English Words Games for the Classroom

Headlines

• This English word game works on reading comprehension skills and is suitable for more advanced learners. Prepare for the game by collecting an assortment of newspaper articles. Separate the articles from their headlines. Divide the class into two groups, giving one half the headlines and the other half the articles. The object of the game is for students to match each headline with its corresponding article. At the end of the game, students take turns reading the articles to the class.

Word Association Relay

• This game is useful for practicing spelling. Begin by drawing a line down the center of the chalkboard. Divide the class into two teams and have students stand in lines on opposite sides of the classroom. Choose a word to write at the top of both sides of the chalkboard.

  Each team then sends a student to the board to write down an associated word. For instance, if the first word is apple, the student could follow with words such as banana, red or fruit. After writing a word, the student returns to the back of his line and the next person takes a turn. Set a time limit. When the game is over, check both word lists. Give points for each correctly spelled word. For extra speaking practice and vocabulary review, have students explain why each word was chosen.

  You can tailor this word game to fit various lesson plans and themes. Instead of choosing a starting word, give students a category such as verbs or famous holidays. Students are then required to think up words associated with that specific theme.

Fill in the Blanks

• This classic word game is suitable for individuals or teams of all ages. When working with beginner English students, prepare a simple list of words that all have one or two letters missing. Give students a list and have them compete to be the first to fill in the blanks correctly. For team play, divide the class into two groups and write the words on the board. Customize the game to suit more advanced students by using paragraphs with entire words missing.

Heads and Tails

• This word game does not require any preparation and is an easy way to fill downtime between lessons or activities. Start by calling out a random word. The next person must use the last letter of that word to come up with a new one. For example, if the starting word is cat, the next word might be tree.

  Give students stricter guidelines to increase the game̵7;s level of difficulty. For instance, do not allow repeats, restrict words to a specific category or only allow words that contain a certain number of letters. For beginner ESL students and young learners, make the game easier by having students think of words that begin with the same letter.