Recommended level: Junior high grade 2

Squares

Description

Students make pairs and receive a worksheet that has a table with one half of a sentence down the columns, and the second half across the rows.

The goal is for a student to draw a square or rectangle between the points on the worksheet. Students say the two sentences for each point on the grid they chose and then can draw a line between them.

The student who draws a line that closes a square can sign inside of it, and this is worth one point. If a student creates multiple squares in one turn they can get multiple points.

Mastermind

Description

Students make a sentence by picking 1 option from 3 different sections, then try to guess their partner’s sentence.

Their partner tells them how many parts (out of 3) they got right.

The students must piece together the sentence by process of elimination – the sooner they guess it correctly, the more points they get. Once both students have finished their sentences they can make a new sentence (either with the same partner or in new pairs).

Read and Run

Description

Students make pairs. Each group gets a worksheet with some questions.

One student stays seated while another stands up and walks to read cards placed around the room. They find the card that answers their question and remember it. They come back and tell their partner who writes down the answer.

When they finish the question, they switch reading and writing roles and answer the next question.

Notes

  • The student who is looking for answers can’t take the card or their worksheets with them, and they can’t write anything down.
  • The more unexpected and interesting places you can ‘hide’ the answer cards, the more interesting it’ll be for the students!

Asleep/Awake

Description

Students make groups and pick a number (1-5). They each get a worksheet. All students go to ‘sleep’ – i.e. they close their eyes and put their heads on their desks.

One student at a time in each group is called by their number to be ‘awake’ – i.e. they can open their eyes and look at the board. A word or two from a mixed up sentence is written on it and they need to remember it without saying it out loud or writing it down.

The student then goes back to ‘sleep’ and the next group member ‘wakes up’ and reads the next part of the sentence. All students in the group then wake up and work together to put together the sentence. At this point they can write each other’s words on the worksheet and put the sentence in order.

Five Guesses

Description

Students pick an item out of a set list (i.e. from vocabulary that they have been studying). They make pairs and try to guess what item their partner picked. If they guess correctly the first time, they win 5 points. If they guess correctly the second time they get 4, and so on. If they can’t guess in 5 turns, their partner can tell them the answer.

Notes

  • The number of guesses can be reduced, particularly if there aren’t many options to choose between.
  • A variation of this game is to have the students pick more than one item, and their partner gets one point for each item that they guess correctly.

Two truths, one lie

Also known as:

  • Truth or lie
  • True or lie

Description

Each student writes three sentences that follow whatever current grammatical pattern they are currently learning. Two sentences are true, and one is a lie.

They then make pairs and listen to each other’s sentences, and try to guess which one the lie is. If they guess correctly the first time, they win 3 points. If they guess correctly the second time, they win two points, and if they guess on the final try, they win one point.

Notes

Some students write an outlandish and obviously false lie. There’s nothing wrong with this, but it makes it very easy for their partners to guess! It may be best to recommend they try and make it difficult to guess which one is not true.

Double Puzzle

Description

Students make groups and each receive a set of puzzle pieces. The pieces have a split up picture on one side and parts of a sentence on the other.

The groups must first find out what the picture is, then flip the cards over and put the sentence in order. The sentence will have a blanked out word which is represented by the picture on the other side (e.g. if the picture is of a dog, the missing word in the sentence will be ‘dog’.).

The students write their answers on their worksheets. When they have their answer, they raise their hands and read it to the teacher. If the answer is correct, they get a new set of puzzle pieces.

Notes

  • Printing the template double-sided should line up everything as intended, but it might be best to do a trial run first.
  • The first puzzle is an enlarged version intended to be used for a demonstration.

Hex

Also known as:

  • Hexagon Game

Description

Each pair of students gets a worksheet that has several hexagons in a grid. Each hexagon has an image that represents a vocabulary word that the students have been studying. The goal is to try and make a complete line from one end to the other.

One player marks their hexagons with circles, and tries to go from the top to the bottom. The other marks with crosses, and tries to go from left to right. Each turn, a student marks their hexagon and asks their partner the question that matches the vocabulary word in that space.

The first player to complete a line wins. Once a student has picked a certain hexagon, their partner cannot pick that same space. Students can ‘block’ their partner’s line by picking a space that interrupts it.

Notes

The example worksheet can be printed double-sided, which lets each pair play 3 games. After that, they will either need a new worksheet or to erase their previous spaces to continue playing.

Similar Games

Concentration

Also known as:

  • 神経衰弱
  • Shinkeisuijaku

Description

The students make groups, and each group gets two sets of the vocabulary cards. All cards are shuffled and placed face down.

Once they have decided an order, the first student turns over a card and says the matching vocabulary or grammar. They do the same with a second card. If the two cards match, they can take the pair and try again. If they don’t, they must turn both cards back over to the face down position and the next player’s turn starts.

Once all the cards are taken, they can be shuffled and played again. The winner is the player with the most cards.

Notes

  • This game can be used to practice either just vocabulary or grammar. It can also be used to practice asking and answering questions – the group can ask the player a question who then answers it based on the card they receive.
  • Some students try to shuffle the cards on every turn. While this won’t make the game unplayable, it does defeat the purpose of trying to memorise which card is which, so it’s best to discourage it!

Similar Games

Connect 4

Description

Students make pairs and a Connect 4 worksheet. Each student takes turn in picking a space and saying the associated target English that matches the picture. The first student to get an unbroken line of 4 wins. Students can ‘block’ their partner by picking a space that interrupts their partner’s line.

Notes

  • One way to play this game is with either one student drawing circles on their chosen spaces, and the other drawing crosses. If students use pencil, they could erase their marks between each round.
  • Another way is for the students to use ohajiki or small cards to put down on top of their answer. This makes it easier to reset the game between rounds, but logistically it means there would be a lot of materials needed for each student and it may not be practical.