GCSE English Language Revision Games

Like many GCSE students, you may not be sure how to revise for English Language exams. After all, there’s not much content and everything is unseen. Is it all textbooks, model answers, and time-consuming practice papers? Not at all! There are fun ways to build the skills you’ll need. 

We’ve put together fun and simple GCSE English Language revision games you can play alone or with friends. Each game focuses on exam skills like creative writing, comprehension, synthesis, and analysis. Whatever exam board you’re doing (AQA, Edexcel, CIE, WJEC, or OCR), these games are a brilliant way to revise without even realising you're working.

Key Takeaways

• Revision games help by turning passive reading into active learning

• These activities target specific GCSE English Language exam skills like analysis, creative writing, summarising and comparison

• You only need basic equipment: dice, paper, pens, and playing cards

• You can play the games on your own or in groups to fit around your revision style

Why Use Games to Revise for GCSE English Language?

GCSE English Language is a skills-based subject. The exams test your reading and writing understanding and speed. Revision games work because they help you problem-solve and think quickly. 

The London School of Economics (opens in a new tab) says that games develop “cognitive skills, such as self-assessment and higher-order thinking, as well as metacognitive skills for deep learning.” Essentially this means understanding the mechanics of a subject - how and why things work. GCSE English Language exams test this kind of thinking: you need to analyse, compare different viewpoints, and develop arguments. 

When you're actively doing something, your brain pays attention differently. By actively recalling information you remember things for longer. That’s why flashcards and mindmaps work better than passive reading. 

Games help reduce stress and motivate you, too! Through play, you’ll be more likely to revise regularly.

Descriptive Writing Challenges

Whatever exam board you’re doing, creative writing makes up to 50% of the overall grade! That’s a lot of marks. Here’s how games can help you get it right. 

Game 1: Sensory Dice Description

1. Grab a dice and assign each number to one of our five senses: 

• 1 = sight

• 2 = sound

• 3 = smell

• 4 = taste

• 5 = touch

• 6 = your choice

2. Pick any setting (a busy market, a dark forest, a football stadium). 

3. Roll the dice. 

4. Now describe that setting in two sentences, using the sense you rolled. 

5. Keep rolling to add more. 

For added challenge, try to use a simile, personification, or alliteration. 

Not sure about techniques? Check out our list of 127 literary devices. Examiners specifically look for these in your descriptions. 

Game 2: Picture Card Story Sprint

1. Find a pack of playing cards. 

2. Create a guide. 

• You could use:

  •  hearts = characters

  • diamonds = settings

  • clubs = main event

  • spades = ending.

3. Flip three cards. 

4. Use them to plan a story. 

• For example: 

  • Hearts = a nervous teenage

  • Diamonds = a school corridor

  • Clubs = a difficult conversation

  • Spades = a renewed friendship

Try different combinations to practise planning narratives under time pressure. You may be able to use one of the stories you’ve planned in the exam!

After your game, look through our descriptive writing model answers to see how to improve. 

Analysing Language

Game 1: Technique Treasure Hunt

1. Write language techniques on separate cards

• Try: metaphor, simile, personification, alliteration, rule of three, rhetorical question, emotive language, and sensory imagery. 

2. Place them face-down.

3. Grab any text: a news article, a page from a book, or an advert. 

4. Set a timer to two minutes and flip a card. 

5. Now find that technique in the text. 

For a challenge: explain its effect. This skill is crucial for fiction and non-fiction exam papers. 

Expert tip: Notice how different text types use certain techniques.

Game 2: Effect Dice Challenge

1. Find a short extract. 

• You could use one from a past paper, or find one in a book on your shelf. 

2. Highlight six powerful words or phrases. 

3. Number them 1 to 6. 

4. Roll a dice. 

5. Whichever number comes up, explain its effect on the reader. 

• If you can’t find a dice, you can write numbers on cards, shuffle them, and flip them over. 

Imaginative Reading Practice

GCSE English Language examiners reward answers that provide good evidence to support points. You’ll also need to understand how writers structure stories. Try these games to help. 

Game 1: True, False or Not Given Race

1. Find a fiction extract from a past paper or use a page in a book. 

2. Write six statements – some true, some false, some that aren't relevant. For example: 

• The character is frustrated

• The character is nervous

• The setting is mysterious

• The setting is chaotic

• There’s a conflict between characters

• A past event is causing problems

3. Put each statement on a separate card, shuffle, and flip one. 

4. Now read the text and find evidence to support the true statements. 

This sharpens your close reading skills.

Game 2: Story Sequencing Scramble

1. Read through a fiction extract. 

2. Identify five key events on separate cards. 

3. Muddle them up. 

4. Time yourself putting them back in order. 

5. Notice which creates suspense, tension, or resolves a problem.  

This aids understanding of narrative structure – essential skills for the reading questions that ask you to track ideas through a text.

Comparing Texts

For non-fiction papers, you’ll need to understand writers’ viewpoints and perspectives. Whether you’re identifying them in extracts or writing your own, these games build speed. 

Game 1: Viewpoint Card Sort

1. Create cards with different viewpoints. Choose simple topics like:

• school uniforms are essential

• school uniforms limit self-expression

• school uniforms save money

• school uniforms are outdated

2. Draw two cards and set a timer for 5 minutes

3. Come up with comparison statements.

4. Use comparative phrases like "whereas", "similarly", "in contrast" and "both writers".

This mirrors the synthesis and comparison questions.

Game 2: Quote Connection Challenge

1. Find two non-fiction texts on similar topics (past papers are ideal). 

2. Choose 4-6 key quotes from each text. 

3. Write them on separate cards. 

• You could use different coloured cards for each text. 

4. Spread them out. 

5. Your challenge is to find two quotes that connect in some way (similar idea or opposite viewpoint). 

6. Explain the connection in three sentences.

This builds the comparative analysis skill that students often find tricky.

Summary and Inference

Game 1: Dice Summary Shrink

1. Read a non-fiction article. 

• You can find one in a magazine, newspaper, or online blog. 

2. Roll a dice. 

3. Whatever number you get is how many sentences you're allowed to summarise the whole text. 

• Roll a six? Easy. Roll a two? Now you really have to think about the key points. 

This builds skills needed for those "summarise" questions.

Game 2: Inference Evidence Hunt

1. Take any non-fiction text. 

2. Write down five inferences about the writer’s view, the subject, or the tone (e.g., "the writer feels passionate about this topic"). 

3. For each inference, find and write down specific evidence that proves it. 

4. For a challenge, write a paragraph using the PEE structure: 

• Point (inference), Evidence (quote), Explanation (how it shows your point). 

• Set a ten-minute timer for exam pressure. 

This helps you support your ideas with evidence.

Persuasive Writing Practice

Game 1: Technique Card Builder

1. Write persuasive techniques on cards:

• rhetorical question, anecdote, statistic, direct address, emotive language, rule of three, or repetition. 

2. Pick a simple topic like "students should have longer lunch breaks". 

3. Draw two cards. 

4. Now write a persuasive paragraph using the techniques you drew. 

This forces you to include varied techniques, pushing your writing into higher mark bands.

Game 2: Tone Dice Twist

1. Write six different tones on paper and number them: 

• 1 = angry, 2 = humorous, 3 = serious, 4 = inspiring, 5 = sarcastic, 6 = friendly. 

2. Choose a viewpoint (e.g., "we should ban car travel"). 

3. Roll the dice. 

4. Write a two-minute persuasive paragraph in whatever tone you rolled. 

This shows you how the same argument can be made using different ‘voices’. You’ll learn how tone is used to influence audiences and achieve a purpose.

Once you’re finished playing, read a model article to check against yours. 

Solo vs Group Game Options

Maybe you prefer revising alone. Perhaps working in a group keeps you stimulated. Here are some games for each learning style. 

Solo Games

If you’re revising alone, focus on self-assessment. Use games to find knowledge gaps or address timing issues. 

Tips to keep things interesting:

• Dice games offer randomness

  • Try the Sensory Dice Description, Effect Dice Challenge, Dice Summary Shrink, or Tone Dice Twist 

• Set yourself challenges

  • Adapt card games by dealing yourself cards and aiming to complete them all

  • Tell yourself, "I'll do five rounds of the Technique Card Builder"

• Time yourself with your phone timer

  •  Try to beat your time on the Inference Evidence Hunt

  • Keep a revision log of your scores and times

Group Games

Everything becomes more competitive and fun with friends. Working together also raises different interpretations to deepen understanding. 

Tips to keep things interesting: 

• Argue your positions

  • Use the Viewpoint Card Sort debate to practise supporting your arguments

  • The Quote Connection Challenge helps validate connections

• Keep score

  • In the True, False or Not Given Race set a score system

  • The first person to get the statements right wins

• Do relays

  • In the Sensory Dice Description, pass your descriptions to the next person to add sentences 

Group games let you learn from each other – seeing how someone else analyses a quote or structures an argument teaches you new approaches.

Tips for Making Revision Games Work

Games are great, but they work best when you use them smartly. 

• After your game, reflect. What went well? What was tricky? 

• Check mark schemes. What's missing from your game answers? Self-marking helps you improve.

• Mix it up. Don't just play your favourite games. Challenge yourself with harder ones. If comparing articles is tricky, focus on comparison games.

• Combine games with traditional revision. Use games as a warm-up before tackling a past paper. 

Games shouldn't replace everything else, but they do make your revision varied. 

Frequently Asked Questions

What Are the Best Revision Games for Creative Writing?

The Sensory Dice Description and Picture Card Story Sprint are perfect for creative writing. You’ll think about the techniques examiners are after. They also help you plan stories quickly. The Tone Dice Twist teaches you to control your writing voice - essential for higher levels. 

Can You Revise for English Language Without Past Papers?

No. Games help you build skills, and identify weaker areas or knowledge gaps. Past papers show you how those skills are examined and make you familiar with question styles. Games train you and past papers test you.

Are Games Helpful for Improving English Exam Skills?

Definitely. Games provide repeated, low-pressure practice. They motivate you to study, and improve deeper understanding. The variety keeps you engaged, and the active nature of games means information sticks better.

Final Thoughts

Revising GCSE English Language isn’t just revision guides and past papers. Although they’re useful, making learning fun makes things interesting. And, you’ll think on your feet against the clock - great prep for exam time pressure. 

Mix games with past papers, class notes and our teacher-written GCSE English Language Revision Notes. Try different games, find your favourites, and adapt them to suit you. So grab those dice, shuffle those cards, and start playing your way to GCSE success! 

Read through more expert revision tips and, when you’re ready, try out some Mock Exams. 

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Our resources are written by real examiners and expert teachers, and designed to match your exact exam board. Stop wasting time trawling through websites or using AI tools that don’t know precisely what you need. Our teacher-written resources pinpoint exactly what to revise, help you identify your weak points, and show you how to improve—so you can walk into your exams confident and prepared.

References: 

AQA GCSE English Language specification and assessment (opens in a new tab)

Edexcel Pearson GCSE English Language specification (opens in a new tab)

OCR GCSE English Language specification (opens in a new tab)

WJEC GCSE English Language specification (opens in a new tab)

Cambridge CIE GCSE English Language specification (opens in a new tab)