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Sentence ladder

1. The teacher writes on the blackboard 6 words from the active vocabulary students have recently learnt. 2. The task of the class is to use...

New words

1. Ask each student to prepare one new word that is the most interesting for him for each lesson. At the lesson students write these words o...

Definite position

1. Ask students to write as many words where a letter is in the third position as they know. 2. Then ask students to write words where a let...

Random dictionary

1. You need an English monolingual dictionary. You ask the stu­dents to call out any number which falls between the first and last page (e.g...

Add a letter

1. Tell the students that they can form new words by adding or curtailing a word, e.g.: mile – smile.2. Ask them to form as many new words a...

SMS

1. Write a word on the blackboard. 2. Students should write SMS beginning each word with a letter from the word you wrote.

Letter by letter

1. Player A says a letter. Player B thinks of a word beginning with A's letter and says its second letter. C thinks of a word beginning ...

Guess the word

1. Form groups of roughly equal numbers. Try and keep the groups as far away from each other as possible. Explain that one member of each gr...

Words out of...

1. Write up a selection of about ten disconnected letters scattered on the board, and ask students to use them to make words. Each letter ca...

Words beginning with...

1. Give a letter, and ask the students to write down as many words as they can that begin with it in two minutes. Then they tell you what th...

Jumbled words

1. Write on the board words the students have recently learnt or ones they have difficulty spelling with the letters in jumbled order. It is...

What is important for you?

1. Ask students: What is important for you when you use a dictionary?2. Suggest the following: spelling, grammar information, pronunciation,...

Tennis elbow foot

1. Student A says a word. 2. Within a strict time limit (say three seconds), Student B must say a second word that connects with the first i...

Words my neighbor knows

1. Divide the class into pairs. The partners must not communicate at this stage.2. Ask each student to write a list of ten words which their...

Turn out somebody's pockets

1. Ask each student to list the contents of the pockets or handbag of an imaginary person: they should list 10-12 objects.2. Get them to exc...

Erasing words

1. Write on the board about ten words which are difficult to spell, and give the class a minute to 'photograph' them. 2. Point to on...

Turn out your pockets

1. Ask the students to list some or all of the objects in their handbags/wallets/pockets: ask the class to write their lists clearly.2. When...

Match the adjectives

1. Write three adjectives on the board, e.g. important, dangerous, heavy. 2. Ask the students to suggest things which could be described by ...

How many things can you think of that...?

1. In groups, students try to think of and note down as many things as they can that fit a given definition and that they know in English. F...