Scary Story Cards Activity

See the Teacher’s Notes for instructions.

Scary Characters:

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Additional Characters:

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Locations:

asylum crime scene cabin in the woods

graveyard abandoned school spooky castle

haunted house dungeon funfair

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Objects:

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Creatures:

Weather:

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 Teacher’s Notes
Lesson: Scary Story Cards. Level: A2 - C2 Time: 20 mins - 1 hr (depending on task and level)

Preparation:
- You will need one set of cards for every 3-4 students. For each set, print each page, preferably in colour,
and cut out the cards. You can keep each category set in an envelope. You can laminate the cards so
they will last longer. You will be able to repeat the activity/activities, again and again, and with various
levels.
Activity Ideas & Instructions:
Step 1:
- Put students into groups of 3-4 and give a set of cards to each group (You don’t have to include all the
cards, but make sure there is a good mix of characters/creatures, objects, and places). For lower levels,
you might want to pre-teach some of the vocabulary and drill correct pronunciation.
Step 2: Option 1 (Levels A2+ - C2)
- Working in groups, the students select a card from each envelope or choose from the downward-facing
pile. They should then take a note of the images they choose. Alternatively, allow them to see all the
cards and choose the ones they want.
- The groups now brainstorm ideas for a story, using any vocabulary which could be represented by the
images. Give them 5-10 minutes to do this
- The students now write their stories together. They can take turns writing each paragraph or appoint
one of their group to do the writing. However, you should make sure that they all contribute to the
story. Give them at least 25 minutes to complete the task.
- Monitor giving support and correction where required.
- Now, either have the students read their stories aloud for the class to hear or put each group with
another group to share what they have written. Alternatively, have the groups exchange and read each
other’s texts, highlighting any errors they might find.
Step 2: Option 2 (Levels B1+ - C2)
- Students take turns choosing cards from any pile/envelope they wish. The first student should begin the
story by creating a couple of sentences that include a word represented by the image they have chosen.
The next student chooses a card from another category, continuing the story, and so on, until their story
has come to a conclusion or a time limit has been reached. You can allow anything from 5 to 15 minutes
for the task.
- Monitor giving support and correction where required.
Step 2: Option 3 (Levels A2 - B1)
- Write a list of verbs on the board which the students have studied, and have them race against the other
groups to make as many sentences as possible by selecting cards from the piles and combining a word
represented by the image/images with any of the verbs on the board. Tell them they can choose from
any category (characters, places, objects, etc.). You can give them the option of reselecting if they can’t
make a sentence with a given combination. They should use a minimum of two images for each sentence
(you might want to increase this to 3 images for B1 students). You have the option of allowing them to
repeat verbs or not. They should write each sentence down.
- You can allow anything from 5 to 15 minutes, monitoring as they do the task and giving support and
correction where required. The group with the most correct sentences are the winners.

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Step 2: Option 4 (Levels B1 - C2)
- Students work in groups, taking turns to tell each other about a crazy nightmare they had the night
before. The first student begins by saying ‘ I had a scary nightmare last night.’ and proceeds to choose
cards at random, again and again, inventing their dream while trying to incorporate the image they see
into it. You can set a time limit for each student depending on their level, but we would suggest 3-4
minutes for B1 and 5 minutes for higher levels. You can also choose to set a minimum number of cards
they must use and/or allow them to skip certain cards.
Step 3:
- Take note of any typical errors students make as they write/tell their stories, create sentences, or
describe their dreams, and add any incorrect sentences to the board. Then ask the students to work in
their groups or pairs to try to identify and correct the errors before giving any explanations and further
examples.

Additional Considerations:
- Tell the students that their stories or sentences can be as crazy and nonsensical as they like, with talking
animals and unlikely events. As long as they are grammatically correct, there are no rules. You could ask
them to make their stories as realistic as possible too.
- You could use the activity to focus on a particular grammar tense or structure. For example, you might
want the students to practise their past simple, so you can ask them to make sentences or tell their
stories using past simple verbs. In this case, you could have a list of infinitives on the board (regular and
irregular) which they must use in the past simple. There are many other possibilities too, for example,
conditionals, passives, the infinitive of purpose, and so on.
- You may also want to add a list of adjectives to the board for them to incorporate into their stories or
sentences.
- For any of the above, you might want to add some examples to the board. You might also want to
demonstrate the activity you choose with your own sentences or short story first.
- Don’t forget that you may need to pre-teach some vocabulary for lower levels.

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