PHRASAL VERBS: SPIDER’S WEB

One of the most effective ways to teach phrasal verbs (or any other new words) is to get your learners to talk about themselves and use respective phrasal verbs.

This is a vocabulary game originally designed for learners of business English but it can be adapted for any level and set of phrasal verbs.

Preparation and materials: print out the game board (you can download the Spider’s Web (business English) to teach phrasal verbs that are often used at work, or scroll down the post to download a blank game board). You will also need 2 (3) game pieces/tokens (or 2-3 different coins)

Click here to download the Spider’s Web Board: Phrasal Verbs

How to play:

The game is played by 2 (max 3) players. Choose a player to go first (tossing a coin will work).  To make a move, the player should make a sentence with the phrasal verb. The sentence should be true about them or someone they know. Players alternate their moves (they may move their tokens one space at a time). They cannot land their tokens on the same spot. If the player cannot think of any sentence, or the player lands on the Spider space, the player must get back to the Start circle (“call”) and skip their turn.

The player who manages to exit the spider’s web first wins the game.

Customising the game

If you have your own set of phrasal verbs, you can customise the board or use the game board (Spider’s Web Board) with a set of cards.

The Spider’s Web Board may also come in handy for speaking activities. Please check Hana Tichá’s blog where she describes 3 fun speaking games you can play with your students. (Thank you, Hana!)

Click here to download the blank Spider Board.

Happy playing!