Home >> Games & Cards >> Kids Games

Rhyming Games for Second Graders

When teaching second graders about rhyming words, you can organize games for them to play. Rhyming games are an entertaining way to help children hear similarities in how words sound. All you need are a few supplies to create rhyming games the children will enjoy. Persuade them to try their best by awarding small prizes for a job well done and to winners.

Matching Games
- Write down rhyming words on index cards -- for example, ̶0;say" and "day,̶1; "book" and "look," ̶0;hatch" and "match̶1; and ̶0;bear" and "wear.̶1; Write each word on a separate card. Mix the cards up and place them facedown on a table. Players turn up two cards at a time to see if the words rhyme. A player who finds a match goes again. If he does not find a match, it's the next player's turn. The player with the most matches at the end of the game wins. Another idea is to place the cards facedown and mix them up. Time each student on how fast he can flip over the cards and match the ones with rhyming words. The student with the fastest time wins the game.
Oral Games
- Ask your second graders to sit in a circle, and call out a word, for example ̶0;bear.̶1; The first player in the circle must say a word that rhymes, such as "share." Each player in turn must say another rhyming word. If a student is stuck, have the group try to help him think of a word. Another game is to read a sentence but replace the last word with a word that rhymes with it but that makes the sentence silly -- for example, ̶0;On my head, I wear a bat.̶1; If a student guesses correctly, saying "hat," award him a small prize.
Hunt Games
- Hide rhyming words on separate index cards around the classroom and have the students go on a hunt to find as many rhyming words as possible. The student who finds the most wins the game. Play this game with three or four children at a time to keep it from getting chaotic. You can also have students play "I Spy." Select one student to find an item in the classroom and have him replace the word for that item with a rhyming word. For example, if he sees a picture of a goat, he can say ̶0;I spy a boat.̶1; The other students try to guess the correct word.
Online Games
- The PBS Kids website offers online rhyming games for students to play. "Rhyme Time Bingo̶1; allows students to mark rhyming words off a bingo card to reveal a picture. In ̶0;Frog̵7;s Rhyming Machine,̶1; the machine spits out a word and players must pop a bubble with the matching word. Other rhyming games include ̶0;Dub Cubs,̶1; ̶0;Monkey Match̶1; and ̶0;Freeze Dance Rhyming.̶1;

Kids Games