Word Association ESL Game
If you’ve ever found yourself running out of material or maybe your class is getting more and more sluggish near the end of the class, it’s always good to have a quick and easy ESL game ready to go that you can pull out of your back pocket. The word association game is perfect because it requires zero preparation or materials!
This is certainly not a game I came up with—you’ve probably played it before. Here’s how to play:
1) Divide students into partners or groups.
2) One student will start by saying a word—any word.
3) The next student will have to immediately say the first word that pops into his head.
The catch: Each word must be connected to the word before it in some way.
4) You must immediately say another word. If you pause too long, you lose.
5) If the word is not connected to the previous word, you lose.
6) If you repeat a word that’s already been said, you lose.
For example:
Student 1: Computer
Student 2: Apple
Student 3: Orange juice
Student 4: Breakfast
Student 1: Hungry
Student 2: McDonald’s
Student 3: Childhood
Etc.
If you’ve never played this game before with your class, definitely give them an example. But after you’ve played it once, you’ll probably be able to pull it out at any time without having to re-explain it since it’s so simple.
Q&A:
Q: What if a student says a word, but no one else in the group understands how it’s connected to the previous one?
A: Pause the game for a second and let that student explain himself. He’ll get to use English even more, and it creates a more relaxed environment where students don’t have to be afraid of saying anything that comes to mind.
Q: Students must immediately say another word, right? How long of a pause is too long?
A: You can decide for yourself and your class. I generally say 10 seconds. But most of the time, each team can feel for themselves when a student is taking too long.
Tips:
If you want to add an extra level of difficulty and practice a specific aspect of language, give students a limitation, such as: You can only say nouns or only use descriptive adjectives.
If you have students who are often reluctant or unsure about how to start activities, you can give each group the same word to start with. After you explain how to play and show an example, saying, “Okay, everyone! Your first word is: Shopping.”
This is extra fun to do in a group instead of with a partner because you’ll end up with more variety. It’s also easier to “make decisions” (about whether or not a word is connected or if someone hesitated too long) in a group rather than with partners.
You can do two variations of this game. If someone hesitates too long, you could just say he lost and give him a point. The person with the least number of points is the winter. If you have a group though, you could eliminate that person, paring the number of students down with each round. This could create a great sense of urgency as the game progressively gest more difficult. If you have lower-level students, however, and you’re worried about them feeling embarrassed or just want them to have as many chances to practice as possible, do the point system!
Next time you need something to liven up your class a little or you want to push your students to think in English or use one part of speech specifically, try a quick game of word association!