Activities

1. Irregular Verb Ball Toss

Let’s start with a quick and easy one that always goes over well with my students.
Bring in a rubber ball (or use a small eraser, a scrunched-up ball of paper, or anything
else that’s light and safe to throw) and let the game begin! You may want to let
students refer to a list of irregular verbs when they’re first learning them, but later on
you can play it without the list. I prefer not to keep score during this game, but you
may choose to. You can also choose if you should correct any mistakes or if another
student should do it.

 Choose an irregular verb and say the base form out loud.

 Say the name of a student and toss the ball to them.
 The student must catch the ball and say the past form.
 That student then chooses another verb and repeats the steps above.
 Continue until all the students have had a turn or two.

2. Concentration
(on the table)

This classic game is useful for reviewing all kinds of vocabulary and grammar targets.
Cut up the verbs from the list (one set for each group) or make your own verb cards.
You could also have students make their own cards.

 Arrange students into small groups (groups of three or four work well).

 Mix up the verb cards and arrange them facedown in a rough square pattern.
 One student starts by turning over any two of the cards. If that student gets a
match (by turning over a base verb that matches the past form of that verb),
he/she can keep the pair of paper slips. If there’s no match, the student must
turn the slips over again and place them back in the same place.
 Once all the slips have been matched up, students should add up how many
pairs they have. The student with the most matches wins!

3. Concentration
(on the board)

This activity is my favorite for irregular verb review. It always goes over well and gets
the whole class involved.
  Draw a grid on the board with 20 squares (5 × 4). Write the numbers 1–20 in
the top left-hand corner of each square. Have a master grid for yourself that
you can refer to with ten base verbs and ten corresponding past forms (use
the list below for ideas) filled into the grid (one verb per square, with the order
mixed up).
 Divide the students into two teams. Ask one student from team A to choose
one box. Write the verb in the center of the box. Have that same student
choose another box. Fill in that box too.
 If the two boxes create a match (base verb + past verb), leave the verbs
written in the boxes and give that team a point. If they don’t match, erase
both boxes and repeat the process with a student from team B.
 Continue until all the boxes are filled in. For the last pair of boxes, make it
more challenging by having that team member guess the last box (i.e., if the
base verb is chosen, write it in the box, but then the student must tell you the
past form without seeing the last box, and vice versa). The team with the most
points wins!

Note

Most boards will clearly show which spots have been erased, thus making it easier for
students to remember which numbers have already been chosen. To make it more
challenging, when setting up the board, run the eraser over the center of each box
before starting the game.
4. Bingo
Bingo is another classic, popular game that’s easy to adapt for irregular verb review.

 Make a copy of a blank Bingo card for each student.

 Have students fill in the past form of any verbs from the list below (one inside
each square) in any order. The center square can be a “free” space, if you wish.
 Tell students they can yell out “Bingo!” when they have one horizontal,
vertical, or diagonal line checked off. Higher-level students must complete
two lines.
 Using the list, call out the base form of the verbs in a random order, one by
one. Students can check off the past verbs that match.
 Continue until a student yells “Bingo!”
Warm-Ups & Fillers – Bingo

5. Relay
Relay races are quick and easy to do, and they get your students moving!

 Write two (or more, if you want more than two teams) columns of base verbs
from the list on the board before class starts. The columns should be identical.
(For a more challenging race, choose other, less common verbs.)
 Divide the class into two (or more) teams.
 Move desks and chairs out of the way.
 Line students up facing the board.
 When you yell “Go!”, the first student from each team must run to the board
and write the past form of any one verb next to the base form.
  That student then races back and hands the marker or chalk to the next
student in line. Continue until one team has all the verbs filled in.
 Give each team one point for each correctly formed (and spelled!) past verb.

Irregular Verb List

Grammar & Usage – Irregular Verb List: Present &  Past

Practice
Try our Grammar Practice Worksheets, Simple Sentences, and Grammar
Stories sections for a variety of lessons on the simple past.