Try these 5 Battle Eggs EFL/ESL Card Game variations for awesome results!

how to play battle eggs efl/esl card game variations

Kids of all ages love playing Battle Eggs in classes and at home as an effective way to learn English. It’s the only game of its kind that lets kids collect Pet Cards and use them to battle with Battle Cards, converting their knowledge into points. Now let’s learn some Battle Eggs ESL/EFL card game variations!

The game also encourages students to make mistakes and rewards them for it! You can learn about the standard rules of play on this page, but below you will find 5 Battle Eggs EFL/ESL card game variations that are sure to mix things up and get kids excited to learn through play battle!

These Battle Eggs ESL/EFL card game variations will allow teacher or parents to use Battle Eggs as an effective learning resource for students with a wide range of ages and ability levels. Some of the variations can also be played in less time or without the Pet Decks or Battle Decks. Do you have an idea to add to the list? We would love to hear it. Please send us an email! 

Order Pet Decks and Battle Decks Now to start playing Battle Eggs!

To play all the Battle Eggs ESL/EFL card game variations, you’ll need Pet Decks and Battle Decks from below.

Check out this video to learn the standard rules for Battle Eggs. After that, check out the fun 5 Battle Eggs EFL/ESL Card Game variations that make it such a powerful classroom learning tool.

Now let’s check out 5 awesome Battle Eggs ESL/EFL card game variations

Once you have your Pet Decks, Battle Decks, and an understanding of the basic rules, you’ll be ready to try out the following Battle Eggs ESL/EFL card game variations that can be used in the classroom or at home.

Battle Eggs ESL/EFL Card Game Variation 1: Pick up & Say

battle eggs esl efl card game variation pick up 1

This ESL/EFL card game variation is great for young students just learning how to play Battle Eggs. Students will quickly learn new vocab words and get lots of counting practice. To simplify this variation even further, Battle Egg cards can be removed from the Battle Deck.

Target:

Learning new vocab words/counting points

Required Decks:

Battle Deck (optional: remove Battle Eggs)

Players:

2 or more

Time:

5 minutes or more

How to play Pick up and Say (No Battle Eggs/Pet Cards)

This game variation is great for young students. Select the vocabulary cards from the Battle Deck that you want the students to remember. To save time or simplify the game, you can remove the Battle Eggs and not use Pet Cards.

To play this variation, simply spread the cards out on the table facing down. For each player’s turn, they pick up one card. If they can say the word, then they get to keep it and the turn is over. If they don’t know the word, they have to say, “I don’t know” and put it back without getting any points for their turn. (The teacher should teach the word to all the players at that point.)

Playing Pick up and Say is a great way for teachers and students to identify difficult words. Students will quickly learn from their mistakes to avoid losing points each time they play.

How to play Pick up and Say (With Battle Eggs and Pet Cards)

If playing with Battle Eggs mixed in, then all players will have a Pet Battle if a Battle Egg is drawn. After the Pet Battle, the player that drew the Battle Egg can go again. This ensures that they will get a chance to say a vocab word for points.When someone doesn’t know a vocab word, all players can also battle for the card rather than returning it to the pile as in the simple version.

Battle Eggs ESL/EFL Card Game Variation 1: Pet-Free Battles

20210118 Battle Eggs game variations

This Battle Eggs ESL/EFL card game variation is a great way to play Battle Eggs in classes if you don’t have a lot of time or students don’t all have Pet Decks.

Target:

Learning/reading/spelling vocab words

Required Decks:

Any level Battle Deck with Battle Egg Cards

Players:

2 or more

Time:

5 minutes or more

How to play Pet-Free Battle

This variation uses the standard rules of Battle Eggs without Pet Decks. To play, simply put the Battle Deck in the middle of the table and play Battle Eggs like normal. The only difference is that when there is a Pet Battle, all players can simply play Rock-scissors-paper to decide the winner.

Teacher’s tip: For larger classes, the teacher can draw cards from the Battle Deck each time, asking each player in turn to say, read, or spell the vocabulary words. Alternatively, the teacher can draw the cards and all students ask the target question to the player receiving the question. If a player makes a mistake or a Battle Egg Card is drawn, all students can play Rock-scissors-paper against the teacher to minimize the chances of having a tie.

Battle Eggs ESL/EFL Card Game Variation 2: Battle EGG-zams (exams)!

battle egg zams

This Battle Eggs game variation is perfect to use to test students’ writing ability! Think of it like a pop-quiz that kids love!

Target:

Writing practice/evaluation

Required Decks/Materials:

*Any level Battle Deck with Battle Egg Cards
*Free Player Score Cards

Players:

2 or more

Time:

5 minutes or more

How to play Battle EGG-zams (exams)

Step 1:

Download, print, and prepare 1 free player score card per player.

Step 2 (Vocab Card):

The teacher draws a card from the Battle Deck and asks student to spell it on their score cards. The teacher shows the card or writes the word on the board and students can get the point value of the Battle Card if correctly spelled.

Step 2 (Battle Egg Card):

If the teacher draws a Battle Egg Card, the teacher asks a question to all the students such as, “What color do you like?” and the students write their answers. If they correctly answer the question, they can get the point value on the Battle Egg Card.

Battle Eggs ESL/EFL Card Game variation 3: Battle Egg Mines!

battle egg mines

With this Battle Eggs ESL/EFL Card Game variation, students can keep drawing cards as long as they can say, read, or spell all the words they get. But if they pick up a Battle Egg card, the turn is over!

Target:

Teaching vocabulary/reading evaluation

Required Decks:

Any level Battle Deck with Battle Egg Cards

Players:

2 or more

Time:

5 minutes or more

How to play Battle Egg Mines

Step 1:

Spread out all the Battle Cards facing down on the table.

Step 2 (Player draws a vocab card):

For each player’s turn, they draw a card and say the word or use the word in a sentence (e.g. fly/Birds can fly.) If the player can correctly say the word or make a sentence, then that player can go again. If the player can’t say the word or make a sentence, their turn is finished. (They can still keep the card.)

Step 2 (Player draws a Battle Egg):

If the player draws a Battle Egg card, then their turn is finished, but in order to keep the Battle Egg Card, that player must ask a question to all the other players such as “Where do you live?” After all players answer the question, the player that drew the Battle Egg can keep it, and their turn is finished.

Battle Eggs ESL/EFL Card Game Variation 4: Matching Battle!

matching battle

If you have two decks of any level of Battle Cards, then this variation of the popular game known as Memory, Concentration, Match Match, Match Up, Pelmanism, Shinkei-suijaku, Pexeso or simply Pairs, is going to be an instant favorite.

Target:

Teaching/reviewing vocabulary

Required Decks:

Two of the same decks of any level of Battle Deck

Players:

2 or more

Time:

5 minutes or more

How to play Matching Battle

Step 1:

Spread out all the Battle Cards facing down on the table.

Step 2:

For each player’s turn, flip over one card and use it in a sentence. (e.g. It’s a dog.) Then turn over a second card and try to find the matching card. If the cards match, the player can keep the cards and go again. If the second card doesn’t match, the turn is finished.

If a player draws a Battle Egg card during their turn, they have to ask a question to all the other players. After the other players answer, the player that drew the Battle Egg Card can keep it and resume looking for a matching pair. (Players don’t need to match Battle Egg cards.)

Battle Eggs ESL/EFL Card Game variation 5: Q&A Pet Battles!

Q&A pet battles

This Battle Eggs ESL/EFL Card Game variation is a great way to help students practice asking and answering a list of questions such as those found on ASK profile cards or other lists that teachers want students to practice.

Target:

Asking/Answering questions

Required Decks:

One Pet Deck per player

Players:

2 or more

Time:

5 minutes or more

How to play Q&A Pet Battles

Step 1:

Prepare a list of questions to practice such as those found on the back of our ASK profile cards.

Step 2

All players have a Pet Battle, and the card with the highest PPP asks a question to all the other players such as Where do you live? or What do you want to do every day? After all players have answered, have another Pet Battle to decide who will ask the next question.

More Battle Eggs Game variations to come!

As we can see, these 5 Battle Eggs EFL/ESL card game variations create unlimited potential for getting kids motivated to learn English through play. The 5 game variations outlined above give teachers and parents several choices to keep learning fun and exciting all the time.

We would love to hear your ideas for more game variations, so please let us know. We’ll keep adding to this list, so be sure to check back often!