Mouth the Word
The teacher silently mouths words related to the lesson, and students must read them on the teacher's lips and respond with a slow gesture, also in silence. It builds visual attention, nonverbal communication, and a calm close to class.
How to play
- Seat the class in a half circle facing you, no more than 15 ft away, so everyone can see your face clearly (30 sec).
- Explain the rule: you'll move your lips without sound and nobody may talk; whoever understands the word acts it out with a slow gesture.
- Round 1 (90 sec): silently mouth sports or action words from the lesson (run, jump, swim, throw); students act out the action in slow motion for 5 seconds.
- Round 2 (90 sec): calm words (sleep, breathe, stretch, yawn); the gesture must last 10 seconds and get slower and slower.
- Round 3 (90 sec): a student volunteer comes up and silently mouths a word for the class; do 3 turns.
- Closing: silently mouth "goodbye" and "thank you"; everyone answers with a slow wave and leaves quietly (1 min).
Rules
- No talking or whispering during the whole activity.
- Gestures are done seated or standing in place, without traveling.
- Don't correct anyone out loud; a wrong guess just means watching a classmate.
- Whoever mouths the word does it slowly while facing the group.
Variations
Easier
Show the words on cards first so students know which ones to choose from.
Standard
Three rounds: action words, calm words, and volunteers.
Harder
Mouth short phrases like "stretch your arms," and the gesture must show the whole phrase.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: the student responds with arm, hand, and facial gestures.
- Hearing impairment: the student can take a lead role as a volunteer and share with the class how they use lip-reading.
- Visual impairment: seat them up close, or let a partner pass along the word by tapping their hand with an agreed code.
Learning goals
- Keep visual attention on the speaker's face.
- Communicate without words using slow gestures.
- Appreciate lip-reading as a way many people communicate.
Teacher tip
Mouth the words slowly and exaggerate at first. It's a great chance to talk naturally about Deaf and hard-of-hearing people and how they communicate.
PatioLab has "Mouth the Word" and 1299 more activities ready to drag into your lesson and run from your phone in the gym.
More activities like this
More cool-downs for Elementary
4-7-8 Guided Breathing
Guided 4-7-8 breathing: breathe in for 4 counts, hold for 7 and breathe out for 8, to calm the class at the end of the lesson.
5-Senses Mindfulness
Using the 5-4-3-2-1 technique, students calmly notice 5 things they can see, 4 they can hear, 3 they can touch, 2 they can smell and 1 they can taste.
Astronauts on the Moon Story
Students travel to the Moon as astronauts, where everything moves in slow motion because of low gravity, then return to Earth feeling heavy.
Back Drawing with Partner
In pairs, one student slowly draws a shape, letter or number on a partner's back with a finger, and the partner guesses it before roles switch.
Back-to-Back Ball Pass Stretch
Sitting back to back in pairs, students pass a foam ball with trunk twists, overhead and between the legs, always slowly and with steady breathing.
Ball Explorer Body Guess
In pairs, one student lies face down with eyes closed while the partner slowly rolls a tennis ball over one part of their body; the student lying down must guess which…