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Classroom games for brain breaks and review

Two minutes of a good game can rescue a long afternoon. These free games to play in class run on your laptop and projector, with no student accounts or devices.

  1. The phone calls the commandsSimon SaysThe laptop calls the commands out loud, so you get to watch instead of being Simon. Use the Quiet deck when the class next door is working.
  2. Memory game for all agesWhat’s Missing?Kim's Game without the tray. Project the tiles, give table teams 20 seconds to study, then the first team to call out the missing word scores. Type team names to keep score.
  3. One letter, every categoryName, Place, Animal, ThingProject the letter and the timer while students write on scrap paper. Spelling, vocabulary and geography in one round.
  4. Draw on the phoneDraw & GuessOne student draws on the smartboard while their team guesses. Use the Easy or Kids list, and have the class put heads down while the drawer reads the word.
  5. Act it outCharadesGets a restless class out of their seats. The Actions category is a ready-made list of verbs, which makes it great for language learners.
  6. Phone-on-your-forehead guessingForehead GuessStand a student with their back to the projector and let the class give clues while you score with the arrow keys. Type at least 10 vocabulary words into Your words for a review round.
  7. Impossible choicesWould You RatherProject the card, then send students to one side of the room or the other. Ask someone from each side to explain their choice in a full sentence.
  8. Three answers, five secondsName 3 ThingsA two-minute brain break with no setup. Enter up to 10 team names, and each team picks a speaker for every prompt.
  9. One riddle a dayRiddle of the DayA new riddle every day makes an easy bell ringer. Put it up while students settle in and reveal a hint whenever the room goes quiet.
  10. Forbidden-words gameDon’t Say ItDescribing a word without its obvious synonyms is real vocabulary practice. Keep the projector frozen: the clue-giver and one referee read the card on the laptop while their team guesses.

Setting up games on a classroom screen

Open the game on your laptop and put it on the projector or smartboard. Students don't need devices, accounts or logins, and there's nothing to install on school computers.

  • Forehead Guess works from the keyboard: down arrow for got it, up arrow to pass.
  • Card games like Would You Rather move forward with the arrow keys too.
  • Charades, Don't Say It and Draw & Guess show a secret word. Press Freeze or Blank on your projector, or switch to PC screen only (Windows+P), while the actor reads it. For drawing, have the class put heads down until the drawer has seen the word.
  • Every deck is clean, but skim a category before class so you know what's coming. Movie decks include some PG-13 titles, so younger classes do better with the Kids decks.
  • Simon Says needs the sound on. For everything else, turn it off if the class next door is testing.
  • Teaching English learners? Every game has a Spanish version: switch to ES at the top. Simón dice reads its commands out loud in Spanish.
  • Keeping team points all week? Open Game Night (/game-night), enter your table teams and pick the Classroom lineup. Scores stay on that laptop until you press New game night, so jot totals on the board in case the laptop clears its data.
  • Use team names (Table 1, Red Team) rather than student names.

Quick brain breaks

A brain break should be short, a little loud and over before anyone checks the clock. Pick one and set a timer for two to five minutes.

  • Two minutes of Simon Says with the Quiet deck.
  • Three rounds of What's Missing? with table teams.
  • One lap of Name 3 Things with the class in teams.
  • Three Would You Rather cards, with students moving to a side of the room each time.
  • A 60-second charades round from the Actions category.
  • The Riddle of the Day, with a hint each time the room gets stuck.

Turning games into review

Forehead Guess is the easiest to adapt. Choose Your words and type in at least 10 terms from the unit. They stay saved on that device, so they're ready for your next class. Charades and Who Am I? take your own words the same way.

Name, Place, Animal, Thing turns spelling and vocabulary into a race, and you can read the answers out loud to check them as a class. Don't Say It builds the skill of explaining a concept in other words, which is most of what review really is. Charades works for verbs and action words in any language class. Word Groups and Daily Word bring a new puzzle every day, so they work best as warm-ups rather than unit review.

Keeping it fair and under control

  • Count off teams instead of letting students pick, or let our free Random Team Generator at manymini.app/app-hub/team-picker do it.
  • Rotate the speaker, actor or drawer so the same five kids don't take every turn.
  • Agree on a quiet signal before you start, and use it.
  • Let shy students be the scorekeeper or the referee in Don't Say It.

Questions

Do students need their own devices?

No. Every game runs on one screen. You open it on your laptop, project it, and the class plays out loud.

Is there a sign-up or login?

No. There are no accounts for you or your students, and nothing to install.

Are the games appropriate for school?

Yes. Every deck is clean. Several games have categories for younger kids, like Kids in charades, Simon Says and Draw & Guess, and For kids in Would You Rather. Movie decks include some PG-13 titles, so skim them before using them with younger classes.

Can I use my own vocabulary words?

Yes, in Forehead Guess, Charades and Who Am I? Choose + Your words and type at least 10. They're saved on that device only, so use the same laptop next time.

What if our school filter blocks the site?

If your school filter blocks ManyMini, ask IT to allow manymini.app. There are no student logins, chat or uploads.

Does the site have ads?

Yes, that's how the games stay free. Open the game you plan to use before class so you know what will be on screen.

Which grades are these games for?

Younger classes do well with Simon Says, What's Missing?, charades and Would You Rather. Name, Place, Animal, Thing, Don't Say It, Word Groups and Daily Word suit older students who read and spell comfortably.

How many students can play?

Simon Says, What's Missing?, charades, Would You Rather and the daily puzzles work with a whole class. Forehead Guess, Draw & Guess and Don't Say It are built for up to 20 players, so with a bigger class, play in table teams or let half the room play while the other half referees.

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