Looking for a fun, active, and effective way to teach verb forms to your students? Say hello to the Rat Race Game, a classroom activity that gets your students moving, thinking, and learning all at once!
This game is specially designed to help learners master present and past tense verbs through teamwork and competition. Instead of sitting through another worksheet, your students will be up on their feet, racing to find the correct verb pairs based on the teacher’s cue. It’s a perfect blend of language learning and physical engagement, ideal for young learners who thrive on interaction and movement.
In this post, I’ll walk you through how to play the game, what materials you need, and how to set it up in your own classroom. Let’s turn grammar into a game and make learning verbs something your students actually look forward to!
Instructions in English:
Objective:
To help students match present and past verb forms in a fun and competitive way.
Preparation:
- Print 2 sets of the Rat Race game board (for two teams).
- Print and cut 1 set of verb cards with both present and past forms.
- Divide students into 2 teams.
- Attach each Rat Race board to the wall or floor.
- Place the verb cards in a central spot, accessible to both teams.
How to Play:
- The teacher gives a cue by saying a present verb (e.g., “go”).
- One student from each team runs to the verb cards and finds the correct past form (e.g., “went”).
- They must stick or place the correct past form onto their team’s Rat Race board.
- The fastest and correct team earns a point.
- Repeat until all verbs have been used.
Winner:
The team with the most points at the end wins the game.
Download the template here!