Fun Free Games to Teach Kids Spanish

Games are a fun way to teach kids Spanish.

With almost 329 million native speakers worldwide, and only narrowly edging out English speakers, Spanish is the second most widely spoken language in the world. Children benefit greatly from learning a second language and Spanish makes an ideal choice. Fun and engaging language games help students memorize and retain what they've learned. Even if you aren't fluent in Spanish, you can still teach the basics of the language while learning it yourself.

La Lotería

"Lotería" (Lottery) is an excellent way of teaching children Spanish. Similar to Bingo, La Loterí­a is played with a deck of cards and a board known as a tabla. The card deck contains 54 colorful images such as a bird, a watermelon and a tree among many others. The caller draws a card from the deck and then gives the players clues about the card. The first player to achieve a full row (either vertically, diagonally or horizontally) on their tabla shouts, "Lotería!" or "Buenas!" and is the winner. Offer small trinkets as a prize.

Matching Games

A memory game can help children to memorize words they have learned. Find clipart images of words the child has learned or new words you want to introduce and print them onto cards. With a permanent marker, write the name of the image in Spanish on the cards. Do this twice for each image. Arrange a set of images (complete with their matches) on a table and have the child turn over two cards. If they match, he can take the cards and keep them. If these cards do not match, turn them face down again and allow another player to take a turn.

Simon Says

This classic children's game not only teaches kids how to follow directions, it can also be adapted for Spanish learners. Great for learning words for body parts, the Spanish variation of Simon Says can help students learn and remember new words. Instructors will say, "Simón dice" instead of "Simon says." This game presents a fantastic opportunity for students to practice the imperative verbs of Spanish as well as learn new words -- all while having fun.

Guess Who?

Guess Who is a children's game that has been around for over two decades. The object of the game is to guess which mystery person's card your opponent has selected. A fun way to adapt this game for Spanish learners is to play a version of the game where children use adjectives and descriptive words in Spanish to guess the character. By asking a series of questions about the mystery card, players can eliminate other characters until they are able to make a guess. Best-suited for children with a moderate understanding of Spanish, playing Guess Who is an ideal way to ensure kids get in enough practice.

References

• Ethnologue.com: Report for Language Code Spanish

Resources

• Viva la Lotería!: Game Rules
• 123 Teach Me: Spanish for Kids