1. A target appears
Students see or hear the word they are building.
Spelling movement game
Letter Catchers
Students move to catch letters, build words, and turn spelling practice into a classroom activity.
What Is This Game?
Letter Catchers is an ESL spelling and vocabulary movement game. Students control a basket with body movement and catch the next correct letter or vocabulary item, making spelling practice more physical, focused, and easy to reuse during review lessons.
How Students Play
2. Students catch items
They move left and right to catch the correct falling letter or matching vocabulary item.
3. The word builds
Correct catches move the word forward, wrong catches break momentum, and the round continues until time expires.
Game Modes
Solo
One student controls the basket. Best for spelling turns, tutoring, small groups, and quick projector review.
2 Player Co-op
Two students work together with shared team scoring. Best for pair practice, team representatives, and supportive spelling review.
Difficulty Levels
Easy
Uses the slowest shared speed range, 1.25-2.5, and the highest correct-spawn chance at 70%.
Medium
Uses the middle shared speed range, 2.5-5, and lowers correct-spawn chance to 50% for more scanning.
Hard
Uses the fastest shared speed range, 3.75-7.5, and drops correct-spawn chance to 30%, so students must ignore more distractors.
Learning Modes
Word -> Word
Students see the written target and catch matching written letters or vocabulary. Good for spelling and reading accuracy.
Icon -> Word
Students see an image prompt and catch the matching written word. Good for connecting meaning to spelling.
Listen -> Word
Students hear the target and catch the matching written word. Good for listening discrimination and recall.
Classroom setup
Webcam / Camera
Students stand where the laptop webcam can see them.
Projector or TV
Designed for classroom screens so everyone can follow the action.
Browser-based
Runs in the browser - no app install required.
Teacher control
Choose the game, vocabulary, mode, and round length before play.
Best tracking
Keep active players closest to the camera, use good lighting, and reduce background movement when possible.
Classroom Recommendations
Spelling warmup
Mode: Solo. Difficulty: Easy. Learning Mode: Word -> Word. Duration: 60 seconds.
Team spelling support
Mode: 2 Player Co-op. Difficulty: Medium. Learning Mode: Icon -> Word. Duration: 90 seconds.
Listening check
Mode: Solo. Difficulty: Easy. Learning Mode: Listen -> Word. Duration: 60 seconds.
Works with MotJAM features
Custom Lesson Sets
Reuse weekly spelling and vocabulary lists in supported Letter Catchers setups.
Remote Play Supported
Students can join with phones, tablets, or laptops while teachers track score, correct answers, and missed or wrong answers.
Teacher Toolkit
Use picker, timer, teams, and scoreboard tools around spelling practice.
Why Teachers Love It
- It gives spelling practice a clear physical routine.
- It supports co-op practice without changing the lesson content.
- It works well for short ESL vocabulary games between worksheet or textbook tasks.
Make spelling practice more physical.
Letter Catchers is a friendly fit for vocabulary weeks and review days.