Using Games to Learn English
You may be
going to an English class or trying to
learn from books or a
computer, but have you thought about using games
Click Here for Step-by-Step Rules, Stories and Exercises to Practice All English Tenses
Any games you play with English speakers will help you improve your
speaking and listening skills, but let's take a look at some of the
that will also help with specific skills.
There are two kinds of games we'll look at here.
We will start with
, and then look at computer games
and online games
Traditional Games – Word Games
One of the most popular board games in the world is Scrabble
game, each person has 7 "tiles" with letters on, which they place on a
special board to make words. Each letter has a points value and the
person who scores the most points with their words wins the game.
you are not a native English speaker, then you may want to play this
game with a dictionary
It can help with spelling
you play a computer or online version it will automatically check if
your words are correct.
Other word games are:
where players draw
a description of a word for others to guess. These can all help
One of the most popular quiz games is Trivial Pursuit
now so many quiz games it is impossible to list them all . . .
on TV shows such as "Who
Wants to be a Millionaire
" are also available
as board games.
These games will test your comprehension and
Of course, it is fine to use a dictionary
in case there are
any words you don't understand. (Actually, you should!)
Many of these games are also available
as electronic versions, but playing a board game with English speaking
people will also help your conversation
skills in ways that electronic
versions probably wouldn't.
Online Games – Games to Practice English Skills
If you search on the internet for "games
to practice English" you will
find there are a lot of quizzes
and animated games
These usually help
you with grammar
They are designed
specifically for students
Other Computer Games
If you enjoy role
, there are many to
choose from that could help you learn English, especially if they are
interactive and you play with other people.
popular, and there are lots of opportunities to talk with other players
to organize your strategies. There are many other similar games online.
such as the xbox, PlayStation or Wii are becoming more
popular and although most games on these are action games, there are an
increasing number of puzzle
such as the PSP (PlayStation Portable) and the Nintendo DS also have
and activities that can help with vocabulary, spelling, and they even
have recipe programs that can help with comprehension of recipes.
Lastly, smart phones
have apps (applications) that
can help you learn English.
Whether they are specially designed for
that purpose (such as vocabulary tests), or games such as Words With
Friends (available on iPhones and Android phones) which is similar to
Scrabble, they are games to learn English in an enjoyable way.