Stem Changing Verbs Spanish Practices

Are you looking for review activities for stem changing verbs in Spanish? Students need plenty of practice with stem changing verbs so let’s look at these engaging stem changing verbs Spanish practice activities you can use with your middle school and high school classes!

What are the 4 types of stem changing verbs?

It can be hard to practice stem changers when your students are first introduced to them! In this post, we’re going to look at practices for E-IE, O – UE, U -UE, and E-I stem changing verbs. You may choose not to introduce all of the stem changers at once, and instead just look at a few. In these practices, I’ve included:

• cerrar
• comenzar
• competir
• dormir
• empezar
• jugar
• mostrar
• pedir
• pensar
• perder
• poder
• preferir
• querer
• recomendar
• repetir
• servir

You’ll notice it’s a mix of -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs. Usually by this point in the year, students have already become familiar with regular present tense verbs, and even some of these stem changers as they are high frequency verbs!

How do you find the stem of a verb?

And just how do they change? Where do they change? Your students are going to have lots of questions! I like to start this with a set of guided notes to walk them through the different kinds of stem changing verbs and give them some practice.

Stem Changing Verbs Spanish Practice Worksheets

After introducing the verbs to students, I like to do some practice activities! Crosswords, word searches, tic tac toe games, boot verb sheets, Boom Cards, maze games, El Toro, and ¡Corre en Círculos! are some of my favorite options for this.

Boom Cards, maze games, and ¡Corre en Círculos! are all games that give instant feedback to students, which can be really nice for them as they’re trying to get this information down.

Exit Tickets for Stem Changing Verbs

I love doing a quick exit or entrance ticket to check on my students’ understanding. These are usually short, 5-10 question formative assessments that just give me an idea of where my students are at.

These let me know if we need more practice, or if we’re ready to move on with the unit!

Stem Changing Verbs Spanish Practice Activities

Many of the engaging activities that I shared above can be found in my set of Spanish Present Tense Stem Changing Verbs Bundle. These practice worksheets are perfect for helping your Spanish students master stem changing verbs. These activities include common stem changers!

If you would like to take a closer look at everything included in this resource, including a list of verbs included, you can find it in my shop.

Try Color Coding for Visual Learners

One of my favorite ways to help students get the hang of stem changing verbs is using color coding. It works especially well for visual learners and makes conjugation less intimidating. I like to have students write the infinitive in one color, highlight the stem in another, and then change the vowel with a third. Suddenly, they can see the pattern clearly and it clicks for them.

You can even make a quick classroom poster or anchor chart using colors for each type of stem change. Red for E to IE, blue for O to UE, green for E to I, and so on. Keep it simple, bold, and easy to reference during practice. Students will start associating the patterns with the colors and it really helps them retain the difference between types.

Add Movement with Interactive Games

Once your students have the basics down, it’s time to bring the energy. A quick way to make verb practice more engaging is to use movement. I love doing a “verb sort” around the room where students match the correct conjugated form with the infinitive posted on the wall.

You can turn it into a relay or pair challenge. Give each student a sticky note with a verb form, and they have to walk around and stick it to the correct stem changer group. Not only does it get them out of their seats, but it also gets them thinking critically about how and why the stem changes happen.

If you’re looking for something low prep that still feels interactive, this kind of movement-based review is a classroom win. Your students will be learning, laughing, and staying engaged without even realizing how much practice they’re getting.

Save These Practice Activities

If you’d like to add some fun stem changing verbs Spanish practice to your classes, be sure to save this post!  Just add the pin below to your favorite teaching board on Pinterest. You’ll be able to quickly locate this post the next time you’re looking for engaging Spanish practice activities!

More Stem Changing Verbs Spanish Practices

• Stem Changing Verbs Worksheets
• Present Tense Stem Changers El Toro Game
• Stem Changing Verbs Spanish Review Game

More Spanish Conjugation Games

If you’d like to see more ways to practice Spanish verbs with your middle school and high school Spanish students, check out my blog post here with 16 Spanish conjugation games!