Wh-questions ESL Games & Activities

Wh-questions are the backbone of everyday conversation and an essential part of any ESL classroom. Teaching them well helps learners ask for information, express curiosity, and participate in real-life interactions. This post gives a clear overview of wh-words, explains how to form different kinds of wh-questions, and — most importantly — offers a collection of engaging, classroom-tested games and activities that make practice interactive and memorable.

What are wh-words? Wh-words are question words often beginning with wh (plus how). They initiate wh-questions — questions used to request specific information.

Common wh-words and their uses

• Who — person (subject or object)
• What — thing, action, idea
• Where — place/location
• When — time
• Why — reason
• Which — choice/selection
• Whose — possession/belonging
• How — method/way/degree

Basic structures

Basic structures of wh-questions Teaching form alongside meaning prevents fossilized errors. Cover these patterns:

1. Wh + auxiliary + subject + main verb?

• Where do you live?
• When did they arrive?
• How will she get there?

2. Wh + modal + subject + main verb?

• What should I bring?
• When can we meet?

3. Wh + main verb + (object) — subject questions (no auxiliary)

• Who called?
• What made you laugh?

4. Negative wh-questions

• Why aren’t they coming?
• Where didn’t you look?

Make sure learners can identify when the wh-word asks about the subject (no auxiliary inversion) versus when it asks about an object or other element (auxiliary/modal inversion).

Controlled practice ideas (short, focused practice) Use these to highlight form and accuracy before freer speaking.

1. Unscramble races

• Prepare scrambled question cards (e.g., “go / when / did / you / home / ?”).
• Students race to reorder words into a correct wh-question.
• Variation: one student forms the question and another answers.

2. Error correction strips

• Give students short texts or question lists containing common wh-question errors (word order, wrong wh-word, missing auxiliary).
• Students work in pairs to correct mistakes and explain why.

3. Multiple-choice quiz (poll)

• Present a wh-question with several possible answers (some grammatical but irrelevant, some relevant but ungrammatical).
• Students choose the best answer and justify their choice. Good for distinguishing meaning and form.

4. Crosswords with a twist

• Create a crossword that hides wh-words and vocabulary from a target topic.
• When students find a wh-word (e.g., “where”), they must write an appropriate question using another clue word from the grid.

Games for fluency and interaction These activities emphasize communicative practice, speed, and social interaction.

1. Guess Who? (adapted for wh-questions)

• Preparation: picture/name cards for celebrities, family roles, occupations, or classmates.
• Each student gets a card and tries to discover their identity by asking only wh-questions (Who has a beard? Which person is a teacher?).
• Encourage follow-up questions — students must reply truthfully or role-play.

2. Interview carousel

• Students design 6–10 wh-questions for a specific profile (e.g., “Travel Blogger interview”).
• They rotate through partners, conducting short interviews and taking notes. Later, students present their partner’s profile to the class.

3. One Question Survey

• Each student writes one interesting wh-question (e.g., “What’s the weirdest food you’ve eaten?”).
• They must ask at least ten classmates and record concise answers plus one follow-up question per person.
• Wrap-up: present three surprising findings to the class.

4. Guess the Question (answer cards)

• Give students cards with answers (e.g., “At 8:30,” “My cousin,” “Because it was raining”).
• In groups, they invent plausible wh-questions for each answer and defend their choices. Teacher reveals sample correct questions afterward.

5. Fishbowl Q&A

• One small group sits in a circle (inside bowl) and discusses a topic using only wh-questions; outside group listens and notes interesting questions or missed grammar.
• Rotate roles. Great for critical listening and noticing gaps.

Information-gap and task-based activities These lead to authentic use and problem-solving.

1. The Mysterious Life (information-gap biography)

• Split info about one person between students A and B (dates, places, job duties, hobbies).
• Each group writes wh-questions to ask the other and complete the biography.
• Final task: present a full timeline or create a profile poster.

2. Map detectives (where + directions practice)

• Give students partial maps with missing landmarks.
• In pairs, one student asks wh-questions (“Where is the post office?” “How do I get from the park to the museum?”) and the other answers with directions, enabling the partner to complete their map.

3. Problem-solving challenge (how & why focus)

• Present a practical problem (e.g., organizing a school fair).
• Groups must ask and answer wh-questions to plan logistics, roles, and timeline. Use checklists to guide students to cover who, what, where, when, why, and how.

Creative and Critical Thinking Activities Encourage deeper processing and original language use.

1. Story follow-ups

• One student tells a short story (true or invented). Listeners generate as many wh-questions as possible for clarification and extension.
• The storyteller answers and expands the tale. This builds active listening and narrative practice.

2. Picture prompt interrogations

• Show complex images (crowded scenes, historical photos, movie stills).
• In groups, students produce wh-questions to describe, infer motives, and hypothesize causes. Use this to practice speculative language (Why might he be arrested? What could happen next?).

3. Guess the Mystery (reverse engineering)

• Teacher gives a series of clues gradually. Students ask yes/no wh-questions or wh-questions that can be answered with short hints to reveal the mystery item/person/place.
• Encourage justification and follow-up questioning.

Classroom management tips to maximize learning

• Model good questions first: demonstrate subject vs. object wh-questions and negative forms.
• Use visual grammar prompts: frames showing word order help students self-correct.
• Circulate and give quick feedback during pair work — praise accurate form and useful follow-ups.
• Encourage variety: rotate pairings and mix controlled with freer tasks.
• Scaffold: start with single-word/multiple-choice answers, then move to full-sentence replies and interviews.

Assessment and extension

• Quick formative checks: exit slips where students write two wh-questions about a short reading or picture and answer one of a partner’s questions.
• Peer review: after an interview activity, partners exchange notes and correct language together.
• Homework: ask students to bring a short set of wh-questions they used outside class (at a café, store, or with family) to discuss in the next lesson.

Materials and tech ideas

• Flashcard sets for people, places, objects
• Digital polls/quizzes for multiple-choice practice (Kahoot!, Google Forms)
• Image banks (Unsplash/Pexels) for picture prompts
• Simple printable board games where landing on colored squares prompts a wh-question task

Sample mini-lesson (45 minutes)

1. Warm-up (5 min): Quick game — Teacher writes “Who / What / Where / When / Why / How” on board. Students give a rapid example question for each.
2. Form focus (10 min): Contrast “Who called?” vs. “Who did you call?” with examples and short practice.
3. Controlled practice (10 min): Unscramble races in pairs.
4. Fluency activity (15 min): Interview carousel with prepared question lists; take notes.
5. Wrap-up (5 min): Exit slip — write one corrected wh-question and one new question to ask at home.

Final notes Wh-questions are versatile and naturally lend themselves to communicative, student-centered activities. Mixing controlled drills with interactive games and task-based challenges keeps learners engaged and helps them move from accuracy to fluency. Use real images, role-play, and information gaps to make practice meaningful and transferable to real-world interactions.

Do you want a printable set of wh-question cards, a ready-made crossword, or a slide deck for the Interview Carousel activity? Tell me which level (A1–C1) and I’ll create it.