Fun Games for Online Spanish Lessons (That Actually Teach)

May 2026  ·  9 min read

A game in a one-to-one Spanish lesson is not filler. Used well, it is the most efficient way to get a student producing language at volume, because the rules force repetition that a normal conversation never would. The trick is choosing games that practise a specific target, ser versus estar, gender agreement, the preterite, rather than ones that simply pass time pleasantly.

Below are nine games that work over any video platform, with notes on how to run each, the level it suits, and a concrete Spanish example so you can use it tomorrow. They assume a single student, which is the most common online tutoring setup, but most scale to small groups too.

Warm-up games to switch on the Spanish brain

1. Category race (A1-B1). Name a category in Spanish, cosas en la cocina, animales, palabras con la letra R, and the student lists as many words as they can in sixty seconds while you type them in the chat. Then swap. It is fast, low-stakes and instantly tells you where their vocabulary is thin. To raise the level, require full sentences: En la cocina hay una nevera, una sarten, un cuchillo...

2. Two truths and a lie (A2-B2). The student says three statements about themselves in Spanish, two true and one false, and you guess the lie, then explain your reasoning in Spanish. This drills the present tense and past tenses naturally: Naci en Sevilla. Tengo tres hermanos. Nunca he comido paella. It also builds rapport, which keeps students booking.

Vocabulary games over video

3. Screen-share Pictionary (A1-A2). Share a blank slide or whiteboard. One of you draws a word while the other guesses in Spanish. For beginners, restrict the pool to the current lesson's set, food, clothing, the house. Insist on the article: not mesa but la mesa, not cuchillo but el cuchillo. That single rule turns a drawing game into gender practice, which is exactly where Spanish learners need reps.

4. The gender sorting game (A1-B1). Put a column of nouns on a shared slide and two boxes, el and la. The student drags or tells you where each goes and says the full phrase. Load it with deceptive nouns to make it teach something: el problema, el dia, la mano, el mapa, la foto. Every time they hesitate, you have found a word worth adding to their spaced-repetition deck.

5. Twenty questions (A2-B2). You think of a person, animal or object; the student must identify it using only yes/no questions in Spanish. This is the best question-formation drill there is: Es un animal? Vive en el agua? Es mas grande que un coche? Beginners practise ser and tener questions; stronger students can be pushed into comparatives and the subjunctive of doubt.

Grammar games that target the hard parts

6. Ser versus estar sorting (A2-B1). This is the famous Spanish hurdle, and a game beats a rules table. Show ten sentences with a gap and have the student choose ser or estar and justify it in Spanish. Build in the meaning-changing pairs that make the point: Mi hermano ___ aburrido (es = he is a boring person / esta = he is bored), La sopa ___ rica (es = it is a tasty dish generally / esta = it tastes great right now). The justification is the learning; do not let them just pick.

7. Conjugation wheel or dice (A1-B2). Share a spinner with subject pronouns (yo, tu, el, nosotros, vosotros, ellos) and a second with verbs and a tense. The student conjugates whatever comes up in a full sentence. At A1 keep it to regular present-tense verbs like hablar and comer; at B1 throw in irregulars (tener, ir, poder) and the preterite; at B2 demand the subjunctive. Because the result is random, students cannot rehearse, which is what makes it stick.

8. The wish game for the subjunctive (B1-B2). Every turn must begin with a trigger that forces the subjunctive: Quiero que..., Espero que..., Ojala que..., Es importante que... You set a scenario, perhaps planning a trip or a birthday, and you alternate wishes: Espero que haga buen tiempo. Quiero que vengan todos mis amigos. The required trigger does the teaching; the playful content keeps the student generating forms they would normally avoid.

Speaking games for fluency

9. Story chain in the past tenses (B1-B2). Build a story one sentence at a time, alternating turns, with one rule: each sentence must use either the preterite or the imperfect correctly. Era una noche oscura (imperfect, scene) ... y de repente sono el telefono (preterite, event). This is the single clearest way to teach the preterite/imperfect contrast, because the student feels the difference between background and event rather than memorising it.

For a relaxed close, try a quick preferirias? (would you rather) debate at B1+, which pulls in the conditional and opinion language: Preferirias vivir en la playa o en la montana? Por que?

A bonus game for por versus para

The por-versus-para split deserves its own quick game because students treat both as a single English "for". Show a slide of ten sentences with a gap and a tiny picture or icon hinting at the meaning, a clock for duration, an arrow for destination, a gift for the recipient. The student fills the gap and names the reason: Estudio espanol para hablar con mi familia (purpose, para), Gracias por la comida (cause, por), Salgo para Madrid manana (destination, para), Pase por el parque (movement through, por). Keep score for correct preposition plus correct justification, and the distinction starts to feel like territory rather than a coin toss. This works well at A2 to B1 and pairs nicely as a warm-down after the heavier conjugation wheel.

How do I keep these games genuinely educational?

Three habits separate a game that teaches from one that merely entertains. First, name the target before you start, so the student knows the point is gender, or the preterite, or question forms. Second, require the target structure on every turn, not just when convenient. Third, capture the slips: keep a running note in the shared document of the errors the game surfaces, then feed those words and structures into review next lesson. A platform with spaced-repetition review automates that last step so the game's discoveries are not lost.

If you would rather not build a new slide deck before every session, Derstina includes ready-made interactive Spanish lessons and games aligned to a structured curriculum, so the game is already there waiting when you open the lesson. You can also explore the broader teaching approach in our guide on how to teach Spanish online, and steal ideas from the sibling post on games for online Italian lessons.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are good games for online Spanish lessons?

Good games for online Spanish lessons include screen-share Pictionary for vocabulary, a ser-versus-estar sorting game, a verb-conjugation dice or wheel game, twenty questions in Spanish for question forms, and a story-chain game for narrative tenses. The best games practise one target structure, keep the student talking, and work over any video platform without special software.

How do I play vocabulary games over video?

Use screen share and the annotate tool, or a free shared whiteboard. For Pictionary, share a slide and either you or the student draws while the other guesses in Spanish. For a memory game, lay out numbered cards on a slide and flip them by clicking. Anything you can show on screen and click becomes a video-friendly game.

How do I make a game teach the subjunctive instead of just being fun?

Anchor the game to one structure and require it in every turn. For the subjunctive, play a wish game where each round must start with a trigger like quiero que, espero que or ojala que. The fun comes from the content; the learning comes from forcing the target form repeatedly until it feels automatic rather than effortful.

What level of Spanish student are these games for?

These games scale across levels. Pictionary and category races suit A1 to A2 beginners building core vocabulary. Ser-versus-estar sorting and conjugation games fit A2 to B1. Story chains, would-you-rather debates and subjunctive wish games work best at B1 to B2, where students have enough grammar to play with meaning rather than just form.

Do I need special software to run Spanish games online?

No. Most games need only a video call with screen share and the chat box. A shared slide deck or whiteboard covers the rest. If you want games built in, a platform like Derstina includes ready-made interactive Spanish lessons and games, so you assign an activity rather than preparing one before every session.