Games for Teachers
We don't have to tell you that fun classroom games are worth their weight in gold! Encouraging critical thinking, building social skills, and helping engage students with the curriculum? Yes, please. Get ready to bring game-based learning to your classroom with helpful printables, escape rooms, and more educational fun for elementary school students.
With a long list of benefits of learning games on hand, the teachers at Teach Starter have spent hours creating classroom card games, board games, scavenger hunts, and more that can help students build core competencies while having a whole lot of fun!
Game-based learning has gotten a lot of interest in recent years, but what exactly, is it? We know you've got a lot to do in your classroom and not a whole lot of time to do it, so our teacher team has put together a quick guide to gamification in education.
(Know all you need to know? Feel free to jump ahead to our printable and digital learning games!)
What Is Game-Based Learning?
In essence, game-based learning allows you to borrow from the gaming world to allow your students to engage with their lesson material in more dynamic ways. They can help improve student motivation and help students achieve learning objectives.
We like to think of it a bit like the parents who hide the broccoli inside the tasty hamburger. A little bit of gameplay helps the medicine — or core curriculum — go down!
Games aren't just fun, after all. They have failure baked into them, along with repetition, and the chance to accomplish goals along the way. Playing games in a classroom fosters many of those social and emotional learning skills, even when the topic at hand comes from the science curriculum or is focused on an ELA standard.
Why Are Classroom Games Good for Kids?
We hinted at some of the benefits earlier, but let's dig deep into the benefits of playing educational games in your classroom!
- They motivate students.
- Students develop critical thinking skills.
- They're student-centered.
- They build teamwork and leadership skills.
- Games encourage creativity and thinking outside of the box.
- They encourage students to challenge themselves.
- They improve student concentration.
Learning Games Ideas
Good teachers can make just about any lesson fun, but maybe you're looking for learning game ideas to mix things up. We thought you'd never ask!
Check out a few of our teacher team's favorite (and fun) ways to inject gameplay into your students' education:
- Digital escape rooms
- Card games
- Dominoes
- Active games
- Scavenger hunts
- Would you rather? games
- Bingo
- Board games
How to Use Games in the Classroom
Looking for a few fun ways to use games in the classroom? Our teacher team has a few quick ideas for you to try on for size!
- Play active games to help students get their wiggles out.
- Add a board game to your reading center or math center activities.
- Use flashcard-type or trivia games for material review.
- Explore new concepts in fun ways with games like 20 questions.
- Help students get to know one another at the beginning of a school year with teamwork games.
- Explore difficult concepts with skills-based games.
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Comprehension Keys Board Game
A fun comprehension strategy board game for students to play during literacy rotations.
- Free Plan
Music Symbols and Vocabulary Match-up
Match up the music symbols with the related word.
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Initial Blends Bingo
A set of 30 bingo cards to practice initial consonant blends.
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Equivalent Fractions Pizza Bingo - Whole, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8
32 different bingo cards to practice finding equivalent fractions involving 1, 1/2, 1/4, and 1/8.
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Frog Fun Game - Beginning, Middle, and Ending sounds
Game cards and instructions for a frog-themed CVC word combination game.
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Multiplying with Decimals Bingo Game
Get your students multiplying decimals by whole numbers with this engaging Bingo game.
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What's My Card? Triple-Digit Board Game
A set of cards to be used in a Guess Who? Board Game for students to consolidate their knowledge of triple-digit numbers.
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What's My Card? Double-Digit Board Game
A set of cards to be used in a Guess Who? Board Game for students to consolidate their knowledge of double-digit numbers.
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CVC/CCVC/CVCC Word Flashcards
A comprehensive set of flashcards for CVC, CCVC, and CVCC words.
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Multiplication Facts 0–12 Bingo
32 different bingo cards for students to practice their multiplication facts to 12.
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Parts of Speech Card Game – Upper Grades Classroom Game - Set 3
A card game for nouns, verbs and adjectives.
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Parts of Speech Card Game – Upper Grades Classroom Game - Set 2
A card game for nouns, verbs and adjectives.
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Chance PowerPoint - Level 1
An engaging 22-slide interactive PowerPoint to use in the classroom when learning about chance and probability.
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Ninja Race Phonics Game
A fun, engaging board game to consolidate students' understanding of digraphs and rhyme.
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Fine Motor Animal Match-Up Activity
A fun matching activity using wooden clothespins to develop fine motor skills.
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Grammar Game - Name That Noun!
A fun game for students to play in small groups to reinforce their understanding of nouns.
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Unit Fraction Fairy Bread Matching Activity
Sort and match fairy bread model cards to the corresponding unit fraction cards.
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Compound Nouns for Kids - Puzzle Pop Game
‘Pop’ in a bit of extra practice with compound words with a fun set of Noun Compound Word Puzzle Pops!
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Months of the Year Bingo
Recognize and order the months in a year with a printable Bingo Game!
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Unit Fraction Bingo
Play a game of Bingo with your students to practice their knowledge of unit fractions.
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Interactive Spelling Game - Words With m, mm, mb
Use an interactive spelling game to help your students learn to spell words with m, mm, and mb correctly.
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Planets Escape Room Activity
Navigate facts about different planets with this fun and engaging escape room style activity with your students.
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Clock Reading Puzzles- Half-Hour
Practice reading analog clocks, digital clocks, and time in word form with a set of printable Telling Time to the Hour and Half Hour Clock Puzzles.
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Which Planet Am I? Interactive Activity
Explore the planets of the solar system with this fun and engaging interactive activity.
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A.M. and P.M. Matching Game
Identify what happens in the A.M. and P.M. times with a fun matching game.
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Time to the Hour and Half-Hour - Digital Learning Activity
Read different clock faces to tell time to the nearest hour and half hour with a digital learning activity for first grade.
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1st Grade Telling Time Game - Mystery Reveal
Practice telling time to the hour and half-hour with an interactive Telling Time Game for first grade.
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Figuring Elapsed Time - Interactive Game
Determine the elapsed time between events and have fun with an interactive Elapsed Time game.
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Consonant Digraph Cover Up Game
Practice consonant digraphs with your students with this set of two fun partner cover up games.
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Vowel Digraph Cover Up Game
Practice vowel teams with your students with this set of three fun partner cover up games.
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Nocturnal vs. Diurnal Animals Interactive Task Cards
Identify nocturnal and diurnal animals with an engaging, interactive task card game.
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Time by the Minute - 3rd Grade Math Interactive
Practice telling time by the minute with an interactive Time-telling digital learning activity.