Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Rock]

I need some games. I know 'Hot Potato,' 'Hot and Cold,' and 'Crazy Eights.' But I need to know some other games, particularly those that offer a little learning.

[Holyjoe]

A simple one that I like to use to review vocabulary:

I write certain words that they've studied during the class on the board, and circle them. Then split the kids into two 'teams' and call one kid from each team up to the board. The first person to touch the word that I call out earns a point for their team.

There are numerous variations on this too, including (for the energetic young ones) making them run up to the board first from a distance, or using chairs with word cards on them instead of the board.

[peppermint]

Chants where kids have to match a word with a letter can be good. "A! A! A IS FOR APPLE!"

I spy, have them describe something and let others guess

Takes a little prep, but with a small class twister goes over well- colors, left/right and hands and feet.

[tomato]

Hello, Rock!

Here is a page in my Website which might help you:

http://eslideas.hypermart.net/games.html

and here is a similar thread which might help you:

http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/korea/viewtopic.php?t=15983&highlight=

[Kimchieluver]

A game I use for my fifth and sixth graders is "Catch the reading mistake" Basically you give them three or four paragraphs with words that they almost all know. Divide the class into two teams. Have them do rock, paper, scissors to see which team reads first.

When a person makes a pronunciation mistake and the students catch it (they said the word wrong or didn't add the s) give the catching team a point. Once a team finishes a paragraph without getting caught, they get a point. Everybody in each team has to take their assigned turn to read. Once all the paragraphs are finished just add up the points and that's who wins.

The great thing about this game is that you can use the textbook material to play this game. It's a lot of fun for the students and since you're the judge it's fun for you too.

[JacktheCat]

Pick up a copy of the book Teaching English to Children in Asia from the bookstore in COEX.

Not only is it full of ideas for games and activities that work with Asian children, it's also a very good primary on teaching English in Asia.

[Badmojo]

One of the greatest games out there is the Bus game, and I stole it from this site.

Break your class up into groups of four if you can. Have them sitting in rows at the front of the class. Only the first person in the row can answer a question. The first "bus driver" to answer correctly wins a point for their team. The bus driver who answered correctly then goes to the back of the row and all the students in that row move up a space. There should be one new bus driver after the end of each question.

You can do it to review whatever you want. If you throw in some commands, like touch the clock, or touch the board, or stand on your chair and dance or eat your shoe, then the students ought to eat it up.

Aside from that game, make them run. Put two or three students at the back of the classroom, ask them a question like, "what did you do this morning?", they run to the board, write the answer, then run back and tell you. The first person wins a point for their team.

[Rock]

I can use a couple of these, thanks. The vocab game looks good, the paragraph reading game too. Regarding bingo, I just don't have the resources to get set up. What materials do you need and how do you play this game?

That book may help, but it'll be a while and I'm a little skeptical of books. I'm finding games really stimulate the students to learn and make them less grumpy and more happy.

I have three I use:

-Write a long English word on the board and give them two minutes to find
as many words they can out of that one word. These words they have to
write down on paper.
-Hot Potato
-Hot and Cold-Hide an object, have one student close their eyes, and the
others than direct the student to the hidden object by saying "cold, cool, warm, or hot."

I guess you can think up any games, but I need something for very low-level speakers. Some are a little advanced. Any more ideas?

[dbee]

Hi rock,

I was doing a games thing for my website there a few months back, I never really got around to finishing it off though, but it may still come in useful.

It's at www.englishteachingkorea.com/askgari/gari_form.html

you can also add games to it if you wished

all the best,

[some waygug-in]

You should be able to play 3 or 4 different games just from a set of picture cards. (depending on student levels of course)

I use Let's Go 1 cards to play Go Fish, Sorry, Pictionary, Bingo, Sharades
etc.


You can't use all the cards for every game, so you'll have to go through them to see which cards will work for each.

Just plain teacher cards can be used for some of the above as well.

One I tried yesterday that seemed to go over well was "Spelling race"

Divide the class into 2 teams

Each team sends one player to the board (you need to have 2 working markers)

You say ready, set, "elephant" etc.


If this is too difficult, as it often is, you can have the correct word on a card in large letters in your hand. The students who are sitting down can call out the correct spelling to their teamate at the board (but no running up and helping)

This can get quite noisy.


For higher levels, you can do this same game calling out words from their textbook. Just tell them the word will come from page 32, for example.

*******************************************************

With a Bingo game set, you should be able to play some similar games as well.

20 questions - you choose a card and the students try to guess it etc.

Crazy 8's cards are great for this game.

The UNO card games that go with the "Finding Out" series are good for
Pictionary or 20 questions as well.

Anyway, hope this helps

Have fun.

[oneiros]

My best classroom invention has been my Battle Monster game. It works so well I'm considering copyrighting it.

You will need an ordinary deck of cards.

Step one: Divide the class into two teams. Pick one person from each team to draw a team monster on the white board. Give each monster a certain number of hit points. (I usually go with 20.)

Step two: One member of "A" team will ask a question. The opposing member of "B" team must answer the question. The great thing is, this works at all levels. It can be as simple as "What is it?", and it works well as a drill for whatever material you're covering, as well as story comprehension, conversation practice, etc.

Step 3: Both players draw a card. The team with the highest card is the winner. Subtract the cards to find out how many hit points the losing team's goes down. (ie if team "A" draws a ten, and team "B" draws a 3, team B's monster loses 7 hit points.

Step 4: Play passes to the next two players on the team. After all the players on one team have asked a question, I reverse roles, so that the other team ask and the first team answers. Play continues until one monster has no hit points left. I like it to make it very dramatic and x out the monster's eyes before erasing it. It also works great if the kids draw more than one monster for their team, because then you can divide the hit points among the monsters and dramatically erase each one as it gets eliminated.

The kids love this game so much, I use it as a reward for everyone having done their homework.

[dulouz]

The scoring mechanism is the most important thing in this game. you make the game up on your own but you keep score by drawing two large silly faces on the board with big smiles and big teeth. When one team makes good, you black out a tooth on the other team. Boys against girls.

[Len8]

Your hot cold warm game to get them to locate something is interesting.

You could vary it by getting them to use "left", "right", "go straight", "stop"
"go back" maybe.

I tried a version of that, but I blindfolded them with the W1,000 mini towels that you can pick up anywhere. I then gave one or two of the students spray bottles with water ( you can find them sold empty for cheap at a lot of places) and their final destination was to-wards minicandles which they hade to shoot out with their water bottles.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

The Scrabble varient 'Upwords' is really handy if you don't mind paying W20,000 for 50 cents worth of plastic pieces.