“If it’s not fun, why bother?” — Reggie Fils-Aimé
Learning another language is hard but it shouldn’t be boring. The multi-billion dollar education technology industry has been successfully gamifying the process for decades. From Rosetta Stone in the 90s popularizing its non-translation image-based method of language acquisition to addiction-forming streak-based apps like duolingo in the early 2010s: it’s clear that language learners don’t want to be bored. While one could argue against the effectiveness of solely using an app like Duolingo to learn a language, it’s a lot more engaging than writing repetitious lines of conjugation tables in your target language.
This guide includes websites and activities that teachers can use as fun warmups to start their English classes or as quick fillers when lessons end earlier than expected. Preparation time will vary depending on teachers’ needs but all of them can be played immediately after opening each link. While these activities will work best in online lessons, many of them will work in-person with a computer and an internet connection.
Please note that the websites listed below are third-party resources provided for educational purposes only. We are not affiliated with, sponsored by or responsible for the content, advertisements or privacy practices of these external sites. Please review the terms of use and privacy policies of each website before accessing or sharing them with students.
Scattergories (1+ players) https://swellgarfo.com/scattergories/
Scattergories originally started as a party game by Milton Bradley where you are given arandom letter with which you must use as the first letter for words in various given categories. For example, if you roll the letter G, you might be given categories like “names of animals” or “types of fruit” where you could answer “giraffes” and “grapes” respectively. Pick a letter and then come up with vocabulary words for that letter.
The linked website swellgarfo.com/scattergories/ presents a modified version of the party game. A default page containing a letter in the corner which can be randomly “re-rolled”, a 120 second timer that can be changed to suit the abilities of your students, and a list of 12 blacked out lines which will reveal categories after pressing the play button. This list can be shortened or lengthened with the + and – buttons at the top of the page. Once you hit the “play” button, the black bars will reveal the categories and the timer will begin to countdown and your student can freely give their answers or respond as you read each line.
I would recommend opening another document or writing down answers, as there is no place to keep track of answers on the page. You can play this on your own a few times to see which categories you find too difficult or inappropriate for your students. There isn’t anything obscene, but they may be unable to list “American Cities” that start with the letter V. You can affect the list of categories the game pulls from by clicking “Add A Category” and removing whichever default options you don’t like.
There’s an option to make it Child-Friendly and even a space to type in your own custom categories. When you’re done you can copy the list’s URL at the bottom and save your custom links somewhere with the changes you’ve made. This game isn’t the most beginner-friendly but teachers can help struggling students without giving away the answers. If a student is struggling with “Things in a Grocery Store”, ask them leading questions like, “Are there any fruits or vegetables you buy at grocery stores that start with your letter?”. This gameworks best screenshared or displayed in-person on a classroom screen and can be played in one-on-one or group classes.
Custom Wordle (1+ players) https://mywordle.strivemath.com/
Wordle is a daily word guessing game owned by The New York Times and inspired by the British TV game show Lingo. You start by guessing any five letter word and depending on the colour-based feedback on each of the spaces for each letter players must try to determine theword within six guesses. Green means the letter is correct and in the right position, yellow means the letter is in the word but in the wrong position and grey means the letter isn’t in the word at all.
Everyone gets the same Wordle puzzle every day around the world which you can only play once, but you can create your own on Mywordle. Mywordle allows you to put in any word of any length and then generate a custom link for that word. Teachers can prepare a bunch of links before a class and open them up without giving away the answer to students or have the website come up with a random word for you.
Younger students may enjoy this more than an advanced adult class but it can be useful for introducing a lesson’s vocabulary words. Due to the limit of six guesses, teachers may want to ask leading questions to younger learners tobetter help them along, reminding them of which letters were already guessed or helping them spell out their guess if it’s too long of a word. Like scattergories, this game can be played online through screen sharing or over HDMI with a classroom screen to classes of any size.
Taboo (2+ players) https://playtaboo.com/playpage/
If a word is taboo, you shouldn’t say it, especially when playing this next classic guessing game. Taboo is a party game where a clue-giver selects a card with a word that they must describe to other players who are acting as guessers without saying it and a handful of other words. If the top of your card says “Nephew”, you will have to describe a nephew without using taboo words like “family” or “relative”. There is usually a time limit and points are awarded for each card you are able to make the other players guess correctly. Players take turns guessing and giving clues each round.
Unlike the other two games, teachers won’t be able to share their screens when playing this online with students, as that will give away the answers. Send your students the playtaboogame link, either via email or through the chat of your teaching platform so that everyone can have the web page open. When playing for the first time, share your screen to explain the game to your students. Tell them they will see a page similar to yours with different words. Explain that the word in red is the word to be guessed and that all of the words on the card cannot be said.
Teachers should ask ICQs like, “Can I say that my nephew is a member of my family?” to ensure that they understand the rules. Explain to them that once they guess the word they get a point and can click the “>NEXT” button at the bottom. They can also click this button if they accidentally use one of the words on the card or to skip a word they are unfamiliar with. Then teachers can stop sharing their screen, move to the next question and start playing as the clue-giver. This will demonstrate exactly how to play without having to over-explain how to play asthe clue-giver when it’s their turn.
There is a blue “PLAY” button at the top of the screen that allows the clue-giver to start a 60 second timer, but this time limit cannot be changed. If this is not enough time for your more beginner students, teachers can instruct students to ignore this. Teachers can use a computer or phone app to set their own 2-3 minute timer.
This game can work for one-on-one classes but it will require the teacher to play. For largerclasses the teacher can refrain from guessing to give the rest of the students a chance to bemore involved. It should be noted that students joining your online class from company computers may be unable to open the link due to security features blocking unapproved websites. If this happens you can suggest emailing the link and having the student play on theirphone. This game can work the same way for in-person classes but teachers should look for free printable Taboo templates as these make for a much smoother gaming experience.
It can be hard for students to sit patiently for over an hour of language lessons and motivation isconstantly waning. It’s up to teachers to listen to their students and experiment with different ways of keeping their students engaged. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to creating a fun English class but these websites should act as a great starting point.
Written by our January 2024 Alumni: Brandon Lorenzetti
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