Like most of the games in this occasional series of mine, this is a well-known TEFL game and the main reason I’m the one writing about it is that I’m the one who has probably (over) exploited it more than anyone else…
It’s based on the classic game where you write something on a piece of paper, fold over the paper so that the next person can’t see (most of) what has been written so far, then pass it to the next person for them to continue the story. It’s most famous for writing actual stories and fairly well-known as a practice activities for conditionals, and I’ve also used it for telephoning, emailing, postcards, reported speech, and describing appearances.
Reported speech chain stories Pre-Intermediate version – NEW LINK
Dealing with email complaints chain writing game – NEW
Application emails chain writing game (in this bargain e-book)
Email enquiries chain writing (in this incredibly reasonable e-book)
Making arrangements chain writing (in this frankly underpriced e-book)
Business chain letters/ emails game
Business chain letters/ emails game lower level version – NEW LINK
Business phone calls chain writing game
Future clauses chain story (first conditional with “unless” etc)
Second conditional chain writing
Describing appearance fairytale chain story
First conditional consequences (speaking version)
Business reports chain writing (described here) – NEW LINK
Present Simple and Continuous chain postcards (described here) – NEW LINK
Chain writing likes and dislikes blind date (described here) – NEW LINK
Indirect questions chain writing (described here) – NEW LINK
Many other TEFLtastic classics with worksheets here.
Updated 23 July 2026
