Ten Good Games for Recycling Vocabulary

1. Taboo   (aka Hot Seat)

Divide the class into Teams A and B. Team A sits in a group on one side of the classroom, Team
B sits on the other side. Bring two chairs to the front of the room so that when seated, a student is
facing his or her respective team and their back is to the blackboard or white board. One member
from each team sits in their team's chair. The teacher writes a word, phrase, or sentence on the
board. The students in the chairs mustn't see what's written on the board. Once the teacher yells
'go', the teams have one minute, using only verbal clues, to get their seated teammate to say the
item written on the board. The only rule (or taboo) is that they MUSTN'T say the item written on
the board, in full or part. The first student in the hot seat to utter the word scores a point for their
team. When the round is over, two new team players are rotated into the hot seat and a new item
is written up. The first team to score X number of points wins.

Variation: To ensure a slightly quieter and less chaotic game, the teams can take it in turns.
Rather than two students in the hot seat, only one member from each team plays at a time. The
teacher as usual scribbles a word on the board and gives the team one minute to get their
teammate to say the item. If the hot-seated player manages to say the word, the teacher quickly
writes another item on the board and so on until the minute is up. The team scores a point for
every item they manage to say within one minute.

2.  Memory Challenge

Put the students into pairs or small groups. Give them a time limit (e.g. 3 minutes) and ask them
to write down as many words, phrases, and/or expressions as they can from the last lesson on
topic X. The pair or group that can remember the most items wins.

Variation: To add a spelling accuracy component, teams can also earn an extra point for each
correctly spelt item.

3.  Last One Standing

Give the class a topic (e.g. food, clothes, animals, things in a kitchen) and ask them to stand up,
in a circle if possible. Clap out a beat and say, one, two, three, followed by a topic-related word.
After the next three beats, the next student in the circle gives a word related to the topic, and so it
continues. Anyone who can't think of a word or repeats a word already said has to sit down and
it's the next person's turn. The winner is the last one standing.

4.  Pictionary
Divide the class into Teams A and B. Team A sits in a group on one side of the classroom, Team
B sits on the other side. One member from each team goes to the board. The teacher flashes them
a word, phrase, or expression written on a piece of paper. The students have one minute to get
their respective team to say the item only by drawing pictorial clues on the board. Written words,
verbal clues, or gestures are forbidden. The first team to say the word scores a point.   

Variation: The teams review their notes from prior lessons, and collectively come up with a list
of items the other team will have to draw.

5.  Bingo
The teacher writes up 10 words, phrases and/or expressions on the board. Each student chooses
any 5 of the items from the board and writes them down. The teacher then selects one of the
items at random (bits of paper from a hat, for example) and offers a brief definition or synonym
of the item but does not say the word itself. If a student thinks they have the word the teacher
described, they tick it. When a student ticks all of their words, they shout BINGO!! The first
student to shout BINGO wins the round. Additional rounds can be played with different sets of
words.

6. Outburst
Divide the class into Teams A and B. The teacher assigns each team a particular topic (e.g.
sports, vehicles, things in an office) which is to be kept secret from the other team. Each team
meets for 5 minutes in private and collectively draws up a list of ten items related to the topic.
After the lists are made, the game begins. The teacher tells Team A the name of Team B's topic.
Team A then has one minute to try to guess the items on Team B's list (hence producing a noisy
outburst). The members of Team B must listen and tick the items which Team A manages to
guess. For every word Team A guesses correctly, they score a point. For every word they miss,
Team B gets a point. After the points are recorded, it's Team B turn to guess Team A's list.
Additional rounds can be played with different topics assigned by the teacher. The first team to
score X number of points wins.

7. Concentration
Divide the class into small groups. Each group is given a set of cards which are spread out on the
table face-down. The sets are made up of two kinds of cards: word cards + definition/picture
cards. Students in turn pick up a card, turn it over, and try matching it to its corresponding card.
If there's no match, the cards are returned to their original place on the table and play passes to
the next student. If a match is made, the student keeps the pair and tries to make another match.
Once all the cards are matched, the winner is the player who has matched the most number of
cards.

Variation: Rather than using word + definition/picture cards, students can match the first and
second half of common phrases, expressions, idioms or other multi-word lexical items; e.g.
"have" on one card, "a good time" on the other card.
8.  Scrambled Letters 
Write up eight words with their letters shuffled (e.g. eicscen for science) on the board. When the
teacher says 'go', the students, individually or in pairs, endeavor to untangle the words as quickly
as they can. The first student or pair, to do so wins. The teacher can then quickly run through
each of the scrambled letter groups on the board, eliciting information about each word or
concept. Tip: Don't make them too difficult.

Variation: Phrases, expressions, and idioms larger than 2 words can also be used (e.g. "you're
having when time flies fun" for "time flies when you're having fun".)

9.   Q & A
Write up two separate word lists on the board; an A list and a B list. Assign half the class the A
list and the other half list B. Each student takes each word from their list and contextualizes it
into a coherent question. Ideally, the question should demonstrate some understanding of the
word (e.g. Is your family very hospitable?, NOT What does hospitable mean?). If students need
help, they can consult the teacher, their notes, or their textbook. When the students have finished
writing their questions, As and Bs pair up and exchange their list of questions. The students read
each question and write an answer to the question on the same piece of paper. In their answer,
they need to use the same word that is underlined in the question. After the answers are written,
the papers are exchanged again and read by the original student.

example:
Student A's question:    Are there any skyscrapers in New York City?          
Student B's answer:      Yes, New York City has several skyscrapers.  

10.   Categories  (aka The Alphabet Game)

Divide the class into 3 or 4 teams and assign a secretary for each group. On one side of the
board, write down six categories related to the current topic or syllabus of your course (e.g.
countries, sports, jobs, movies, furniture, verbs, things that are round). To start the game, the
teacher randomly selects a letter of the alphabet and scribbles it onto the board. Each team must
then work together to quickly find a word for each of the six categories that starts with the
chosen letter. The first team to complete all six categories shouts "stop!" The class then stops
writing, and a member of the team goes to the board to fill in the categories. The teacher then
checks each word with the class and also elicits what other teams had for each category. If the
quickest team has filled in each category correctly, they earn one point for their team. The
teacher then chooses a different letter and another round is played. The first team to score X
number of points wins.
Can we play a game!!??

If your students are anything like mine, you hear this question about a million gazillion times a
week.

In the whiniest voices possible.

With the clear undertone that if you don’t we are going to make you regret it!!!

And while I love a good review game as much as the next person, when it comes time to review,
I’m much more concerned about the review than I am about the game.

Too often review games are a huge waste of time. You spend the majority of the class period
explaining the rules, trying to keep order, and watching kids run around the room with erasers on
their heads.

They’re having a blast, but all too soon the bell rings and you’ve only reviewed 1/2 of what you
needed to.

And then your kids bomb the test.

Fortunately, review games don’t have to be a waste of time. By choosing games that focus on the
questions themselves while spending minimal time on the “game” part, you can add some
excitement into your test prep without sacrificing the actual review.

Review Games that Use Time Effectively:

1. Just give points: Divide the class into two (or more) teams and start asking questions. Call on the
first hand raised, and if s/he’s right, give his team a point. If s/he’s wrong, the other teams get a
chance to answer. Keep a tally on the board, and the team with the most points at the end wins.

 
2. Personal whiteboards: If you’re able to invest a little money, purchase mini whiteboards (like
these) and dry erase markers, enough for each student. You ask questions out loud, and the
students write the answers on their boards and hold them up. The first correct answer wins a
point for their team. This game wastes almost no time, and the kids love it.

If you want to save money, you can create your own whiteboards by laminating sheets of
cardboard or cardstock. Students would then write with wet-erase markers.
 
3. Race at the board: Divide the class into two or three teams. One representative from each team
comes to the board. You ask a question or give a problem, and the first person to write the
correct answer on the board wins a point for his/her team. The catch: the students at the board
only get one try. If they all miss the question, you take the answer from the first person in the
audience who raises his hand. Be sure to keep this game moving to minimize wasted time from
students moving to and from the board.
 
 4. Group work contest: Assign a set of questions or problems to be answered by the group in a set
amount of time. The group with the most correct answers wins. You’re really just adding a
contest to a regular assignment, but the students appreciate the twist, especially if it comes
with a prize such as bonus points, a homework pass, or candy.
 
5. Un-Wheel of Fortune: This is Wheel of Fortune without the wheel. Have a phrase for the
students to solve (preferably a key term or concept you are studying). Divide the class into two
teams and ask questions to each student, going back and forth between the teams. Tally points
for each team as follows: If the student answers correctly, give one point and allow him/her to
choose a letter. Award additional points for each time the letter appears. (For example, if Gavin
guesses E and there are 3 E‘s, he gets 4 points: 1 for the correct answer and 3 for the 3 E‘s.) The
student can then try to guess the puzzle. Award 5 points to the team that solves the puzzle.
 
6. Game Show (i.e. Jeopardy): While you may think this game requires lots of pre-class prep work,
it doesn’t have to. Yes, you need to set up some type of game board, but other than that all you
need to do is choose categories based on the topics you want to review. When a student
chooses “State capitals for 200” simply glance through your notes for an easier question. “Verbs
for 2000”? Just ask a harder question.
 
Click here to get a FREE digital Jeopardy game board.
 
7. Around the World: This classic individual game still works so well! The first two students pair off
against each other. You ask a question, and whoever shouts the answer first wins. The winner
stands and moves to the next contestant. The goal is to move as many seats as possible before
losing, at which point the losing student sits in the seat of the person who bested him. The game
ideally continues until one student makes it “around the world” and gets all the way back to his
own seat. Often, though, the game simply ends when time is up, and the person who traveled
the farthest wins.

So next time those little voices whine “can we play a game!?” you can give an excited SURE! –
without the fear or guilt that you’re neglecting their education in the process.

Did you get your FREE Game Show (like Jeopardy) Game Board ?