10 No-Prep English Activities That Work in Large Classes (Part 1)

Teaching a big class is not easy. Time is short. Resources are few. Learners are many. This post is here to help. It gives you ten no-prep activities that you can use today. Each activity is simple. Each one fits a 40-minute lesson in Rwanda. You only need a board, chalk or markers, and your voice. I explain each idea step by step in clear language, so you can use it without confusion. At the end, you will feel ready and confident.

If you want more ideas for large classes, please read Smart ways to teach English in large classes on Teach Smart Africa. 

https://www.teachsmartafrica.com/2025/08/smart-ways-to-teach-english-in-large.html

1) Picture Dictation with Local Scenes

What it is: You describe a simple scene from Rwanda. Learners listen, draw, and then label. It builds listening, vocabulary, and attention.

Materials: Board and chalk. That’s all.

How to do it: Tell learners to take a pencil and paper. Say, “Draw a hill in the middle.” Pause. “On the left, draw a small market.” Pause. “Add two people with baskets.” Keep your language slow and clear. Use words they know: hill, road, tree, lake, gate, classroom, bicycle. After three minutes, say, “Stop. Label five things in English.” Let pairs compare drawings and labels.

Why it works: Every learner is busy. The room becomes quiet and focused. They hear real English linked to real life in Rwanda.

Assessment: Walk around. Check five labels for each learner. Give quick praise and one small fix.

Adaptation: Use school places instead of a village scene: library, staffroom, lab, playground, headteacher’s office. This fits S1 Unit 1: My Secondary School very well.

2) Three Lines Only

What it is: Learners act a tiny scene. Each person can speak only three lines. Short turns keep everyone active.

Materials: None.

How to do it: Put learners in groups of three. Give a simple prompt on the board: “At the school gate…”, “In the library…”, “During Umuganda…”. Tell them: “Each of you says only three lines. Make the lines clear and short.” Give two minutes to prepare. Then they perform for a nearby group. Switch prompts and repeat.

Why it works: The rule (three lines) makes shy learners speak. It also stops one learner from taking all the time.

Assessment: Listen for clear voice, eye contact, and correct tense. Give one star and one wish to each group.

Adaptation: For S3–S6, use academic prompts: “In the science lab…”, “At a debate about climate change…”.

3) Stand Up If…

What it is: A fast game to practise grammar and meaning with movement.

Materials: None.

How to do it: Explain the rule: “Stand up if the sentence is true for you.” Say, “Stand up if you have English on Monday.” Pause to look. “Stand up if you never eat at school.” “Stand up if you often read at night.” Use present simple first, then try past or future when ready.

Why it works: It wakes the room, gives quick practice, and makes grammar feel real.

Assessment: After each sentence, ask two learners to say a full sentence: “I have English on Monday.” “I never eat at school.” This checks form and meaning.

Adaptation: Use school rules: “Stand up if you always wear your uniform.” This supports class discipline in a friendly way.

4) One-Minute Talks

What it is: Learners talk for one minute on a simple topic. Partners listen and count pauses. It builds fluency and confidence.

Materials: A watch or phone timer.

How to do it: Write ten easy topics on the board: favourite subject, a hero from your village, a time you helped a friend, Umuganda, a dream job, the best teacher you know. Put learners in pairs. Partner A talks for one minute. Partner B listens and counts long pauses. Then they switch roles with a new topic.

Why it works: Many learners do not speak enough in class. This gives safe, short speaking time for all.

Assessment: Ask each learner to write one strong sentence from their talk. Collect five notebooks per row for a quick check.

Adaptation: For higher classes, ask for a short summary after the talk: “Tell me in two sentences what your partner said.” This grows listening skills.

5) Back to the Board

What it is: One learner faces away from the board. The team gives clues to guess the word. No Kinyarwanda. Only English clues.

Materials: Board and chalk.

How to do it: Write a word behind the learner: “library”, “homework”, “recycle”, “hill”, “assembly”. The team says clues like, “You read here,” or “It is a place in school.” The learner guesses. Rotate fast. Keep a scoreboard for fun.

Why it works: It pushes learners to explain in English. It also builds teamwork and quick thinking.

Assessment: After each round, ask one learner to make a clean sentence with the word. For example, “We study in the library on Tuesday.”

Adaptation: Use vocabulary from other subjects: erosion, budget, microscope, fraction. This helps content learning too.

6) Micro Dictogloss

What it is: A short listening and writing task. You read a tiny text two times. Learners take notes and rebuild the text in pairs.

Materials: A 4–5 sentence text you can write or just read.

How to do it: Say, “Listen. Do not write.” Read a short text about a school day in Rwanda: time to wake up, lessons, break, clubs, and going home. Read it again and say, “Now take notes.” After that, learners work in pairs to rebuild the text in good English. Finally, you show or read the original again. Pairs compare and improve.

Why it works: Learners notice grammar and word order, but in a real context. It is strong practice for exams without boring drills.

Assessment: Collect two pairs’ work per row. Mark three things only: verbs, punctuation, and one new word choice.

Adaptation: For S1, use very simple sentences. For S5, use a short text about career guidance or TVET.

7) Gallery Walk Sentences

What it is: Groups write on the board or on chart paper. Then groups rotate, read, and improve one thing on each poster.

Materials: Board space or chart paper and markers.

How to do it: Give a clear task: “Write five present simple sentences about our school.” After five minutes, say, “Stand up. Move clockwise. Read and fix one thing.” They move again and repeat. In the end, each group returns to their work and reads the improved version.

Why it works: Learners read, write, and edit in a social way. They learn from other groups’ ideas.

Assessment: Circle two strong sentences and one sentence to fix. Ask the group to rewrite the weak one on the board for the class to see and learn.

Adaptation: Use pictures instead of a text prompt. Or use exam-style prompts (describe a routine; compare two places).

8) Question Relay

What it is: Two lines face each other. A asks, B answers, then B slides one seat to the left to meet a new partner. It is fast and fun.

Materials: None.

How to do it: Put the class in two lines: A and B. Give them a topic, like “My school day.” Write three models on the board: What time do you…? Where do you…? When do you…? Say, “A asks one question. B answers. Then B moves left. New partner. Go.” After two minutes, switch roles.

Why it works: Everyone speaks many times. The same question form repeats, so the structure sticks.

Assessment: Listen for correct question forms. Stop and model again if many groups make the same mistake. Praise quick follow-up questions like “Why?” or “How often?”

Adaptation: Turn it into Interview Relay for writing. Learners write three answers from three partners, then use them to write a small paragraph.

9) Speed Reading Strips

What it is: Very short reading texts on strips of paper or the board. Learners read for speed and meaning.

Materials: Six or more short texts. You can handwrite them quickly.

How to do it: Write a strip like, “Kevin leaves home at 6:30. He walks to school with his friend. First, they have Maths. Break is at 10:20.” Add a simple question: “What is the first subject?” Pairs time each other and try to read faster on the second try. Then they answer the question together.

Why it works: It builds reading fluency without stress. Short texts feel safe for all learners.

Assessment: Ask pairs to read the answer sentence aloud, not only say the answer. This keeps focus on meaning.

Adaptation: For higher classes, add one difficult word and a context clue. Teach learners to guess the meaning from the sentence.

10) Error Hunt

What it is: You write a short paragraph with eight small errors. Learners must find and fix them in pairs.

Materials: Board and chalk.

How to do it: Write a paragraph about a normal school day, but add mistakes in tense, subject-verb agreement, punctuation, and spelling. For example: “She go to school at 7:00. they studies English on Monday She like library.” Tell pairs to find and fix as many as they can in four minutes. Then correct together and explain the rules in simple words.

Why it works: It uses real, common errors. Learners feel smart when they find them. They remember better after fixing mistakes themselves.

Assessment: Give one mark for each correct fix. Ask one learner to read the clean paragraph aloud to close the activity.

Adaptation: Use errors from last week’s notebooks (no names). This makes feedback fast and fair.

Timing that fits 40 minutes

Open with a quick warm-up (2–3 minutes). Teach or review language (10–12 minutes). Choose one of the activities above (10–15 minutes). Share results (5 minutes). Close with a mini exit ticket (2 minutes): “Write one thing you learned and one question you still have.” This rhythm keeps the lesson clear and calm, even with 50+ learners.

For more on lesson structure and quality, please read What are indicators of quality education? on Teach Smart Africa. 

https://www.teachsmartafrica.com/2025/06/what-are-indicators-of-quality-education.html

Friendly note for new teachers

Start small. Pick just one activity this week. Try it. Reflect after class. Ask yourself: What went well? What will I change next time? Growth is step by step. You are doing important work for Rwanda. Courage!

Helpful resources

For more ideas, you can explore trusted sites like British Council TeachingEnglish and Cambridge English for classroom tips and training articles. They offer free ideas you can adapt to our context.
 https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/
 https://www.cambridgeenglish.org/teaching-english/

Let’s build our teacher community

If this post helped you, please share it with your staff room or your WhatsApp teacher group. Leave a short comment: Which activity will you try first? What level do you teach? Your ideas help other teachers too. Part 2 will cover the next ten activities, so please subscribe and watch for it.