Whiteboard Race
Teams race to write the correct answer on mini whiteboards and hold them up first.
📋 What You Need
One mini whiteboard and marker per team, or per child if you have enough. Alternatively use A4 paper in a plastic sleeve with a dry-erase marker. A list of questions prepared in advance.
🎮 How to Play
Divide the class into two or three teams. Give each team a whiteboard and marker.
One writer per team comes to the front — they will write the answer for their team.
Teacher asks a question or shows a picture — teams discuss quietly and the writer writes the answer.
On your signal all teams hold up their boards at the same time.
Award a point to the first team with the correct answer clearly written.
Rotate writers so every child gets a turn at the board.
💡 Teacher Tips
Make all teams reveal at the same time — covering boards until you say "show me" prevents copying.
Accept phonetic spelling for younger learners — the goal is vocabulary not perfect spelling.
Use a picture prompt instead of a spoken question for lower level classes.
Keep score on the main whiteboard so teams can see the running total throughout.
🔄 Variations
Individual boards — every child has their own board and writes simultaneously for no team pressure.
Draw it — instead of writing, children draw the vocabulary word they hear.
Sentence race — teams must write a full sentence using the word, not just the word itself.
Category write — teacher names a category and teams write as many words as possible in 30 seconds.
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