I first came across the idea of using Playing Cards in the classrooms after reading a blog post by the fantastic Señora Chase. In this post she uses a giant set of cards to add an element of luck to the group activity.

Using cards to win points means that there will be no clear winner until the end, meaning that even if they have got a few questions wrong anyone can still be a possible winner. This helps to keep pupils motivated right until the end of the activity.

Corazones y Diamantes

For this game you will need to split pupils into groups of 4 and each group will need a deck of cards and one print out.

• The cards are dealt out amongst the group so each pupil, has an equal number of cards (4 Players = 13 cards per player)

• All together the player flip over their top card. The player with the highest value locates the verb/word that corresponds to that card (3 of diamonds, 10 of clubs etc) on the reference sheet and provides the correct Spanish conjugation / translation. He/she then takes all the cards from the middle and adds it to their points pile. * for more of a challenge get students to put the verb/word into a sentence.

• If the player with the highest value card does not know the correct answer, the player with the second highest value card can steal the cards (points) by providing the right answer.

• If there is a tie for the highest value card, the winner is the one who says his conjugation/translation first.

• Once the deck is all used up, all players count the cards in their pile and add up their points.

• Jack’s, Queen’s and King’s all equal 11 points

• Aces equal 12 points

Below are two examples of how it can be used. The first one turns it into a verb conjugation activity, you could add extra challenge by getting students to use it in a sentence. The second example has been designed to encourage students to use key words/structures in their speaking. Give the students a topic area, e.g holidays, and they have to use that word/phrase in a sentence around the topic of holidays.

Click on the image to get a free download of the versions above.