Act an Adverb is a simple game which you can play with different levels and ages of class. It is based around the meaning and use of different adverbs. Preparation Prepare a set of flashcards, each of which has an adverb on it, e.g. happily quietly sadly...
IPA Decode is a great game to play with the class which helps them understand and use the IPA or International Phonetic Alphabet. It can be used with a reasonably proficient class who are familiar with the IPA already and who would benefit from a little more practice....
Who-What-Where-When-Why-How is a TEFL game based on the popular boardgame, Cluedo. The game is ideal for practising speaking and listening. It is particularly good for formulating and practising questions and, above all, it can be adapted very easily for different...
Non-Threatening Debates are ideal TEFL debates which can be held in class and then voted on. The idea is simple. If you get your class to debate a hot topic (e.g. anything political or religious) then students can get very emotional and carried away. Because they are...
When teaching beginners you should always work on the principle that any detailed grammar explanation will be too complicated for them. In TEFL it is always wise to keep things as simple as possible. This means that when you need to explain a new grammar item like...
Hangman is a traditional, simple game which is useful as a five minute filler for practicing vocabulary. Variations of the game and played in many different countries so one advantage is that some students will already know the game in their own language (see...
My Grandmother went to Market is a quick and simple traditional game which can be used in the TEFL classroom to practice various semantic fields. It is useful at the end of the class for a five minute filler to practice vocabulary learned earlier. Once the class are...
Twenty Questions is a simple game which can be played in class with minimal preparation. It is ideal for practicing both vocabulary (notably semantic fields) as well as making questions. Preparation Collect a group of pictures or photographs with different objects on...
Market Traders is a useful game to help practice: semantic fields counting negotiating skills Once you have prepared the game, it can be adapted for a great number of classroom situations, levels and vocabulary areas. As you will see, it can also be adapted...
This article is on how to use Videos in the Classroom (or of course, movies or films in the classroom). It describes the basic technique so that you - and your students - make the most of this valuable resource. (Note that this also applies to DVDs, online clips,...
Kim's Game is a simple (and classic) game which can be played to help memorize a group of objects. As such it's a good game to help students learn vocabulary, especially objects within a certain semantic field. Note that in general this works better with concrete...
This is a good idea; basically you use a movie trailer in your class to provoke discussion amongst your students. The trailer you choose must be suitable for the level of the class but it can be exploited in many different ways. For more on using videos in class - how...
The Story Telling Stick is a simple activity which you can use in your TEFL class to develop a story and get the whole class talking and listening. It's ideal for lower-intermediate level and upwards and can be used with both smaller and larger classes. Background...
Warmers or Lesson Starters are quick activities used at the beginning of a lesson to get students warmed-up and ready to learn. They are useful to help students relax and feel comfortable in the classroom; they help promote a fun learning environment and can be a...
This is an interesting idea for a lesson which helps with checking reading comprehension. It also introduces some good listening practice. After you have worked on a text with your class you will want to make sure they understand it. Quite simply you can read it back...
Question the News is a simple but effective way of exploiting news stories in your TEFL class and giving your students plenty of practice in reading comprehension and speaking and also making questions. It's very adaptable and can be used for many different kinds of...
Inventions Who & When?! is a simple activity to help your students practice using the passive voice. It is very flexible and can be used with all ages and levels who are familiar with the passive voice. There are a number of variations on the activity at the...
Simon Says is a very simple, very effective activity you can use in your TEFL class. It often works best with younger learners and has been adapted from the traditional English game. How it Works The game is simple. You, as teacher, give commands to your class using...
Writing is not just a matter of putting pen to paper. It requires some thought and a certain level of language skills. We talk about good writing when the written work - be it an essay or an email, a poem or a business letter - expresses a clear point, has substance,...
Almost any teacher experiences sooner or later a time in their teaching career when due to lack of preparation, misjudgement of their students’ language ability, or simply laziness they ran out of material, activities and even ideas before the end of their lesson. Not...
Miming in Class is a simple activity which can be used with almost any level to learn and practice vocabulary. Of course miming is acting out a story or word with the body only and without using any language. This has advantages in the classroom (especially with...
The ESL Art Activity is a simple classroom game for practicing prepositions, vocabulary, and speaking at all different levels and for all different classes. Essentially what you are doing is describing a picture to your class and having them reproduce it. The key here...
Traditional grammar classifies words based on eight parts of speech: verb, noun, pronoun, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection. Each part of speech explains not what the word is, but how the word is used. In fact, the same word can be a noun...
In an Action Maze students are put in a difficult situation and they need to decide what to do next. Often they'll be given a few options to choose from. As a result of their choice, the students are then faced with the next situation in the story and with other sets...
This is a simple game you can play with semantic fields. Preparation Prepare a set of flashcards. On each one write the name of a semantic field. For example, kitchen itemsthings in my bedroomoffice equipmentfruit When you choose the semantic fields, make sure they...
The Counting Game is a simple but effective counting game ideal for young beginner level students in your TEFL classroom so they can practice numbers. It also helps keep a class quiet for a few minutes which is a nice side-effect! Running the Game Have the class...
Writing Prompts is a simple idea to help your TEFL students develop their writing skills and stimulate ideas and discussions. It can work with almost any age or level of class and is very flexible. Pictures as Prompts There are many variations of the method, but a...
All Tied Up is a simple but fun activity to practice intense, careful listening. The basic idea here is that you give instructions on how to tie a tie. The students must listen very carefully! To run this activity all you need is a tie and a set of instructions; make...
Mind Mapping is a powerful technique that allows you to make the best use of your brain power by using a combination of words, pictures, icons or symbols, sounds, colors and any other imagery you see fit into structuring and organizing your ideas together. Mind maps...
This is a simple way of Teaching and Practicing the Past Continuous. I've used it several times with my (small) classes and it provides a method of practice where students can see the use of the past continuous. Preparation Prepare a large sheet of paper; in the...
