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matthews_world
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 Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 7:49 am Post subject: Classroom ESL Games: New Ideas Needed |
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I've been playing the same games for 2 years now. I'm looking for a few more.
The games I play:
Bingo - great for beginners. Use vocab words in the book and have the students draw their own game board and insert the words where they want.
Hangman - ESL staple. Use the book. Pick a student to lead the game.
Chair game - Circle chairs for every student minus one. The student in the center say phrases like: "I like pizza," "I'm wearing shoes," "I'm a boy." If that phrase applies to the other students, then those students must switch chairs. The person in the middle must change also.
Traffice Jam - same as Chair Game. I designate a word to each student - i.e. colors. Student in the center says 2 or 3 colors different to their own. Students must change chairs. When the center student says "Traffic jam!," all the students change chairs.
Pictionary - 2 students compete to draw English objects. Students guess the picture.
Word Factory - give students a letter of the alphabet or a catagory such as sports. The student must write on a piece of paper words beginning with that letter or under that category. Give a max. number of words for time considerations. The students read their words and receive a point if the other students do not think of that word.
Categories - perhaps given another name, students draw a grid. On the left side the teacher thinks of categories such as "countries, first names, food, animals" etc. Pick three letters, such as A, B, C. Students must think of an original word that fits the category and starts with the designated letter. Example "countries: American, Brazil, Canada." Students share an answer 1 by 1. Points can be given for either different answers or same answers.
Anyway, there are a few of mine. I realize I can read the Dave's Cafe Idea Cookbook but I hope you guys can make a list of what works for you.
Anybody buy ESL board games to use in class? I've seen "Word Up" mentioned on this board. I suppose others could be used as well.
Last edited by matthews_world on Sun Nov 14, 2004 6:54 am; edited 1 time in total |
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denise
Joined: 23 Apr 2003
Posts: 3419
Location: finally home-ish
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| Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 9:24 am Post subject: |
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I use Uno. Everyone already knows the basic rules, and it's really simple to add an English element. When they play certain numbers or colors, they have to say certain things, based on whatever we have been covering in class recently. For example, in a speaking class, if we've just finished a unit on food/families/travel/whatever, they will have to either ask someone a question or say something about one of those topics. In a grammar class, they will have to use whichever grammar structures we have been working on.
For vocabulary reviews, I use a spin-off of a game that my junior high Spanish teacher used. It's a baseball-esque game. You arrange three chairs, facing you: one is first base, one second, and one third. The team that is at bat sends one person to stand behind the first baseman, facing you. You show them a flash card or give them a definition, and whoever says the correct word first wins. If the batter wins, he/she advances to second base and tries again. If the first baseman wins, the batter is out. The batter needs to get past all three basemen to get a run.
I also use a really simple tic-tac-toe game (noughts and crosses?!?!?) for grammar review. I write a sentence on a board that may or may not contain an error, and each team must say if it is correct or incorrect, and then correct it if necessary. Only then do they get to place an X or an O in the grid.
I am always looking for different games and activities, but some of the ones that I see published in books just seem to have way too many instructions/roles. I generally find that the more complex the game, the more it bombs.
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valley_girl
Joined: 22 Sep 2004
Posts: 272
Location: Somewhere in Canada
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| Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 5:40 pm Post subject: |
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I don't use games very often in my (adult) classes but last week I did design a Jeopardy game for my intermediate and advanced students (actually, two different games - one for each). I incorporated quite a bit of the material we'd covered in class, so that this was actually a good review for them. In particular, I used a lot of the 'new' vocabulary we'd covered in our classes. It was a huge success. The winner of each group could choose some silly activity (do the Bird Dance, sing Old MacDonald, etc.) for the losers to do.
It was a nice way to break up the semester, but I wouldn't be doing it on a regular basis. There has to be ample time for more 'serious' work.  |
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matthews_world
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| Posted: Sun Nov 14, 2004 7:02 am Post subject: |
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This private message sent from board member "lily." Thanks.
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Here are some games that I've used with my classes - beginner to lower intermediate level. Most can be adapted to use any type of language.
Hope they help!!
P.S. PM me if you have any question about the games.
Blow that fish
Author:
Source: http://www.eslcafe.com/ideas/sefer.cgi?display:1038543937-28863.txt
Target language: Any
Level: Any
Preparation: None
This is a great game to play with large classes.
Make teams according to rows. Tell each row to make a paper fish. You place each fish between the rows. They should all be at the back facing the front. They should also be in the same position. Using the tile on the floor you can line them up at the starting line. Asking questions to a student on one team. When a student answers the question correctly he gets a chance to blow on his team�s fish. Then ask a question to a student of the next team. The team that is able to move there fish to the front of the room wins the game. Sometimes it is necessary to pin the fish down with something heavy to be sure they don�t flutter away of their own accord � also makes cheating harder!
Colour Basket
Author:
Source: ?
Target language: Any
Level: Any
Preparation: None / Low
Feel like you need to pump up some energy with your students? Try Colour Basket! Start it out yourself by standing at the front, having students sitting on their chairs (you should not have any empty chairs) and saying something like �Everybody wearing black, change seats!�. Do a couple like this yourself and then take one of the chairs. The student left without a chair then goes to the front and continues the game. Encourage them to use as many things as they can: clothes types and colours, hair lengths and colours, jewellery, shoes, watches, etc.
Variation: Practice other vocabulary! For example, say �Anybody who likes pizza, change seats!�, �Anybody who hates getting up early, change seats!� etc. For beginners, you can give out cards with two or three animals on them.
Draw the Teacher
Author: Tindros
Source: http://iteslj.org/games/9906.html
Target language: Body parts
Level: Beginner
Preparation: None
This game helps to teach children the names of facial parts.
Divide the class into two teams. Then draw two ovals shapes on the board. Then yell "Draw the teacher's eyes!" and the two leading students from each team run up and draw your eyes on the oval. Then yell "Nose!" which is drawn by the next two students. And so it goes. The students get a ball out of this as they have permission to make fun of their teacher, and your image can get to look pretty distorted. You can add other features, such as nose or ear hairs. This will also work if you want to do other body parts as well. Just draw the basic torso instead of ovals.
If the kids are unsure as to which facial/body part you're talking about, just point to it. At the end say both images look pretty good and call it a tie.
Another variation on this could be for naming parts of animals. The resulting picture would be a monster. i.e. peacock's tail, snake's head, elephant feet, bat's wings, etc.
English Passports
Author:
Source: http://www.genkienglish.net/Passport.htm
Target language: Any
Level: Intermediate
Preparation: Low / Medium
English passports are a really good motivational tool for the kids. There are lots of ways to use them, but here is a cool game!
1. Make some passports and give them to the kids
2. Get them to fill in the relevant details. Put in "fun" topics instead of the usual boring stuff! (see the website for a sample passport)
3. If you have two teachers in the class, then they become "Immigration Inspectors" for various countries.
4. The kids have to try and gain access to the countries by showing their passport to the "immigration officer" and answering their questions. Questions could be "What's you name?" "How are you?" "Where are you from?" "Where are you going?" "When is your birthday?" "How old are you?" "What do you do?" etc.
5. When the Officer is satisfied he lets the kid into the country. He does this by either stamping their passport, signing it or giving them a sticker!
6. The kids have to go round and gain entry to, say, four different places. This means they visit each teacher 2 times, with the one teaching being, say, America and Australia, and the other being the UK and Canada. If you can get other teachers to help its great!
The kids really get into this and it gives them a "real life" scenario to deal with. It also gives them direct conversation practice with the teacher. You should vary the questions. Accusing someone of concealing guns or money is also quite amusing!
When this lesson is done you can still use the passports. In the future, if a kid wins a game or gives a good answer, they can get a sticker, a stamp or an autograph from the teacher. These go in the 25 blank squares. If a kid manages to fill all the squares you give them a prize! Have a prize bag with all sorts of little things like pens and key rings from back home, this is the motivation part!
Some teachers occasionally do "spot checks". They throw all the kids out of the class and only allow them back in if they pass through "Immigration". The kids seem to like this!
The Fishing Game
Author:
Source: http://www.genkienglish.net/fishing.htm
Target language: Review vocabulary
Level: Any
Preparation: Low / Medium
This game can either be played outside from the second floor balcony, or in the gym, provided it has two stories. I much prefer to play it outside!
1. Spread out lots of picture cards on the floor. (I use about 50 A4 cards at a time)
2. Put the kids into groups of about 5 or 6.
3. Two members from each group go upstairs along with the teacher who speaks the best English.
4. The other members stay downstairs with the other teacher.
5. The upstairs kids have a piece of string (long enough to reach down to the floor below) which has a clip on the bottom of it. There is one for each team.
6. One of the kids from each upstairs team comes to the upstairs teacher..
7. The teacher tells them a word. (e.g. "dog", "car" etc.)
8. The students then shout the word down to their teammates below (in English of course, Japanese = minus one point!)
9. The teammates search for that word amongst the picture cards.
10. When they've found the correct card they attach it to the clip on the string.
11. The upstairs kids reel in the card.
12. They bring the card to the upstairs teacher who then tells them the next word.
Remember to give each team different words to look for (otherwise you'll have a big fight downstairs). Its also good to change the kids around (i.e. the upstairs kids go downstairs and the downstairs kids go upstairs) half way through.
You can obviously play this game outside only in good weather (and even then your beautiful cards will get really dirty!), but on rainy days the school gym is also a good choice if it has a balcony!
Thick string doesn't tangle as much as thin string!
Ghosts and spiders
Author: Dan (Taiwan)
Source: http://www.eslcafe.com/ideas/sefer.cgi?display:941367241-26158.txt
Target language: Any
Level: Any
Preparation: Low
This game can be played by all ages. You will need a blackboard, two pieces, chalk and a die.
Draw a big circle on the board and divide it into twelve segments so it looks like a huge pizza. Now draw a ghost in one segment (like a Pacman ghost) and repeat this seven times so you have a ghost in eight different random segments. Now draw two spiders in two different segments and then finally draw two crosses in the remaining two segments.
Divide the class into two teams and place one piece on the left hand side of the circle (team one) and the other magnet on the right hand side (team two).
Give each team ten lives. Do this by writing TEAM 1 and underneath it draw ten dashes, do the same for TEAM 2.
The object of the game is for each team to try and eliminate the other by killing off their lives.
Ask Team 1 a question, if they get it correct then they can throw the die. Move their corresponding magnet clockwise around the pizza. If they land on a Ghost then they can erase one life from the opposing team. If they land on a Spider they themselves lose a life and if they land on a cross then they gain a life. Now Team 2 has their turn and this continues until one team loses all ten lives the winner is the team left with lives. The game should last about fifteen minutes. If you want it to last longer add more crosses, if you want it to be shorter add more ghosts and spiders.
I like pink fish!
Target English: I like + adjectives + colours + nouns
This is an excellent game that introduces "I like" +adjective +noun, in a way that any kid can learn, remember and have fun doing!! Because the kids are moving whilst playing the games, they are learning without really thinking about it!!
As usual you have to review or introduce the vocabulary first, and then use the game to practice that vocabulary!
Preparation
1. Split the class into 2, 3 or 4 four groups. Any more than this and accidents will happen!
2. At the back of the class spread out several picture cards of nouns (at least as many as there are students)
3. At the front have several folded up pieces of paper. Inside each piece of paper is a colour.
The game
4. One person from each group stands up. When the teacher says "Go!", these 3 kids race to the back of the class, They then pick up a card that they know the English for. Then they race to the front and pick up one of the folded pieces of paper.
5. They then have to speak out loud "I like" followed by the colour they have chosen and then the name of the object. For example: "I like pink fish!"
6. The quickest person to say it gets 20 points! If the others can say theirs, they get 10 points.
7. Get the next person in each team to stand up and continue from 4.
This is a really good game that the kids get into. For older kids (from years 3 up) have the colours at the front right, and a set of adjective cards (I have ones for cute, heavy, big, expensive etc.). This time the kids have to say "I like� + adjective + colour + noun. This gets pretty complicated!
Sometimes they get it wrong and say the colour at the end, but once you correct them, they never get it wrong twice!!
The only problem is that the kids get so into it that, more so than any other game, the kids get really annoyed when they lose!! So remember to tell them that losing means "try again" - this way all the energy gets focussed into wanting to try again and saves a lot of tears!!
Oh, and remember the "s" at the end of most words e.g. I like green bananas!
Paper Plane game
Here's an easy way to have fun with a large class: Write different questions on blank sheets of paper, fold them into paper planes then throw them at your class and whoever catches one, has to answer the question written on it! Make sure your planes have blunt noses, as you don't want to have any eyes out! Another alternative is to buy some of those cheap foam planes from the toy store, you know, the kind you liked when you were a kid, stick the questions on them, and the first student to answer correctly, gets to keep the plane as a prize.
Ostrich Game
Target Grade:1-4
Target English: Vocab review!
Preparation: Picture cards + two clips
A very fun game !!
1. All the students form a large ring in the classroom.
2. Select 2 students that will play the game.
3. These 2 then face each other in the centre of the ring.
4. Using a clip fasten a picture card to the back of each student.
5. The kids must always have their hands behind their back.
6. Get them to perform a Sumo Stomp and then say "Ready, steady go!!"
7. The kids now have to try and see what card is on their opponents back.
8. When they know the answer they put their hand in the air and you ask them what it is.
9. If he/she is correct they win!
10. Choose two new students and repeat from step 3.
Make sure the kids who form the ring don't shout out the answer! Insist that the kids always have their hands behind their backs. They must also always stay inside the ring.
Jumping is one of the best tactics - hence the "Ostrich Game"!
Ring-a-Word
This classic classroom game is guaranteed to wake up the sleepiest class.
It can be used for everything from learning the alphabet to revising irregular verbs. There are many variations dependent only on the teacher's imagination.
The basic idea is that the teacher covers the whiteboard randomly with words or letters. If, for example, you are teaching the alphabet, you might cover the board haphazardly with all the vowels and some of the more problematical consonants. It's a good idea to repeat some of the letters, perhaps in upper and lower case.
The class is divided into two teams. One team is given a blue white board marker. The other team is given a red marker. The teams line up on either side of the board with the front students holding the markers. The teacher calls out a letter and the front students try to locate it and draw a ring round it. Change students every call or every two calls, etc. The team with the most number of rings at the end wins.
Some topics (can be mixed):
� alphabet
� numbers
� dates
� times
� irregular verbs (e.g. Write "v1" and call out "v2" or vice versa)
� prepositions
Snakes and Ladders
Prepare a list of questions the students already know. Make a big board on the blackboard, with snakes wiggling from square to square and ladders joining up some other squares. Number the squares from start to finish. Divide the class into teams. Someone from one team comes to the front and rolls the die � say they land on square four. You ask them whatever question is marked �four�. If they land on the head of a snake they follow it down to the square it�s bottom is touching. If they land on the bottom of a ladder, they climb to the top. Next turn, the person who just rolled the die now asks the question of the person in the other team.
Soldiers and Ninjas
Level = Elementary
Target English = Any Conversation
Big groups are best
Select 4 volunteers. These students are the soldiers and will be asking the questions. Get the 4 soldiers to stand in a straight line across the room (about 10 feet apart). You are the King and sit in your throne about 10 feet behind the 4th soldier. Assign each of the 4 soldiers a question (eg. What's your name?/ How old are you?/ How are you?/ What sports do you play?).
The remaining students, the ninjas, gather at the starting line about 10 feet in front of the first soldier. When you shout "Go!" the ninjas run towards the first soldier and form a queue (first come first served). The first soldier asks the first ninja to arrive their assigned question, in this case "What's your name?". The Ninja replies (My name is...) and they janken in English. If the ninja wins, he/she can go on to the second soldier who will then ask him/her their assigned question (How old are you?). The ninja replies and again jankens with the soldier. If they win they proceed to the third soldier and so on...
However, if at anytime a ninja loses at janken to a soldier they must return to the starting line and repeat the whole process again (cue cries of exasperation). If a ninja manages to get passed all 4 soldiers they get to have a showdown with the King! You can ask them any question that you've covered in class, eg. What's your favourite food? The ninja answers and you janken. If the ninja wins you have been dethroned and the ninja is now the King (cue much jubilation) and you must join the other ninjas in an attempt to get passed all the soldiers to reclaim your throne. If you win, of course the ninja must return to the starting line again (cue more cries of exasperation). 20 minutes or so is about right for this game although no doubt the students will want to continue playing.
The good thing about this game is that it gives the opportunity for the students to revise/drill dialogue in a fun way without them even realising it. As it takes a very lucky ninja to get passed all four guards without losing at all, students will no doubt have to answer the same questions several times. Now and again let other students become soldiers so they get to practice asking the questions.
Variations? You can have two, three or more lines of soldiers asking questions for bigger classes. You can also use props such as a crown for the King which adds to the fun. If ninjas and soldiers aren't cool enough, you can always build the game around another theme (eg. Lord of the Rings with hobbits and orks).
A couple of things to watch out for: The queues for ninjas waiting to battle with the soldiers can get a bit congested at times. The students tend to wait patiently but this problem can be avoided altogether by having another line of soldiers. This will get things moving much quicker. Also, take the opportunity to walk around and check the student�s pronunciation and prompting when necessary. This game works great! Try it!!! |
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Twisting in the Wind
Joined: 20 Oct 2003
Posts: 571
Location: Purgatory
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| Posted: Sat Nov 27, 2004 9:23 pm Post subject: Secretary-Messenger |
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Ever play Secretary-Messenger with your students? Sorry if this game has already been mentioned. Sometimes this game is called "Telephone."
I taught adults for 20 years in the States and this was a winner. The class would get so excited by it. It involves very little prep time.It works for kids or adults.
You write down maybe 8 sentences on a piece of paper--sentences using the forms or grammmar and vocab they have been studying. You divide the class into between 2-4 teams depending how large your class is. Try to make the teams even in terms of having strong students and weaker ss on each team.
Then you take one member of each team outside and close the door. Different teachers play this game differently. What I do is I read the first sentence as many times as they need to hear it outside the classroom with the door closed so that the teams inside can't hear. You may have to take your listeners down the hall because the ones still in the classroom will get right by the door to try to cheat and overhear. Just over and over read the sentence, using natural speech patterns. When they are ready they all pile back inside the classroom and make a mad rush to their teams where ANOTHER team member (not the same one who listens) writes the message down as the listener speaks the message.
When the teams are ready, I collect the messages and write each of them on the board. It is hilarious to laugh at each others mistakes. I deduct points for wrong words, spelling, grammar, word order, etc. The team with the fewest mistakes gets a point. I make it into a big dog and pony show with bells and whistles and the class would get so excited and these were adults! It was fun watching them having fun.
Then you take the next ones outside and you repeat with the second sentence, until you get through all 8-9 sentences.
THis should use up about 45 mins of your classtime. It's easy and fun and the students just love it! If you use it, let me know how it has worked!
Twisting in the Wind |
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Guest
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| Posted: Sun Nov 28, 2004 12:43 am Post subject: |
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Ijust got three SCRABBLE sets flown in from Australia and I have four more on the way - arriving on 1st January.
I avoided playing games for the past 15 months, but the School encourages me to do so and the children love it. I think my classes were getting boring and so I decided to introduce scrabble.
They love it. As my classes are around 24 in each - I need six Scrabble sets per class.
I will note use them all the time, but about once a month. The hardest part is getting the rules into their heads. Another hard part is that they insist that W.C. and SOS and KFC are words. |
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Twisting in the Wind
Joined: 20 Oct 2003
Posts: 571
Location: Purgatory
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| Posted: Sun Nov 28, 2004 1:40 am Post subject: Scrabble and Pass the Bomb |
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Yes, I second that about Scrabble. I also played it with my students. Works for all students, even complete beginners (they can use dictionaries or books, or give them more letters) The Chinese never, it seems, get over their sense of wonderment about the game, and always wanted to know where they could buy a copy.
Another game that I have used with success is a British game called Pass the Bomb. It is not an ESL game but can be adapted for use with ESL students. It comes with colorful purple flashcards with parts of words on them, and a plastic bomb with a wick.
I arrange them in teams of maybe three side by side. I push the button on the bomb to get it "ticking" Then each team has until it goes off to make a word using the letters in the cards. The amount of time it ticks and then explodes is randomized so no one is sure when it will "go off."
After they make a word they pass the bomb (more like throw it wildly) to the next team to make the next word and so on.
Lots of wild fun. Think of the old game "Hot Potato."
Rhonda, perhaps that game is available in Australia, and you could get it for use with your orphans, as well. I think kids would love the idea of playing with " a bomb." hehe. |
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ls650
Joined: 10 May 2003
Posts: 3484
Location: British Columbia
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| Posted: Sun Nov 28, 2004 2:08 am Post subject: |
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At my last school I borrowed a card game from an Australian teacher. The students loved it and I would like to get a pack of the cards - but I don't remember the name.... 
The cards were the size and shape of regular playing cards. Each had two letters written on each side, somthing like this:
+-------+
!....A....!
!....D....!
!ED...FE!
!....C....!
!....O....!
+-------+
The idea was to place the cards side by side, top to bottom to spell out various 4-letter words (the polite kind!). It worked great - I'd really like to get a pack of those cards.... |
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lily
Joined: 02 Aug 2004
Posts: 200
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| Posted: Sun Nov 28, 2004 11:43 am Post subject: |
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Hmm, well that WAS a PM, but I guess I don't really mind too much.
If anyone has any questions about the games, how to play in more detail, just send my a PM and I'll do my best.
Cheers, Lily
PS Is650: that game sounds really cool!! Wouldn't mind a set myself. |
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struelle
Joined: 16 May 2003
Posts: 2372
Location: Shanghai
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| Posted: Sun Nov 28, 2004 12:22 pm Post subject: |
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I have a number of regulars that I keep in the 'pool' to be used in lessons. I try to avoid repeating the sames ones more than twice, and look for updates or variations to add in. The key element is competition, which works very well for teen classes and even adults. Most of these games work best for elementary or lower-intermediate classes.
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(1) Hotseat. Two teams. Select one student from each team to sit down in a chair, back to the board. Teammates stand in front of the chairs. Write a word on the board, and have the teammates describe it without saying the word. The first student to guess correctly gets a point for the team. Rotate after every couple words or so.
Penalties: If the teammates say the word or use their native language to explain, the other team gets a point. Same if the student in the hotseat looks at the board.
Benefits: Review vocab words at the end of a lesson, warm up a class, and best of all, students practice the meta-cognitive skills of explaining words using L2 in context. I just realize when I tried the game today that students are doing a form of ad-hoc teaching, one of the best ways to retain new info.
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(2) Running Dictation. Paste a story or text outside the class, preferably a short one. Divide the class into pairs or groups. Within each group or pair, one part is the 'runner', the other is the 'writer'. The runners scurry outside and memorize portions of text, which they read back to the writers, who dictate. You can award the winners based on speed, but it's better to go for accuracy.
Penalties: Runners CANNOT use a pen or paper, only the writers can. No shouting back and forth from outside the class either. Both involve a 30 second 'detention'.
Benefits: Uses all 4 skills (reading, writing, speaking, listening) in one go. Great to inject energy into a class during down periods.
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(3) Sentence Relay. Two teams, A and B. Write about 5-7 blank slots on the board in two places. Teams are lined up facing the board, but at least 2 metres back. Each student writes a word, then passes the marker back to the next guy who writes another word, eventually making a sentence.
Penalties: No throwing the pen back and forth, no teammates crowding around the board, no pre-collaboration among the teams about what to write. Those all constitute an automatic team loss.
Benefits: Works well for a warmer, that's about it.
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(4) Sentence Gambling. Make groups of 3-4 or so. Put a table in the middle of each group, and put down some small cash as an ante. Can be eithe real or fake. Write out a list of vocab words on the board.
a) Student A makes a sentence, then puts down a 'bet' on how confident he/she is about it being gramatically correct.
b) Student B can decide to 'match' the bet or 'call' (teach these words)
c) If everyone matches, move on to the next word. Obviously the ante grows here.
d) If student B calls, be available as a judge - they 'call' on the teacher for this. If Student A's sentence was indeed wrong, B gets the cash for making the call. If Student A was right, then he gets the cash instead.
Lots of fun, and it can make for bluffing as well. Introduce 'raising the bet' for more complications. You can also introduce a fee for calling, to discourage too many students from doing it.
After I tried this once, students later told me that "Gambling is strictly prohibited in China". So in this case, fake money is best.
Benefits: Excellent peer feedback and grammar correction. Good for developing 'linguistic intuition'.
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(5) Talk, Talk, Die. Got this idea from a colleague.
First, have students read a story from a textbook very quickly. Assign a time limit. Then divide class into two lines or concentric circles facing each other. Side A retelles the story to B. If you hear any pauses, laughing, or 'ums, uhs', that student is dead. Keep going until only few survivors are left and award some prize based on how long they can survive. Repeat with Side B retelling to A.
Benefits: Injects some interest and spark to to an otherwise dry reading exercise. Students practice extensive reading skills, as they focus on main points of the story. After, you can teach them words and phrases that keep them talking without stalling, like they would do in a speech where they have to think on their feet.
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(6) Disappearing Dialogues
Write a few lines of dialogue on the board, then have students in pairs repeat it over and over again. As they do, gradually erase parts of the dialogue until the whole thing is eventually gone. Then, students perform the dialogue - whoever can do it with the least mistakes wins.
Penalties: No writing whatsoever!!!
Benefits: Good pronunciation work, i.e. with tongue twisters. Good for lower-levels.
Happy gaming!
Steve |
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voodikon
Joined: 23 Sep 2004
Posts: 1363
Location: chengdu
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| Posted: Mon Nov 29, 2004 2:39 am Post subject: |
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| i just did charades with every single one of my classes last week, and it was successful with every one but the smallest. i teach extremely reticent software engineers, and this really seemed to break a lot of the ice and get them laughing and talking. i set it up as a race by breaking them into two teams, and included a mixture of words for them to act out, some easy, and some more difficult, some funny, and some serious (e.g., "chicken," "raining," "beautiful lady," "strange," "ugly," "software engineer," "toilet"). i also did this with my high school kids, who tore through the words at a much faster rate than the adults. kids seem to be much more creative/flexible in expressing the words as well as guessing, so be sure to have plenty of words for them to use. as for the one class who charades didn't work so well with, it was a class of four, so i decided it would be silly to incorporate the race aspect of it, which takes away the immediacy of it. |
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dajiang
Joined: 13 May 2004
Posts: 663
Location: Guilin!
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| Posted: Wed Dec 01, 2004 3:29 pm Post subject: |
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I've just made a weblog with lots of ideas that I've used myself in past years teaching in china.
http://eslmaniac.web-log.nl/
Most ideas are from eslcafe, but I find in the cookbook there are lots of ideas that are either not very suitable, or I couldnt picture them to work in my classes. So here I only posted the activities that worked, and worked well. I'm trying to collect as many materials as possible.
I added some variations and other things to think about, and where possible I tried to put names of the people that submitted them in the cookbook. (So, some of you might come across your own idea there. 
Regards,
Dajiang |
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Twisting in the Wind
Joined: 20 Oct 2003
Posts: 571
Location: Purgatory
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| Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2004 5:39 am Post subject: Hot seat |
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Yes, I second Struelle's suggestion of the game "Hotseat." Next to Secretary Messenger which I posted about earlier, it was my fave game in class and the ss absolutely LOVED it. Great way to perk up a class that's falling asleep on you or for some dead time at the end of a class. Great for vocab review.
You have to watch the little buggers, tho, because they will try to cheat every which way from sundown. I had to make a set of rules, such as no talking in Chinese, no lifting notebooks or pointing to textbook pages, and then enforce them by taking away points from teams that consistently cheated.
If you play this game, you will of course want to match up ss with like-abilities to sit in the chairs, otherwise it's just a wholesale slaughter by one team perpetrated o the other. |
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shenyanggerry
Joined: 02 Nov 2003
Posts: 619
Location: Canada
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| Posted: Sat Dec 04, 2004 3:04 pm Post subject: |
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A game I've used with university students - probably works with any age level.
Put Ss in groups of 4-8. Give each a post-it note. Have another S in the group write the name of a famous person on it and stick note to S's back. Then they must figure out who they are by asking yes/no questions. I model it for them usually using George Washington - a name they've all heard of. |
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matthews_world
Guest
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| Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2004 10:14 am Post subject: |
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Nice job on that website. Keep the ideas coming. |
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