The role of games in teaching english

particular group of learners it can be terrible 
for another teacher or group of students. 
 
MATERIALS: 
First of all, the teacher has to look at the 
group that will be participating in the game and 
he or she then has to set out a goal for the 
group which the game should aim towards. 
Selecting an appropriate game for a 
specific group of students who are working 
towards a specific goal can be tricky because, 
for example, they need to make sure that the 
game is relevant to the subject, that it fits their 
students‟ age and, teachers must remember 
not to select a game that is too complicated 
because that might result in a loss of interest 
amongst the students, or even defeat.
Also teachers must make sure they 
explain the rules of the game in detail and that 
all instructions are clear before starting the 
game. During the game it is important for the 
teachers to observe and be ready to help, but 
without unnecessarily interrupting the flow of 
the game because that might affect the fluency, 
which could result in discouraging students 
from participating. After the game, it is a good 
idea to have some sort of a follow up activity 
planned because it gives the learners’ time to 
reflect upon the game and how it turned out.
It is important for teachers to know that 
augmenting a game is allowed and can 
certainly be necessary in some cases. More 
difficult games can be made easier so they 
become a challenge instead of too hard for less 
skilled or younger students and vice versa.
Although games can usually be modified 
to suit learners of various ages, there are 
certain characteristics in games that appeal to 
children within specific age groups. For 
children age 68 repetition is very common in 
games, rules are often few, and the games 
usually do not take a very long time. When it 
comes to children age 9-11 they have patience 
for longer games, which often include much 
more suspense. Also when children reach this 
age they start to be able to augment the games 
themselves, for example to bend the rules to 
make the game more suited for their group. For 
children older than 12 games are often much 
more planned and they often emphasize teams 
and teamwork.
Games are used in teaching can be 
divided into categories in many different ways. 
One way of dividing educational games is by 
categorizing them into groups depending on 
their model. Ingvar Sigurgeirsson has divided 
games into the following categories: games for 
dividing larger groups into smaller groups, 
introduction-games, group games, physical 
games, scavenger hunt games, educational 
games, theoretical expression games, drawing- 
and coloring games, educational card games, 
word games, story games and question games.
Another way of dividing educational 
games is by categorizing them into co-
operative games and competitive games. 
Although competitive games can be a useful 
way to get some students interested and to 
maintain their focus, co-operative games, 

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