Today we are going to explore a Gen.AI version of the popular game Taboo. The game is simple (but not always easy to play). Players must describe a target word without using a list of specific ‘taboo’ words that are closely related to it. The goal is for teammates to guess the target word based on the description, but the challenge lies in avoiding the obvious words that would make it easier to guess. If a player uses a forbidden word, they lose the round.
We could prepare this material in advance before we see our students in class and create actual cards for the game, or we could take the plunge and run the activity live. In my experience, it works really well with either ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini so we might as well run it live. I will be using Gemini this time.
This game is ideal for reviewing specific lexical items. We could kick off the lesson with a vocabulary review of words and expressions the students encountered in the previous lesson or over the past few days or weeks. This game also works really well for the last few minutes of a lesson to review board annotations. Here are some actual words and expressions noted on the board during an Intermediate English lesson: can’t help it, pricey, pomegranate, night shift, washbasin, furnished, workaholic, bunk bed, apply for, vegetable garden, all you can eat.
And this a possible prompt for a Taboo game based on that. Prompt: I am an English teacher with a group of Intermediate students. I want you to create taboo cards, just like the ones from the game Taboo. I will provide a list of target words and expressions for my students to guess. For each target word or expression, provide four ‘taboo’ words that students are not allowed to use while describing the target. Create one card at a time. When I type “ok”, provide the next Taboo card and so on. These are the target words or expressions: can’t help it, pricey, pomegranate, night shift, washbasin, furnished, workaholic, bunk bed, apply for, vegetable garden, all you can eat.
Taboo Card 1
Target Word: can’t help it Taboo Words: irresistible, unavoidable, inevitable, uncontrollable
Taboo Card 2
Target Word: pricey Taboo Words: expensive, costly, exorbitant, high-priced
Taboo Card 3
Target Word: pomegranate Taboo Words: fruit, red, seeds, juicy
I just generated three cards. It would have been interesting to see which taboo words I might have been presented with for ‘all you can eat’. Since the actual taboo words are also revealed, I would ask the students to work in pairs. Student A could look at the board to describe the taboo word, while Studen B guesses. Then, they switch roles. Alternatively, we could hide screen from view and ask a student to come to the front, look at the class computer, and describe the word while the rest of the class guesses.
This game works really well with lexical sets for lower levels. Here’s the prompt: I am teaching a group of Elementary students next. The students have been studying words for ‘jobs’. Create 10 taboo cards for common jobs, one at a time. When I type ‘ok’, create the next one and so on.
Taboo Card 1
Target Word: teacher Taboo Words: school, student, lesson, book
Taboo Card 2
Target Word: doctor Taboo Words: hospital, patient, medicine, stethoscope
Taboo Card 3
Target Word: nurse Taboo Words: hospital, doctor, patient, uniform
And here’s a variation for higher levels. Prompt: Now I am teaching a class of Advanced English students. Create 10 taboo cards, one at a time, around the topic of ‘homes’ for that language level. Use vocabulary and expressions related to this topic that are likely to appear in ESL coursebooks at this language level. When I type ‘ok’, create the next card.
Taboo Card 1
Target Word: condominium Taboo Words: apartment building, complex, unit, shared walls
Taboo Card 2
Target Word: detached house Taboo Words: single-family home, standalone, yard, private property
Taboo Card 3
Target Word: real estate agent Taboo Words: property broker, realtor, listing, commission
If a given card doesn’t work for us because it’s beyond the students’ knowledge level, we could always skip it and type ‘ok’ to move on to the next one. Ultimately, we could always select focal vocabulary from the coursebook unit, feed those words into Gemini and create a customized Taboo game for the students. To save time, have your prompt ready by retrieving it from a previous conversation or by copying and pasting it from a Word document or Google Doc.
AI in ELT 