This article will be like an ode to the use of sleep masks/blindfolds during lessons. I am of the opinion that every teacher should have a bunch in their class (more than one because you are going to want to clean them regularly.) They are just such an easy way to spice up a lesson and add an extra little obstacle. So without further ado here are some of my favorite games to play using blindfolds:
Pictionary
Pictionary is already a fun game, but I find that it can be almost too easy for some classes. So I like to throw curveballs randomly in the game to keep my students on their toes.
These curveballs include:
- drawing with their non-dominant hand
- drawing with a single line
And my favorite:
- drawing while blindfolded.
It is just that much more entertaining. When student’s can’t see what they are drawing, it makes it harder for anyone else to guess what’s going on. We’ve had so many laughs playing Pictionary this way. Sometimes the resulting drawings are so hilarious, we have to pause and take pictures before erasing.
Desk Maze
This is a fun activity to help students practice giving and receiving directions. Have a blindfolded student stand at the wall while the others move the desks until there is a simple maze. Once that’s done, place something at the end of the maze for the blindfolded student to grab. The others must then guide the student through the maze using their directional vocabulary. The game finishes once the blindfolded student grabs the end object.
This is a pretty fun activity already, but there are a couple of ways you can make it even more interesting:
- Put them into teams and have two blindfolded students instead of one.
- Use a stopwatch or a timer to give them a sense of emergency.
- Have the blindfolded student do more than simply walk and grab an object. Maybe they need to take an object and put it on top of another object. You can also have them walk to the board and finish a sentence or drawing.
Pin The Tail On The Donkey (and other variations)
The majority of people know this game already, as it’s a game played at children’s parties all over. There is an image on the wall missing a feature, and the blindfolded person must try and place that feature on the image. While the game I grew up with was pin the tail on the donkey, you can really use any image you want. During Christmas you can have them place the nose on the reindeer. When it’s Halloween there’s pin the hat on the witch. If you really want to make this a more “English learning” game you can have them place the punctuation on the sentence. That way, you don’t even need an image. Just write something on the board with missing punctuation, give the blindfolded student a marker, and see if they can place it correctly.
Feely Cup
This game, taken from the TV show New Girl, is quit simple. Blindfold a student and then place a cup in front of them. Inside the cup is an object of some kind and they have a set amount of time to guess what that object is. Sometimes I play a version of this game where instead of guessing what the object is, they have to guess who it belongs to. So I will tell the blindfolded student what they are touching and they will have to say, “I think this is Mary’s ______.” You can even have them shake hands with another student and try to guess who it is.
Marco Polo
This is a pool game that translated pretty well outside of the water. However, this is the game that has the greatest potential of injuring your students so precautions must be made. It is easier to play this game either outdoors or in an empty classroom. If you can’t do this, make sure to move as many obstacles as you can out of the way. Then the students play as normal: one student blindfolded runs around trying to tag one of the others. I mainly use this game as a reward at the end of class. It’s something you can play for the last couple minutes if everyone finished early, and the students seem to love it.
These are just some examples of how blindfolds can be used to make the learning experience more fun and interesting. I’m sure there are many more out there and maybe you can even think of some of your own. Let me know if you do, I’m always happy to learn!