Vocabulary is one thing that kids need to start learning at a early stage. Vocabulary contributes a lot in the English language. There are a lot of ways kids can start developing on their vocabulary like by reading, speaking, playing word games. One such game is vocabulary games, which can help kids learn new words in a fun way. The games for kids are usually colorful to keep them engaged. Apart from that they help in improving vocabulary as well as in learning new words.
In this article we will be seeing websites which offer you free vocabulary games for kids. Let’s look at these websites below.
British Council
British Council website has a learning section for kids where you can find Grammar and Vocabulary exercises. In the vocabulary section, there are word games to learn new words. The word games are also divided under various topics like actions, body parts, birds, birthdays, chores, classroom actions, clothes, drinks, directions, environment, everyday objects, food, etc. This can be seen in the screenshot below. You can pick any topic and start answering the questions in it.
Most of the games are matching games like match the word with the picture. So kids will learn word association with the action that is happening. They can also hear the pronunciation of each word, as each word given at the top has a volume icon on it. When you click the word it is read out loud, so kids can learn how to pronounce that word.
Learning Games for Kids
Learning Games for Kids focuses on word games to make kids learn new words and improve their vocabulary. The vocabulary games on this website have been divided into various categories like analogies, antonyms, synonyms, idioms, syllables, compound words, etc. You can pick a section which you want to start with. The word games are also memory games.
For example, I picked the antonym and synonyms game. This was also a memory game, as there were 8 cards in the game which were face down. Each card either had a word, a definition, or asking for a antonym or synonym for a word. You can only open 2 cards at a time, you have to remember what was under which card to match them later. The game goes on till you match all the cards. This helps kids with learning new words as well as improving their memory and focus.
PBS Kids
PBS Kids has lots of vocabulary games to play for kids. Each game teaches kids new words and word associations. You will find games like word race, power words, puppy letters, word play, match it, etc. Each game teaches something new to kids. The animation and sounds in all the games are pretty amazing. Kids will easily be engaged with these games.
Mind Games
Mind Games has lots of word games for kids to learn new words and improve their English vocabulary. The are plenty of word games for kids to play. Some of these games can be seen in the screenshot above. You can play word search games, scramble, text twist, and many such games related to words. One such game which I tried out was Word Wipe.
In this game you get a word grid like the one shown in the screenshot above. In this grid you have to connect letters to make words out of them. The words you find will be eliminated from the board. The game has a timer and when the time finishes its game over for you. Find as many words as you can to score more points. This type of word search game is great for kids to test their vocabulary.
Cookie
Cookie is a nice website with some word games to help kids out with their vocabulary. The website has the games divided into categories according to the age and grade of the kids. So you will find games for Pre-K (3-5yrs.), K (5-6yrs.), and 1st grade (6-7yrs.). You will see word games like synonyms and antonyms, word match, word memory, labeling, opposites, adjectives, etc.
I tried out the memory game with opposite words. The cards in this game are spread out top down. You can turn two cards at a time. Memorize what was behind the cards, so you can match them later. Each card has a word and you have to find its opposite word. This is a great game for kids to learn words and their opposites, as well as improve their memory as well.
Turtle Diary
Turtle Diary is a website which makes vocabulary fun to learn. There are lots of fun vocabulary games that kids will love to play. You will find games like crossword, word scramble, wordsmith, etc. Each game also mentions which age group or grade they are suitable for. The vocabulary games which I tried, focus on one topic in one game like transport, house, animals, etc. So the game is focused around one topic in one level, as you move on the topic changes. This way you can learn about various things.
I tried the vocabulary crossword game, which can be seen in the above screenshot. In this game, the crossword questions are given below the crossword grid. The answers to these questions are shown on the left side along with pictures, so it will be easier for the kids to relate the words with pictures. To fill in the crossword, all one has to do is click on the answer and then click in the crossword grid where you need to put the answer.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary website has some of the most popular vocabulary games listed on its home page as can be seen in the screenshot above. All these games can be played to improve English vocabulary for kids. These games when you click on them will take you to the spelling city website and there you can play these games. For instance, I tries the vocabulary word search, which can be seen in the screenshot below.
In this game you get a letter grid at the center of the page and the clues to find words are given on the right side. A timer is running at the top, just to record time. At the end it will show you how much time you took to solve this puzzle. You can find words horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. Once done you can either play the same game again or move on to the next level of the puzzle.
English Vocabulary Quizzes
English Vocabulary Quizzes is a simple website, with no graphics on its home page at all. All you will find are links to vocabulary games in plain text. This can be seen in the screenshot above. The website has over 1000 activities to help you improve on your English language. There are different levels and each level is divided into sub topics like nouns, verbs, adjectives, and opposites. There are various topics covered under each of these headings.
Let’s try out the animal vocabulary game under nouns heading. As you can see in the screenshot above, this game has total 46 questions. Each question shows you a picture of an animal and give you four options to choose the correct answer from. You move on to the next question when you answer right. If you answer wrong then you are shown the right answer, and then you can move on to the next question.
Spelling City
Spelling City has lots of vocabulary games for kids. Though the website is called spelling city, but it also has vocabulary games apart from spelling games. The website has a nice and colorful interface which kids would love.
Vocabulary memory match is a game which I tried out. The screenshot of this game can be seen in the screenshot above. Here you will get 10 card which are spread upside down. Each card has a word, definition, or image on it. You can open two cards at a time, once you see what’s under those two cards, they will turn upside down again. Now you have to remember what cards you saw and which position to match them later. You win the game when all cards are matched.
Overview:
Vocabulary plays a important part when kids are growing up. For them to learn new words and improve on their vocabulary these games could be pretty useful. These games are engaging and help kids learn new words in a fun way. This activity based learning will assure that kids will learn and remember these words for good.
