Will start this off by saying this can really take a lot of time to print, cut, laminate and cut again. But if you have some free time and are looking for something fun to do with the 5th graders at elementary this will definitely give you a great option.
I've used these cards for multiple games which I'll describe below.
First up the classic karuta. For this one I have students make groups of 4. Karuta is a classic Japanese game, so most students know how to play. But cards are face up on students' desks. I'll then have the students say, "What would you like?" I then say, "I'd like ~." Students race to touch the card I announced. It's as simple as that and most cards wins.
For the generic janken game I just pass out a few cards to each student and have them walk around to find a partner. They then interview each other using the target phrase and answer using one of their partner's cards. Janken follows and the winner takes the card they said from the loser. The winner is the student with the most cards. Which I check after everyone returns to their seats.
But the main games I had in mind when I put this together was a couple of games I play with my own kids. Those games are Slamwich and Taco/Cat/Goat/Cheese/Pizza. If you have played either of those games, you'll know exactly how this works. But here is an attempt at an explanation.
To play, deal all the cards out to students in a group of ideally 3 or 4. Cards remain secret and face down. Then on a player's turn, they take the top card of their deck and flip it onto the central pile. Saying, "I'd like (food on the card)." After this the current student who just played a card asks the next student, "What would you like?" That player then flips their top card saying, "I'd like (food on the card)" Repeat this until certain conditions are met, at which point players race to slap the pile. Whoever is first to do so, claims all of the cards in the pile. These 'slap' conditions are:
If the flipped card is identical to the card directly underneath it, slap the pile.
If two identical cards have exactly one card in between them, slap the pile.
If a special gorilla card is placed on top of the cards, you must first beat your chest like a gorilla and then slap the pile.
If a unicorn is placed on top of the cards, you must first use your hands to make a unicorn horn on your forehead and then slap the pile.
If a player runs out of cards, the game is over. At that point whoever has the most cards wins.
I hope that makes the game fairly clear. I will definitely say that it probably doesn't sound like much, but it is a definite blast whenever we play this. Depending on how often I've played games with the class I will typically start with just basic rules and add onto it as we play. For instance, we might only use the two in a row 'slap' rule.
Also, I usually demo how to play this with the JET or a student using some larger cards in front of the class. I usually will make some but this time I just used the copier to copy a few pages of cards onto some construction paper for the demo.
Instructions for cutting out: The file contains 13 pages of food cards, 1 page of gorilla special cards and another page of unicorn special cards. There is also an optional card back that you can print and copy onto construction paper. To make a single set of cards you will need to combine 4 pages of food cards (12 food on each page, for 48 cards) Then just add 2-3 of each special card.
Also, I made card backs and used different color construction paper for each set I made. That way when I mix the cards up for a rock/paper/scissors game or karuta I can quickly and easily sort the cards back into their original sets.