Part of learning a new language is being able not only to memorize, but to tell a story or a joke in your own words. In this activity, students work in pairs. Have each person think of a story to tell their partner. Once they tell their partner their story, the partner should repeat the story back in his own words. At the end, the original storyteller gives pointers about what parts of the story his partner left out or changed. You can do this last step in a large group, as well.
This activity will allow students to understand the language of debate and how to use language to prove a point. In front of the classroom, invite two students to come up. Give them a simple topic and assign sides. For example, tell one student they are debating that rock music is the best and tell the other student they are arguing that country music is the best. Give them each two minutes to tell their side, then one minute to offer a rebuttal. If they run out of things to talk about, prompt them with questions. If your students are older or more advanced, you can choose deeper or more controversial topics.
Turn this classic guessing game into a fluency-building activity. Divide students into groups of four. Assign one person to be the "knower." Give each team a number of small slips of paper with items written on them. Each group must ask their "knower" questions about the item, but they can only ask "yes" or "no" questions. This will improve their adjective and descriptive vocabulary.
Role playing games can be very effective in building fluency. In this particular activity, students work in pairs. Assign one student to be the landlord and one to be the possible tenant. The tenant will ask the landlord about her home because he wishes to rent it. Before you begin, help the students brainstorm ideas for possible questions, like how much rent is, what attractions are in the neighborhood, how many rooms there are and so on. Using details from her real home, the landlord answers the questions.