Let's play slap the board!

How to set up and play the game!

• Write the vocabulary items on the board in any order. Write some of them a little bit higher than the tallest child can reach, so that they'll have to jump.
• Divide the class into small groups. Give an L1 translation for one of the words on the board. The learners have got to recognise the word in English which translates to that word. They then run to the board and slap the correct word. The first person in each group to slap the right word gets a point.
• For a calmer alternative, you can form teams and one person from the team runs to the board, as a representative. The first team to hit the correct word gets the point. The representative changes, ready for the next word. This avoids having everyone running to the board at the same time!
• You can also reverse the translation, by putting the L1 words on the board. And of course, you could use definitions or antonyms if you want to avoid using L1.
• For younger learners, you could also use pictures so you put the pictures on the board and call out the English word and the children slap the picture.
• Another nice variation is to ask one of the learners to take on the role of the teacher and ask them to call out the words. This could be given as a reward: the first person/team to win 5 points gets to be/choose the teacher!