Hot Seat: a back-to-the-board speaking game for English class

A hot seat speaking game: one student sits with their back to the screen, the team describes the words, 60 seconds to get as many as you can. Free, one screen.

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Hot Seat is a speaking game for English class. One student from the playing team sits in the hot seat with their back to the screen. The word comes up on the big screen, and the team describes it (without saying it) until the student guesses. A round is 60 seconds: every "Got it!" scores a point and brings the next word straight away. It gets the whole team explaining, in English, as fast as they can.

Hot Seat in a cosy studio: a big alarm clock showing 59, a word card with a cartoon giraffe and "giraffe" stamped "Got it!", a red heart armchair in front, a "Got it" tally of 1 on the right, faded Pass and Got it buttons, and Oly smiling in a party hat — 59 seconds left and the first word is already guessed: +1 for Team 1. The next word comes up by itself.

At a glance

Players	The whole class in 2–4 teams free (up to 8 with Oly Pro), one team at a time
Time	About 10–15 minutes: two 60-second rounds per team, plus changeovers
Works with	English sets: picture, word, meaning and your own questions (the card shows the word)
Best for	Speaking and fluency, describing and paraphrasing, vocabulary review at A2–B1
You need	One screen, your phone as the remote, and a chair with its back to the screen

How to play Hot Seat

Make or pick an English set. Snap a textbook page, paste a word list, type a topic, or open a set from the free library. Hot Seat uses a lot of words, so a set of 20 to 40 is ideal.
Pick Hot Seat, set the teams and start. Put a chair in front of the screen, facing the class.
Play. The screen asks the team to choose who sits in the hot seat. When the student is sitting with their back to the screen, press Start. The first word appears with its picture and the clock starts. The team describes the word; the student guesses. Tap Got it! (+1) or Pass, and the next word comes up by itself. When the 60 seconds run out, the round ends and the next team sits down. Each team plays two rounds (one when the set is short), and the team with the most words wins.

Rules and scoring

Got it: +1 for the team, and the next word appears straight away.
Pass: no point, and the next word appears. A pass costs a point only if you switch on "Wrong answers lose a point", and the word on the card when time runs out never does.
60 seconds per round. The clock pauses while "Got it!" or "Pass" shows and while the game is paused; it ticks out loud for the last five seconds.
A fair share of words: the set is split so every team gets the same number of words per round. A round also ends when its share is used up.
Two rounds per team when the set has at least 8 words per team (for example 24 words for 3 teams); otherwise one round each.
Perfect round: a team that gets every word in its round right (at least three) gets confetti and a fanfare.
End round: you can stop a round early from your phone, for example if the student in the hot seat turns round.
No steal and no reading aloud: the word must never be said, so Oly stays quiet and the other teams can't answer.
Keyboard: C for Got it, X for Pass.

Hot Seat during a round: the clock on 53, a card with a cartoon penguin and the word "penguin", a big red Pass button and a green Got it! button either side of the hot seat, and a tally of 3 — The class can see the word; the student in the hot seat can't. Got it! and Pass are on the screen, on your phone and on the keyboard.

What you can teach with it

Hot Seat is English only: the whole point is describing in English. It is hidden for maths, science and other subject sets.

Animals and food at A1–A2: "It's big and grey. It has a long nose." Simple adjectives and "it has" go a long way.
Jobs and places at A2: "This person works in a hospital", "You go here to buy bread". Relative clauses without the grammar lesson.
Topic vocabulary at B1: the environment, technology, feelings. Teams paraphrase ("the opposite of…", "you feel this when…").

Tips from the classroom

Set the rules for describing before you start: no saying the word, no "it starts with…", no translating, no spelling it out. Gestures are up to you.
Change the student in the hot seat every round, so every student gets a turn guessing.
Pass is a skill. A team that passes quickly gets more words; tell them so.
Big classes: ask the watching teams to count how many words they would have got.
Mixed levels: put weaker speakers in the hot seat; guessing is easier than describing.

Play it without a screen

Write the words on cards and put a chair with its back to the board.
Hold up a card behind the student, or write the word on the board above their head.
The team describes; the student guesses. Count the words in 60 seconds with a phone timer.
Swap the student and the team after each round; the most words wins.

The screen version deals the words fairly, runs the clock and moves to the next word the moment you tap.

Questions teachers ask

Is Hot Seat free?

Yes. Playing is free with up to 4 teams, with library games and your own typed words. The free plan also includes 10 AI question sets a month (3 from photos); Oly Pro allows up to 8 teams.

Do students need devices?

No. Students only talk. You run the game from your phone or the keyboard.

How many words do I need?

At least 8 words per team for two rounds each, for example 32 words for 4 teams. With fewer, each team plays one round.

Why can't I see Hot Seat for my set?

It's for English sets. Subject sets (maths, science and others) don't show it.

Can a team lose points?

Only if you switch on "Wrong answers lose a point": then a pass costs one. The word left open when time runs out never costs a point.

For more speaking, try Picture Dice. For more vocabulary, try Letter Ring or Memory Match.