Illness Go Fish - Games for English Teachers (ESL)

This is a card game I created to provide a fun opportunity for controlled practice of terms/conversations when seeing the doctor.

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Print 2 copies of the PDF. Glue the cards to construction paper and cut them out. Alternatively, you can print a pattern to the back of the cards to prevent students from being able to see through the cards. Laminate the cards. If you don't have access to a laminator, you can print the cards on heavy card stock.

This game is a recreation of the famous Go Fish game. Create groups of 3-5 students. One student will shuffle and deal the cards. Deal 5 cards to each player. Students play Rock-Paper-Scissors to choose the order they will play in. The first student (A) will select a student of their choice in the group (B) and will follow the dialogue below:

A: Hello, [student’s name]. What’s the matter?

B: I’m not feeling well.

A: [choose card in your hand and read it]

B: Yes, I do. [give the card if you have it]

No, I don’t. [student A takes a card from the draw pile]

For example,

A: Hello, Melissa. What’s the matter?

B: I’m not feeling well.

A: Do you have a toothache?

B: Yes, I do. [give the card]

No, I don’t. [student A takes a card]

If student B has the card that student A says, he/she must give the card to player A and player A can take another turn. Student A can choose a different student to ask if he/she likes. The turn ends when student B says “No, I don’t.” The turn will pass to the player on student A’s left. The game is over when all of the cards in the draw pile and the students’ hands are used. The winner of the game will have the most cards. Students have to listen well to hear if the sentences on their cards have been stated in order to do well. If a student runs out of cards and there are still cards in the draw pile, the student will take 3 and continue play.

Eventually students won’t have to look at the conversation and will remember the word chunks from repetition. The images, repetition, and careful listening help students remember the vocabulary and word chunks.