Adam Graham

Fun ideas for the ESL classroom

Most of what I know as a teacher has come from experience. As you spend more time with students in a classroom setting, you get to know what works, and what doesn’t. Most teachers will know the heartache of spending ages on planning what they think is going to be a really fun and engaging class, only to be met with lethargic teenagers who don’t get involved.

So I have a few ideas of my own to share which have been really successful. Many games or activities I’ve completely made up, that’s not to say someone else hasn’t had the same idea. Others I’ve seen online and adapted to what works best for me.

Dancing Questions
Groups: 4-6 students in each
Age: 10-14
Materials: Music, pens, and paper

I usually use this game towards the end of term as a reward for student’s good behaviour and hard work due to the fact it is so popular. In small groups the pupils have to answer quiz-like questions that I ask. While they’re answering the question, one member of each group takes to the centre to dance to the music. Groups receive 1 point for answering the question correctly and 1 point goes to the best/most enthusiastic dancer. The students get very competitive and there is a lot of laughter to be had with the dancing element. Make sure you’ve moved all tables out of the way so there are no injuries! I find that this game works with younger students who aren’t as easily embarrassed!

Directions Assault Course
Groups: in partners
Age: 12+
Materials: tables, chairs, blindfold

This is a fun way to teach directions as well learning to use English quickly and fluently. You need to set up a long space with a chair in the middle, then a table, then a bookshelf at the end. This you can always adapt to your classroom. One partner is blindfolded while the other directs them to walk, sit on the chair, navigate their way under the table, and finally pick out the selected book from the shelf. The winner is the pair who does it quickest. There are obvious risks of students hurting themselves here, hence the age group I put. If explained well that they must take care, all students use their hands to feel for the obstacles and I’ve never had an injury to date. It’s great for them to express directions under time pressure, and very funny for the rest of the group to watch. Even the most shy students end up wanting a turn!

Debates and Votes
Groups: 2 sets of partners
Age: 11+
Materials: paper, pens

We’ve all held classroom debates on a range of topics, but this one adds in a competitive element that I find motivates the students more. I give one pair an idea, and the other pair another, similar idea. They then have to pitch the ideas and debate them to the class. The rest of the class have to then anonymously vote on which idea they prefer, based on who convinced them the most. Whereas a normal debating session might leave some students bored, uninterested and uninvolved, with this everyone takes part. They write their vote on a small piece of paper which is then counted to reveal the winner. One example of a recent debate was whether the end of year school trip should be to London, or to New York. One pair used the idea of London being cheaper as their main strategy to convince the class to vote for them. The other pair focused on the attractions of New York. New York won by 9 votes to 6. Students got excited by the voting element and some even wanted to be the one to count them.
Personally, it has to be one of the most successful ways of getting students to talk that I’ve ever experienced. When it was time to vote, they would groan and say “but can I say one more thing?” Our aim as ESL teachers is to get them talking, and this allows them use a wide-range of vocabulary and grammar. I thoroughly recommend this activity.

Playground Shouting
Groups: in partners
Ages: 8+
Materials: large playground space, pen and paper

A loud game that gets the students outside, it can be fun, and guarantees everyone speaks, or shouts! Each partner stands opposite each other in the playground at anything between a 15-30 meter distance. Partner 1 has written a phrase on a piece of paper which Partner 2 does not know. They then have to shout this phrase across the playground in order for the other to hear, and write down. It’s difficult because every student is shouting a different phrase at the same time, and therefore a great way for them to practise listening, as well as perfecting their pronunciation to be understood. It may not last a whole class, but combined with another playground activity, it’s great to get everyone engaged and outside. You may want to do this class with earplugs in.

Recreating Scenes
Groups: 4-6 students in each
Ages: 10-14
Materials: TV/Projector

Most teachers put a film on for their students at the end of term. This idea allows the students to not only watch a film in English, but get creative and use the language after. Watching films in English is great for the pupils to practise their listening skills. However, I ask the student to recreate a scene from the film after. This gets them more engaged when watching the film, and forces them to use the language after, gaining more benefits from a class of movie watching. I usually give the students one or two classes to perfect the scene, and then show them to the rest of the class. Rather than a drama workshop where students have to create a play themselves, this allows the others who are watching to understand what is happening, and enjoy the comparison to the real movie we’ve all watched prior. For older students, another post-film activity is to write a review, or create an alternate ending.

I hope these ideas can be useful for you in the classroom. Please let me know how they worked for you, and if there can be any variations or improvements made!