Games for Single Student Lessons - Hangman

The classic hangman game involves two people attempting to guess a word from a number of blank spaces (one for each letter) and guessing different letters. For each incorrect guess, part of a stick figure hangman is drawn. For each correct guess, a letter is written into one of the blanks.

The main problem with using this game in ESL lessons is that the potential for this game to advance a student's English skills is quite low. Quite often, this game is used by teachers to fill time and convince themselves that it is a vocabulary builder. The problem is that this game does not build vocabulary since the words used in the game must already be known by the student.

There is one way in which the game is useful and that is with practicing "is there a ~" or "are there any ~" when teaching low level students. Be sure to use words that the student has already studied and use the game as way to reinforce new vocabulary the student may have trouble retaining.

Explaining the game to the student:

There is a very good chance that most students will have already played this game before and the act of drawing the blanks for the letters and the guillotine in preparation will clue them in on what is to come. Whether the student knows the game or not, it is helpful to write the alphabet on the board or a piece of paper to cross off "used" letters during the game.

However, if the student has not played before, write the number of blanks on a piece of paper or the white board and tell the student he must guess what letters are in the word. If the student doesn't understand, put in one letter to start with to give him the idea. Draw a complete hangman to show what the final picture looks like and count as you draw each part of the figure and tell him the final stroke is the last guess he will have.

When the student has guessed your word, have him choose a word while you guess letters. Tell him that he must answer your questions with a full sentence and not simply with "yes" or "no". That is, he should say, "no, there aren't," or "yes, there are."

Purpose of the game:

The purpose of this game is to practice asking and answering simple questions as well as reinforce previously-studied vocabulary related to the chosen subject.

Classroom use:

This game is a good way to expand the generally uninteresting lessons in beginner textbooks which are for very low level students and focus on "there is/are" and "isn't there/aren't there."