PickLetterPickLetter

Free ESL classroom tool · No sign-up

ESL random letter game for classroom warm-ups.

Pick a topic, hit reveal, and run a five-minute warm-up on your smartboard. Random letters, ESL topic prompts, a timer, and optional team scoring on a single page.

Topics

Pick a letter, topic, and timer.

The setup screen lives behind one click. Pick a topic pack, a round length, and (optionally) team scoring. Everything is local. Want to share the same setup with a colleague? Copy the preset link.

  • Animals

    cat, bear, elephant

  • Food & Drink

    milk, pizza, apple

  • Classroom Objects

    pen, ruler, desk

  • Action Verbs

    jump, read, draw

  • Colors & Shapes

    red, square, star

  • Body Parts

    eye, hand, mouth

Activities

Four ideas for the room.

Team vocabulary race
Split the class into two teams. First team to call out a valid topic word gets the point. Best with a 30-second timer.
Whiteboard sprint
Each student writes as many words as they can in their notebook. Score one point per valid word, two points for words no one else has.
Pair-and-share speaking
In pairs, A says a word starting with the letter, B says a sentence using it. Switch roles each round.
Cool-down review
Use the same topic at the end of class to review the day's vocabulary — letters that came up earlier in the lesson get bonus points.

In class

How to use it.

  1. Open this page on your smartboard. No installs, no sign-up.
  2. Pick a topic and timer. Six built-in ESL topic packs covering pre-A1 / A1 vocabulary.
  3. Switch to whiteboard mode. The letter, topic prompt, and timer fill the projector.
  4. Reveal a letter and start the round. Students answer, you score, repeat.
  5. Save your setup. Copy the preset link to reuse tomorrow or share with a colleague.

Related

More PickLetter tools.

  • Classic Random Letter Generator

    The original PickLetter tool. Fast, no-frills letter generation with case, exclusions, and history.

    Open the classic tool →

  • Coming soon — Letter Sound Bingo

    Printable bingo PDFs for SATPIN, alphabet, or letter sounds. Caller sheets and low-ink mode.

    See the roadmap →

Frequently asked

Five questions teachers ask.

What is an ESL random letter game?+

An ESL random letter game is a classroom warm-up where the teacher reveals a random letter and students name a vocabulary word — usually within a topic and a timer. PickLetter Categories Warmer combines the random letter, the topic prompt, the timer, and team scoring on a single smartboard-ready screen.

Can I use this on a classroom smartboard?+

Yes. Click Whiteboard mode to expand the letter, prompt, timer, and team scores to projector-friendly sizes. Press Esc to exit. Page scrolling is locked while whiteboard mode is on.

How do I share the same setup with another teacher?+

Click Copy preset link on the setup screen. The link contains a versioned base64-url payload of your topic, timer, letter exclusions, case, and team-mode preferences. Paste it into a chat or lesson plan and the other teacher opens the same setup instantly.

Are the letters truly random?+

Yes. PickLetter uses the Web Crypto API for cryptographically secure random number generation, with rejection sampling so every letter has an exactly equal chance.

Is this for ESL or EFL young learners?+

Both. The built-in topic packs target pre-A1 and A1 vocabulary that works across ESL and EFL contexts in primary classrooms. Older learners can run the same activity with the Verbs pack for review.

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