English students around the ages of 7 to 9 years old are not that different from younger students. They still like to play games and activities but at this age you do start to see certain amount of shyness and timidity from many students. It’s because of this that there are some games and activities that I would not use for this age group that I might with a younger group. Some of those things would be any kind of songs, dancing or anything that some children might think of as childish. At this age you can start to incorporate more complicated activities but you will have to constantly monitor the students in the class to see if those activities are popular or are effective.
Shootout!
This is a basic game that focuses on having the children verbalize the various vocabulary that they have learned. Click here for more information.
English road
This is a very good game that actually mimics a quiz or test. Click here for more information.
Find it!
This is a simple game where you can practice various vocabulary while having the kids move around. Definitely a kid favorite. Click here for more information.
Pick it up!
Similar to “Find it!” You can do a lot of vocab, commands, and listening practice. This is probably my favorite game. Click here for more information.
Hide it!
This is a basic game where you have the children practice various location words. Click here for more information.
Old Maid/ Go Fish
Simple card game just like the real “Old Maid” or “Go Fish”, but you can replace the cards with other cards of any topic. Click here for more information.
3 Letter Puzzles
Good reading activity that uses 3 letter word sets of cards. Click here for more information.
Picture books
Basic children’s books that are made specifically for young English learners. Click here for more information.
Songs
Basic songs made for young English learners. Songs usually cover one topic. Click here for more information.
Drill Sgt.
A great game that I often use for a warm up. Great way to introduce and practice various commands. A lot of fun for the kids. Click here for more information.
Color game
Simple game practicing various colors. Kids get to move around a lot. Good as a warm up. Click here for more information.
Talk time
Activity where you can practice various basic questions and responses. Not particularly fun but still important. Click here for more information.
Balloons
Simple but fun game where the children use a balloon to practice numbers, days, months. Click here for more information.
UNO
Better with small classes. Good as a reward or a break. To work well the teacher has to institute an “English Only” rule. Click here for more information.
Newspaper game
Great for introducing “Rock, Paper, Scissors game” which you will need to resolve any disputes you have in other games. Click here for more information.
Where are you?
Best used as a reward at the end of class. Similar to the swimming pool game “Marco! Polo!” Click here for more information.
Student entrance
Good warm up that can be used to practice basic questions and responses. Click here for more information.
House Game
This is a board game titled “Guess Where?” that can be used to practice various yes/no questions and vocabulary. Click here for more information.
Face Game
This is another board game where the students have to use yes/no questions to find out which face/person the opposing player chose. Click here for more information.
Chutes and Ladders
This is your basic chutes and ladders board game that can be used with any lesson topic to review and reinforce topics. Click here for more information.
Headbanz
Fun game where students wear a headband on their heads and have to use yes/no questions to guess what object they are. Click here for more information.
Concentration
Simple card game that can be used to learn vocabulary words, verb tenses or opposites. Click here for more information.
Bingo
Easy way to practice vocabulary and basic reading skills. Click here for more information.
Conclusion
This age group is where you can slowly start to introduce more textbook work but games and activities should still make up the majority of your lesson plan. These children generally have longer attention spans than the 3 to 6 year-olds. They can also handle more complex games and activities. You can use this to practice and introduce more complex sentences and English. All classes and students are different and understand that some games or activities that might work well with some classes might not work with others. It is up to you, the teacher, to decide which games and activities work best with the individual classes and with the individual students.
