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Karin's ESL PartyLand

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Games

All games are recommended for both classroom use and personal enjoyment.  For variations on standard play and activity suggestions on how to use these games in the ESL classroom, keep an eye out for our page on Ideas for Using Games, coming soon.

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 Pictionary--Players attempt to guess words that other members of their teams draw.  Active, lively, and loads of fun.  (Teachers, you can use just the cards for a no-prep circumlocutions game.) ($24.99)
Pictionary, Jr.--Same idea as the previous game, but it's the junior edition.  That means the words are better suited for intermediate ESL learners.

 

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 Boggle--This is probably my all-time favorite word game.  There's a small container that holds 16 dice, each marked with a different letter on its six sides. You shake the container and the dice fit into the base.  Now's when the fun begins.  You have three minutes to find as many words as you can. ($12.99)

Taboo--This game is loads of fun and provides great vocabulary practice.  There's a box of cards.   Each card has a word on it.  Under the word, there's a list of other words.   Your goal is to get your teammates to say the word at the top of the card.   The catch is you can't say any of the words on the card.  Sounds like fun, huh?  ($24.99)

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 Standard Scrabble--An absolute classic word game.  You create words in English by using wooden tiles and a board.  It's been around for more than 50 years and has sold over 100 million copies.  All those people can't be wrong. ($9.99)

Ultimate Outburst--A game for parties or fun classes!  The object of the game is for your team to shout out up to ten responses to a question or topic before the time runs out.   ($24.99)

Outburst Jr.--The junior version of Outburst, created for American kids.  ($14.99)

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 Scattergories--This game comes with a 26-sided die.  There's one letter of the alphabet on each side of the die.  You roll the die to get a letter.  You pull a card to get topics.   Great for vocabulary review and English club fun.  ($24.99)
Scattergories Junior--Amazon.com provides the following description of the junior edition: "Just like in its parent version, two to four players are each given a pad of paper and a category list. Roll the alphabet die to determine which letter will be used for that round of play. (If the subject is "things you do at recess," for example, and the letter is "h," players must list activities that begin with "h," such as "hopscotch," "homework," "hanging out," etc.) Points are earned for adding words to your list that no one else thought of.  ($12.99)

Scruples--Loads of cards with ethical and moral dilemmas.  Needless to say, loads of classroom potential. ($17.99)

Wise and Otherwise--Amazon.com says the following about this game: "Voted Best Party Game of the Year, 1998, by Games Magazine, Wise and Otherwise belongs next to Pictionary and Scrabble in your arsenal of fun. This creative, interactive game (read: everybody shouting, flailing, laughing) revolves around 500 cards, each emblazoned with five obscure and long-forgotten sayings from around the world. For example, one old Chinese saying is, "Don't add salt to a boatload of salt fish." One side of the card states, "Don't add salt to..." and it is the job of the players to devise probable endings. "Don't add salt to salty soup," for example. Or, "Don't add salt to the open wound." (The actual endings are listed on the flip sides of the cards.) A player wins points when other players vote for his or her special ending, or when the player guesses the actual ending, so the goal is to finish the proverb as convincingly as possible given the geographic region in question. Each elegant box contains one game board, 500 cards, six writing pads, six pencils, one die, and six player pawns. People who love language, oddly hilarious translations, offbeat proverbs, or just making people look foolish by guessing their very clever answers will adore this game. We predict: The one who plays this game ... will hear the laughter."  Need I say more?  ($35.99)

Mindtrap--Hundreds of riddles.  One team hears a situation, can ask yes-no questions, and has to solve the problem.  Yet another game I own, love, and have used in class on a number of occasions. ($19.99)

Trivial Pursuit Millennium Edition--The most recent edition of the now-classic Trivial Pursuit.  Thousands of trivia questions on hundreds of cards.  I couldn't create a page on games and leave this one off, now could I?  ($32.99)

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