The Match Game is an excellent way to help children improve memory and image association skills. Divide children into two groups. Give each group a pile of images, and a pile of words that define them. The children must work together, combining their collective knowledge, to correctly match the images to the words before the other team does. You can work from a theme when creating the game, focusing on one, or a variety of, current study topics. For example, you may choose to have kids match animals to their names or historical figures to their titles.
The game of Charades allows kids to work on their communication skills. Separate children into groups of two or three. Have one child ask the other a question, such as "What is your favorite food?" The other child will then have to respond to the question without speaking. He may act it out in any way he chooses, as long as he does not use words. Once the partner correctly guesses the response to her question, the children switch roles and a new question is posed. Kids have to think carefully about how to best communicate to their partners, while their partners must pay close attention to uncover the response.
Children can access their vocabulary knowledge with this fun game. Separate children into pairs, giving each pair a piece of paper and a writing utensil. You can then say a letter and a theme, such as the letter "L" and the theme "food." The pairs of kids will then work to write down as many foods as possible that begin with the letter "L" before you tell them that time is up. You can then move on to new letters and categories. Once the game is over, collect all papers and determine which teams got the most answers for each category and which team won overall. You can review the best answers and the most creative words as a group.
The counting game encourages children to think strategically using mathematics. Children can split up into groups of two. One partner will start off the game by counting from one in a set of one, two or three. The other partner will pick up from where they left off, with the same choice of saying up to three numbers. The winner of the game is the one who reaches the number 20. Children have to think on the spot about how many numbers to say in order to get to 20. You can make the game longer and more challenging by changing the end number each time, moving up to 30 and then 40 for the next sessions.