The EFL Playhouse Games for Young Learners:

Skill: Letter recognition; letter-sound association; vocabulary review
Group Size: any number
Prep. Time: > 5 minutes
Time: 5-15 minutes
Interest Level: ages 3-8
Ability Level: beginning

Materials: two or more clean flyswatters (not used for swatting flies); flashcards

Game: To review letters of the alphabet, simply place letter cards on the floor between two or more lines of students. Hand the first student in each line a fly swatter, name a letter, and let them race to swat it. Depending on the ability levels of students, you may ask them to find a letter that makes a certain sound instead. For example ...

Find a letter that makes a /d/ /d/ /d/ sound.
Find the letter that makes the first sound in the word "pencil."
Find the letter that makes the last sound in "cat."

To review vocabulary, place flash cards on the floor. Then, either name the object to be swatted -- "Where's the chair?" -- or give word clues -- "There are sixteen of them in the classroom. We sit on them" and require students to swat and name the object (SWAT! "It's a chair!").

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