The Crossword Puzzle

Crossword puzzles can be used in class not for reading and filling in words, but for the jigsaw activity variety: A has half the words, B has the other half and students have to combine them, to guess the meaning and to give the definition. Such activity is very motivating; people are interested in solving the puzzle and finding the missing words. Crossword puzzles motivate students to explain words and to give the explanation a definition. It is necessary to do for those who do not speak English well and apply English-English dictionaries to understand the meaning. Crossword puzzles are a student-centered activity that allows each pair to work independently.

Before giving crossword puzzles, it is recommended to give some examples – to give some explanations or definitions required for guessing the meanning. While explaining the word, you may give a definition, apply an example, give the opposite or a synonym or use a sentence where this word is omitted.
It is recommended to give students five minutes to find unknown words. Five additional minutes can be spent to find these new words in the dictionary. Then you should put the dictionaries away. You probably have chosen a crossword for an appropriate level and they have no need to look for every word in the dictionary. If you allow them to use a dictionary all the time, you will have less time for speaking.
 
Roleplays

Use your own roleplays; give each role a character, some background information, a task to achieve while talking and some questions to be asked.

Students read their role cards and think for some time, they act them out without saying what their role is and what there task is. If you have various sets of roleplays, students can act them out with one another, then take one situation, and act it out in front of the class. Provide students with some ideas according their roles. When they act someone else, they are someone else. They do not need to think about their own problems or opinions and they become more active in a speaking activity.

As a successful TEFL teacher, you should also pay attention to some other good TEFL games and speaking activities: Taboo, Debates, Hotseat, Jigsaw, Hide a Word, Alibi, Two Questions, etc.