Only whole class or group activities:

Action rhyme activity noun A classroom activity used mostly with young learners which includes words and sentences which end in the same sound. For example ‘One, two, three, touch your knee.’ Learners say the rhyme and perform the actions. See Listen and do/make/draw.

Brainstorm noun and verb To quickly think of ideas about a topic and also possibly note them down. This is often done as preparation before a writing or speaking activity; e.g. before learners write a description of their city they make a list of all the positive and negative adjectives they know to describe places.

Information-gap activity noun A classroom activity in which learners work in pairs or groups. Learners are given a task, but they are given different information and, to complete the task, they have to find out the missing information from each other. For example, learners work in pairs; one of the learners has a weather report from Toronto and the other a weather report from Taipei. Learners talk to each other to exchange information to find out what the weather is like in places they don’t know about.

Jigsaw listening/reading noun A communicative listening or reading activity. A text is divided into two or more different parts. Learners listen to or read their part only, then share their information with other learners so that in the end everyone knows all the information. In this way, the text is made into an information-gap activity.

Listen and do/make/draw phrase A classroom activity where learners listen to the teacher or to another learner and while they are listening they perform an action (listen and do), make something (listen and make) or draw something (listen and draw). These activities are usually used as comprehension tasks. See action rhyme and picture dictation.

Mingle noun and verb A mingle is an activity which involves learners walking round the classroom talking to other learners to complete a task. For example, learners could mingle to find out what the other learners in the class like doing in their free time.

Problem-solving activity noun Learners work in pairs or groups to find the solution to a problem. For example, learners are given a problem situation such as a town centre with too much traffic and they talk together to think of solutions to the problem. Problem-solving activities usually help to develop oral fluency.

Project work noun An activity which focuses on completing an extended task or tasks on a specific topic. Learners may work in groups to create something such as a class magazine. Learners sometimes do some work by themselves, sometimes outside the classroom.

Role-play noun and verb A classroom activity in which learners are given roles to act out in a given situation, e.g. a job interview role-play where one learner is the interviewer and the other learner is the interviewee. Role-plays are usually done in pairs or groups.

Survey noun An activity in which learners find out information from others by asking questions or using questionnaires in order to practise speaking skills and/or specific language. For example, learners might conduct a survey to find out how often their classmates use the internet.

Visualise verb, visualisation noun To form a mental picture of something. Visualisation can help learners to remember new words or can be used for creative storytelling. A classroom activity where learners close their eyes and create mental images.

Word map, mind map noun A diagram which is used to make a visual record of vocabulary on the same topic, e.g.transport: car, train, bus, etc

Word snake noun A reading or writing activity involving words written in the shape of a snake. Each new word begins with the first letter of the previous word, e.g. dog→ giraffe→ elephant→ tiger. This activity is often done with younger learners.