GAMES WITH FLASHCARDS

1. Adverb Action:
Teacher writes on the board an activity like "brush your teeth." S/He picks one student,
they come to the front of the class. The teacher then shows the S a card with an adverb
written on it, such as "slowly". The chosen student then does the activity in the way of
the adverb. The other students have to guess the adverb. The one who guesses right gets a
point and mimes the next action which the teacher writes on the board. To help them you
can give them a list of options, if you think they need some help. (Submitted by Libby
McArthur).

2. Alphabet Line Up:

This is a good way to teach the alphabet to your class. Give each S an alphabet flashcard
with a different letter of the alphabet on it, starting at "A" (e.g. if you have 7 , give
flashcards A through to G). Have them move around the room to music. When the music
stops, they must line up in order. You can also play with missing letters (e.g.. Give a "c",
then an "f", a "k", an "o", etc). That way they are really learning the order, not just
memorizing. (Submitted by Gena).

3. Alphabet Soup:
Place plastic letters in a bowl. Divide flashcards by their beginning letters. Each student
draws a letter from the bowl and then finds the flashcards associated with that letter.
(Submitted by Lori Supernaw)

4. Alphabet Wave:
Divide the a-z flashcards among all your students. Put students in a line and play the
ABC song. As it plays each student must hold up their corresponding alphabet flashcard.

5. Backs to the Board Game:

This one is good for higher level kids. Make two teams and stand one S from each team
in front of the board, facing away from it. Place a flashcard picture on the board (e.g.
"hamburger") and the students have to explain that word to their team member (e.g. you
can buy it in McDonalds, it's got cheese and ketchup in it). The first S out of the two
standing in front of the board to guess the word wins a point for his/her team.

6. Basketball:
Students take a shot at the trash can/box/etc. First show a flashcard to S1. If s/he
answers correctly then s/he can have a shot at the basket. If the S gets the ball in the
basket then s/he wins 2 points. If the S hits the basket without going inside then s/he
wins 1 point. The person who gets the most points is the winner. This can also be played
in teams.
7. Basketball Card Line-Up:
This game is like a basketball game but more educational. Place 2 lines of several
cards. You need 2 players and a basket far away. To shoot the basket from far away is
hard so the players need to say the card and make their way closer and closer to the
basket. When they feel that they can throw and hit the basket, they make their attempt.

8. Battleship:
Age: 4+, Level: All levels, Target: Vocabulary, Phrases, Listening and
Conversation. Make a grid. The size of the grid depends on the number of students and
the time limits of the class. Basically the students pick a grid reference, as " A1" or “
B7”and then you reveal the card.

9. Bean Bag Toss:

Lay out flashcards face down up the floor. Students toss the bean bag and identify the
flashcard it lands on. (Submitted by Betty).

10. Catch me if you can:

Have students sit in a circle. After reviewing the chosen set of flashcards, place them in a
pile in the center of the circle. Take the first card and show it to everybody. Have one
student walk around the outside of the circle saying words from the specific subject – like
fruits or days - while touching each student's of the circle on the head. When the "magic"
word is said, the student whose head is touched at that time, must stand up and chase the
student who touched them around the circle. The first one to sit in that spot remains
seated and chooses the next "magic" word. The student standing begins again;
"Sunday...Monday…"

11. Charades:
Have a S come to the front of the class and show a FC or whisper a word to that S. The S
then acts out that word and the first S to guess can be the next player. This works very
well with action verbs. Variation: divide the class up into teams - the first S to guess
wins a point for his/her team.

12. Concentration:
You need 2 sets of flashcards for this game. Place both sets face down on the
floor. Students take turns in turning over 2 cards (saying the cards aloud). If the cards
match then the S keeps the cards. If the cards are different the cards are turned back over
again in their original places. The S with the most pairs at the end of the game is the
winner.

13. Concentration 2:
Level: requires basic reading. Make a set of cards. On half of them put a picture of a
theme related subject (for example body parts, food, furniture etc) on the other half put
the word relating to each picture (ex. nose, mouth, lips, eye...). Laminate if
possible. Place all cards face down on the table. The first player turns two at a time (or
three for the very young) over to match the word to the picture. If it matches the player
can keep the pair if not, the cards are returned and then the next player goes. These cards
can also be used so that a child or team simply matches the words to the pictures.

14. Cross the River:

Place flashcards on the floor in a winding manner. Each represents a stepping stone in
the river, as students must say word/phrase/question/etc in order to step on it and cross
the river! (submitted by Michelle K).

15. Darts:
You need a magnetic dartboard (you can get in cheap $1 stores). Place flashcards on the
board and number them. Divide class into 2 to 4 teams. Then ask, "What's picture number
3?". If the student answers correctly then s/he may throw a dart for points. You can also
say the vocabulary word and have students point instead of speak if they are younger or
at a more basic level. (Submitted by Tania Bibbo).

16. Easy Hard:

You need at least 20 cards to play which you divide into 2 piles face down: An Easy and
a Hard pile. Give each team 50 points from the beginning. Pick a student and ask if they
would like an easy or a hard card, also ask how many points they would like to risk on
knowing the answer: Easy 1-5 and Hard 5-10.

17. Fast as rabbits:

Teacher puts some flashcards on the board. Then a pair of students go to the board facing
the flashcards. Teacher says words (from the flashcards) and the 2 children must touch
the correct flashcard as fast as they can. The winner is who touches more flashcards
first. (Submitted by Paco Santos Juanes).

18. Fish:
Before this game you need to have the students in pairs draw and cut out a picture of a
fish for each pair. While they are doing that put 2 parallel lines of tape on the floor a few
meters apart. Have students play in twos - each student behind a different line. Teacher
shows S1 a flashcard and asks what it is. If the S answers it correctly s/he can blow once
to propel the fish forward. Next, Teacher asks S2. The S who blows the fish over the
tapped line is the winner.

19. Flashcard Fun:

Hold up a flashcard and elicit the answer from a S. Students can win the flashcard if they
answer correctly. The S with the most flashcards at the end is the winner.
20. Four Corners:
Teacher hangs a flashcard (4 in total) in all 4 corners of the room. One S is chosen to
stand in the middle with his/her eyes closed and counts to ten while the other students
scramble to one of the four corners. At the count of ten, the S in the middle shouts
"STOP" and picks one corner by naming it's corresponding flashcard. The students in that
corner are "out" and must sit down. Continue the game until only one student remains;
he/she is then "it" (the counter in middle). (Submitted by Sister Soco)

21. Give Me Game:

You can use flashcards or objects. Elicit the different flashcards you have. Then place
all the flashcards around the classroom. Once the students have collected the flashcards
(they'll probably do their best to hide them in their pockets, etc.), teacher says "Give me a
(bus)". The S with the (bus) flashcard should approach the teacher and hand it to
him/her: "Here you are". Avoid having the flashcards thrown back to you as they can go
anywhere and take a long time to finish this game.

22. Guessing Question Game:

This is good practice for asking simple questions. Teacher hides any flash card behind
his/her back and students try to guess what the object is by asking questions: "Is it a
dog?", "Is it a ball?", "Is it a book?", etc. until they guess the flashcard. (Submitted by
Nagwa).

23. Hint Animal Game:

As a review of animals flashcards, teacher holds some cards without showing any to the
students. Then the teacher tells the kids that they are going to receive 3 hints, so they
need to listen carefully. For example: 1. I am yellow. 2. I have long hair. 3. I am strong.
Who am I? Well, a lion of course! You can make it in different levels depending on how
much English you use or which vocab you use.

24. Jump On It:

Spread out flashcards on the floor and have students stand at one end of the room. Shout
out a card and the students have to find the card and jump on it. The first S to do this wins
a point. Variation: Make 2 teams for a relay race. The first 2 students try and jump on
the flashcard first to win a point for their team.

25. Karuta:
Lay flashcards on a table or the floor, picture side up. Teacher calls out the
word/phrase/etc. and students compete to be the first person to grab or touch the card. If
they touch it, they keep it. Game continues until all cards have been picked up.
(Submitted by Blythe Musteric)
26. Keep the in Order:
Each student has a set of cards (pictures with names) similar to the teacher. The teacher
places his/her cards in a particular order in two or three rows, and so do the students
following instructions. Teacher starts calling the cards in pairs so that the two cards
named change positions. Make a few changes in this way (don´t let students see the
changes, they must follow them only by listening carefully). Afterwards, the teacher calls
a student to say the cards in order. If all the cards are well placed the student can lead a
new game. Students love the game and learn a lot of vocabulary. (Submitted by Amparo
Andrés)

27. Lightning Flashcards:

Teacher stands at front of class with flashcards. Students form two teams standing in a
line. Two students go first and face away from the teacher. Teacher says 1.2.3. What is
it? and students quickly turn around and the first S to call out the correct answer wins a
point for their team (good for review of vocab). (Submitted by Laurie Pich)

28. Line True or False:

Put a line of tape on the floor and designate one side "True" and the other "False". Hold
up a flashcard or object and say its word. If students think that you have said the correct
word they jump on the True side, if not they jump on the False side. Incorrect students sit
out until the next game.

29. Musical Flashcards:

Students walk around some flashcards in a circle as some music is playing. When the
music stops, teacher shouts out a flashcard and the students must race to step on that
card. The first S to step on it keeps the card (1 point) and the game continues.

30. Musical Chair Alphabet:

Place chairs in the form of musical chairs with alphabet flashcards placed on them. Start
the music when the music stops the students pick up their flashcards and have to read the
sound on the flashcard. The child who is unable to read is out of the game. (Submitted by
Farah Najam)

31. Ostrich Game:

This game is really good fun. You need some clothes pegs. Pair up students and peg a
card onto each S's back. Both students face each other with hands behind their backs
waiting for teacher to shout "Go!". At this point they must try to discover his/her
partner's hidden flashcard without letting their partner see theirs. When the S finally sees
his/her partner's card s/he has to shout it out to become the winner. The students look
like ostriches when playing this game.
32. Over-under:
Line up the kids in two teams. Give the two kids at the front each a flash card. When you
say go, the first in line says the word and passes the f/c over their head, the next kid says
the word and passes the card under between their legs, the next kid over, then under, etc.
The last kid in line races to the front to hand the f/c to the teacher and says the word. The
first team to do so gets a point. (submitted by Sarah Litwin-Schmid).

33. Paper Rock Scissors:

A good vocabulary game. Teach students the new vocabulary (E.g. clothes, colors,
animals, etc.). Spread the flashcards in a row on the floor. Divide students into two
teams. Have students walk on the cards from the opposite sides repeating the vocab just
learned. When they are standing on the last card from their end the teacher says "1... 2....
3" and the students have to put their hand in front in the form of paper or scissors or the
rock. Scissors cut the paper, paper covers the rock and rock break the scissors. Repeat the
activity with each student from different teams. The winning students can play
again. (submitted by Reena Unterreiner-lal).

34. Pass:
Sit the students with you in a circle. Teacher holds up a flashcard or object and says its
name (e.g. "Pen"). Teacher passes it on to the next S who also says its name and passes it
on to the next S. Variations: change directions, speed rounds, have many objects going
round at the same time.

35. Pictionary:
Good for reviewing vocab. Pick a S and show him/her a flashcard picture or whisper a
word into his/her ear. The S draws the picture on the board and the first S to guess the
picture gets to draw the next picture. This can also be played in teams with a point
system.

36. Picture Recognition Game:

Have all the students stand at one end of the room and the teacher in the middle. Hold up
one picture flashcard and students come forward and whisper the word in the T's ear. If
correct they can go over to the other side of the room. Students can have as many
guesses as they like.

37. Quick Peek:

Teacher holds a flashcard with the picture facing towards him/her. Teacher quickly
shows it to the students for a quick peek. The S who guesses the card wins a point.

38. Race Track:

Lay out the flashcards like a race track with a start and finish line. Students play in pairs
or teams. S1 rolls a dice and moves a counter along the track. The S must say the
flashcard landed on and if wrong must move back to the original position. Variation: put
in some 'throw again' cards (e.g. brightly colored cards) and a nominate a 'crash' number
on the die (e.g. if a student throws a 6 they crash and must stay where they are and miss a
turn).

39. Roll that Dice:

Split class into 2 to 4 teams. Place flashcards on board and number them. Younger
Students: Teacher says: Point to the ______. S should point to that card. If correct then S
rolls dice for points. If incorrect S gets help from the team. Older Students: Teacher says:
What's picture number 4? S says the vocabulary word. If correct then S rolls dice for
points. If incorrect S gets help from the team. (Submitted by Tania Bibbo).

40. Rope Jump:

You need a rope for this one! Have students stand behind each other in a line. Hold a
rope (have a S hold the other end) at a height that the students should be able to jump
over. On the other side of the rope spread out some flashcards or objects and a box. Call
out the name of one of the flashcards/objects to the first S. S/he has to jump over the
rope, pick up the correct flashcard and put it in the box. For other rounds you can hold
the rope down low, so students have to crawl/roll under.

41. Shopping:
This can be used with a wide range of flashcards (food pictures work well). Gather all
the students and show them all the flashcards you have. Ask a S "What do you want?"
(or maybe "What would you like?" to higher levels). The S should reply (e.g. "a
hamburger, please"). Teacher then says "Here you are" and the S finishes with "Thank
you". At the end collect the objects by playing the 'Give Me' game.

42. Slam:
Sit the students in a circle and place some flashcards in the middle of the circle. Tell
students to put their hands on their heads. Teacher shouts out the word of one of the
flashcards and the students race to touch it. The S who touches it first get to keep the
object. The S who has the most flashcards at the end of the game is the winner.

43. Slow motion:

Teacher holds a pack of flashcards with the pictures facing towards him/her. The last
card should be turned around so it is facing the students but is hidden as it is behind the
pack. Slowly pull the flashcard up inch by inch so the students can only see part of the
flashcard. As the picture is slowly revealed students try and guess what it is. The first S
to guess correctly keeps the card (for 1 point). Variation: To make it a little more
difficult turn the flashcard upside down.

44. Snap:
You need 2 sets of flashcards all shuffled together. Sit the students in a circle and deal
out all the cards to the students. S1 places down a card in the middle of the circle and
says the word aloud, followed by S2 placing his/her card down to form a pile. At some
point 2 identical cards may be placed on top of each other and the students race to slam
the pile and shout "Snap!". The S who slams last takes the pile. Students should try and
lose all their cards. The last S left with all the cards is the loser.

45. Speed lines:

Have the students in two lines facing the teacher. The first students in each line are the
players. Show a flashcard and the first student to correctly name it is the winner. These
two students then go to the back of their respective lines and you repeat the process with
the next two students. If both students say the name of the card together, let them quickly
Janken to decide the winner. A very important ingredient is the speed. Have lines of
unequal numbers so that on progressive rounds the students are playing with different
people. This way you don't have to worry about pairing slower students with quicker
ones.

46. Spin the Bottle:

Sit students in a circle with a bottle in the middle. Teacher spins the bottle. When it
stops spinning the S it is pointing to is shown a flashcard and asked to say what it is. If
the answer is correct then that S can spin the bottle. This is a good vocab review activity.

47. Tic Tac Toe:

Place 9 flashcards (representing words, phrases, questions, etc) face down and numbered
(or letters of alphabet) on a large taped grid on the floor. Students call out numbers or
letters to see flashcards. S or team with correct response claims that space with an X or
O. (submitted by Michelle K).

48. Touch:
Place flashcards around the room and have students run around the classroom touching
the flashcards that teacher orders them to do (e.g. "Touch the car" "Touch the bicycle"
"Touch the bus").

49. Tornado:
Supplies: flashcards (pictures or questions on one side, numbers on the other), 'Tornado
Cards' (flashcards with numbers on one side and a tornado picture on the other). Stick
the numbered cards on the board with either pictures or questions on the back (depending
on the age group) facing the board. Also include 6 Tornado cards and mix them in with
the picture cards. Students then choose a number card. If they answer the question
correctly then their team can draw a line to draw a house. If they choose a tornado card
then they blow down their opposing teams part drawing of a house. The first team to
draw a house wins. (submitted by Sally Lloyd).
50. Up and Down:
You need 2 sets of flashcards for this game. Give each of your students a flashcard from
one set. Teacher keeps the other set. Arrange the students so that they are all sitting
down. Teacher holds up one flashcard and the S with the same flashcard stands up and
says the word and then sits down again. Play the game at a fast pace so that students are
standing up and sitting down rapidly. Variation: Give each S 2 or 3 flashcards.

51. Uncover:
After the vocabulary has been thoroughly taught sit and slowly expose a flashcard until
someone can guess what it is. Reward everyone as they will tend to guess at the same
time. (Submitted by: Gregory Stein)

52. Vanishing Flashcards Game:

Place a number of flashcards in front of the students. Give them a few moments to
memorize the pictures and then tell them to close their eyes. Take away one of the
flashcards and then tell the students to open their eyes again. The first S to guess the
missing flashcard can win that flashcard (for 1 point) and take away a flashcard in the
next round.

53. Vocabulary Tunnel:

Make a tunnel for students to crawl through. Teacher stands at one end and holds up a
flashcard for the first S to say. After the S says the correct word, s/he can go through the
tunnel. Then hold up a flashcard for the next S. (submitted by Kim Horne).

54. Window Game:

You can only do this if your classroom has a window that you can stand outside of and
look into the classroom (don't try this on the 10th floor!). Model first: stand the students
in front of the window and go out of the room. Wave to them through the window and
silently mouth some words (so it seems like they can't hear you through the glass). Look
at a flashcard and then mouth the word a few times. Go back in and the S who first tells
you the word you were saying can have a turn.

55. Zoo Game:

This is a fun activity for young learners on the topic of animal noises. After teaching the
animals and their noises, sit each S in a different part of the classroom and assign them as
different animals (to make it clearer you can give each S a flashcard of the animal they
are representing). Walk around the room and talk to each S, who can only reply as an
animal. E.g. Teacher: "Hello Yumi", S1:"Moo! (cow). Teacher: "What's your name?"
S2: "Roar!" (lion). Teacher: "How are you, Kenta?" S3: "Bow-wow!" (dog).
56. Help Greenman
Hold Greenman in front of the wordcard (or flashcard) that you hold up, so that he can’t
‘see’ the word. Have pupils act out each word for Greenman to guess. Say Now, quietly
(hold your finger to your lips to show ‘quiet’ or ‘shhh’). Show Greenman. Hold up the
card, model how to act it out and have Greenman shout the word. Congratulate the class
for helping Greenman. Do the same with each wordcard or flashcard.

57. Listen and draw

Have pupils sit in a circle, each facing the back of another child. Dictate a word or
number and the pupils practise drawing it on their friend’s back.

58. Listen and speak

Prepare a box with books, pencils and crayons. Say Greenman, there are (four)
books. Greenman puts two books on the floor. The pupil says No, Greenman. There are
four books! There aren’t two! and the pupil puts down the correct amount.

59. Greenman says

Use unit vocabulary to play this version of ‘Simon Says’ using Greenman in place
of Simon. For example, say Greenman says: Put your hands up! Greenman says: Put your
hands down. Repeat this type of phrase with different parts of the body.
Use actions for the unit vocabulary, such as: Greenman says: Go up on the seesaw. The
pupils pretend to go up and down on the imaginary seesaw, but only when they
hear ‘Greenman says’ before the instruction. Be sure to keep the game fun and not
competitive and encourage pupils to say Good job! to children who do well in the game.

60. Who’s doing what?

Choose six volunteers and ‘secretly’ show each one an action to do. For example,
say (Mario), come up please. (whisper) Do this. Gesture wiping the board. Do the same
with five other pupils, giving each a different action. With all of the volunteers doing
their actions, say What is (Mario) doing? Other pupils raise their hands to guess the
action.
They may only say it in part, if so, help them to say the complete action. If the pupils
have understood, they may raise their hands and say what actions other pupils are doing.
Or you can go through pupil by pupil asking the class what each one is doing.

61. Pass and say

This game can be used to revise the vocabulary for one or several units. Have pupils
stand or sit in a circle. Give out one flashcard to each pupil (or as many flashcards as you
want to practise). Say Now, pass the flashcards. Go. Have pupils pass the flashcards
around the circle (all in the same direction) until you say Stop! Say the name of one (or
several) pupil(s) and have them say the word for their flashcard(s).
Then tell the pupils to pass the flashcards again. Continue until all pupils have had a turn
at saying one word.
62. Draw big and small
This game can be used to practise shapes and adjectives. Draw a big triangle on the
board. Say What is it? Elicit the response Big triangle. Say Draw a big triangle in the air.
Model how to do this and repeat with other shapes until the pupils no longer need the
example on the board. Monitor to help pupils who may be struggling.

Next, have the pupils draw the shapes in the air as you say them. Model how to draw
them with your finger in the air. Say Let’s draw a small circle. Show them how, and
encourage those who have done it to help the other pupils to do the same. Repeat with
other shapes and sizes.

63. Musical pass and say

Use the unit flashcards to play this version of ‘Pass the parcel’ using one or more
flashcards as the ‘parcel’. Before starting the game, take each flashcard out individually
and say Look! A (hat)! Repeat, class, a (hat)! What is it? (A hat). While you say the word
use gestures to reinforce theconcept (act out putting on a hat). Repeat this process
with each card.
Have the pupils stand or sit in a circle. Play music (you could use one of the unit songs).
Distribute one to six flashcards among the pupils. Pupils pass the flashcard(s) around the
circle. Pause the music and whichever pupil is holding the flashcard when the music
stops must say the word for that flashcard. If you have given out more than one flashcard,
have each pupil holding a flashcard say their word. Repeat until all the pupils have had a
turn at saying at least one word.

64. Do the action

This game practises the actions and vocabulary from the unit action song. Say a phrase
from the song and have pupils try to do the action. Say Show me (knock on the
door). Model the action for pupils to copy until the children begin to understand the
game. Continue repeating different action words and do part of the action to help if pupils
are having difficulty. Repeat with each action from the song until pupils are doing several
actions without help.

65. Cover your face

This game practises the vocabulary for emotions. Put both hands in front of your face and
say One, two, three. Let’s make a (happy) face! Uncover your face and show your
‘happy’ expression. Gesture to show that you will do the expressions all together as a
class (for example by motioning in a circle to include everyone). Now, the pupils will
cover their faces at the same time as you. Repeat the same emotion first and follow with
sad, angry and scared.

66. Find the number

Have pupils sit in a big circle on the floor. Prepare different classroom objects (pencils,
crayons, books, etc.) making sure you have at least four of each. Place the objects in the
centre of the circle. Choose small groups of pupils to find the correct number of items.
Say (Mario), (Lucía), (Iván), can you give me three pencils? Have the pupils repeat Here
you are after you as they hand you the objects. Repeat with different objects and different
groups of pupils. To play the game in smaller groups rather than as a class, prepare
number cards before the lesson. Give out one set of number cards for each group of four
to six pupils, and have pupils take turns to choose a number card. When you say an item,
the pupil whose turn it is counts out the same number of that item as they have on the
number card.

67. Hide and seek

This game can be played indoors (using the flashcards) or in the playground and practises
the unit vocabulary and basic prepositions. Have the pupils close their eyes while you
hide Greenman somewhere in the playground (outdoors), or by a flashcard (indoors).
Say I will hideGreenman, (hide him behind your back to show ‘hide’) You will close
your eyes (cover your eyes) open them (uncover your eyes) and say (slide) if Greenman
is here (walk Greenman to the slide or slide flashcard). Say OK, close your eyes. (put
Greenman by the slide) Open your eyes. Where is Greenman? The sandpit? No. The
seesaw? No. Continue until children have ‘found’ Greenman. Repeat with other words.

68. Listen and point

Stick the unit flashcards on the walls around the classroom. Sing the unit song and have
pupils point to the different items when they hear the word in the song. Say Point to the
picture! Model how to do this the first time through the song, then have pupils join in.

69. Musical statues

This game can be used to practise actions or any verbs presented in the lesson. Have
pupils stand up. First say and model each action and have the pupils practise for a short
time. Repeat, but this time play music after saying the action. Every so often, pause the
music, say Stop! and change the action. Repeat each action various times.

70. Follow the leader

This game practises clothing vocabulary and actions. Have pupils follow you in a line
doing the action that you say. Say Let’s jump. Pupils continue jumping until you
say Stop! and another action. Jump as many times as you would like. When you choose
to stop say Stop! Now put on your (hat)! Repeat Put on your (hat)! Continue walking,
jumping, swimming etc. to the next place and say Stop! Take off your (hat)! Repeat with
the different clothing items, modeling each action.

71. Flashcard shout out

This is another high energy way of tackling the vocabulary as a group rather than one at a
time. In this game, students rush to shout out all the cards you are holding after you tell
them what the category is, e.g. “Blue!”, “Red!” etc after you say “(I have) colours”. As
they name each one you have, put them up where students can see them or give them to
the students who shouted that one out first, loudest or most persistently. This works best
if there is at least one card that they haven’t seen before and is fairly difficult to guess
until long after all the other cards are gone, e.g. “gold” for colours or “lizard” for animals.

72. Flashcard lying games

Hold up a flashcard, say something true or false about it (“It is dark blue” or “It is an
apple”) and get the students to respond appropriately (“No, (it isn’t)”, “That’s wrong”
etc). It can be combined with the action games Greenman Says, with students only doing
the mime you have taught them for that card when you say something it is true, e.g.
putting their open palms above their heads and wrinkling their noses when you show a
mouse and say “This is a mouse” and doing nothing when you say “This is a lorry” with
the mouse card.

73. Flashcard race:

Split the kids into two halves, and give each team a cool name. Three kids from each
group are nominated to be the designated runners and stand at the back. Put the picture
cards at the front of the class. Wander round the class and say "hello" to a random child.
This child then asks you Do you like...? plus one of the picture cards at the front. You
answer No, I don’t. Wander around getting a few more kids to ask you. Eventually you
say Yes, I do! to one kid's question. The front runner from each group has to rush forward
and pick up the matching card.

74. Follow the leader 2:

Students line up behind the teacher and follows him/her around the classroom. The
teacher does an action and shouts out the word for that action. The students copy the
action and repeat the word. Good actions include: wave hello/goodbye, it's cold/hot,
stop, go, run, hop, skip, crawl, walk backwards, jump, sit down, stand up

75. Train Ride Game:

Have students form a train (standing in line holding onto each other). Choo choo around
the classroom and call out instructions (e.g. faster, slower, turn left/right, stop, go).

76. Whisper Game:

Sit the students in a circle with you. Whisper a word or sentence in the next S's ear (e.g.
"I'm hungry"). S/he then whispers that in the next S's ear and so on until the last S. S/he
then says the word/sentence out loud to see if it's the same as the original message.

77. Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes:

Have the students do all the actions to the song on the tape (touching the parts of their
body along with the song). After that have a speed round at a fairly quick pace. Have a
final round at high speed.
78. Remember the cards
In this game pupils practise unit vocabulary with the flashcards. Hold two cards out for
about five seconds, and then turn the cards around. Say What is this? indicating
one of the cards. Call on a volunteer to come up to point to the back of one of the cards
and say the word. If he/she guesses correctly, turn the card around. Call on another
volunteer to guess the other card. Add a third card or shorten the time if the class guesses
the words very easily.

79. The hoop game

This game is similar to the fairground game in which you throw a hoop onto a bottle. In
this case, pupils throw a hoop onto a flashcard on the floor and say the word.
Place the flashcards face up on the floor. Model how to throw a hoop, in a horizontal
position, to land on a flashcard. Say the word, then say OK, (Mario), now you! Have
the pupil repeat the activity as you have modeled. Continue until all or most pupils have
had a turn.

80. Touch the colour

This game can be played with any group of colours. If working with purple and pink, for
example, set out purple and pink flashcards (or purple and pink objects). Say This is
purple, repeat, purple. This is pink, repeat, pink. Repeat this two more times. Choose a
volunteer, say Touch purple. Show ‘touch’ by gesturing with your index finger. Help the
pupil if he/she struggles. Choose another volunteer to touch a colour. Repeat with several
pupils.

81. Roll, jump and say

Set out the unit flashcards in a big circle on the floor. Roll a big dice and show the pupils
the number. Say A (five)! Stand next to the first card and jump five cards around the
circle. Then, say the word for the card you stop next to and have the pupils repeat the
word. Say (Lucía), it’s your turn! The pupil rolls the big dice and jumps around the circle
the same number of cards as shown on the dice, stops at the number thrown, and says that
word. Repeat with different pupils until most (or all) have had a turn.

82. Choose and say

Have pupils sit in a circle. Spread various flashcards face down in the centre. Model the
activity yourself first. Turn over a card and say the word. Choose a pupil, say (Lucía), it’s
your turn. Choose a card. Help the pupil to turn over the card and say the word for them
to repeat if necessary. Repeat until several pupils have had a turn.

83. Roll and review

Place the unit flashcards in a horizontal line on the floor, leaving a space below them
(about one metre). In this game pupils roll a soft ball to one of the cards and say the
word. If the ball doesn’t land on a card, they say the word closest to the ball. Say We’re
going to play a game. I stand here (point to the place on the floor where pupils should
stand) and roll the ball. (roll the ball gently) I say this word (point to the card closest to
the ball). Repeat with differentpupils rolling the ball and saying the words until most
have had a turn.

84. Place the mouth on Greenman

Prepare in advance a paper ‘smile’ that pupils will be able to stick onto the Greenman
puppet with sticky tape. Take out the paper ‘smile’. Invite pupils to guess what the
activity will be. It may be familiar to them. Ask for a volunteer, and show how you will
cover their eyes and they will put the paper smile on Greenman. Then cover the pupil’s
eyes and let them try! Say Greenman is happy! He wants to smile! Encourage each pupil
and help the other pupils to do the same.

85. Show me happy!

Have Greenman say (Mario) show me happy. (Mario) makes his best ‘happy’ face.
Greenman continues calling on different children, asking them to show different
emotions. Be sure to help children if they don’t know the emotion right away, and
encourage them to help each other as well. Continue until each pupil has had a turn.
(Optional: you can choose volunteers to tell you which emotion to show, or call a
volunteer up to say the emotions for their classmate to do.)

86. Hold up the correct number

This game practises numbers and classroom objects. Say a sentence such as There are
three crayons and have pupils hold up the correct number of items. Prepare pupils for the
activity by passing out enough crayons (or another item) for each child to hold up four.
Say There are three crayons. Help one pupil to count and hold up three crayons.
Encourage the other pupils to do the same. Repeat with different numbers.

87. Listen and touch the words

This game practises the unit vocabulary using the flashcards (or wordcards). Have pupils
sit in a large circle and place the flashcards (or wordcards) face up in the centre of the
circle. Choose a volunteer to model the game with you. Have Greenman say a vocabulary
word (for example, restaurant), and run with the volunteer to touch the word. Exaggerate
your movements to clearly show the volunteer what to do. Say Well done! Class, repeat
(restaurant). Now, call on two pupils to ‘run’ to the next word. Repeat with each
flashcard (or wordcard) and different groups of pupils. Encourage pupils to
say Good job! after their classmates’ turns.

88. The ostrich game

Have pupils sit in a big circle on the floor. Bring two volunteers to the centre of the
circle. Use a clothes peg to attach a flashcard to one pupil’s back, make sure they don’t
turn around or look at the flashcard. Do the same with a different flashcard on the back of
the second pupil. Say Don’t look! Act like you are looking at something on your own
back and shake your finger ‘no’. Show each volunteer the other one’s back so that they
know what the flashcard is. Make sure that they each know the word, if not, whisper it to
them. Say Now, (Lucía), what’s your card? Say Is it (hand)? Point to your hand. Have the
pupil repeat the question. Help the other pupil to answer Yes or No. Have the pupils take
turns asking questions until they guess their own flashcard. Repeat several times with
different pupils.

89. Jump to the word

Use the unit flashcards or draw pictures of the target vocabulary items on the board
before starting this game. In this game, pupils jump to the correct word and touch it.
Choose one volunteer to demonstrate. Model the game yourself, first. Say Let’s play a
game. I say a word: (slide)! You jump to the board and touch the picture. (Mario), let’s
play. Touch (slide). Help the pupil by continuing to model what to do. When he/she has
touched the correct picture, say Well done! Let’s line up to play! Have the pupils line up
and take turns touching the word that you say. If a pupil chooses the incorrect picture,
help him/her to find the correct one.

90. Roll and say

Have pupils sit in a big circle on the floor and set out the unit flashcards in a smaller
circle in the middle. In this game pupils roll a big dice and move a counter around
the circle of flashcards. When the counter lands on a flashcard, the pupil tries to say that
word. Give pupils a counter each. Model the game first with one pupil, say Roll the
dice! Have the child count the correct number on the face of the dice, and then move the
counter the correct number of flashcards around the circle. The pupil then says the
word/phrase for the flashcard that they land on. If the pupil struggles, act out the
vocabulary or whisper the word. Repeat with different pupils until most (or all) have had
a turn.

91. Blindfold Guess

Blindfold a student and give him/her an object to feel. The student must guess what the
object is. This works well with plastic animals as they are a little challenging to guess (I
always throw in a dinosaur to spice things up!).

92. Correct order

Call four to eight pupils to the front of the class (depending on the number of flashcards)
and give them each a flashcard. Then call out four flashcards in random order. Pupils
have to arrange themselves in the correct order.
Guess the card
Cut out a small square in the centre of a piece of A4 paper. Hold the paper in front of a
flashcard allowing pupils to see only a small bit of the card through the hole. Pupils guess
the item.
Echo
Ask pupils to be your echo. Show them a card and say the item on it. Ask pupils to echo
it by repeating several times, becoming quieter and quieter.
93. Collect the cards
Hold up any flashcard. If a pupil can correctly identify it, he/she is allowed to keep it.
The pupil with the most flashcards at the end of the game is the winner.
Memory
Stick four or five flashcards on the board. After pupils memorise the cards, remove them
from the board and pupils say the items. To make this more challenging, ask pupils to say
the cards in the order they appeared on the board.
Snap
Write a word on the board or say an item from a specific group of flashcards. Show
several flashcards one by one. Pupils shout Snap when they see the corresponding
flashcard.

94. Who’s the fastest?

Divide the class into two teams. Stick a number of flashcards on the board. Invite two
pupils to stand facing the flashcards on different sides of the board. Call out one of the
words and the pupil who is the fastest to touch the card wins a point for his/her team.
Name it
Divide the class into two teams. Invite a pupil from each team to come to the front of the
class and turn his/her back to you. Hold up a card and count to three and say Turn around.
The first pupil to turn around and correctly identify the card is awarded a point for his/
her team.

95. Pass the flashcards

Choose five flashcards and pass them face down round the classroom at intervals so
pupils can’t see the cards. When you say stop, ask Who’s got the (sister)? Pupils guess
who’s got the flashcard of the (sister) and get a point if his/her guess is correct.

96. Countdown
Divide the class into small groups. Mix flashcards from different units together and
divide into piles according to the number of groups. Pupils arrange them back into
categories, e.g. Colours, Classroom objects, Family, etc. The first group to finish is the
winner.

97. What’s missing?

Lay several flashcards facing upwards on the floor or a large table. Allow pupils a few
minutes to study them. Tell pupils to close their eyes and remove a flashcard. Pupils
have to correctly identify the missing card.
Noughts and crosses
Divide the class into two teams. One is noughts and one crosses. Draw a large grid on the
board with nine spaces. Stick one flashcard in each space facing towards the board.
Pupils select a card, turn it over and say the word on the flashcard. If it’s correct, remove
the flashcard and write a nought or a cross accordingly.
98. Animal farm
Call a pupil to the front of the class and secretly show him/her an animal flashcard, e.g. a
cat . Blindfold the pupil. Give out several animal flashcards around the classroom
including the one you’ve shown to the blindfolded pupil. Pupils make the appropriate
sound for their given animal. The blindfolded pupil has to walk round the classroom
listening to the different animal sounds until he or she finds the pupil making the correct
animal noise, e.g. a cat sound. Be prepared for a lot of noise!

99. Who’s got it?

Invite several pupils to the board and give a different flashcard to each. Pupils hold their
flashcards up to show the class. Ask Who’s got the (cat)? Pupils answer He’s/She’s got
the cat . Pupils have to say the name of the pupil who has that flashcard.

100. Sponge throw

Place the flashcards on the floor facing upwards. Pupils throw a sponge or other soft
object and identify the flashcard it lands on.

101. Easy or difficult

Divide twenty flashcards into two piles, an easy pile and a difficult pile. Divide the class
into two teams. Each team is awarded 5 points if they correctly name a flashcard from the
difficult pile and one point for knowing a card from the easy pile. You could also use
homemade flashcards of words from Lessons 4 and 6 to make this more challenging.

102. Flashcard mime

Invite a pupil to the front of the classroom. Show him/her a card while hiding it from the
rest of the class. He/she mimes the word. The pupil to correctly guess the word is the next
one to come forward.

103. Spin the spinner

Divide the class into several teams. Stick the flashcards on the board and number them
from 1–10. Call out a word and pupils say the corresponding number. If it’s correct,
he/she spins the spinner and is awarded the amount shown.

104. Where is it?

Stick the flashcards in different places around the classroom. Call out one of the items
and pupils find it and point to the correct flashcard. Alternatively, say a sentence
containing the item, e.g. I like apples and pupils point to or retrieve the flashcard of the
apple.

105. Hit the card

Stick all the flashcards of one vocabulary category on the board in mixed order. Call two
pupils to the front of the room to stand a metre or two from the board. Call out a word.
The first pupil to run to the board and ‘hit’ the correct flashcard wins. Play the game in
teams and award points for each correct ‘hit’.

106. Tick or cross

Explain the meaning of a tick and a cross. Hand out two large squares of paper to each
pupil. Ask them to draw a tick on one card and a cross on the other. Tell pupils you will
show them one flashcard and one word card at the same time. If the flashcard
corresponds with the word card, they hold up the ‘tick’ card. If it doesn’t, they hold up
the ‘cross’ card. Make lots of intentional mistakes. Stick the cards on the board when you
make a match.

107. Mixed up flashcards

Write the target vocabulary or stick the word cards on the board. Ask pupils to stick the
appropriate flashcard next to each word. Then remove the flashcards and stick them back
next to the wrong words. Call a group of four or five pupils to the board. Say Go! Time
pupils to see how long it takes to put all the cards next to the correct words. Choose a
second group and time them to see which group can do it the fastest.

108. Bluff
Invite several pupils to the board and ask them to stand in a row. Give them each a
flashcard and ask them to keep it secret from the class. The first pupil in the row says a
word that might or might not correspond with the flashcard they are holding. Pupils guess
whether or not they’re bluffing. Pupils say Bluff if they think they’re bluffing. Divide the
class into teams and award points when pupils guess correctly.

109. Face race

Give each pupil a number between 1 and 10. Stick the face flashcards on the board or
draw a picture of a face. Say Number 2 – Nose. All pupils assigned number 2 race to the
board and touch the nose. Alternatively, play the game with three or four teams. Assign
each pupil from each team a number. Call out Number 3 – Eyes . The first pupil to touch
the eyes wins a point for their team.

110. Same sounds

Choose a vowel sound from any unit. Stick a flashcard on the board of a word containing
that sound (e.g. sister ). Now say dog, pen, boot, duck, pink . Pupils say the word
containing the same sound as sister (pink) . Try with several other sounds.

111. Mix-matched flashcards

Stick four flashcards on the board face down so pupils can’t see the pictures. Divide the
class into teams of four. Invite Team 1 to the board and give each person a word card.
Pupils stick the word cards face up below the flashcards so they can be read. Now point
to the first word card and pupils read out the word. Turn over the flashcard above it. The
team receives one point if the flashcard corresponds with the word card below it.
Continue with the remaining cards. Write the total number of points earned by each team
on the board. Mix the cards and continue with the other teams.

TPR GAMES

Alternative Bingo
Pupils each draw a simple picture of one of the items from a unit (e.g. Pets). Write the
words on the board to remind them. Also include others from previous units of the same
category (e.g. bird, butterfly, frog ). As they draw, write the words on small slips of paper
and put them in a small box or bag. Ask pupils to stand up. Pull out the slips of paper in
turn and read the animal names. Pupils who have drawn that particular animal sit down.
Continue until there’s only one slip of paper remaining in the bag.

Number groups
Play some lively music and ask pupils to perform a specific action (e.g. jump, walk, and
hop) around the classroom. Stop the music and call out a number from 2–5. Pupils must
quickly get together in groups of that number. The odd pupil must sit out until the next
round. Start with the numbers 2-5 then move on to numbers 6–10 when pupils feel
confident.

Guess the object

Put an object in a bag for a pupil to feel (e.g. toy food or plastic animals). He/she must
guess what the object is without looking.

Teacher says
Give the pupils instructions but tell them to follow the instructions only if they are
preceded by Teacher says . If you say Pick up a pencil , pupils should do nothing but if
you say Teacher says pick up a pencil , pupils must pick up a pencil. They lose a point for
doing an action when they shouldn’t. Vary the speed of the instructions to make the game
more interesting. You could also ask pupils in stronger classes to give the instructions.

Ball throw
Pupils stand in a large circle. Make a paper ball, call out a category (e.g. Family) and
throw the ball to a pupil. He/she must say a word in the category you mentioned. He/she
then throws the ball to another pupil who says another word in the same category. If a
pupil drops the ball or can’t say a word in the category, he/ she must sit down. Continue
until one pupil remains.

Pass the ball

Pupils sit in a circle. Make a paper ball. Choose a category and pupils pass the ball
around the circle. Each pupil must say a word from the given category when he/she’s got
the ball. A pupil leaves the circle when he/she can’t say a word from the given
category. Alternatively, play music while pupils pass the ball and say words. Stop the
music. The pupil holding the ball when the music stops leaves the game.

Drawing game
Pupils draw pictures on the board of the target vocabulary. They must do this slowly, line
by line. Pupils try and guess what he/she is drawing before he/she finishes the picture.
The first pupil to guess draws the next item.

Grab it
Pupils sit in a circle. Place some classroom objects (no sharp pencils or scissors, please)
or flashcards in the middle of the circle. Pupils put their hands behind their backs. Call
out an object and pupils race to find and touch it. Play this in teams and award points to
the winner.

TEAM GAMES

Drawing race
Divide the class into two teams and invite a pupil from each team to the front of the class.
Show a word card to each or whisper a word. Each pupil draws the word on the board.
The first team to identify the picture correctly wins a point.

Phonics race
Divide the class into several groups. Call out a phonics sound. Pupils write as many
words with the same sound as possible during a given amount of time. Award pupils one
point for each correct word.

Unscramble
Divide the class into groups. Write a word on the board in jumbled order. The first group
to guess the word wins a point.

Chair race
Divide the class into two teams. Each team stands in a line with a chair at the front of the
line and another chair a few metres across the room. A pupil from each team sits in the
chair at the front of his/her line. Call out an action (e.g. jump ). The pupils must jump to
their team’s chair on the other side of the room. The first pupil to sit on the chair after
doing the correct action wins a point for his/her team.

Board game
Draw a large race track on the board. Divide the class into two teams. Use small coloured
circles as markers for each team. Ask questions, e.g. show flashcards/story cards and ask
What’s this? or show classroom objects in different numbers and ask How many? Pupils
move ahead one space if they guess correctly. The winning team are the ones to reach the
finish first.
Stop! Divide the class into two teams. Write the target vocabulary on small pieces of
paper and put them in a bag or a small box. Write the word STOP on a few pieces of
paper and add them to the others. Pupils reach into the bag/box without looking, choose a
piece of paper and say the word. If he/she says the word correctly, his/her team wins a
point. If a pupil chooses the word STOP, the team loses all of its points.

Spinner game
Divide the class into two teams. Tell pupils to draw an item from the target vocabulary. If
he/ she draws correctly, he/she spins the spinner and wins that number of points for
his/her team.

Parachute
Play a guessing game in teams. Draw a large parachute on the board with three strings
leading to a stick figure hanging from the parachute. Think of a word pupils have learnt
and draw a dash inside the parachute for each letter in the word. Pupils from one team try
to guess the word (a car?) . For each incorrect guess, erase one of the parachute’s strings.
Award points to the team when they guess the word correctly. If all the parachute’s
strings are erased before pupils guess the word, then that team loses a point. To make it
more interesting, draw a shark emerging from the sea below the stick figure. You can
also draw a speech bubble near the figure and write Hello! I’m (name) using the names of
the pupils.

Whoops!
Write as many words as possible (from any unit or combination of units) on small pieces
of paper. Fold them and put them in a box or a bag. Also write the word Whoops! on
several pieces of paper and add them to your bag or box. Pupils come to the front of the
class, choose a piece of paper and read the word. If they read it correctly, they keep the
paper and receive one point for their team. If the word is read incorrectly, you keep the
paper. If pupils choose the word Whoops! they sit down and don’t receive any points.
Alternatively, you could add some suspense by taking away all points when the Whoops!
card is chosen.

Name the shape

Cut out several shapes from coloured paper. Stick or carefully pin a shape to the back of a
pupil’s shirt without the pupil seeing the shape. The pupil turns around to reveal the
shape to the class. The pupil tries to guess which shape and colour it is. Elicit a blue
triangle?
a red square? For stronger classes, suggest that when the volunteer guesses the correct
shape but the wrong colour, the class shouts: Shape! Likewise, when the volunteer
guesses the correct colour but the wrong shape, they shout: Colour! For example, if you
stick a yellow circle on the pupil’s back and they ask a yellow square?, the class should
shout Colour! Do this game in teams and award points for correct answers.
Reading race
Write sentences on long strips of paper describing a set of flashcards (e.g. Food, Toys,
Family or Animals). It’s big. It’s black and white. It’s got four legs , etc. Divide the class
into two or more teams and ask each team to stand in a queue. Put a set of sentences face
down at the front of the queue. Stick the flashcards on the board. When you say go , one
pupil from each team picks up a sentence, sticks it below the appropriate flashcard on the
board, and runs back to touch the hand of the next person in his team. Check that pupils
are sticking the sentences in the correct place and call them back to the board if they
make a mistake. The first team to stick up all its sentences is the winner.

Clothes line
Cut out several clothes items from different colours of sturdy card. Draw a clothes line on
the board and stick the clothes on the line (e.g. a pink skirt, a black T-shirt, a green shoe,
and an orange dress). Alternatively, pin them to a real length of string hung to look like a
clothes line. Give pupils a few minutes to study the order of the clothes. Remove the
clothes cards. Now pupils draw and colour the clothes in the same order. Pupils could
also label the clothes to make this more challenging. If you haven’t got much time, pupils
could simply recite the order. Do this game in teams and award points for correct
answers.

Number spin
Divide the class into teams. Invite a pupil from each team to the front of the classroom.
Stick several flashcards on the board and write a number below each. Ask him/her to
choose one of the flashcards from the board. Then spin the spinner and the pupil must say
the word the appropriate number of times. He/she wins that number of points for his/her
team.

Yes or no?
Bring in several toys, classroom objects or toy animals of different colours and sizes. You
may also use flashcards. Put them on a table at the front of the class. Explain that you will
choose one of the items and pupils will guess the item, but you can only say yes or no .
Pupils ask Is it big? Is it red? Is it a duck? Do this game in teams and award points for
correct answer