M21 TEFL Activity Book PDF

M21 English Teachers’
Activity Book
PST 2010
Grammar Games
Complete the Sentences
Level: Beginner, Secondary
Procedure: T starts a sentence; students one by one finish T’s
sentences in the right tense.
“Last time I saw him. . . “ “Last time I saw him was yesterday.”
“Next Friday he. . . “ “Next Friday he will go hiking.” Etc.
What was the question?

Level: All
Procedure: T divides the class into two groups. The students write
3-5 affirmative sentences. Then they exchange these sentences and
write questions to these answers in the correct tense . . .
Chain Stories
Level: All
Procedure: Student starts a sentence, i.e.) Yesterday I went to the park. The next st follows using the same
tense: I saw an old man sitting on the bench. The next st: The man was staring at a little puppy. . . etc. The
whole story should be in the same tense.
Correct the Mistakes

Level: Any
Procedure: T gives students some wrong sentences, which they are supposed to correct either in pairs or
individually in written form. Then follows a discussion. . .
Variation: This work can be used for a test.
Ball Tense Toss

Level: All
Procedure: T calls out a verb in a specific tense (will go!), and tosses the ball to a student. St who catches
the ball gives a sentence with this verb (I will go to the store tomorrow), and then tosses the ball to another
student while calling out another verb.
Variation: T calls out the infinitive (to go) and tosses the ball to a st. St gives Past Simple (went) and Past
Participle (gone) and then tosses the ball to another student while call out another infinitive of any irregular
verb.
Word Order Cards

Level: Secondary
Procedure: Sts are split either in small groups or pairs. They have cards with parts of sentences they must
put together. The winner is the group which finishes first.
Textual Questions
Level: Secondary, Post-Secondary
Procedure: T provides each student with a text then has the sts read this article and write 5-8 questions. T
divides the class into pairs. The partners check each other’s questions for grammatical accuracy. Then the
partners trade texts and answer the questions by reviewing the material in the news article.
Tic-Tac-Toe
Level: All
Procedure: Make a tic-tac-toe board on the chalkboard and fill in the squares with grammar structures you
want to practice (i.e. Past tense question, future simple negative, 1st conditional). Students in two teams take
turns choosing a box they want to put their mark in. In order to put their mark, they have to make a
sentence that fits the box’s description. Tic-tac-toe rules apply.
Stepping Stones
Ben Boettger, M21
Level: All
Materials: Paper, tape
Procedure: Create a map on the classroom floor that consists of certain sentence parts, such as, “object”,
“subject”, “verb”, ect. Students take turns jumping from “sentence part” to “sentence part” and speaking
the appropriate “part”, therefore creating a sentence.
Speaking Games
Last Letter Game
Level: All
Procedure: Ask Ss to choose a category (example: animals). T says the name of an animal and the first St
must give the name of another animal that begins with the last letter of the T’s city. For example: T says
Snake, St says Elephant. Go around the class. It helps to write the words on the board, ask Ss to spell them
as they go!
Guess the Password

Level: Secondary
Procedure: Divide Ss into two teams. T sends two sts out of the room, one
st from each team. Have the class decide on a word that they want the sts to
guess, e.g. ‘ice cream’
After the word is chosen, bring the 2 sts back into the room. Each student
takes a turn giving a clue to their teammates until one of the sts guesses the
correct word.
Example:
T1: Cold St1 Guess: Winter
T2: Sweet St2 Guess: Jell-O
T1: Chocolate St1 Guess: Ice Cream
In this case, Team 1 gets a point
Situational Role Plays

Procedure: T divides sts into small groups and gives each group the same situation (either orally or on
cards). Sts write dialogues for that situation and then performs them for the class.
Variation #1 : T gives each group a different situation, perhaps based on the same theme or
vocabulary set.
Variation #2: T gives each group a list of vocabulary, on a specific topic. The sts must use the
vocabulary in their role-play.
2 Truths and a Lie

Procedure: Each st thinks of three things to say about themselves, 2 of which are true and 1 is false.
Depending on the level of the sts, these facts can be simple or complex. They tell their three things to a
small group and the others try to guess which is not true. This can be used for many different tenses.
Variation: T writes some on the board about themselves and students vote for which one they
think is a lie. (This way is quicker and better for warm-ups)
Directed Drawings
Level: Secondary
Procedure: One st comes to the board as the drawer. The other sts give instructions of what to draw and
where to draw it. The sts then make up a story to go with the picture (What is happening?). T can give them
specific vocabulary to use or a topic to cover.
Back-to-Back Instructions
Level: All
Materials: Pictures and blank pieces of paper
Procedure: T divides sts into pairs, they sit back to back. On st in the pair has a picture. S/he must
describe the picture and the other must draw. Then they compare the pictures to see if the description was
successful.
Variation: One st has a picture of a room and the other has the room and the furniture that belong in it.
The first st must describe where the furniture belongs in the room.
Hot Seat
Procedure: Good idea for vocabulary review. One student sits facing away from the board. Teacher writes a
word on the board. The student’s teammates must describe the word until the student says it. Saying the
word in Mongolian is not allowed!
CHAIN 1: Question Chain

Level: All
Procedure: Teacher writes a question on the board (something about student’s lives like “what did you eat
last night?” Or “What will you do after school today?). Teacher asks one student. Student answers. This
student asks another student, who answers. Continue this chain until all students have answered.
CHAIN 2: Memory Chain

Procedure: Teacher gives category (Example: Food) One student says “I have an Apple.” Next student
thinks of a B food word and repeats previous student’s word. “I have an Apple and a Banana.” Next
student says “I have an Apple, a Banana, and a Carrot.” Continue until alphabet is finished or all students
have gone. This can be used for many different sentence structures.
CHAIN 3: Sentence Chain:

Procedure: Good for practicing conditionals and cause/effect statements. First student makes a
statement: “If I spoke perfect English, I would live in America.” Then the second student uses the end of
the first sentence to start their sentence. “If I lived in America, I would eat hamburgers.” “If I ate hamburgers, I
would be fat.” Etc.
Line up according to….

Level: All
Procedure: Students must stand in a line according to an idea the teacher gives (oldest to youngest, earliest
birthday to latest birthday, name by alphabetical order, etc). Students must ask a question to find out what
order to stand in (How old are you? When is your birthday? What is your name?). Use a question that they
have already learned. Teacher checks by asking each student the question.
Who am I?
Procedure: You can use this with any subject. Write the names of famous people (or kinds of animals, or
places you can go.. any noun from any category) on small pieces of paper. Tape a paper on the forehead of
each student. Don’t let them see what their paper days. Then students can pair up (or mix with each other
in a “cocktail party” setting) and ask yes or no questions to determine who they are. This game can be
adapted for many different vocabulary sets.
War
Daniel Morris, M21
Level: Secondary
Materials: Deck of cards
Procedure: Put S’s into pairs. Give S’s 9 cards each. S’s put down one card each. Whoever has
the higher card must ask the other student a question. If S’s are younger write questions on the board as
reference. If the player answers the question incorrectly, player 1 gets the card. If player 2 answers the
question correctly then he asks player 1 a question. If the S answers incorrectly he loses the card. If both
players answer correctly it’s a draw. Repeat the process. The player with the most cards wins.
Improv Story
Daniel Morris, M21
Level: Secondary
Materials: Paper, pens, printer/computer (if typing it up)
Procedure: Each S will write a story. The number of sentences depends on skill level and age. In each
sentence leave at least one word out, and replaced by a blank space. Everyone must pass their story to
another S. Let them read and think about appropriate words to fill in the blanks. Can be lesson specific
vocabulary. Once finished, each S should stand up and read their stories out loud. S’s with the most
creative words in their stories wins a prize.
Variation: T’s could write a story prior to class, and allow S’s to fill in the blanks.
Theatre
Jason P. Douglas, M21
Materials: Paper
Procedure: T breaks S’s into groups after presenting a short story/fable. T chooses one narrator in the
Group, and the narrators must read the story out loud. While narrator recites the story, other S’s must act it
out.
Variation 1: For younger S’s or shy S’s, make puppets as a proxy to act out the story. Or, allow shy
S’s to be inanimate objects, as they will still benefit from the activity (i.e. tree).
Variation 2: For advanced S’s, have them write their own skit based on the story. (Writing
Comprehension)
The Hot Seat

Katie Leitch, M21
Level: All
Materials: Blackboard, Chalk
Procedure: One S sits in the ‘Hot Seat’ facing the class. The T (or, if an advanced class, a S) stands behind
the Hot Seat, at the board. S’s ask the Hot Seat S questions, and the Hot Seat S answers. T writes the
questions on the board, correcting if necessary. Once S’s are finished asking Q’s, the written list can be used
for a ‘line dialogue’: S’s line up, facing each other, and ask/answer Q’s, rotating partners every few minutes.
Cocktail Party
Katie Leitch, M21
Level: All
Materials: Paper
Procedure: On the first day of class, have S’s get out a piece of paper. S’s should write their names, big, in
the middle, and then write A’s to Q’s in the four corners. T decides Q’s beforehand (i.e. What kind of
music do you like?). Write the Q’s on the board. Have S’s hold papers in front of them and circulate,
having a ‘cocktail party’. Also consider using these as nametags and/or taking a picture of each S to learn
their names.
Miracle Workers & Superheroes
Anonymous, M21
Procedure: Each S receives a handout with 15 Miracle Workers and Superheroes. S’s must divide
them into 3 groups of 5: 1. The most desirable qualities for her/himself; 2. The most interesting; 3. The least desirable.
Have S’s discuss their choices in small groups, and try to discover patterns. Have S’s explain their most
desirable quality or defend their other choices. Have S’s debate over the most desirable qualities.
Swap Shop
Anonymous, M21
Material: Cards
Procedure: Each S is given a role card (i.e. They collect model trains or They collect old records). S’s are
also given a prop or description of an object they are willing to swap. S’s walk around the room discussing
their interests, and what they are willing to swap until they find a partner. Partners discuss whether or not
they are willing to swap their items and why. Probably work better with smaller groups. S’s can model
transaction in front of the class.
What are you doing?

Stephanie Sullivan, M21
Procedure: 2 S’s come to the front of the room. S1 asks “What are you doing?” S2 answers in the present
continuous, “I am ...”. S1 mimes what S2 said. S2 asks “What are you doing?”, and S1 answers with
something different (not what they are doing or anything said previously). Keep going until one S pauses
too long in answering or does the wrong thing. That S sits, and another S comes up.
Variation 1: Divide the class into 2 teams. 2 S’s at a time, and both sit when one messes up. That
person is eliminated. One team wins when the other team is fully eliminated.
Variation 2: Teams, no elimination. A point is scored instead.
Stand Up Review
Mindy Adams, M21
Procedure: T divides class into 2 or 3 teams. T asks 1st team a review Q. If S thinks they know the answer
or if they want to bluff, they stand up. T can call on anyone standing to answer. If that person answers
correctly they get 1 point for everyone standing. If they answer incorrectly, they get -1 point for everyone
standing. Ex: 6 people standing. If right, +6 points. If wrong, -6 points. Can also play where someone
from the other team chooses who to call on instead of the T.
Bizz-Buzz Counting Game

Mindy Adams, M21
Procedure: S’s stand up. T picks a number (i.e. 3). S’s are not allowed to say 3, multiple of 3, or a number
with a 3 in it (i.e. 13) when counting. First S starts counting 1, next S 2, next S has to say “bizz” or “buzz”
because T picked the number 3. If S says correctly, keep counting. If S says “three” instead of “bizz/buzz”
S sits down, and the next person starts at 1. Continue until only 1 person is standing.
Hot Potatoe
Alyssa Vohies, M21
Level: Secondary
Material: Stuffed Animal
Procedure: S’s must keep speaking in only English. If they speak Mongolian they get the stuffed animal.
S’s may pass off the animal to another S when/if they hear English. The S that has the stuffed animal must
speak 2 minutes in English at the beginning of the next class. (Not coherent paragraphs necessarily, but
random vocabulary will be fine too.)
Sparkle
Alex Hill, M21
Level: All
Material: None
Procedure: Ss stand in circle. T says a vocabulary word, the first S says the first letter, the second S says the
second letter and so on. Once the word is spelled out, the next S says, SPARKLE! Then choose the next
word.
Vocabulary Games
The Long Word: How many words can you make?
Level: Beginner, Secondary
Procedure: T arranges a fairly long word, e.g. ‘generalization’, ‘demonstrate’, ‘nationalistic’ on the
blackboard. Players try to make as many other words as they can using any of the letters in that word.
Variation: The winner may be judged by the total number of words alone or extra points may be
awarded to players who find a word that no other student finds.
Bingo
Procedure: T asks Ss to draw a 3 x 3 grid (or larger) on their paper and write one word from a recent
vocab list in each square. Using the same list, the T describes words one-by-one in random order and, if the
student has written that word on his/her paper then they mark it off. Continue this until someone gets
three marked off boxes in a row (aka…a BINGO!). MAKE THEM YELL BINGO to get the point. :-)
Variation: For lower levels, just say the word or act it out or use it in a sentence. Then they just
have to listen for it.
Scattegorical Charts
Level: Primary, Secondary
Materials: Paper, pencil, dictionary
Procedure: Have each st draw a box and a name or word with 4 different letters written across the top, one
letter per box. The entire class uses the same word across the top. Down the left side are the four
categories: Fruits, Vegetables, Flowers, and Animals. As in the game Scattegories, students work to fill out
the whole chart using the given letters. Make it a competition!
C A R T
Fruits Cherry Apple Raspberry Tangerine
Vegetables Carrot Artichoke Radish Tomato
Flowers Carnation Azalea Rose Tulip
Animals Cat Ape Rat Tiger
Variation Be creative! Use different categories/countries/food/clothing/
colors/transportation/etc.
Word Association Game

Level: All
Procedure: Decide on a topic (e.g. Seasons) and designate the possible choices (e.g. WINTER, SPRING,
SUMMER, AUTUMN). You say a word associated with one of the seasons, e.g. ‘swimming’. A st should
answer or write SUMMER. Working in pairs is fun too!
Variation: For higher level sts, you can give the topic WINTER and each st must give a word
related to that season.
Adjectives R’ Us
Procedure: Orally, give sts three adjectives or write them on the board. Sts then have to think of
something that can be described by all three of the adjectives. E.g. – big, white, cold. Sts say ‘polar bear,’
‘Alaska,’ etc. Do this in teams and see who can think of the most! (Or who can think of one that no one
else thought of)
Hidden Word/Simple Crossword

Materials: Either give out handouts or write crossword on the board
Procedure: Make a list of 10 vocabulary words and think of definitions or clues to describe them. On the
board or on a handout, make a list but instead of each letter, put an empty box so a word with 5 letters
would be represented by 5 boxes. You read the definitions or clues aloud and the sts must fill in the boxes.
There is a hidden word spelled down the list that sts must find.
Hangman
Level: All
Procedure: Students are in two teams. Teacher chooses two different vocabulary words (both of same
letter-length) and writes spaces for each letter on the board. Each team takes turns guessing letters. If they
guess correctly, teacher writes the letter in the correct space. If they are wrong, their hangman gets a new
body part. If a team’s hangman is finished, then they lose. If a team finishes their word, then they win.
Last Letter Category

Procedure: Students choose a category. One-by-one each student must name a word that fits in this
category. The last letter or each word is used as the first letter of the next word. (Example for category
ANIMALS: Fish  Horse; Horse  Elephant)
Category Pick 10
Procedure: Students are in teams. Teacher gives category (or asks Ss to choose). Students have 2-5
minutes to write as many words as they can think of in this category. Teacher writes 10 secret words in this
category, which they don’t show the students. After the time is up, the teacher reads his/her 10 words. The
teams get one point for each of the teacher’s words they wrote. Most points wins!
CHAIN 4: Spelling Chain

Procedure: Review spelling of vocabulary words by having students spell words in a line. Each student
says one letter until the word is complete. One point for each complete word. If they make a mistake, they
have to start over with a new word.
Variation: Spell it backwards!
Flyswatter
Level: All
Materials: 2 Flyswatters (rolled-up pieces of paper)
Procedure: Divide your class into 2 groups. Choose 2 students and ask them to go to the back of the
classroom. Display a list vocabulary words on the blackboard (or around the room). Give both students a
fly swatter (or rolled-up piece of paper). The objective of the game is that you will say a word and they
students will look for the word, then run and “fly swat” it. The first team to succeed gets a point.
Variation: Use real objects or papers with words written on them and post them around the room.
Wild n’ Crazy Kidz!
Switching Chairs
Level: Primary
Procedure: Students sit in a circle with chairs. One student stands in the middle and calls out a color. All
sitting students wearing this color must stand up and find a new chair. The student without a chair is now
the student in the middle.
Variation: Middle student calls clothing names or color/clothing combination.
Pictionary
Materials: Slips of paper with vocab words written on them
Procedure: Divide the students into teams. One student from one of the teams chooses a slip of paper
with one of the new vocabulary words on it and draws it on the board without writing any words
(Mongolian or English) or saying the word. The drawing student’s team guesses what the word is. If they
guess correctly they get one point. The next team draws. It is sometimes necessary to have a time limit on
drawing. This works best for easy to draw words, like animals, clothing, food, sports, and so on.
Combining verbs and nouns makes it extra exciting!
Vocabulary Contest
Frank Goeddeke, M21
Level: All
Materials: Flashcards, Candy*
Procedure: Divide the class into groups of 4. Layout flashcards on each groups table. T’s say one of the
words. First group to hold up the corresponding flashcard gets a point. T says the next word. Group with
the most points wins candy.
Variation: T can say vocabulary word in Mongolian, and S must hold up corresponding word in
English.
Vocabulary List
Frank Goeddeke, M21
Level: All
Materials: Paper, pens
Procedure: T says words. S’s write the words on paper. After enough time given to S’s, T writes each
word on the blackboard and pronounces. T says next word. Repeat until complete.
Matching Pictures
Erika K. Peyton, M21
Material: Pictures illustrating vocabulary
Procedure: T introduces new vocabulary (write on board). T presents S’s with pictures illustrating
vocabulary. S’s work in teams/or alone to match pictures with vocabulary.
English Collage
Alyssa Vorhies, M21
Level: All
Material: Magazine clippings (i.e. product labels)
Procedure: Have all S’s bring in an English clipping (i.e. product labels). Cut them up and past onto paper
to make a collage(s). Discuss the English words etc.
Variation: Can do with pictures. Have S’s describe what is happening in the pictures.
Word Scramble
Rob Galloway, M21
Level: Secondary
Materials: Cut-up Words
Procedure: Choose a word relevant to your lesson, ideally 5-10 letters long. Cut up word into individual
letters. Divide students into groups and give each group a set of letters, have them make as many words as
they can with their letters. Have each team write the words they made.
Around the World

Nadra Safi, M21
Level: All
Materials: None
Procedure: Ss stand in a circle. One S is chosen to be “it”. That S stands behind/next to another S. The
T presents a vocabulary word. The first S to say the word winds and gets to move to the next S.
Alphabet Games
Backwriting
Level: All
Procedure: Have students in pairs. Each student takes turns drawing a letter on their partner’s back with
their finger. The partner should guess. (Older students can try to spell words).
Variation: To make it a competition, divide class into two teams. Have one pair from each team
come to the board and write the letters their partner is drawing on their back. Have a student from
the other team watch to make sure it’s correct. The team that can spell the most letters in 1 minute
wins.
Human Alphabet
Level: All
Procedure: Clear lots of space in your classroom. Divide the class into teams. After you say a letter, the
students must work together to make the shape of the letter using their bodies.
Variation: For older students, assign them to spell full words while standing (one person= one
letter.) Have other groups guess what word they spelled.
Alphabet Soup
Level: All
Materials: Slips of paper for each letter of the alphabet
Procedure: Put all the letters on small slips of paper in a bowl. Go around the room allowing each student
to choose a letter and try to say its name (or sound, if that’s what you’re teaching). If they get it right, they
can keep it. If they don’t, it goes back in the soup. The student with the most letters wins.
Alphabet Relay
Level: All
Materials: Slips of paper for each letter of the alphabet
Procedure: Yay for practicing Alphabetical order! Divide Ss into teams. Place slips of paper with each
letter written on it on a table at one side of the classroom (once alphabet set for each team). Teams line up
at the other side of the room. When T says go, students go one-by-one to retrieve letters (in alphabetical
order) and bring them back.
ABC Scramble
Ellie Ben-Daniel, M21
Level: Primary
Materials: ABC letters cut up
Procedure: Divide Ss into groups and give them the letters of the alphabet. They have to race to put them
in order. Then say words that they need to spell out.
Fun Fact: The word for “alphabet” in Mongolian is “Цагаан Толгой” or “White head.”
Reading Comprehension Activities
True or False
Procedure: Present students with reading material as well as True or False statements. Students have to
determine which statements are true or false based on the reading material.
Variation: Have Ss work in groups to write T/F statements for other groups to figure out.
Scrambled Text
Level: Secondary or Post-Secondary
Procedure: Split a reading into a various amount of parts. Give one part to each group of students (groups
of students can vary), the students have to put the story in order.
Cloze
Procedure: Present a reading to the students with certain words that are blank. Read the reading and the
students have to fill in the blank.
Variation: You can present the words that they will have to fill in before the reading so they can
familiarize themselves with the words.
Mid-Text predicting
Procedure: At points in the text when something dramatic or different has happened, or is going to happen
soon, you can ask students to stop reading, close their book and try to predict what might happen next.
This encourages students to read carefully, imagine and discuss future possibilities, then read the next part
to check their predictions
Comprehension Questions
Procedure: Classic. Ask detailed questions about the text and have students say or write the correct
answers.
Variations: Try it with books closed to make it more challenging. Or have students write their own
questions in small groups and trade among themselves.
Re-telling the Story

Procedure: After reading a text, have students work in pairs or small groups to re-tell the story orally to
each other.
Variations: Or have them write it in their own words. Or have them act it out for the class!
How do I get there?

Stephanie Sullivan, M21
Materials: Really big map (of a town/building etc., big enough for S’s to walk on), 2-3 individually marked
tokens, several unmarked tokens
Procedure: Divide S’s into 2 or 3 teams (each with their own special token), and designate a reader.
Readers leave the room while T places all tokens face down on the map. S’s write down directions to their
token from a designated beginning place. Readers reenter the room and spend a minute or two reading
their team’s directions. Readers are then must seek out their tokens on the map. Throughout their search,
teams must remain silent or they will be disqualified. First team to find their token wins. If time, repeat
with a new reader.
Weather Forecast
Ruth Wolff, M21
Material: Picture sequences of weather forecasts, written weather forecasts
Procedure: Have S’s identify 8 adjectives to describe the weather. Have pre-written weather forecast,
eventually one over a 5-day period. The more authentic the better.
Example Forecast: Today will start foggy and cold. A light wind will clear the fog, but it will be cloudy and
cold all afternoon. There will probably be some heavy rain. The rain will clear later, and the early evening
will be dry and sunny. Then, match the forecast above to the correct picture slide.
Example Picture-Slide of Forecast:
Take one of the other picture slides, and make your own weather forecast to support it.
Chillin’ in the jorlon.

Reading Skills Activities
Pronoun checks
Procedure: Ask what the pronouns in the text refer back to. For example:
he/she/it/they/we/his/hers/their/our. This recognition activity also shows students how to use pronouns
in their own writing.
Finding Keywords and Topic Sentences

Procedure: For each paragraph or part of the story, students find the words or sentences that are most
important. This encourages them to not read the whole text in detail and focus on what they know. **Pre-
teach the concept of “Topic Sentences” and “Key words”**
Guessing Unknown Words (Context Clues)

Materials: Text with gibberish words in it
Procedure: To practice using context clues to figure out the meaning of unknown words, give Ss a text with
some gibberish words thrown a few times. When they get to these gibberish words, instruct them to ask
themselves first if it’s important/necessary to know the meaning of this word in order to understand the
sentence. If no, leave it. If yes, can they guess the approximate meaning from the context of the sentence?
(Is this a good or bad word? What part of speech is it? Does it look like any other word you know?). Make
sure and tell them beforehand that these words are gibberish and don’t have meaning that they should try to
learn.
Variation: Instead of gibberish, use a text with a few really hard words.
Mr. Kyle
Listening Activities
Arrange in Order
Materials: Pictures of parts of a story or cards with keywords
Procedure: T divides the sts into pairs or small groups and reads a story or
text or an article and the sts arrange the pictures/cards in order. Good for
helping students make sense of the first listen.
Variation: Give students full sentences to put in order while they
listen. This is better for the second or third listen.
English Grab n’ Go
Materials: Pictures or word cards.
Procedure: T divides sts into groups of 5-6 and gives each group the same set of cards. In their groups,
the sts spread the cards out so that everyone can see them. T calls out a word and the sts must grab the
correct card.
Variation: For Primary sts, T should include both the word and the picture. More Advanced sts
should have just the picture.
Variation: Call out a letter and the sts must take all the cards that begin with that letter.
Simon Says
Level: Primary
Procedure: T or st is Simon and stands in front of the class and gives commands. Sts do the commands,
but only if the command is preceded by “Simon says…”
Variation: Instead of “Simon says..” change the key word to be “Please” or “Teacher says” or
“Can/could you…”
True/False Chairs
Materials: Chairs
Procedure: T puts two chairs at the front of the room, facing the sts. One chair is labeled “true,” the other
“false.” T divides the sts into two teams and they make two lines, each facing a chair and positioned a short
distance from them. T then reads a statement and the two sts at the front of the line have to race to sit in
the correct chair. Whoever sits in the correct chair first gets a point for their team and the next two sts go.
Telephone
Level: All
Procedure: Ss stand in line(s). T (or a st) whispers a sentence into the first st in the line’s ear. S/he must
repeat what was heard to the next st and so on until it goes around the class and the last st says it out loud.
The fist st then confirms if the sentence is correct. If using teams, points go to the most accurate.
Retell in Your Own Words

Procedure: Sts listen to T tell a story or read a text and then write a summary of it in their own words.
Variation: Sts retell the text from the perspective of another character.
Variation: T gives sts a list of vocabulary words that they must use in their retelling.
DICTATION 1 – Word-for-Word
Procedure: T reads a text 3 times and the students try to write the text exactly as the teacher says it. The
first time T reads slowly and the sts listen. The 2nd time T reads very slowly and the sts write. The 3rd time
T reads a bit faster and the sts check their work.
DICTATION 2 - Reconstruct the Text

Procedure: T reads the text very quickly and the sts write down what they can. Then in pairs they must
come up with the whole text.
DICTATION 3 - Find the Mistakes

Procedure: T reads a text that the sts already know pretty well…but the version s/he reads contains
mistakes (either grammatical or contextual). Sts must write the correct version or at least note the mistakes.
DICTATION 4 – Read and Run Relay!

Procedure: Divide the class into teams. Choose a writer from each team. Have all other students stand in
a line. Place copies of the sample text at the other side of the room. When the game starts, one student
from each team goes to the text and memorizes as much as s/he can. Then they go to the writer and tell
them what they have read. The writer writes what they say. Students cannot go back to the text. Then
other students in line repeat this one-by-one until all texts are complete. Teams then switch texts and check
for mistakes using the original texts as keys. The team with smallest number of mistakes wins.
Draw a Picture
Skill Practiced: Vocabulary
Materials: paper, pen
Procedure: T describes a picture of a person or thing and the sts must draw it. The catch is that the
person has some strange features, i.e. 10 legs or purple hair.
Variation: T puts sts in pairs, one st has a picture and must describe it to the other st who draws it.
Follow Instructions
Procedure: T gives oral directions from the classroom to a well-known place in town go straight, turn left
at the shop, etc.). Ss must listen to the directions and guess where the end point is. The next time, a st can
give directions to the others.
Variation: One st is blindfolded and he other sts give him/her directions on how to get around the
classroom. Set up some crazy obstacles for them to avoid!
Hold Up Cards
Level: All
Materials: Cards with “Agree” or “Disagree”
Procedure: T gives out cards with “Agree” or “Disagree” to each student. T reads statements and Ss must
hold up cards that best fit their feeling about that statement.
Variation: Cards say “Yes/No” or “True/False,” T asks different kinds of questions.
Cloze Activity
Materials: Sheets with a text with words missing
Procedure: T hands out sheets that contain a text with words missing. These words might be specific
vocabulary words or just every 5th word removed. T reads the text and the sts fill in the missing words.
Variation: Do this with song lyrics of a song the Ss like. Listen to the song a few times so they can
fill in the words.
Guess the Accent/Idiom by Nation
Tom Sullivan, M21
Materials: CD/MP3 with various English accents, Stereo, or written phrases, Blackboard
Procedure: Divide the class into teams. Have them listen to or read sayings or phrases that are particular to
various English-speaking nations, and guess which nation it is from. Specific scoring rules may vary.
Idiom Quiz Game

Tom Sullivan, M21
Materials: Prepared list of idiom Q’s, blackboard, chalk
Procedure: In teams, S’s will guess the missing word from an English idiom after hearing a description of
the situation in which the idiom is used (i.e. Tim forgot to study and failed his math test. He really screwed
___: a. over, b. up, c. around, d. down). Bonus points can be awarded if S’s can identify the situations
where other idiom choices (i.e. over) are used.
Foot Game
Alex Hill, M21
Procedure: T will monitor S’s standing in a tight circle shoulder-to-shoulder as the game goes on. S’s
should follow the honor system. In a circle, S’s must find someone’s shoes (not to their immediate left or
right) to look at once the teacher says “One. Two. Three. Look down!” S’s cannot change whose shoes
they’re looking at. Once the T has counted off, S’s must look at the person whose shoes they were looking
at. If two S’s are both looking at each other they are out. They cannot switch eyes or look up to the ceiling.
Last 2 people standing win.
Practicing Prominence
Kaede Johnson, M21
Material: slips of paper with Q’s, responses on index cards (one per word)
Procedure: After instruction on prominence… Divide S’s into groups ___ (however many words in response
sentences). Give each group one Q and response (adjacency pair) exhibiting prominence.
Ex: Is this your pen? (show emphasis)
No, it’s Katie’s. (each word on separate note card – don’t indicate emphasis)
Have each group figure out where the prominence in the response should lie. When they report
have them stand and hold a word to indicate where the emphasis is, and sit with the words that do
not have emphasis. KATIES
NO IT’S
After each group presents, have the rest of the class back form the question. Have each group then
share their question, and explain its illocutionary meaning (as well as that of the response).
Ex: Is this your pen? (and not someone else’s)
No, it’s Katie’s. (and not mine)
Crazy House
Anonymous, M21
Level: Intermediate
Materials: Paper
Procedure: Instruct Ss to draw what you say. Describe your house using vocabulary and prepositions. Put
objects in wrong places (I have a bed in my bathroom). When finished, ask Ss which objects were in which
rooms and where. Follow up by asking where each object should be.
Listen and Draw
Justin Newberry, M21
Level: All
Materials: paper, markers
Procedure: Divide Ss in groups of 2 or 3. Read a story and the groups have to illustrate the story as you
read it; comic book style. Try to have the illustrator rotate after each sequence of the story. After the story
is finished, have each group present their comic strip and retell the story to the class.
Writing Activities
Crazy story
Materials: Paper
Procedure: Teacher gives a sheet of paper st and tells
them to start a story. The teacher can start it himself
with “Once upon a time. . . ” and have the sts
continue. After a few minutes, the teacher tells sts to
give the sheet to the st on the left and continue
his/her partner’s story. This procedure is repeated
several times.
Newspaper Report
Level: Secondary
Materials: pictures form newspapers and magazines
Procedure: Break sts up into small groups. Give each
group 5 pictures at random. The group must choose
three of these pictures to link together in a newspaper
article. They can write alone or in a pair.
Variation: Each group chooses three pictures
for another group to write about.
Outlined Poetry
Procedure: This is an easy way to get sts to write poetry. Brainstorm some emotions on the board and
have each st select one. Then show them the outline for the poem. You may want to give a sample poem
also.
(Emotion) Happiness
(Emotion) feels like (something) Happiness feels like warm sunshine on a lazy
summer day.
It smells like (something) It smells like chocolate cake.
It sounds like (something) It sounds like the voice of your best friend,
telephoning you from far away.
It looks like (something) It looks like smiles on the faces of people around
you.
It tastes like (something) It tastes like pink bubble gum.
(Emotion) is like (something) Happiness is like a perfect birthday gift.
English Journal
Procedure: Give students time in class to write in their English journals about anything they want (as long
as it’s in English). When you check them, don’t make corrections, just check for communication and
respond with a personal note in response to what they wrote. Show them that you’re listening and that you
understand what they are saying.
Billboard
Belen Diaz, M21
Materials: paper, markers or crayons
Procedure: S’s will separate into groups. Each group will make up a song about specific topics provided by
T’s. Once song is written, each group will make a CD cover with title. S’s can then present albums to the
class, and vote to decide who has the best album.
Dialogue Journal
Jason P. Douglas, M21
Level: All
Materials: Journals
Procedure: Assign S’s a journal for the whole semester. Journal will contain a dialogue between S’s and T.
Not scripted. Begin by asking S’s questions. S’s reply by writing the answer in their journals. After
answering, S’s will ask the T a question. This activity is meant to encourage free thought. Heavy editing is
discourage, but verbal feedback is good.
Variation: Assign S’s in-class “pen-pals” so that they can write to each other.
Heart Map
Ashlie Newberry, M21
Level: All
Material: paper in heart shape
Procedure: Have piece of paper cut out in the shape of a heart. S’s will draw a picture of everything close
to their heart (i.e. stick figure family members). Give S’s plenty of time to ponder. Help S’s learn the
English term for each of their favorite things (i.e. homework, dictionary etc.) Use this heart throughout the
school year to help prompt S’s with topics of speaking. This especially works well for writing prompts.
Make a Monster
Kathryn Phillips, M21
Material: paper, crayons/markers/colored pencils
Procedure: S’s draw a picture of a monster, and then prepare & present a short paragraph describing their
monster. For teaching body parts, colors, numbers, and adjectives.
Group-a-Graphs
Andrew Mobbs, M21
Procedure: S’s divide into groups of 2-4, depending on class size. T gives S’s a writing topic, and S’s work
with their groups to write a descriptive paragraph (5-7 sentences) on the topic. When finished, each group
reads their paragraph, and compares them with other groups’ (compare-a-graphs)
Ghost Writer
John Russell, M21
Level: All
Material: Blackboard
Procedure: One S or the T writes a letter on the board. S’s take turns writing another letter, one-by-one,
either at the end or beginning of the letter cluster. Any letter added has to allow a word to be spelled, but
the first person to complete a word loses. Words must be more than 3 letters in order to lose.
1st F 2nd FI 3rd FIL 4th EFIL 5th EFILE 6th EFILED 7th DEFILED
Challenge  no word contains the letters (i.e. “BORINZ”), loses.
Biographies
Merrie Winfrey, M21
Materials: paper, pen, pictures of people
Procedure: Have all S’s as a class brainstorm things that you would want to know about a stranger (i.e. age,
place of birth, job, education etc.). T writes these things on the board as they’re said. Instruct S’s that they
are going to write a short biography of the person in the picture that the T gives them. Use the items on the
chalkboard as guidelines for content. This can be done individually, in pairs, or in groups. The class will
vote on the most interesting and creative bio. Give S’s 10-15 minutes to write biographies once pictures
have been distributed. After S’s are finished, biographies are read aloud.
Variation: Can be modified depending on level of S’s. For example, instruct S’s they must write
biography all in past tense. Instruct S’ they must write 4 sentences in past tense and 3 in present
tense. For advanced S’s, the initial brainstorming can be eliminated, and S’s can be instructed to
write a biography.

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M21 English Teachers’

What was the question?

Correct the Mistakes

Ball Tense Toss

Word Order Cards

Guess the Password

Situational Role Plays

2 Truths and a Lie

CHAIN 1: Question Chain

CHAIN 2: Memory Chain

CHAIN 3: Sentence Chain:

Line up according to….

The Hot Seat

What are you doing?

Bizz-Buzz Counting Game

Word Association Game

Hidden Word/Simple Crossword

Last Letter Category

CHAIN 4: Spelling Chain

Around the World

Re-telling the Story

How do I get there?

Example Picture-Slide of Forecast:

Chillin’ in the jorlon.

Finding Keywords and Topic Sentences

Guessing Unknown Words (Context Clues)

Retell in Your Own Words

DICTATION 2 - Reconstruct the Text

DICTATION 3 - Find the Mistakes

DICTATION 4 – Read and Run Relay!

Idiom Quiz Game

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