Top 9 Fun Educational Games to Strengthen Learning for Primary School Students

Game: The Amazing Crossword

How to Play:

The teacher presents a crossword puzzle with 15 horizontal clues and one vertical clue (this can be customized by the teacher). Each horizontal clue relates to a topic covered in class, accompanied by a hint. Each group competes by raising their flag for the chance to answer. The group that answers quickly and correctly earns 10 points. If a group answers incorrectly, the opportunity to respond is passed to another group. The first group to correctly guess the vertical word earns 20 points. The game ends once the vertical word is guessed. The group with the highest score wins. The teacher will summarize the points and offer praise or a prize to the winning group.

Game: Who Remembers Best

Objective: This game can be applied during review sessions to reinforce the knowledge learned in the Word Formation and Sentence Construction section.

• Reinforce and deepen understanding of the use of commas.
• Enhance concentration and attention skills.
• Develop higher-order thinking skills such as analysis and synthesis.

A set of cards with A, B, and C labels (each representing a different color) corresponding to the uses of commas:

• A: Separates parts of the sentence with the same function.
• B: Separates the adverbial phrase from the subject and predicate.
• C: Separates clauses in compound sentences.

How to Play:

• The teacher divides the class into teams and gives each student a set of cards.
• When the teacher reads a sentence and places it on the board, students must choose the card that corresponds to the correct use of the comma and raise it.
• After each round, the teacher or a designated student referee counts the number of correct answers for each team.
• Once the game is finished, the teacher will tally the number of correct responses. The winning team will be the one with the most correct answers.

• Game: Listen and Guess the Title

Objective: This game helps improve students' reading clarity and listening comprehension while reinforcing their memory of the titles of previously learned reading passages.

• The teacher divides the students into two teams, who sit facing each other, and selects a team leader to manage the team. Teams then draw lots to decide who will read first.
• The team that goes first opens their textbook and selects a passage from the readings. The other team listens and tries to guess the title of the passage. Afterward, the second team reads a passage, and the first team guesses the title. Each team takes turns reading and guessing for three rounds.
• Both teams earn points for correct guesses, and after the game, the teacher tallies the points. The team with the most points wins.

Note: While guessing the title, teams must not open their textbooks. The second team may use the passage read by the first team but must select a different part of the passage. The selected passage should be brief and not too long.

• Game: Reading Relay Race

Objective: This game improves students' reading speed and accuracy, and encourages teamwork and coordination among group members when reading out loud, one sentence at a time.

Game Duration: 5–7 minutes

- A stopwatch (to track the reading time)

- A designated referee

Teams: Choose three teams, each consisting of five students.

How to Play: The three teams line up in front of the board, with each team member holding a textbook opened to the passage to be read.

When the referee calls “Start,” the first person in line of each team reads the first sentence clearly and quickly. Once they finish, the second person begins reading the next sentence, and so on. If the team hasn’t finished the passage, the first reader starts again once the last person finishes.

The referee times the teams and notes how long it takes each team to finish the passage, then calculates the points for each sentence read correctly. Teams are penalized if:

+ A sentence is read incorrectly or with missing/extra words.

+ A player starts reading before the previous reader finishes.

+ A player reads multiple sentences in a row.

Once all teams have finished reading, the referee announces the results, comparing reading times and points. The team with the most points and the fastest time wins the relay race.

Rewards and Penalties:

- Winning team: Applause from the class.

- Losing team: Must mimic animal sounds (e.g., cat, chicken, pig) in a line.

Note:

If a student accidentally reads beyond their turn, the next reader must start from the beginning of their sentence, which adds time. This game can be used with different reading passages during each session.

• Game: Word Transmission

Objective:
Develop the skill to spell words with rising or falling tones, while enhancing vocabulary through spelling exercises with specific syllables.
Train quick reflexes in recognizing correct or incorrect spellings (rising or falling tones).

Preparation:
Divide the class into 3 teams, each with 10 participants.
The board will display the team results.
The teacher will act as the referee, while other students observe.

How to Play:
Teams will take turns playing. The current team stands in a circle, with the referee in the middle. First, the referee "sparks the message" by loudly announcing a word with either a rising or falling tone. The referee then points to a random student, who must shout "rising" if the word has a rising tone, or "falling" if the word has a falling tone. If the student is correct, they can choose another word with the same tone for another student to guess. This continues until all students in the circle have had a turn to "transmit the message". When all have participated, the game ends, and the next team takes its turn.

Note: Players cannot repeat words previously used. If a student shouts the wrong tone or a word incorrectly, they must step out of the circle, and the referee will introduce the next "message".

• Game: Fireworks Challenge
  

Objective: Practice spelling words that contain syllables often confused by students in different regions. Expand vocabulary with words containing similar syllables.
Train quick reflexes when reading and writing words with the target syllables.

Preparation:
Cut out 20 brightly colored paper flowers (roughly the size of an adult hand). On the back of each flower, attach adhesive to stick them to the board. Each flower will have a word containing a target syllable written on it.
There will be 10 flowers with correctly spelled words and 10 flowers with incorrect spellings.
Additionally, prepare a noise-making device to mimic the sound of fireworks going off.
Two boxes for the teams to place the "firework" flowers when they're finished.

Game Time: 5 to 7 minutes.
Gameplay and Scoring:
Each team gets 10 flowers (5 with correct spellings, 5 with incorrect spellings).
A coin flip decides which team plays first.
When the referee calls "start" and sounds the firework noise, an assistant will attach a flower to the board and start counting, "one... two... three".
After counting, if the word on the flower is spelled correctly, the team shouts "fireworks explode"; if it’s incorrect, they shout "fireworks fizzle".
If the team shouts "fireworks explode", the assistant moves the flower to the team’s score board. If the team shouts "fireworks fizzle", the flower goes into their box for incorrect answers.
If no answer is given by the count of three, the flower is also placed in the box as a fizzle.
Once a team finishes, the next team plays. When both teams have played, the referee counts the correct answers. Each correct flower equals one point.
The team with the most correct answers wins the game.

Note: After the game, ask the students to write the correctly spelled words from the flowers on the board.

• Game: The Mystery Box

Gameplay: Place a question in the mystery box and have the children choose boxes in sequence. The questions will relate to the poem’s content, and the children will answer them.

• Game: Poetry Relay

Gameplay: The teacher gives the class a poem they've learned. The teacher raises their hand towards a group, and the group reads the next line of the poem.

• Game: Picture Matching to the Poem

Gameplay: Divide the children into 3-4 groups, each with a board and a set of separate pictures. After hearing a signal or starting song, each group selects the pictures that match the order of the poem’s content and arranges them accordingly. At the end of the song, the teacher checks the results of each group.

• Game: Sing Along with Pictures

Preparation: Pictures depicting the content of various songs.
Gameplay: The teacher has a set of small pictures illustrating the themes of songs such as "The Good Little Flower", “The Red Melody”, “The New Year is Coming”, “Spring is Here”... (the teacher will select pictures based on the lesson’s theme). Each child takes turns drawing a picture, and if the picture matches a song, they must state the song’s title, the author, and sing the song for the class. If the child cannot identify the song, the teacher will provide hints or directly introduce the song’s title, author, and encourage the child to sing the song. The child may invite classmates to join in singing, dancing, or clapping along. After singing, the child will introduce the next player to take their turn.

• Game: The Sound Detective

Preparation: Maracas, trumpet, drum.
Gameplay: The teacher introduces the children to various sound-making instruments, such as maracas, a drum, and a gong. One child is invited to come forward, and the teacher places a cone hat on them. Another child is called up to play one of the instruments. The child who is wearing the hat must guess which instrument was played.

When selecting a game, teachers should carefully assess which one aligns with the lesson content and ensures that students reinforce what they have already learned. These games can be used to quickly gauge students' understanding right after introducing new vocabulary, or can be incorporated at the beginning or end of a lesson, depending on the lesson's structure. Choosing the right moment to use these games significantly boosts their effectiveness. Below are some popular games often implemented in English lessons:

a. Word Practicing

b. Word Network

c. Jumbled Words

d. Word Matching

e. Guess the Word

f. Rub Out and Recall

g. Chain Game

Game 1: Word Practicing

Requirements: At least two players and optionally a dictionary. The teacher can divide the class into two teams, with the teacher or a student acting as the referee.

Gameplay: The teacher selects an English word (e.g., “yesterday”) and uses its letters to create as many other words as possible. The player who creates the most words wins. For instance, “yesterday” could form words like “yes,” “year,” “steady,” and “state.” This game encourages creative word formation.

Students need to recall all the words they know while also learning new words their peers create. The teacher can choose words based on the vocabulary being taught or use this game to assess students' word knowledge.

Game 2: Guess the Word

This game is similar to the TV show “Wheel of Fortune.” The host (either the teacher or a student) selects a word or phrase based on a theme and draws blank spaces to represent each letter. Players guess one letter at a time. If the letter is correct, it is placed in the corresponding space. The first player to guess the word wins. If five incorrect guesses are made (this number can be adjusted by the host), the game ends. Multiple students can take turns being the host, and the player with the most wins becomes the overall champion.

Mathematics games can also be used at the end of lessons to help consolidate students' learning. So, which games are best for reviewing math content? Let’s explore some fun options:

• The "Electricity Relay" Game

How to play: The teacher asks a math question (addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division from previous lessons) and picks a student to answer. Once they respond, the teacher chooses another student to answer the next question. This continues until the teacher signals to stop. The students must respond quickly, and those who answer incorrectly face a penalty.

• The "Who Scores the Most" Game

Materials:

2 numbered plant pots (1 and 2)
A set of paper flowers with math problems written on the white side
Colored chalk
A timer
Choose 3 of the best students to serve as judges and record-keepers.

How to play: Divide the class into two teams. When the signal is given, each team sends a player to pick a flower from the teacher’s desk, solve the math problem on it, and pin it to their team’s plant pot. After finishing, the player passes the chalk to the next team member. This continues for 2 minutes. When time’s up, one representative from each team reads the math problems from their team’s flowers and shows them to the class. The judges then evaluate and record the results.

Note: The math problems should relate to the previous lesson's exercises.

• The "Bee and Pollen Hunt" Game

Materials:

2 five-petaled flowers in different colors, each petal marked with a number and with magnets on the back
10 bees, each carrying a math problem and a magnet
Colored chalk

How to play:

Choose two teams, each with 4 students. The teacher divides the board into two sections, placing one flower and 5 bees on each side in a random order. The teacher explains the game: the flowers represent the answers to the math problems, while the bees carry the problems and need to find their correct answers. The students take turns, and when the teacher signals to start, each student pairs a math problem with the correct answer on the flower. After one minute, the team that correctly pairs the problems and answers the fastest wins.

• The "Find the Mistake and Fix It" Game

Materials: The teacher prepares math problems with some errors at certain steps on the board (these should be common mistakes that students often make in this type of problem).

How to play:

• The teacher presents the problems with errors on the board at an appropriate point during the lesson.
• The teams discuss for a few minutes to identify where the errors are and come up with a way to correct them.
• The team that identifies and corrects the errors first presents their solution. If incorrect, other teams can offer answers until the correct one is found.
• The teacher asks the winning team to explain the mistakes, helping the entire class learn from them.
• The winning team is the one that quickly finds the errors, explains them, and corrects them.

Game: Poetry Tossing Competition

Materials: The teacher prepares cards with the first line (or middle line) of each verse or 2-3 words from the start of each poem the students need to memorize.

How to play: Each round involves two teams, A and B, with the same number of players as there are cards. Each team selects a leader to manage their team's 'poetry tossing.' The teams play a quick 'Rock, Paper, Scissors' game to determine who will toss the poetry first. Let’s say Team A wins the toss and will start.

Each student in the team holds a card (hidden from view). When the teacher gives the signal to start, the designated player from Team A passes a card to a player from Team B. The student receiving the card must recite the full verse (or poem line) that corresponds to the words on the card. If they do so correctly, they score 10 points. The player then passes the card. The teacher will calculate the total points for Team A.

Once Team A has finished, the poetry tossing role switches to Team B, and they play in the same way. The teacher then calculates Team B’s total score. At the end of the game, the teacher provides feedback, awards the winning team a bouquet, and gives them a perfect score of 10.

Note: Each card can only be passed once, and players may not help each other in their team when reading from the card.