Robots

1. Students form groups of three or four. Their task is to program a robot. They have to decide what the robot can do. 2. In their groups th...

Fantasy at a window

1. Put these patterns up on the board: What can you see now? Is she/he (Are they) ...ing? What is he/she (are they) doing now? 2. Go to the ...

The shortest route

1. Divide the students into groups of 8. Tell them where you live. Tell them that you would like to visit each student in each group of 8. A...

Story behind a photo

1. Ask the students to bring to the classroom photographs of themselves, or someone they know, taken some time ago; and bring one yourself.2...

By men, by women, or by both

1. Ask students to write down five things that are normally, or more usually, done by men, five that are normally done by women, and five th...

Parental control

1. Get the students to sit in a large circle.2. Start off by saying: 'At the age of eight my parents made me... but they let me...',...

Plural tennis

1. The teacher explains that the students are going to play tennis with words, counting from 1 to 30 and using plurals as tennis balls. The ...

Leading the blind

1. The students are divided into two equal groups. Each group forms pairs. The centre of the room is filled with 'obstacles' (e.g. c...

Future shock

1. Set the scene by asking the students if they have considered what the world will be like in the year 2250.2. After you get a few suggesti...

Taps

1. Write on the board and work out the structure: You must have tapped on smth.2. Ask students to turn back, tap something with your hand or...

Miming

1. Write a list of vocabulary on the board which you feel should be reviewed. 2. Students take it in turns to mime one of the words so that ...

Upside-down statements

1. Student chooses a statement, such as Don't put off till tomorrow what you can do today, and reverses its meaning into Put off till to...

Ideal day

1. Ask the students to write a description of an ideal day. They can choose freely the places they would like to be in, their activities and...

Have I changed?

1. Ask students to consider how their personalities, or personal habits, have changed over the last ten years (or 20 years, for mature stude...

Eat, smile, dance!

1. Write up on the board: EAT, SMILE, DANCE. Ask the students if they always eat, smile and dance in the same way. Does it depend on who the...

Advertisements

1. Divide the students in pairs. 2. Ask each pair to write down an advertisement of a product without mentioning it. 3. Pairs exchange their...

Something special

1. Ask each student to write down one interesting (present) fact about him or herself (an unusual hobby, habit, job, possession, ability, di...

What I do

1. Ask students to write in one sentence stating one thing they do - or don't do - in each field. For example: SPORT: I watch tennis, bu...

Kim's diary game

1. Ask students a few questions starting 'What will you have done by... (a certain time on a certain day)', and elicit answers using...

Routines

1. Discuss briefly activities we do as part of our daily routine; and ask for examples of things people do regularly once a week, once a mon...

Random comparisons

1. Learners write down ten nouns on a separate piece of paper. These can be either abstract or concrete nouns. Collect these pieces of paper...

Tennis

1. The first person 'serves' by saying a sentence which is true for everyone in the room, including the teacher. Examples: We all sp...

How things used to be

1. Ask students to brainstorm a list of manufactured products they possess or often use; suggest things connected with transport, instant fo...

A day in the life

1. Divide the class in two teams. One students from each team goes out of the classroom. Other members of the teams write down his or her sc...

Balloon Game

1. Explain that three or four famous people are in a hot air balloon. The balloon has a slow leak and one person must be sacrificed to save ...

Chain associations

1. Start by suggesting an evocative word: 'storm', for example. A student says what the word suggests to him or her - it might be ...

Comparing things

1. Present the class with two different nouns, such as: an elephant and a pencil. 2. Students suggest ways of comparing them finding differe...

I know what my teacher has done

1. The learners, working individually, write down ten questions addressed to you using the present perfect. The questions should be ones to ...

Defining objects

1. Choose a simple inanimate object, and tell all the class but one what it is. Students describe it by saying what can be done (or must/sho...

The way you say

1. Take one word or a short sentence and ask the students to say it in as many different ways as possible. 2. You might like to discuss with...

Who's the real one?

1. Students in groups discuss the unusual experiences they have had and choose the most interesting one. 2. Then each member of the team mem...

Chain story

1. Give each student a single past form ('thought' or 'spoke' or 'went'). Begin improvising a story - for example: O...

Duties and privileges

1. Tell the class to imagine that they are responsible for finding a suitable candidate to fill a position they know something about: a new ...

Important people

1. Divide students into small groups or pairs2. Ask them to tell their neighbours which person has been an important influence in their live...

Ambiguous picture

1. Draw a small part of a picture. Ask the students what it is going to be. Encourage different opinions. Do not confirm or reject their ide...

Recipes

1. Tell the class to write out instructions for a simple recipe: making a cup of tea, or boiling an egg, for example supply new vocabulary a...

Find someone who...

1. Make a set of cards or slips of paper, each of which has a task on it beginning: 'Find someone who', plus the present perfect. Fo...