Games are fun for everyone -- including adults. Whether you are organizing a fun game to play on the first day of an adult class to use as an icebreaker or want an educational game to make learning fun, there are various activities to include in the classroom. Aside from games' being an interactive way to learn, they help a group of adults get to know one another and come together as a class. With increased participation in a class, adult students retain more information and socialize with one another in the process.

Who Is?

Help adult students learn about well-known individuals in class by using a variation of the guessing game. For example, if you are in an arts class and need to remember artists and styles of work, a guessing game will allow students to interact and learn important facts about the artists being studied in class. Using a 3x5 index card, have each student write down facts about an artist, such as famous works of art, location and important dates using the textbook. Pass all of the cards to the front and as a class try to figure out who the card is referring to. Reward class with a small candy or other prize.

Vocabulary Building

Encourage students to work as a class to increase vocabulary knowledge. This type of game works well for English or ESL classes. Separate the entire class into two teams and send one student from each team to the front of the classroom with backs facing the whiteboard. Two vocabulary words are written on the board so that the team may see the word, but not the student sitting in the front. The team must work together to give the person up front hints about the vocabulary word without giving it away. The first team who gets the right answer wins.


Help students feel comfortable in the classroom on the first day of school by introducing an icebreaker game. Icebreakers helps people interact and learn something about one another. To create a game, list 20 questions on a sheet of paper such as "Who was born in January?," "Who has traveled to another country?" or "Who has a cat and dog at home?" Make as many copies as necessary and pass around to students on the first day and encourage them to go around the class asking fellow students the questions. The first person to complete the questionnaire wins a small prize.

Name Game

Play a game on the first day of class to help adult students remember names of other students in the class. Learning names of fellow students early on in a quarter or semester will allow everyone to feel open and comfortable with one another. Have each student tell the class what her name is and then as the teacher, call out students' names and have them point out other students in the class. For example, after Susan tells the class her name, tell her to point out Josh or Mark. Then, ask her to tell you the name of the girl sitting next to Josh. Call out students randomly to help everyone learn names.