Tangram Talk | Communication and Problem-Solving Activities for EFL

Tangram talk combines speaking, teamwork, problem-solving, and spatial awareness through collaborative tangram challenges designed for EFL learners. Students work together using spoken English to describe shapes, give instructions, ask questions, clarify meaning, and complete tangram puzzles as a group.

The activities are built around structured communication tasks where learners take on different roles including Instruction Giver, Shape Banker, and Shape Builder. Each role encourages students to listen carefully, communicate clearly, and work collaboratively whilst practising shape vocabulary, colours, directions, positioning language, and classroom interaction skills.

The resource includes four complete tangram challenges: a square, bird, heart, and rocket. Each challenge contains printable tangram templates, instruction giver sheets, and outline pages for building the final shapes. The activities can easily be adapted for different language levels by hiding instructions, removing outlines, or encouraging students to create and describe their own tangram puzzles.

Teacher guidance and extension ideas are also included, alongside suggestions for pre-teaching useful language such as left, right, corner, above, below, next to, and between. The activities work particularly well as collaborative speaking tasks, problem-solving challenges, fast finishers, or communication-focused group work.

This resource is also part of our Young Learners | EFL Resource Pack, which is available to download here.

Perfect For:

• TEFL, EAL, and ESL teachers working with young learners aged 5–11
• Communication-focused pair work and collaborative speaking activities
• Problem-solving, teamwork, and classroom interaction skills
• Practising shapes, colours, directions, and positional language

Please Note: Once you have completed your purchase, you will receive a PDF to download and print. This is a digital download. No physical product will be shipped.