This cooking verbs vocabulary game gives your adult ESL students repeated, low-pressure exposure to 34 cooking verbs in a single class session. The "I Have...Who Has...?" format keeps everyone actively listening from the first card to the last, ready to speak up when their card has the needed word.

This game covers all 34 cooking verbs, with real photographs (or ink-friendly clipart) illustrating each one, giving your adult ESL students a clear visual reference for the cards in their hands.

WHAT YOU’LL SEE IN THE COOKING VERBS VOCABULARY GAME

✅ FOUR "I Have...Who Has...?" game set options each covering the same 34 cooking verbs. (All use the SAME sequence.)

• 🟢 Color Version #1 (35 cards):
• real photos with the cooking verbs printed on cards
• perfect for initial practice or review when paired with the introductory presentation 
• 🟢 Color Version #2 (35 cards):
• same photos in the same sequence but without the cooking verbs so that students must recall and produce the phrases independently
• greater challenge for students ready to move beyond recognition
• 🟢 Black & White Version #1 (35 cards):
• ink-friendly clipart with the cooking verbs printed on the cards
• 🟢 Black & White Version #2 (35 cards):
• same ink-friendly clipart in the same sequence but with no text for a higher challenge level

✅ Teacher Reference Charts Included: The color versions share one image reference chart, and the black & white versions share one image reference chart. Each chart shows all 34 images in gameplay order, allowing you to follow along easily without hovering over students or losing track of the game flow. Perfect for you or for a substitute teacher who's unfamiliar with the activity.

WHY YOU'LL LOVE THIS GAME

Vocabulary review can sometimes feel a little...dry. Flashcards, fill-in-the-blanks, and matching worksheets all get the job done, but they don't exactly get pulses racing. "I Have...Who Has...?" changes that completely.

The low-key suspense of the game keeps students on their toes the entire time because they never know exactly when their card is going to come up. That's especially valuable with adult students, who can disengage quickly when an activity feels repetitive or beneath their level.

The listening practice is another huge win. This game requires your adult ESL students to actively listen to every classmate, process what they're hearing, and match it in real time.

It also works wonders for speaking anxiety. The game's structure means everyone participates equally, briefly, and without being singled out, which is exactly the kind of low-stakes speaking environment that helps adult students build confidence over time. 

HOW THIS GAME WORKS

Each student gets one or more cards. The first player begins with, "Let's begin. Who has ___?" The next student, after recognizing the first image on their card, responds, "I have ___. Who has ____?" The chain continues until every card has been played. This is an active listening and speaking activity where everyone stays alert and involved. 

• TIP #1: Time the students discreetly, and at the end, tell them the time and challenge them to play again, but this time, beat the time. Let them reuse the same cards if that feels right or mix up all the cards so that everyone has something different to increase the challenge level.
• TIP #2: Have the entire class repeat after each student to give everyone a chance to say every word. This gives them more speaking practice without a spotlight shining directly on them.

THIS WAS CREATED FOR YOUR ADULT ESL STUDENTS

Your adult ESL students need vocabulary materials designed for them, not for children. They don't want to see cartoonish clipart, and they won't. The real photographs in this game respect your students' maturity while keeping the focus exactly where it belongs: on the vocabulary and what it means in daily life.

A NOTE ABOUT THE CLIPART:

The clipart in this resource was created using AI. Although I prefer human-created images, I simply couldn't find clipart for many of the verbs, and AI made it possible to illustrate all of them clearly and consistently. The goal is always to provide useful, clear visuals that support your students. The photos are all real photos obtained from the public domain.