Teaching English can bring the teacher face-to-face with a multitude of obstacles that students need to overcome. Many of the students learning English will bring with them insecurities and a lack of confidence in their abilities to learn a new language. According to Adam Chee, writing in "The International Teaching English to Young Learners Journal," bringing humor into the classroom "creates a positive classroom atmosphere for the smooth acquisition of the language." Simple games that inject life and laughter into the lesson are quickly adapted to suit the needs of the class, and help to motivate and build confidence while minimizing student anxieties.

Game Choice

Work on one or two skill areas at a time, such as speaking and listening, or writing and reading. Tailor vocabulary games such as Hangman or Wordsearch to specific areas of study, for instance numbers or animals. Active games, like a spelling relay, teach spelling skills, and Chinese Whispers helps with listening and pronunciation.

Adapt games to suit the age group of the students. Adult learners will probably prefer to stay in their seats, whereas younger students may enjoy games that allow them to move around the classroom.

Motivate students with your own passion and enjoyment of the game. Enthusiasm is infectious and students will pick up on a teacher's disinterest or boredom.

Explain the Rules

Explain the rules, using simple language, and keep the explanation as brief as possible. Hand out any papers needed for the game after the explanation. Students will look at the paper and stop listening if given too soon.

Adapt your language to the language abilities of the learners, and use the native language of the students, if possible, to explain the game. More advanced learners will appreciate instruction in English but beginners will struggle with complex instructions.

Demonstrate the learning game to help students understand the rules more quickly. Run through a few examples on the board if playing word or number games, or play an example round of speaking and listening games with one of the students while the rest of the class watches.

Starting and Finishing the Games

Divide the class into groups for team learning games by mixing and matching English abilities. Put students with a firm grasp of the language into groups with students who need a little help. Avoid unequal group abilities, especially with games of a competitive nature.

Monitor the progress of the game rather than leaving students to themselves. Move around the classroom and listen in for group speaking and listening games. Encourage all students to take part during whole-class learning games.

End the game before the students lose interest or become bored.