Top 17+ Fun Games to Play in Class (For All Grades in 2023)

Looking for fun games to play in class ? To keep students’ interests high and to avoid textbooks like your kids avoid vegetables, check these top 17 fun games to play in class. They are versatile, work great for both online and offline learning, and don’t require much effort to set up.

Check out our AhaSlides Word Cloud, to gain much more funny classroom games, out of boring classroom! These are our best 17 Classroom Games as below!

Overview

Table of Contents

• 5 Benefits of Class Games
• Online games – Live Quiz
• Onlline games – Charades
• Online games – Time to Climb
• ESL games – Tell Me Five
• ESL games – Show and Tell
• ESL games – Word Chain
• ESL games – Word Jumble Race
• Vocabulary games – Pictionary
• Vocabulary games – Word Scramble
• Vocabulary games – Guess the Secret Word
• Vocabulary games – Stop the Bus
• Board games – Hedbanz
• Board games – Boggle
• Board games – Apples to Apples
• Math games – Would You Rather
• Maths games – 101 and out
• Maths games – Guess my number
• Classroom Competition Ideas
• Ways to Interact with Your Classroom
• Frequently Asked Questions

Students, regardless of age, all have one in common: they have short attention spans and can’t sit around learning for long. Just 30 minutes into the lecture you may find them fidgeting, looking blankly at the ceiling, or asking trivial questions.

Let’s jump in, as this article gonna include all kinds of educational games, for kids, or even game for high school students, as it’s easier to learn fun games, rather than only boring lession!

5 Benefits of Fun Games to Play in Class

Fun Games to Play in Class – Whether it’s online or offline, there is value in having a round of fun classroom games. Here are the five benefits of why you should incorporate games more than often in your lesson:

• Attentiveness: definitely would raise up with fun games in school, a handful of fun greatly increase students’ focus, according to a study by researchers at the University of Wisconsin. It’s no hard science to see that your students are indulged in playing games in class since fun classroom games are often upbeat and requires a great amount of attention in order to win.
• Motivation: more than a dozen times, students often look forward to a lesson or a class if they include a fun game. And if they feel motivated, they can even overcome the hardest learning obstacles👏
• Collaboration: by participating in classroom games as pairs or in teams, your students will eventually learn to cooperate with others and work in harmony as there are no rights or wrongs, only achievable goals at the end of the route.
• Affection: playing games is a great way to form special bonds with your students. They will think you are the “cool teacher” that knows how to build a welcoming environment and have fun apart from teaching dry topics.
• Learning reinforcement: the prime purpose of classroom games is for the students to learn using non-traditional education methods. By putting hard knowledge into something enjoyable, your students will sprout positive memories of the learning process, which are much easier to recall during exams.

Check out AhaSlides Spinner Wheel to choose from and enjoy fun games to play in class!

17 Fun Games For Students

Online Classroom – Fun Games to Play in Class

Battling through the silent void during virtual lessons is not a walk in the park. Luckily, it’s super exciting fun games to play at school on computer to the rescue! Revive the class atmosphere and leave the brightest smiles on your students’ faces with this engagement first aid kit.

Here’s the full list 👉 15 online classroom games for every age.

#1 – Live Quiz

Quizzes make lessons easy-peasy. They help students retain the lesson learned and fire up their competitive spirit, which the traditional pen-and-paper method cannot accomplish. 

There are tons of interactive online quizzes for you to try: Kahoot, Quizizz, AhaSlides, Quizlet, etc. Choose one that best fits your plan and budget, then start giving your class an exquisite time. 

#2 – Charades

Fun Games to Play in Class – Whether online or offline, Charades is a fun physical game to satisfy your students’ urges to move around when stuck behind a computer screen.

You can let the students work in teams or pairs. The students will be given a word or phrase to demonstrate through actions, and their teammates will need to guess the correct word/phrase based on that description.

#3 – Time to Climb

Definitely, a game to play when bored at school! Students absolutely love this game, especially the younger ones. We’ve had a couple of teachers sharing that their pupils beg them to play Time to Climb during class, and if you take a look through the game’s guide, you will see it’s the complete package and total education candy for youngsters 🍭

The game will transform your standard multiple-choice quiz into an interactive game, where the students can choose their characters and advance to the top of the mountain with the fastest correct answer.

ESL Classroom – Fun Games to Play in Class

Check out Best Totally English Games, competitive classroom games! Fun Games to Play in Class – Learning a second language requires double energy to convert words and meanings, which might be why your class just sit there frozen in time. Worry not because with these ESL classroom ice-breakers, “timid” or “shy” will not be in your students’ dictionary 😉.

Here’s the full list 👉12 Exciting ESL classroom games.

#4 – Tell Me Five – Fun Games to Play in Class

This is a simple vocabulary review game in which you can devise your own rules. In class, divide your students into groups and give each group a category (e.g. pizza toppings). They will have to come up with five things belonging to that category in 20 seconds (e.g. pizza toppings: cheese, mushroom, ham, bacon, corn) on the board. 

For a virtual class, let the students write five things from the category on a whiteboard tool. The fastest among them is the winner!

#5 – Show and Tell – Fun Games to Play in Class

It’s great that your students can incorporate refined words in their writing, but can they do the same when speaking?

In Show and Tell, you give students a topic to work on, such as their favourite snack. Each person will have to bring an item that matches the topic and tell a story or a memory involving that object.

To add more spice to the game, you can let the students vote and compete for different prizes, such as the best story-teller, best story plot, most hilarious story, etc.

#6 – Word Chain – Fun Games to Play in Class

Test your students’ word bank with this simplistic, zero-preparation game.

First, come up with a word, such as ‘bee’, then throw a ball to a student; they will think of another word that starts with the last letter, “e”, such as “emerald”. They’ll continue the word chain around the class until someone cannot shout the next word fast enough, and then they’ll restart without that player.

For a more advanced level, you could prepare a theme and ask students to say words that belong to that category only. For example, if your theme is “animal” and the first word is “dog”, the players should follow up with animal words like “goat” or “goose”. Keep the category broad, otherwise, this quick classroom game gets really hard!

#7 – Word Jumble Race

Word Jumble Race is perfect for practising tenses, word order, and grammar.

It’s pretty simple. Prepare by cutting up sentences into a handful of words, then split your class into small groups and give them a batch of words each. When you say “GO!”, each group will race to put the words in the correct order.

You can print out the sentences to use in class or shuffle the words effortlessly using an online quiz tool.

Here’s how fun games to play in class work online

1. Sign up to AhaSlides for free, create a presentation and choose the “Correct Order” slide.
2. Add the words of a sentence. Each one will be shuffled randomly for your players.
3. Set the time limit.
4. Present to your students.
5. They all join on their phones and race to sort the words the fastest!

Vocabulary – Fun Games to Play in Class

These vocabulary classroom games are similar to the ESL classroom games, but focus more on individual words than sentence structures. These are some non-intimdating classroom games that can boost your students’ self-esteem and energy levels.

Here’s the full list 👉 10 fun vocabulary games for the classroom

#8 – Pictionary – Fun Games to Play in Class

Time to let their students practice their doodling skills.

Playing Pictionary in class is super simple. You assign one to read the word you’ve prepared and they will have to sketch it quick in 20 seconds. When time’s left, others will have to guess what it is based on the doodle.

You can let them play in teams or individually, and increase the challenge according to the level of the students. To play Pictionary online, make sure to either utilise the Zoom whiteboard or one of the many great Pictionary-type free apps out there.

 #9 – Word Scramble – Fun Games to Play in Class

Nothing is more enjoyable than unscrambling the words and figuring out what they might be. You can make some Word Scramble worksheets ready with different themes such as animals, festivals, stationary, etc. and roll them out during class. The first student who successfully decodes all the words will be the winner.

#10 – Guess the Secret Word

How can you help the students to memorise new words? Try the word association game, Guess the Secret Word.

First, think of a word, then tell the students some words associated with that. They will have to use their existing vocabulary to try guessing the word you’re thinking of.

For example, if the secret word is “peach”, you could say “pink”. Then they might guess something like “flamingo” and you will tell them it’s not related. But when they say words like “guava”, you can tell them that it is associated with the secret word.

#11 – Stop the Bus – Fun Games to Play in Class

This is another great vocabulary revision, by fun games to play in class.

Start by preparing some categories or topics that conmtain the target vocabulary your students have been learning, such as verbs, clothing, transportation, colours, etc. Then, choose a letter from the alphabet.

Your class, which should be divided into teams, will have to write each word as quickly as possible from each category that begins with that specific letter. When they complete all lines, they will have to shout “Stop the bus!”.

For example, there are three categories: clothing, countries, and cakes. The letter you choose is “C”. The students will need to come up with something like this:

• Corset (clothing)
• Canada (countries)
• Cupcake (cakes)

Classroom Board Games

Boardgames make great classroom staples. They increase students’ collaboration and vocabulary skills by means of fruitful competition. Here are some quick games to play in class, all the board games that can be played virtually or in a physical class, and by all ages.

#12 – Hedbanz – Fun Games to Play in Class

Taken from the family-classic board game, Hedbanz is an atmosphere raiser and is super easy to play.

Print out some cards that belong to the animal, food, or object category, then stick them onto your students’ foreheads. They will have to ask “Yes” or “No” questions to figure out what the cards are before the time run out. Playing in pairs is optimal for Hedbanz.

#13 – Boggle – Fun Games to Play in Class

On a jumbled grid of 16 letters, the goal of Boggle is to find as many words as possible. Up, down, left, right, diagonal, how many words your students can come up with on the grid?

There are many free Boggle templates online for distance learning and physical classroom. Stack up some and give them out to your students as a pleasant surprise at the end of the class.

#14 – Apples to Apples

Excellent for students’ vocabulary development, Apples to Apples is a hilarious board game to add to your classroom collection. There are two types of cards: Things (which generally feature a noun) and Descriptions (which contain an adjective).

As a teacher, you can be the judge and pick the Description card. The students will try to pick, from the seven cards in their hands, the Thing they feel that best matches that description. If you like that comparison, they can keep the Description card. The winner is the one who collects the most Description cards in the game.

Classroom Maths Games

Has learning maths ever been fun? We dare to say YES because with these short but mighty maths games, your students will so be adding math to their all-time favourite subject list. It’s also scientifically proven that lessons built around game-based activities generate more maths enthusiasts. Check it out!

Here’s the full list 👉10 best maths video games for bored K12 students or check out Math Quiz Questions

#15 – Would you Rather – Maths Edition

Would you rather buy packages of 12 cookies for $3 each or packages of 10 cookies for $2.60 each?

Not sure what answer your students will choose, but we do love cookies 🥰️ In the standard edition of Would you Rather, students are given a scenario with two choices. They will have to choose which option they’ll go for and justify it using logical reasoning.

In the maths edition, all students play at the same time and race to choose the best deal out of the two options.

The game can be played both online and offline to as a quick ice breaker or lesson ender. Let’s play Would you Rather with AhaSlides!

#16 – 101 and out

Ever worry that your maths lessons end on a bit of a dull note? How about initiating a few rounds of 101 and out, a fun activity for class in which the goal is to score as close to the number 101 as possible without going over. Divide your class into groups, and have a spinner wheel representing a dice (yes we figure not every class has a couple of dice ready).

Each group will take turns spinning the wheel, and they can either count the number at face value or multiply it by 10. For example, if they roll a five, they can choose to keep that number or turn it into 50 to quickly get to 101.

For older students, try giving an awkward multiply number, such as 7, to make decisions more difficult.

💡 Want more spinner wheel games like this? We’ve got a free interactive template for you! Just find ‘class spinner wheel games’ in the template library.

#17 – Guess my number

From 1 to 100, which number is on my mind? In Guess my number, students will have to guess what the number you are thinking of. It is a good math game to practise everyone’s logical thinking. They can ask questions such as “Is it an odd number?”, “Is it in the nineties?”, “Is it a multiple of 5?”, and you can only answer “Yes” or “No” without giving any other clues.

Learn how to have Fun Picture Round Quiz Ideas with AhaSlides!

Classroom Competition Ideas

Classroom competitions can be a fun way to engage students, encourage teamwork, and foster a positive learning environment, with the few suggestions as below:

1. Quiz Bowl: Divide the class into teams and host a quiz bowl-style competition. Prepare a set of questions on various topics and award points for correct answers. This competition tests knowledge, promotes healthy competition, and encourages students to study and review the material.
2. Spelling Bee: Organize a spelling bee competition where students take turns spelling words out loud. Provide a list of words at different difficulty levels. This competition helps improve spelling skills and vocabulary.
3. Debate Tournament: Assign debate topics or let students choose their own. Divide the class into teams and conduct a tournament-style debate competition. Encourage students to present their arguments effectively and respectfully. This activity enhances critical thinking, public speaking, and persuasive skills.
4. Math Olympics: Create math-related challenges or problem-solving tasks for teams to complete within a given time limit. Award points for correct answers or completion of tasks. This competition enhances mathematical skills and encourages logical thinking.
5. Science Fair: Allocate time for students to conduct experiments or research on a particular scientific topic. Host a science fair where students present their findings and compete for awards based on creativity, scientific method application, and presentation skills.
6. Spelling Relay: Divide the class into teams and have each team line up. The teacher calls out a word, and the first student in each line must spell it correctly. If they spell it right, they sit down, and the next student in line gets a new word. The first team to have all their members seated wins.
7. Creative Writing Contest: Assign a writing prompt or topic and have students write a short story or essay. Evaluate and reward entries based on creativity, originality, and writing skills. This competition promotes creativity and improves writing abilities.

Remember to provide clear guidelines, establish fair rules, and emphasize the importance of good sportsmanship. These competitions should be conducted in a supportive and inclusive manner, encouraging all students to participate and learn from the experience.

Ways to Interact with your Classroom

So, if you’re looking for games for primary, secondary, middle or high school games, or even for your kindergarten or university lecture, these are the motivational games for students for all educators! Beside Fun Games to Play in Class, let’s really get engaged with your classroom by super fun tips, along with other class activities as below

• How to make a zoom quiz
• Games to play on zoom with students
• Pictionary on zoom
• Zoom games
• Online Quiz for Students
• Quick games to play in the classroom
• Educational games