Fire! Fire!

Fire! Fire! Save or Leave? A Fun Speaking Activity for ESL Students– Free Printable PDFs

Fire! Fire!

Fire! Fire!

In this engaging ESL activity, students will practice agreeing and disagreeing while making tough decisions about which items to save in an emergency. This critical thinking exercise encourages discussion, negotiation, and justification of opinions.

Preparation

Before class, prepare a worksheet with a list of important items (e.g., passport, laptop, photo album, jewelry, pet, books, etc.). Make one copy per pair of students.

How to Run the Activity

Step 1: Set the Scene

1. Introduce the scenario:
   • Imagine your house is on fire. You only have a few minutes to grab some of your most important possessions before escaping.
2. Go through the vocabulary on the worksheet, ensuring students understand all the items listed.
3. Encourage students to think of other items they might want to save and write them at the bottom of their worksheet.

Step 2: Prioritizing Items

1. Pair up students and give each pair a worksheet.
2. Their task: Decide together on ten items to save and rank them from most important (1) to least important (10).
3. Encourage discussion and negotiation:
   • Students must agree on their final list, using phrases like:
     ✅ I think the passport is the most important because…
     ❌ I disagree. I believe the laptop is more important because…
   • They cannot simply divide the items—they must reach a shared decision!

Step 3: Class Discussion

1. Each pair presents their final list and explains their choices.
2. Write their results on the board and compare answers across the class.
3. Discuss:
   • Which items were saved the most?
   • Did any groups disagree strongly?
   • How did they reach a compromise?

Why This Activity Works

✅ Promotes real-life decision-making skills
✅ Encourages teamwork, negotiation, and justification of opinions
✅ Expands vocabulary related to household items and emergenciesce in speaking English

Try this interactive ESL speaking activity to get your students thinking, debating, and improving their English conversation skills!

📩 Want more free ESL grammar lesson? Share this post with other teachers and let us know how it worked in your classroom!

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More ESL Classroom Games & Activities

Looking for more fun grammar activities for your English class? Check out these ideas:
✅ ESL Speaking Games to improve fluency
✅ Grammar Board Games for practicing sentence structures
✅ Interactive Writing Activities for ESL learners