Vocabulary

Objective & content

A printable memory game on travel for beginners (A1-): twelve pairs covering vehicles (car, bus, train, plane), places (station, airport) and documents (ticket, passport). Each pair joins an illustration to the written word and its phonetic transcription; students turn the cards face down, match them and say the word aloud to claim the pair. By the end, they recognise and say the twelve travel words.

Pedagogical guide

Travel words are useful at once, and the spelling is a trap (airport, passport, ticket), so the transcription earns its place. Memory brings each word back without a drill, and saying it aloud makes pronunciation part of the game. Point out the fixed phrases by bus, by train, by car (no article) and on foot. Use the deck after an oral presentation of the theme and before written work; it also makes a quick warm-up before a lesson on holidays.

Suggested procedure

1. (5 min) Lay one set face up. Name each item, students repeat; sort the cards into vehicles, places and documents as you go.
2. (5 min) Turn the cards face down in a grid and model one turn aloud: "A ticket... and a train. No match."
3. (15 min) Groups of three or four play. A pair only counts if the player says the word aloud; partners check the phonetic transcription and may ask for a second try.
4. (5 min) Close as a class: show a picture card, the class names it, then ask two students how they come to school (by bus).

Adaptations

[S] Play with 8 pairs only and keep the word cards face up as a word bank.

[A] The winner says a sentence (I go to school by bus.).

Materials & prerequisites

Print the two card sheets once per group of three or four and cut out the 24 cards; laminate them to reuse the deck. Students should have met the travel theme once orally.