standing in a circle with their legs apart. Each students feet must be touching the
feet of those next to them. Give one student a ball. Ask them to say what is on the flashcard or a
sentence related to the lesson. If they are correct they can try to throw the ball out of the circle
through someones legs. All feet must be touching each other at all times.
Mystery voice
Choose a person to come to the front of the room. Either blindfold them or have them cover their
face with a book etc. Tell the rest of the class to switch chairs. Have the one of the others say
hello/ good morning or any phrase depending on the ability level of your students. If the
person at the front successfully guesses who said it they switch places with the speaker. If they
cant, gesture a different student to say a phrase. Encourage your students to try and disguise
their voice.
Hot potato
Pass around a ball or other object. Turn and face the wall. When you say stop the person holding
it has to say a sentence.
Race against the ball
Students are in a circle. One sits in the middle each round. Give them a category then give a ball
to a student in the circle. The student in the middle must say as many related words as they can
before the ball is passed all the way around the circle. Count how many each player can say.
After everyone has been in the middle, the player with the most words during their round is the
winner.
Tell me their name
Stand your students in a circle with one in the middle. The student in the middle points to a
person in the circle and says either RIGHT, what is their name please? or LEFT, what is their
name please? The student being pointed at must say the person on their right or lefts name
before the student in the middle can finish their sentence or they are eliminated. If they confuse
right and left they are also out. This game can be easily adapted to different grammar points.
Balloon volley ball
Divide the classroom into two equal halves. Use a row of chairs as a dividing line through the
middle. Put a team on either side. Blow up a balloon and give it to one team. The aim is to hit the
balloon over to their opponents side and make it touch the floor on the opposite side of the fence
to gain a point. Set a theme or category, each time a student hits the balloon they say a related
word. Penalise them for not doing so.
Blindfolded students
This is great for teaching directions and prepositions. Bring up a student and blindfold them.
Place an object somewhere else in the room. Get one of the other students to guide them.
Circle throw and catch eliminator
Write the grammar point on the board and the vocabulary to accompany it. Students form a big
circle. Use a tennis ball or another ball of similar size. The first student throws the ball to another
student and asks the question. The receiver gives an answer, asks the question and throws the
ball to another student. State that if a student does a bad or overly aggressive throw they are out
and if they fail to catch the ball from a reasonable throw they are also out. After a while if
students are catching well, tell them to put one hand behind their backs then later tell them to
speed up etc. Last student standing wins.
Circle write and pass
Get your students to bring their chairs into a big circle. Write the opening sentence to story on a
few pieces of paper then hand them out to random students. Tell them to add one sentence,
following a certain tense or topic etc then pass it to the person on their right. Keep the papers
passing round for 5-10 minutes then stop the writing and have whoever is holding a paper read
out the finished product (usually a crazy and entertaining story).
I can say
Divide students into two teams. The first student from team 1 says I can say 1 kind of, the
next student from team 2 says I can say 2 kinds of. At any point a student can tell the person
before them to do it!. When this is called the person who last made a claim has one minute to
say the amount of related they claim to be able to do. If they can do it they win a point for their
team, if nto the other team win a point.
Pigs in the middle
Split your classroom into three rectangular sections, with the middle sections being slightly
bigger than the two outside. Make three groups of students and put one in each section. The
middle section group are the pigs. The aim is for the two outside groups to pass a ball back and
forth without the pigs intercepting it. If they do get hold of the ball, the team that threw it
switches places with them and becomes the pigs. Sit on the side and hold up flashcards for
them to shout out before their throw or ask them questions.
Sentence substitution
Split the students into two teams and the board into two sections. Write a sentence made of your
grammar point and related vocabulary on either side of the board. This can be two different
sentences or the same one twice. Both teams line up facing their allocated section. Give the two
front students a pen and an eraser. Tell them that they can change one word in their sentence but
they cannot change the same word as the person who went before them, they cannot add or take
away any words. When they have finished they pass the pen back to the next student in line. You
stand at the side tallying up the points- a point for each time a student changes a word and keeps
their sentence grammatically correct. Dont tell them how to correct a spoiled sentence, have the
teams figure it out for themselves.
Speed dating
Split your students into two teams/groups. Tell them you want them to get into two parallel rows
of chairs, facing each other. When they are in position, write a verb, noun or topic on the board
(depending on ability level) and give them one minute to talk to each other about the topic or
make questions with what is on the board. After one minute tell Team A to stand up and move
one place to the right. After each round have the same team move places and the same team stay
in their original seat so that students are facing a different person each time.
Speed writing
Write a sentence on the board. Have students race each other to write it 5-10 times then run up to
the board, touch it and say the sentence 5-10 times. Give the winner points. Write a different
sentence on the board and do it again. Its amazing how many times your students will be tricked
into practicing their spelling and speaking without getting bored of this game!
Guess my cards
Have your students make word cards. In pairs have them lay out their cards, face down in front
of them. The first student points to one of the opponents cards and tries to guess what it is. If
they are correct the card is turned over. The student who guesses their all of their opponents
cards first is the winner.
Crazy card grabbing
Get your students to write words on a piece of paper tear them into slips. Get your students to sit
in the middle of the room on the floor. Collect all the slips of paper and throw them in the air.
Students must try to grab as many cards as possible. When all cards are collected, go around the
room and each student must say the word on their slips and pile them up. The winner is the
student with the most slips so they get points for their team.
Sticky ball
Stick your flashcards to the board and draw a line 10 feet or more away. Students take turns to
stand behind the line, say a sentence involving the one of the flashcards then through the sticky
ball at it. If they hit the right card and the ball sticks, give them a point.
Crazy word change
Give the students a topic to discuss in turn when you go around the round. Beforehand, state that
every noun, adjective or verb etc is to be replaced by a word such as monkey. If a student
makes a mistake whilst speaking they are eliminated.
Grandfather
Set a category for the students to follow, for example furniture. You start by saying when
grandfather died he left a sofa The student on the far left says Really, is it a sofa? You
respond Ok, then what is it? They then say Its a table The student next to them continues
the dialogue with Really, is it a table? and so on. If a student takes more than 5 seconds to say
a word that hasnt already been used they are out or if they repeat someone elses word they are
also out.
Memory game
In a circle, go around the round, first person says a word i.e. apple. Next person says apple,
water. Next says apple, water, chair etc. Students who cannot recall the previous words in the
correct order are eliminated.
Subjunctive sentences
Put your students in pairs. Write 5 sentences on the board- if your partner was an animal which
would he/she be?, if they were a fruit which would he/she be? etc. Have your students write
answers to these questions without letting their partner see. Have them also write what they think
they would be. When everyone is finished, have them read out in turn and see the shock on your
students faces. For higher levels, have them make answers such as they would be a
because
The sentence game
Go around the class. Each person adds a word onto a sentence. For example, student 1 You
student 2 like student 3 eating etc. Write some conjunctives etc on the board to help them
make the sentences better. Also add in some recently learnt and new vocabulary.
Predictability
Give each student a blank piece of paper. Write a sentence on the board such as I like Tell
each student to write their name on the paper and fill in the blank word. Split the class into two
teams. Collect the papers and shuffle them. Pick the first one up and ask the opposite team of the
person whose paper it is what does like? For every wrong guess one team has give the other
team a point. Make your sentence specific to the grammar point of the lesson.
Alphabet word race
Have your students race each other to write a word for every letter of the alphabet. You can limit
their range by saying it has to be words from a certain place i.e. in this room.
Teach the class
To review a series of grammar points, such as tenses, put your students into pairs or small groups
and tell them to prepare and present a 5 minute lesson about a particular grammar point. Get
them thinking about how to explain it to the class, how to use examples, pictures etc.
Jeapordy
Draw a grid on the board and have random words or phrases in each. Students must try to guess
the potential question and win points for their team.
Eulogies
To practice the past tenses, have your students write about a dead persons life. Use funny
subjects such as hated national celebrities. You can even go a step further and have them act out
a funeral wake.
Give me some words
In order to drill grammar points, divide the board into two or more sections, get groups of
students to write a list of nouns in one section, verbs in another and adjectives in another (or
whatever you need to build sentences for your grammar point. Have them race each other to
write sentences using each word only once. The first to use up all of the words on the board is
the winner.
Grammatical board races
Students are in two teams. Have some pens easily accessible. Pick out a student from each team
to go head to head. Instruct them that when you shout out a word they must run up and write a
sentence using this word. The sentence must follow a pre-set grammatical structure.
Hold up your hand
When you are doing a grammar point such as much/many (count and uncount nouns), tell the
students that you will say a word, if much goes with the word they hold up their left arm, if its
many they hold up their right.
One becomes two
Have students compete in pairs. Give them a piece of paper per pair and short, simple sentence to
begin with. Tell them that in turn they can make a new sentence by adding one or two words to
the existing sentence and not taking any words out of it. If the sentence is grammatically correct
after each turn the student gets a point.
Sentence making time trial
Draw a grid on the board. Fill the boxes with vocabulary that they can use in a relevant sentence
to practice a certain grammar point. Pick a student form each team to go head to head. In turn
they get one minute to call out as many grammatically correct sentences using the vocabulary in
the chosen box.
Tissue drop
Hold up a tissue and tell your students when you drop it they have to say the phonic or new word
as many times as they can before it hits the floor.
Finger count grammar
Write out a relevant sentence on the board. Point to the words, on by one, showing a different
number of fingers each time you point. Students must say each word a number of time depending
on how many fingers you are holding up.
Disappearing grammar
Write a sentence on the board. Erase a word. Go around the room and have each student say the
sentence adding a word that could fill in the blank. Erase another and do the same. Continue until
you have no words left then see who can remember any parts of the sentence.
New sentences
Write on the board a key word or words. Tell the students to write as many unique sentences as
they can in 2 minutes.
Pass the word/sentence
Divide students into two teams. Have them stand in lines. Pass the two front students a flashcard
or a piece of paper with a sentence written on it. They have to race each other to say the
vocabulary or sentence then pass it back to the end of their line.
Pencil spin
Students stand in small groups and form a square or a circle. In turn they place a pencil on the
floor in the middle and spin it. The person it is pointing to after the spin must say a grammar
point.
Show me
Get students to make word cards with the new vocabulary from the lesson. Tell them to keep one
card on their desk and to put the others on the floor. Shout out show me, the students who
have the word you say must stand up and say it.
Truth, truth lie
Tell them to write and/or say 3 things about themselves- two of them are true and one of them is
a lie. You do the same and try to guess each others lies.
Flashcard Show down
2 students are back to back holding 1 flashcard each in the centre of the room. The other students
say go the students both take 3 steps away from each other and then turn around. The 1st child
to say the word/grammar structure correctly on the opposing students flashcard wins. If the
grammar structure is Whats that? then the other students can say Whats that? rather than
go and the 2 students will turn and say Its a and state what is on the flashcard.

General Games & Activities for Children

Back and forth
Divide students into two teams. Get a student from each team to stand up. You set the category
i.e. days of the week or fruit etc. The students must say one word then the next student quickly
says another related word. When one of them breaks the order (A: Monday B: Tuesday A:
Wednesday B: Saturday), takes more than 5 seconds to respond or says an irrelevant word to the
category they lose.
Bingo
Give each student a blank sheet of paper. Have them draw a grid of 6 boxes. Tell them to write a
word in each. Depending on the students level you can have them pick 6 months of the year or
6 common nouns etc. Call out related vocabulary at random. If a student has 1 of the words they
can tick it off. The first student to tick off all of their words shouts BINGO and wins.
Chair Swap
Make one student stand up and turn their chair around so that nobody can sit on it. Have another
student move their chair into the centre of the room and sit on it. Ensure that any spare chairs in
the room are also turned around. There are many variations of this game, largely depending on
the ability level of your students. Generally speaking, the student sitting in the middle of the
room will ask the student standing up a question, what do you like? and the student replies I
like playing computer games, the students who also like playing computer games must swap
chairs (the standing student must attempt to find an empty chair too). There will be a different
student sitting in the middle every time. Another variation is where every student swaps chairs
each time a question is answered.
Charades
Bring a student to the front of the class. Show them a flashcard or word without anyone else
seeing it. Have the student mime the action and the rest of the class try to guess the vocabulary.
Concentration
Use two copies of the flashcard set. Lay the cards out on the floor face down. Students take turns
to stand up and turn over two cards- shouting out the card after they turn it over. If the cards
match they get to keep the cards. Student with the biggest collection at the end wins the game.

Concentration words
Make a set of word only cards and do a copy. Lay the cards out on the floor face down. Students
take turns to stand up and turn over two cards- shouting out the card after they turn it over. If the
cards match they get to keep the cards. Student with the biggest collection at the end wins the
game.
Crossing the lake
Draw a big lake on the floor. Lay out flashcards as stepping stones. Have the students start on
one side of the lake and take turns to cross to the other side. When they step on a card they
must say the vocabulary. If they cant then they fall into the lake and have to start again. Add
drama by creating a story of sharks and crocodiles lurking in the water.
Fast flashcard collecting
Reveal flashcards to the class one by one. The first student to say the word on the card
successfully keeps the card. The student with the biggest collection when all the cards have
been handed out wins.
Flashcard Show down
Two students are back to back holding one flashcard each in the centre of the room. The other
students say go the students both take 3 steps in opposite directions away from eachother and
then turn around. The 1st child to say the word/grammar structure correctly on the opposing
students flashcard wins. If the grammar structure is Whats that? then the class can say
Whats that? rather than go and the 2 students will take 3 steps, turn and say Its a and
state what is on the flashcard.
Four corners
Put a flashcard in each corner of the room . Get all students into the middle of the classroom in a
huddle. When you call out a word they must race by crawling, hopping, frog leaping, skipping,
dancing or doing any other action to the correct card and shout out the vocabulary. Another
variation to this game is to have one child blindfolded whilst the other students scatter to a
corner/flashcard of their choice and the blindfolded child calls out a flashcard, the students at this
corner are out. Continue until 1 child remains.
Give me
Shuffle your flashcards and hand them out to the students faced down. If you have more students
than different flashcards make some copies beforehand. Stand at the front and say give me
the student(s) with the relevant card should come forward and give it to you. You could integrate
a points system for this activity.
Grab the card
Make 2 lines of students, one on either side of the room. Draw lines that they must stand behind
until they can go. Have a pile of flashcards in the middle. When you shout out the flashcard, the
two students at the front of each line must race to grab the right card and say it.
Guessing game
Bring a student to the front of the room, have them face the board. Place a card behind their
back, displaying to the rest of the class. The student asks simple questions i.e. is it a dog? is it
a cat?, the rest of the class respond with a positive or negative answer.
Jumping on the card
Spread out the cards on the floor. Have all students sat in their chairs. When you shout out a
word they race to the correct card, jump on it and shout the word 5 times. This works having
students in teams and having head to head rounds with 1 student from each team competing to
get a point.
Lightening flashcards
Have students in two teams, lined up. The students at the front of each line should turn to face
their team. The class say 1,2,3, go! The two students turn around and shout out the flashcard that
the teacher has revealed. The first one to shout out the correct answer wins a point for their team.
They then go to the back of the line and the next two come forward.
Limbo
Get a rope and a student at either side to hold it stretched out. Other students line up at one side
of the rope. They must say the word on the flashcard correctly then go under the rope without
touching it. Start the rope at a reasonable height and lower it after every round. Eliminate
students when they touch the rope while passing under it or fall to the floor during their attempt.
Lip reading
Bring a student to the front but command them to remain absolutely silent at all times during the
game. Reveal a flashcard/sentence on paper to them. They must try to silently say it to the rest of
the class- who are trying to guess what it is.
Memorizer
Students sit in a circle. Lay out the flashcards in the middle. Choose 1 student to be the
memorizer. Each of the other students in turn choose a word to be theirs for that round but they
cannot take the card from the middle. After all the cards have been selected, the memorizer must
try to give the cards out to the correct owners.
Musical cards
Lineup the flashcards on the floor. Play music or sing some kind of tune whilst the students are
walking in a circle around the cards. When the sound stops the students say the card closest to
them.
Musical chairs
Have a line of chairs back to back. Put flashcards down on the chairs. Play music or sing whilst
the students are walking around the outside. When the music stops they sit down and the teacher
goes around and listens to students saying the word on their chair. If the student cannot say it
they are out. You can add another elimination element to the game by turning around a chair
after each round so that the students cant sit on it. The student left without a chair when the
music stops is out.
Ordering the cards
Put students into pairs. Give them a set of cards each. Say the vocabulary in a random order and
finish by saying go! At that point each pair must race against the others to assemble their cards
in the order that you called them out.
Over and under
Have students stand in 2 lines. Give the front two students a flashcard each. When you say go
they must pass it back switching between over their head and under their body i.e. between their
legs. Each time a student receives the card they must shout out the word.
Pass the card
Get the students into a circle. Pass a flashcard around. Each student has to say the word then pass
it around. To make it more lively try to have several cards circulating simultaneously.
Quick cards
Make two lines of students (preferably teams). You stand at the front. Reveal a flashcard to the
two students at the front of the lines and the first to say it correctly wins and goes to the back of
the line. The next two come forward. If you have a teaching assistant you can ask them to write
down the points to speed up the game.
Recognition
Stand your students on one side of the room. You stand in the middle. Reveal a flashcard for a
couple of seconds and ask a relating question. Students can come up to you and whisper what
they think is the answer. If they are correct they are allowed to move over to the other side of the
room. If wrong they must stay on that side.
Roll the dice
Write the numbers 1 to 6 on the board and give each number a word or sentence. Students take
turns to roll the dice. They simply say the sentence or word that corresponds with the number
they roll. Depending on the level you can make it more complicated. For example, you can have
1= say a past tense sentence 2= say a future tense sentence 3= spell a word the teacher says and
so on. Also you can allocate a certain forfeit to a number such as dance, sing or say a slightly
embarrassing sentence 5 times. You can easily incorporate teams and points into the game.
Round the track
Assemble a big collection of flashcards. Lay them out onto the floor into a big square or circle
track around the room. Every student starts on a different square. In turn they roll a dice and
move forward the amount of times on the dice. They have to say a word or make a sentence with
the card they have landed on.
Slam
Sit students in a circle on the floor with their hands on their heads. Drop a card into the circle.
The first student to hit the card and say the word gets to keep it. The student with the biggest
collection at the end is the winner.
Slow reveal
Hold your pack of flashcards facing the students. Very slowly start to reveal one of the cards
behind the front card and have students shout out what they think it is.
Snap
Get two sets of the same flashcards shuffled together, preferably smaller sized ones. Sit the
students in a circle on the floor. Deal out the cards one by one, face down. Students take turns to
put a card down and say the word. When a card is dealt that is the same as the previous card the
first student to hit the card and say snap! keeps the pile of cards. The student with the biggest
collection at the end is the winner. Shuffle the pack and play again.
Stand up
Give each student a flashcard and have them sit on their chair. Stand at the front and shout out
the words at random. When their flashcard is called out students must stand up, say it then sit
back down. Start slowly and pick up the pace. Have students switch cards after every minute or
so.
The paper, scissors, rock challenge
Lay out a line of flashcards on the floor and have a team of students lined up at either side. The
two at the front walk on opposite sides of the cards in the opposite direction, saying the
vocabulary as they walk past each card. When both students have reached the other side, they
do paper, scissors, rock. The winner receives a point. Alternatively, you can simply do a relay
race format with this game in which each team must race to get all of their team to the other side
after successfully saying all of the vocabulary.
Time bomb
Sit your students in a circle. Pass a flashcard around the circle and countdown from 15 seconds.
The student holding the card at the end has to say it. Alternatively you could play music and
when it stops the student who has the card has to say it.
Time trial
Give each team a pile of cards with the alphabet/numbers/days of the week/months on. Time
how long it takes them to put them in order. Repeat the process and make them try to beat their
best time.
Touch
Place your flashcards around the room. Shout out touch the (flashcard vocabulary) and students
run to the correct card, touch it and shout it out.
Tunnel
Use chairs or a bed sheet to make a tunnel for the students to crawl through/under. Make them
line up in front of the tunnel. In turn they go through it and at the end say the flashcard that you
are holding.
Flashcard head to head races
Draw a starting line at the back of the class. Lay out your flashcards at the front. Bring 2 students
from each team to stand behind the line. When you say go one student per team will say the
grammar point whilst the other runs to pick up a flashcard and shouts it out. After the race, make
all the class shout out the full grammar point and vocabulary.
Get it, say it
On either side of the classroom put 3 or more flashcards. Have a student from each team sat on
the floor in the middle of the room, back to back. When you say a sentence with one of the
flashcard vocabulary in it they jump up and race to the right card, hold it in the air and say the
full sentence or just the vocabulary depending on ability.
Knock it off
If your board has a ledge on along the bottom to hold stationary, line your flashcards up along it.
Draw a line about 10 feet away from the board (depending on the age group). In turn students
stand behind the line, say the sentence including the vocabulary from one of the flashcards. If
they are correct they can throw a ball or small eraser to try and knock off one of the cards.
Ball pass
Get students in a circle. Give one student a ball. They start by asking another student in the circle
a question then throwing them the ball. The receiver answers the question then passes the ball to
another student and asks a question.
Balloon sentences
Have students in a circle. Write a sentence on the board. Throw a balloon in the air. The first
student to hit the balloon says the first word of the sentence; the next student says the second
word and so on.
Blind speaking
Have students in a circle. Bring one into the middle and blindfold them. Spin them round 5 times
then have them point to a student and begin a conversation. They should try to guess who they
are talking to by listening carefully to the voice.
Duck, duck, goose
All students sit in a circle on the floor. 1 student Bob stands up and taps the head of each
student whilst saying the phonic or letter g, g, g, g, g then on 1 student Bob will tap their head
and say the word for the phonic or a word for the letter girl this student should then jump up
and catch Bob before he sits in their place. If they catch him then Bob repeats it. If they dont
catch him then they are the next person to tap the phonic/word.
Drill Sergeant
Tell the students that they are in the English language military. Have them line up and shout
out quick commands for them to follow i.e. touch your head, say apple. Make it fast and get
them listening carefully.
Get together
Have students walking around the room. Randomly shout out a number between 1 and 8.
Students must quickly form groups of this number. Odd students are eliminated.
Sentence relay
Put your students into two lines. Stand at the front and say a sentence such as how are you
today? The student at the front of each line must go down the line and say the sentence to each
student then stand at the back of the line. The first team to get back to the start position wins.
Trains
Put your students into one or more trains by having them line up and hold onto each others
shoulders. Shout out words such as slowly, quickly to direct them around the room and so on.
Hide the Flashcard
One student stands outside the classroom whilst another student on the opposing team is inside
the classroom and hides a flashcard with new vocabulary on it. When the student comes back in
to look for the flashcard all students chant the word louder as the student gets nearer to the
flashcard and quieter as the student moves further away from the flashcard to give the student an
idea when they are near to the flashcard in order to find it. This is an excellent game for drilling
vocabulary words or alphabet letters.
Action pass
Students sit in a circle. Elect an action master. Have the first student perform a chant whilst
doing the action. Go around the circle until it reaches the action master who then changes the
action and passes it around.
Back to back
Put the students in pairs. Have them running/hopping/skipping around the room. When you shout
out back to back they must find their partner and stand back to back with them. You can then
develop it by adding face to face and shoulder to shoulder.
Balancing act
Split the class into two teams. Give each student a blank piece of paper and have them write their
team name on it. Have them stand up and balance the paper on their head. Call out some actions
and get them moving around. If they drop their paper they must freeze where they are. Another
member of their team can pick up the paper and put it back on their head; whilst trying not to
drop their own paper. Set a time limit of 3 minutes- the team with most people balancing their
paper at the end are the winners.
Balloon burst
Prepare some balloons with notes inside them before the class. Pass a balloon around the room.
Each student must sit on the balloon for 3 seconds. If it bursts they must follow the instructions
of the note inside it dance say the alphabet and so on.
Blanket toss
Take a big blanket or bed sheet into class. Have students stand up and hold onto the edge. Put a
ball in the middle. The aim is to toss the ball into the air and catch it in the blanket. Each time it
flies up students must say a word or short sentence.
Bulldog
Students line up on one side of the room. Choose one student to be the bulldog. The bulldog is
on hands and knees in the middle of the room. When you call bulldog(or a related word) they
must run to the opposite side of the room without being caught by the bulldog. If they get caught
they too become a bulldog and must try to catch the other students as they run across the room. If
they reach the other side they have to shout out a piece of vocabulary.
Catch it/drop it
Get the students in a circle with one in the middle of it. Give the one in the middle a ball and tell
the others to cross their arms. The ball holder must look at a student and say either catch it or
drop it before throwing them the ball. If they say catch it, the student must unfold their arms
and catch the ball. If they say drop it, they should keep their arms crossed and make no attempt
to catch the ball. If they make a wrong move or fail to catch the ball at the right time they are out.
Antoher variation is to have the student in the middle saying a word and certain words are linked
to drop it and some to catch it and students should do the corresponding action for the word said.
Circle quick switch
Put your students in a standing circle. Select 2-4 pieces of vocabulary and assign them to the
students. When you call out a word the students who have been given it must run around the
circle and back to their position.
Clothing colours
Choose a student to be it. You then say a colour and it must find a person with that colour
clothing on and touch it. The student who has been touched then becomes it.
Copy my chant
In a standing circle, have your students clapping a continuous beat. The beat combination is up to
you, you can keep it very basic or mix up the tempo. One person is in the middle. They must
think of a series of 4-6 words to chant in time with the beat. When they have one in mind they
can stand in front of any student in the circle and perform their chant. If the other student cannot
correctly replicate the chant, in terms of correct words and word order plus in time with the beat
sequence; they are the next student in the middle.
Counting madness
Before you start, tell the students that every word with a certain number in it (i.e. 5, 15, 25) is to
be changed to a word such as apple or monkey. Go around the room counting up to 100 or
down from 100. If a player fails to substitute the number for the word they are out.
Crab challenge
Get the students to push themselves off the floor, facing the ceiling, on their hands and feet (in a
crab position). Have them drill vocabulary or ask them questions. If their body touches the floor
they are out.
Do it now
Sit the students in a circle. Choose one to stand in the middle and start performing an action i.e.
hopping, dancing and so on. Whilst doing this they can tap other students on the head and say
come and with me now. The students who have been tapped get up and join in with the
action. At some point you call out stop doing it! Now the students must race to sit back in the
circle. The last one to sit down is now the head tapper in the middle.
Empty cup
Give each student an empty cup. Make them stand up and balance the cup on their head upside
down. Have them do actions orTPR. The last person to remain with the cup still on their head is
the winner.
Ghosts
In your class select 2 people to be ghosts. Give the others 10 seconds to find a spot in the
classroom and stand still. Then instruct the non ghosts to cover their face with a book or just
close their eyes (watch out for cheating). The ghosts must stealthily walk up to someone and
hold their hand above their targets head for 5 seconds. The non ghosts can save themselves by
saying is there a ghost in the room? (or another relevant phrase). If they fail to do so they
become a ghost.
Handkerchief drop
Students stand in a circle. Give one a handkerchief and have them walk around the outside of the
circle. They must try to drop it and try to complete a full lap of the circle without being detected.
If detected, the student who has the handkerchief behind them must try to catch the dropper
before they can re-enter the circle. If they cannot catch them, they become the dropper.
Mystery voice
Choose a person to come to the front of the room. Either blindfold them or have them cover their
face with a book. Tell the rest of the class to switch chairs. Have one of the others say
hello/ good morning or any phrase depending on the ability level of your students. If the
person at the front successfully guesses who said it then they switch places with the speaker. If
they cant, gesture a different student to say a phrase. Encourage your students to try and
disguise their voices.
Horse race
Put the students into pairs. Have one being the horse and one being the jockey (i.e. riding on
their back). Place flashcards around the room. Call out words and have them race each other to
grab the right card and shout it out. Be sure to make the bigger students the horse.
Hot potato
Pass around a ball or other object. Turn and face the wall. When you say stop the person holding
it has to say a sentence. Alternatively, pass a flashcard around and then they have to say the word
or a sentence with the word in.
Human ladder
Form two lines with one team on each side and students facing each other. Have them sit down,
stretch out their legs and touch feet with the person opposite. Give each pair in the ladder a
number or word. When you call out their word, the pair must jump up, hop through the ladder
one way then turn around at the end, run down the outside, hop through the bottom part of the
ladder and sit back in their position. The first student to do so wins the point for their team.
Hurricane
Students are standing in a circle. One is in the middle spinning around with their arms stretched
out and pretends to be the hurricane. You then shout out a sentence such as all the girls switch
or if you like football switch. The students who your sentence applies to must switch positions
by running through the middle. If the furricane catches one of them they then become the
hurricane.
Taken
Stand your students in a line. Have one of them stand facing the board, at the front of the class.
Instruct the rest of the class to change position in the line and quietly take one student (or even
teaching assistant) out of the room. Tell the one at the front to turn around and give them 10-20
seconds to guess which person has been taken.
Inner circle
Two equal circles are formed- one inside the other. The student each person is facing in this
starting position is their partner throughout the game. Play some music or sing. During this the
inner circle rotates clockwise and the outer circle spins anti clockwise. When the music stops the
inner circle must get into the horse position and their partner from the outer circle must climb on
their back in the jockey position. The last pair to get into this position is eliminated.
Lions and tigers
Split the students into 2 teams- lions and tigers. Have them in the middle of the room in two lines
about 4 feet apart facing each other. Draw a safety zone on either side of the room. Stand at the
side and shout out either lions or tigers. The team you shout out must try to run to the safety
zone with the other team trying to catch them. If caught the student joins the opposite team.
Nice to meet you
Students are stood in a circle. One student walks clockwise around the outside. At any point they
can tap another student on the back. This student must turn around, shake their hand and say
nice to meet you. The student who is it responds nice to meet you too. It then runs around
the circle clockwise whilst the student who was tapped on the back runs anti clockwise. The aim
is to beat the other student to the now open place in the circle. The student who is left outside the
circle becomes/remains it.
Race against the ball
Students are in a circle. One sits in the middle each round. Give them a category then give a ball
to a student in the circle. The student in the middle must say as many related words as they can
before the ball is passed all the way around the circle. Count how many each player can say.
After everyone has been in the middle, the player with the most words during their round is the
winner.
Panic
Students sit in a circle on the floor. Give them a word or piece of vocabulary related to the lesson
topic each. If you are teaching fruits, give them a fruit each. You remain standing, walking
around the room and reading out a story. When the students word is mentioned in the story they
get up and follow you around the room. When you shout panic they must quickly run and sit
back down into the circle. This is a good test of their listening skills.

Say it quickly
Set a category for the students to follow (perhaps the vocabulary set from that lesson). For lower
levels it can be something like fruit and for higher maybe something like adjectives. Pick a
student to be it. It must try to tag a student but the others can exempt themselves by saying a
word from the category as it comes towards them. If a student can say a word then it must go
for someone else. If the target cant and they get tagged then they become it.
Snakes tail
Students make a line facing one direction. Have them hold onto each others shoulders or waist.
When you say go the head of the snake (student at the front) has to catch the tail of the snake
(student at the back). If the link is broken or if the head cannot catch the tail then this students
goes to the back.
Sneaky switching
The class stand in a circle. One student is in the middle and is it. They walk up close to any
student in the circle and ask a question i.e. what do you like? The other student responds
appropriately. At any point two or more students can try to switch places with each other while
it is distracted. It must try to steal a place in the circle and force one of the attempted
switchers to be in the middle.
Tell me their name
Stand your students in a circle with one in the middle. The student in the middle points to a
person in the circle and says either RIGHT, what is their name please? or LEFT, what is their
name please? The student being pointed at must say the person on their right or lefts name
before the student in the middle can finish their sentence or they are eliminated. If they confuse
right and left they are also out. This game can be easily adapted to different grammar points.
Thumbs up
Put your students into small groups. Have them stand together in a circle with their closed fist in
the middle. Count down from 5 seconds. The students then decide whether to stick up neither of
their thumbs, just one of them or both. The group must then race to count how many thumbs are
up as a whole and shout out the number.
TPR categories
Have all the students stand up. Set a category i.e. kinds of drink. Call out words and after each
word do the action for the category. If the word is not in the category and the students copy your
action or if your word does fit the category but they dont do that action then they are eliminated.
Wink of death
Line the students up against a wall, facing the wall. Tap a student on the back who then becomes
the murderer. Students walk around the room, when the murderer winks at the other students
they wait 5 seconds then fall to the floor dead. At any point one player can accuse another by
saying I think you are the murderer/killer. If the accusation is wrong both players die.
3 legged races
Set up a race track in the class. Bring pairs of students up to the front, have each pair stand side
by side. Tie one students right leg to the others left or vice versa, using rope or something else.
Have them race against other pairs, each time their shared leg hits the floor they have to say a
word.
Assassin teacher
Get all students on one side of the room. Stand out of the way with a soft ball. Shout out a piece
of vocabulary and make them run from wall to wall doing the actions i.e. animals. As they run
across the room throw the ball into the crowd and whoever is hit first is eliminated.
Ball control
Set out your flashcards in a straight line along the floor, with about 3 feet gaps. Use a big sized
ball. Draw a start line on one side. Have them control the ball with their feet in a zigzag fashion
through the flashcards. Each time they pass a card they say the vocabulary. At the end they pass
the ball back to the person at the front of the line and run to the back of the queue. You can use 2
sets of cards and have teams competing in a relay race.
Balloon volley ball
Divide the classroom into two equal halves. Use a row of chairs as a dividing line through the
middle. Put a team on either side. Blow up a balloon and give it to one team. The aim is to hit the
balloon over to their opponents side and make it touch the floor on the opposite side of the fence
to gain a point. Set a theme or category, each time a student hits the balloon they say a related
word. Penalise them for not doing so.
Blind teacher
Students stand up. Cover your eyes with one of your hands and tell them you are going to catch
them, with your eyes closed so they must try to run away. When you catch a student ask them a
question i.e. a recent grammar point. Alternatively when you catch them if they are incorrect,
they become the blind student.
Card heads races
Stand your students at side of the room. Give out flashcards or pieces of paper with vocabulary
written on them to balance on students heads. Tell them they have to race to the other wall and
back 5 times whilst balancing the paper on their head. If (when) it falls on the floor they have to
say the word or make a sentence using their word- depending on ability level.
Card snap
Assemble your students in a small circle on the floor. Hold your stack of flashcards behind a
book and dont let them see what is coming. Throw a flashcard in the middle and say the word.
The first student to slap the card and shout out the word gets to keep it. Throw in some bluffs to
make it more interesting i.e. say apple and put down a banana before picking the card back
up. When all the cards have been thrown down count up who has the most and give them points.
Take back the cards and start the next round. Its best to pretend certain students won even
though they didnt to encourage them and distribute the points fairly.
Chair maze
Use chairs to create a big maze in your classroom. Place flashcards around the maze. Get the
students on their hands and knees. Shout out vocabulary, they must crawl through the maze, grab
the card and shout out the word.
Circle clap and chant
Students sit in a circle on the floor. Give students a flashcard. Go around the circle having them
clap their hands and saying the vocabulary on their card. You can create a chant to accompany
this activity and mix up the pace.
Danger squares
Divide the room into four squares. Count down from five, whichever square students are
standing in is their square for the duration of the game- they cannot leave it. Give one student a
ball. Ask them a question or have them simply shout out the vocabulary from the flashcards. If
they are right they can throw the ball at any other student (including those in their own square).
If the target is hit without them catching the ball they are out. However if they catch the ball, the
thrower is out. The game continues until one student is left standing and is therefore the winner.
Sleeping teacher
Lay out your flashcards on the floor in front of you. Sit down on the floor. Create a story such as
Im a monster that is going to try and get you when I wake up. Its ok though because you have
a magic wand that can zap me and send me to sleep. Lay down on your back then lift up to the
seated position and pretend to be a monster. Have the students use their magic to zap you back
to sleep. Set the sound effect for their wands as a new word. When they have put you to sleep
lay on your back and pretend to sleep. At this point they can stand up and place/drop a flashcard
onto you whilst saying the vocabulary from it. After random periods of time you spring up and
play the monster again and the same process occurs.
Do this/do that
This is a Simon says style of game to warm your class up and get them listening. Do random
actions, when you say do this they must obey and copy you, when you say do that they should
ignore you and remain in the previous position. If they make a mistake they are eliminated.
Ear plugs
Get your students in a circle on the floor. Give each one a flashcard. Go around the circle telling
them what their card is. Get them to put their fingers in their ears and repeatedly say the word to
themselves. Tap on the floor to instruct them to find a corner of the room and keep saying the
word for 15-20 seconds then bring them back to the circle, go around and have each student hit
their card in turn and say what it is.
Electric shock
Form a long line of all your students. Tell them to hold hands. You stand at one side and tell
them that you are going to put your finger in an imaginary power socket. When you do this you
will act out the shock and say a phonic or word. Shake your arms up and down to create a wave
effect through the class, each student saying the sound or word as the shock travels down the
line.
Head butt the flashcard
To drill flashcard vocabulary, line your students up facing the front of the class. Start from one
side of the room. Shout out and show the card. Hold it above the first students head, have them
jump up and head butt the cards whilst saying the word. Go all the way down the line.
Head Jenga
Sit down in the middle of the class. Draw a circle around yourself, just big enough to make your
students have to reach out their arms to touch your head. Lay out your flash cards. Sit in a
straight, still position. Ask the students to come and pick up a flashcard, say the vocabulary and
place it onto your head. When a pile starts to build up on your head, dramatise a sneeze or cough
and make them start again. When they do manage to pile all of the cards on your head, create
drama and excitement by slowly trying to stand up whilst balancing the cards on your head. You
can have the students do it in two teams, with a student sat down from group, once you have
demonstrated how the activity works
Helicopter
Have your students stand in a circle with you in the middle. Stick out one of your arms and tell
them to duck as you spin your arm around like a helicopter. When a student gets their head
sliced off they must say the grammar point or vocabulary etc.
Hop scotch
Draw a hop scotch grid i.e. a series of square stepping stones with numbers or words on them.
Shout out a word and one of your students has to hop from the starting square to the one with
your word on it. Each time they land on a square in between they must say the word.
Leap frog
Create a race track in your classroom. Bring up a pair from each team to stand at the start line.
When you say go one student from each pair gets down in front of their partner on hands and
knees whilst the other leaps over the top of them saying a phonic or word. Next the students who
were on the floor leap over their partners and the process is repeated until the first pair crosses
the finish line.
Marching
Line up your students across one side of the room, one line in front of the other depending on
how big the room is. Lead them through military style marches from wall to wall chanting
vocabulary.
Pigs in the middle
Split your classroom into three rectangular sections, with the middle sections being slightly
bigger than the two outside. Make three groups of students and put one in each section. The
middle section group are the pigs. The aim is for the two outside groups to pass a ball back and
forth without the pigs intercepting it. If they do get hold of the ball, the team that threw it
switches places with them and becomes the pigs. Sit on the side and hold up flashcards for
them to shout out before their throw or ask them questions.
Question tag
Choose a student to start as it or be it yourself. When it catches someone he/she asks them a
question (this can be their choice or directed by you before the game- in which case write it up
on the board). The student being tagged answers the question and chases the other students,
repeating the question passing process.
Sit down game
Get your students stood up in the centre of the class. Go through a random sequence of actions
i.e. touch your, hop, clap, have them shout out words from flashcards, do TPR or anything
you want to drill. Be creative. Spontaneously shout out sit down! The last student to sit on the
floor is eliminated.
The tent
Take a big bed sheet or blanket to your class. Spread it out and tell your students to grab an edge
each. Lift it up in the air and get everyone to run under it. As it comes back down it will create a
tent with everybody inside. You can do a multitude of activities from here. Even simple
flashcard saying and repeating works well because students are too distracted and excited to
realise that they are drilling vocabulary.
Wall to wall TPR
Get one group standing against one side wall and the others on the opposite side. Shout out the
vocabulary (animals is a good topic for this game). Have them do the action whilst racing to the
opposite side, trying to avoid the other team coming towards them.
Zap
Sit students in a circle on the floor. Tell them that you are a wizard and that you are going to cast
spells on your students. Dramatise the action of you doing this whilst using a new piece of
vocabulary as your magic word. Get students to do it to each other and pass it around the circle.
Kinder idol
With your new vocabulary, put your students into pairs or small groups and have them create a
simple song that uses the new words. Have a sing off at the end and choose a winning team.
Shout me to death
With a phonic or new word, tell your students that if they shout it at you long enough and loud
enough you will die. Dramatise it several times and trick them into drilling.
Guess my cards
Have your students make word cards. In pairs have them lay out their cards, face down in front
of them. The first student points to one of the opponents cards and tries to guess what it is. If
they are correct the card is turned over. The student who guesses their all of their opponents
cards first is the winner.
Flashcard peek
Get a clear, plastic folder. Put a piece of card inside with a small shape, such as a star, cut out of
the middle. Place a flashcard into the folder, behind the card so that students can see a tiny
section of it. Have them shout out guesses as to which flashcard it is.
Positive/Negative
Draw a line down the middle of your classroom, one section is positive response other is
negative. Ask the class a question, they run and stand in the section they agree with and shout it
out.
Crazy drilling
Go throw the flashcards and tell the students to shout out the words in a certain way i.e. with a
certain emotion, singing the words, saying a different word purposely or anything else to liven
up basic drilling.
Musical statues
Play some music. Have your students doing different actions. When they music stops they freeze
in position.
TPR photographs
Get students to do actions and choose one or two students to be photographers. When the
photographers get in position to take a students picture they have to freeze.
Tissue drop
Hold up a tissue and tell your students when you drop it they have to say the phonic or new word
as many times as they can before it hits the floor.
Pass the word/sentence
Divide students into two teams. Have them stand in lines. Pass the two front students a flashcard
or a piece of paper with a sentence written on it. They have to race each other to say the
vocabulary or sentence then pass it back to the end of their line.
Show me
Get students to make word cards with the new vocabulary from the lesson. Tell them to keep one
card on their desk and to put the others on the floor. Shout out show me, the students who
have the word you say must stand up and say it.
Find a vocabulary partner
Have your students make word cards with new vocabulary. Tell them to keep one on their desk
and put the others on the floor. When you say go they have to go around the class asking
questions to determine who has the same card. Eventually they will get into groups.
Gambit
Write 6-8 words on the board. Students from one team write a word from the bored, without
showing anyone else and put their writing book face down on the floor. The other team chooses
3 words from the board. If any of the students wrote these words they must stand up and say a
sentence using the word. The students who didnt have their word guessed win a point for their
team.
Crazy card grabbing
Get your students to write words on a piece of paper tear them into slips. Get your students to sit
in the middle of the room on the floor. Collect all the slips of paper and throw them in the air.
Students must try to grab as many cards as possible. When all cards are collected, go around the
room and each student must say the word on their slips and pile them up. The winner is the
student with the most slips so they get points for their team.
Basketball clean up
When an activity involving massive amounts of word cards is completed, hold up the rubbish bin
and have them come up one by one, say a sentence then throw their waste paper in the bin.
Aeroplane races
Get students to make paper aeroplanes. Get a student from each team to stand at the start line.
Get them to perform a drilling task. After doing this they throw their planes and whoever gets
theirs the farthest wins.
Crazy Drilling
Rather than just doing basic flashcard drilling, tell students to repeat the words in a happy/sad
voice, by singing it, using the 4 Chinese tones etc to make it more interesting.
Number jump
Allocate each student a number between 1-10 (depending on how many students you have and
what numbers you have to cover that lesson) give 2 students the same number, 1 on each team.
Teacher shouts out a number 5. Then the 2 students who were given the number 5 should
stand up and shout 5!, then sit back down. The student who is the slowest out of the 2 or who
fails to stand up and say their number at all gives the opposing team a point. This can be played
for as long as you want and with as many numbers as you want. You can even give each student
2 numbers to remember each.
Snake game
Using 2 identical sets of flashcards, place them on the floor in the centre of the room in 2
separate line back to back to each other (like you would with chairs in a game of musical chairs)
but not in the same order. Then split students into 2 teams and line them up on either side of the
flashcards on the floor (a little like a snake on either side of the flashcard line). The teacher or a
student should call out the word, phonic or grammar structure on one of the flashcards. The
student at the front of each line must jump and sit in front of the correct flashcard, say it and sit
down. Every member of the team should repeat these steps one by one then all students raise
their hands. The 1st team to complete this wins.
Board slap
Put a selection of flashcards on 2 whiteboards in the room and get 2 students, 1 from each team
to stand on 2 marks on the floor that are an equal distance from both boards. Then a student or
the teacher shouts out a word/phonic on one of the flashcards on the board and the 1st student to
run to the correct flashcard, slap it and say the word correctly wins a point.
Zombie name game
Students form a large circle in the middle of the room. 1 student is in the middle and has to walk
and act like a zombie and slowly walk towards another student saying that students name Sally,
Sally, Sally, Sally before the Zombie reaches Sally and tags her to become the next zombie she
must call out another students name to avoid it and its then repeated with the next students name
and so on.
Draw it race
Students are in 2 lines. Teacher whispers 2 different words to the 1st two children in the line from
the flashcards or new vocabulary list. The students should then whisper this word down the line
and the person at the back of the line should run to the board behind them and draw a picture of
the word they hear. The 1st child to guess what the opposing team have drawn wins a point for
their team.
Guess the letter
Get students into 2 lines, 1 behind the other, tell them to pretend to write a letter on the back of
the person in front of them with their fingers and they have to guess which letter it is.
Lightning game
Teacher stands at front of class with flashcards. Students are in 2 lines. The two students at the
front go first and face away from the teacherstudents say 1.2.3, go! The 2 students quickly
turn around and the first child to call out the correct answer wins a point for their team.
Hideout
Separate children into 2 teams, Teacher and T.A hold up a blanket in the centre of the room, the
2 teams should gather on either side of the blanket. 1 child from each team should put their noise
up to the blanket, after 3 the Teacher drops the blanket and the first child to name the other child
wins a point for their team or wins that member onto their team. So the winner is the team with
more members or more points.