Warmers
Warmers are quick activities used at the beginning of a lesson to get students warmed-up and ready to learn.
Warmers are useful to help students relax and feel comfortable in the classroom; they help promote a fun learning environment and can be a good way to help new students familiarize with one another. By allowing everyone to take part in a relax atmosphere warmers promote a general sense of confidence in the individual student’s abilities. They can also be used to introduce the theme of a lesson.
Type of Warmers
Warmers can be anything from switching seats to memory games. The aim is to use an activity that will both challenge your students’ Language Skills and set the mood for the rest of the lesson.
So, for example, if your lesson is about body parts and you are teaching small children why not get your students to touch one body part with another by giving them brief commands like:
The more acrobatic it gets the more fun, so try also …
See also The Warm Up Game
Pictionary or Hangman are useful games to reinforce new vocabulary.
If you are teaching the Third Conditional start by asking at random simple What If questions related to the here and now.
But warmers are not only for children. They work wonders with adults, too. Simply adjust your activity to suit the age and level of your students. So, for example, rather than playing Simon Says use brainteasers and trivia games. They offer the right amount of challenge and stimulate both passive and active language skills.
External Links
This site offers a selection of word games, brainteasers, trivia, crosswords, etc. which you can adapt for your students or play yourself.
