5 Perfect Activities With Flashcards

Flashcards on its own is an easy method to apply when teaching beginners, teenagers even adults because they can match the words to the pictures and it's an easy way to remember new vocabulary. I think this is the best way of acquiring a new word of a second language because identification and recognition is the key.

This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Sombong V. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.

1. Ask, Guess and Answer

The whole class can take part in this activity. The objective is to use sight words to make up questions.

Materials:

• 7 question words - who, what, where, when, why, how, which.
• 8 picture cards - giraffe, elephant, bear, parrots, butterfly, octopus, clown and motorbike
• Chart paper and marker.

How to play: Photocopy and cut apart the word and picture cards. Layout the word cards face up. Mix up the picture cards and place them facedown in a pile. Seat children in a circle around all the cards.

One child selects a card from the pile and identifies the picture. Then he or she makes a question using the picture and a question word of his or her choice. (What does a bear eat? How does a rocket work?).

Record the question on chart paper. Have the group guess or estimate the answer. Write their ideas on the chart. Play continues until all question words have been used. Review all the questions and guesses. As a group, use classroom or library resources to check some of the answers.

Also Read: 10 Exciting Activities for the Past Simple

2. Display Flashcards on the Floor

The whole class takes part in this activity.

Materials:

• Items needed are flashcards and a sticky ball.

How to play: Teacher displays the flashcards on the floor. Students stand in line then throw the sticky ball one after the other. When students get a flashcard, they pronounce what is on it and keep it. Activity continues until there are no more flashcards on the floor. The student who gets the highest number of flashcards wins and can get a point. This activity helps in word spelling and recognition.

3 From Here to There

The whole class plays. The objective is to line using high-frequency homophones

Materials:

• 22 word cards - ate, eight, buy, by, for, four, know, no, one, won, hour, our, hear, hear, write, write, to, too, two, their, there, they're

How to play: photocopy and cut apart the word cards. Distribute the one-word card to each player. If necessary have some students pair up because there are only 22 cards. Call students to read the words on their card and think about how they would use it in a sentence.

Randomly call out a word (see materials box), and use it in a sentence. The player with that word card can get in line after saying the word, spelling it and using it in another sentence. Then the player(s) with a homophone for that word reads it, uses it in a sentence, and gets in line. Collect the word cards after all students are in line.

Also Read: How much can I earn teaching English abroad?

4. Rhyme Concentration

Pairs or small groups can play this game. The objective is to collect the most pairs of rhymes

Materials:

• 24 words cards; light, right, all, fall, found, round, she, he, go, no, could, would, not, hot, bring, sing, or for, is, his, an, can get, let. Blank wild cards

How to play: photocopy and cut apart the word cards and the wild card. Mix up the cards and place them facedown in a 5 by 5 array. Play as you would play concentration. The first player turns over two cards and reads the words. If the words rhyme, the player keeps the pair and turns over two more cards. If the two cards do not rhyme, the player turns them over again and the next player takes a turn.

When a player turns over the wild card, he or she can use it to make a rhyming pair. When the game is over, the player with the wild card can take the one remaining card. The player with the most cards at the end of the game wins.

Also Read: What questions should I ask a TEFL employer?

5. Puzzling Words

It can be played by an individual or pairs. The objective is to spell the smallest words using the letters in a long high-frequency word.

Materials:

• 1 envelope for each word, letter cards for these words: another, because, different, please, together. Pencils and paper

How to play: prepare envelopes in advance.place all the letter cards for the words (another, because, different, please and together) in separate envelopes. Write the words on the outside of their envelopes. Spare letter squares are included below. Distribute envelopes and writing materials

Players place the cards in the correct order to spell the puzzle word. Then players write the word at the top of a sheet of paper. Players use the same letter cards to spell other words and record each word they spell. Players score points for each word (one point per letter).

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