Games for Language Learning | Colors of Teaching

Grammar Game: Miming

Posted on November 23, 2014 by kubraf

The TOP 15 games that are presented, are the games that we personally love playing in the classroom with my students’. They are from the book “Games for Language Learning” by Cambridge university (reference can be found below).

GAME # 1

Language

Miming and watching mimed actions

Speculating about mimed actions using the following tenses:

Main game Present continuous for actions in progress (e.g. You’re carrying a gun)

Variation 1 Present continuous for actions in progress (e.g. What am I doing?) and present simple for routine actions (e.g. What do I do in my job?)

Variation 2 Present simple for actions performed at the same time every day (e.g. What do you do at 7 o’clock?)

Variation 3 Past simple for a sequence of completed actions recalled in sequence (e.g. You filled a pan with water. Then you put the pan on the stove, etc.), and connecting words (e.g. then, next, after that) to indicate that the actions are part of a single sequence.

Variation 4 Past continuous for a continuous, uncompleted action (e.g. You were typing)

Variation 5 Past continuous for a continuous action in the past (e.g. You were reading) interrupted by another action, expressed in the past simple (e.g. Someone knocked on the door)

Variation 6 Present perfect for an action implying that another action has occurred in the past (e.g. Have you hurt your thumb?), and past simple to identify this action (e.g. Did you hit it?)

Variation 7 Present perfect continuous for an action that has just been completed (e.g. You’ve been sleeping)

Variation 8 Future with going to for an anticipated action (e.g. You’re going to dive)

Variation 9 Future in the past for an action anticipated in the past (e.g. You were going to dive)

Variation 10 Future in the past for an action anticipated in the past (e.g. You were going to dive) which was halted by another action (e.g. You stopped him from diving)

Preparation

Prepare a list of actions which learners could mime.

Procedure

Divide the class into two teams.
Randomly ask one learner from one team to mime an action (or sequence of actions).
The mimer’s team must try to guess what he or she is miming. If they guess correctly, they win a point. The mimer can nod or shake their head as the team make their guesses. For example:

Team: You’re carrying something.

Mimer: (nods head)

Team: Is it a gun?

Mimer: (shakes head)

Team: Is it a stick?

Mimer: (nods head)

Variation 1 Present continuous and present simple

Invite a learner to mime a number of actions they do every day.
Tell them that, while miming the action, they should ask the class, What am I doing?
Once someone has guessed correctly, encourage the mimer to ask what the action might represent in terms of daily actions. For example:

Learner 1: (mimes writing) What am I doing?

Learner 2: You’re writing.

Learner 1: Yes, that’s right. (mimes reading a book) What am I doing?

Learner 2: You’re reading a book.

Learner 1: So, what do I do in my job?

Learner 2: You are an author, or perhaps a teacher, or a secretary.

Variation 2 Present simple

Draw on the board a number of clock faces, each showing a different time of day.
Explain that you are going to mime what you usually do at those times on weekdays. Point at the first clock face, ask the question (before the mime, so that the general symbolic nature of your mime is more important than the individual action) What do I do at … o’clock?, then mime.

Teacher: (pointing at the first clock) What do I do at seven o’clock? (then miming waking up)

Learner: You wake up.

Invite learners to take over your role once they are familiar with the game. Other verbs suitable for miming are:

get up, get dressed, get washed, brush your teeth, have breakfast, leave the house, catch a bus, get to college, start work, have a break, have lunch, leave college, get home, have a meal, go to the gym, watch TV, go to bed.

Notes

Add variety by asking what the learners always or sometimes do at the weekends away from school.
Ask the learners to mime what they would like to do at the different times of the day related to the clock faces, using I would like to … if I could.

Variation 3 Simple past

Mime, or invite a learner to mime, a sequence of actions, being careful to choose actions which the learners can name.

Sequence of actions involved in preparing an egg for breakfast

Filling a pan with water, putting the pan on the stove, lighting the gas, opening the fridge door, taking out an egg, putting it in the pan, waiting for the egg to boil and looking at your watch for four minutes, taking out the egg with a spoon, cooling the egg in cold water, putting the egg into an egg cup, cracking open the egg and removing the top, putting some salt on the egg, eating the egg.

Mime all the actions and only then ask what you did. Make use of various connecting words, for example, then, next, after that.

Teacher: (mimes the whole sequence before speaking) What did I do first?

Learner 1: You filled a pan with water.

Teacher: What did I do next?

Learner 2: You put the pan on the stove.

You can ask the learners to retell the whole series of actions.

Once learners are familiar with the game, encourage them to take over your role.

Note

You may wish to re-enact the sequence, but omit several actions. The learners must then say what you did and what you didn’t do.

Variation 4 Past continuous

Mime a continuous, uncompleted action and then stop and ask what you were doing.

Teacher: (mimes typing, then stops)

What was I doing?

Learner 1: You were playing the piano.

Teacher: Was I playing the piano?

Learner 2: No.

Teacher: What was I doing?

Learner 3: You were typing.

Variation 5 Past continuous interrupted by the past simple

Invite two learners to mime. Learner 1 mimes a continuous action and then Learner 2 interrupts Learner 1.

Learner 1: (mimes reading)

Learner 2: (after about five seconds knocks on the door and rushes

into the room and shouts, ‘Fire!’)

Learner 1: What was I doing?

Learner 3: You were reading.

Learner 2: Then what happened?

Learner 4: You knocked on the door, opened it and shouted, ‘Fire!’

Examples of other situations for the past continuous and past simpleReading interrupted by replying to a knock at the door.

Walking interrupted by falling over a body.

Sleeping interrupted by a dog barking.

Eating interrupted by someone knocking a glass over.

Having a bath interrupted by a telephone ringing.

Variation 6 Present perfect

Mime an action that implies that something else has happened. Invite the class to try to guess what it is, and express this by asking a question. For example:

Teacher: (holds his/her thumb with an expression of pain)

Learner 1: Have you hurt your thumb?

Teacher: (nods head)

Learner 2: Did you hit it?

Teacher: (nods head)

Learner 3: Did you hit it with a hammer?

Teacher: (nods head)

Note

When the learners are unsure about what has happened, it is natural to use the present perfect, e.g. Have you hurt your thumb? When it is established that an incident has been completed, the simple past tense is more relevant, for example, Did you hit it?

Examples of other situations for the present perfect

Broken something (mime: shock, dismay, regret, shaking head, looking at the floor, picking up the pieces)

Lost something (mime: frowning, looking around and under things, exasperation)

Seen a ghost (mime: look of pop-eyed horror plus wobbling knees and possibly pointing backwards to where the ghost was seen)

Put your fingers into something horrible (mime: constant wiping of the fingers plus face wrinkled in disgust)

Variation 7 Present perfect continuous

Mime an action that suggests another continuous action that has just been completed.

Teacher: (rubbing his or her eyes and stretching) What have I been doing?

Learner: You’ve been sleeping.

Examples of other situations for the present perfect continuous

Washing (mime: drying your face)

Brushing your hair (mime: looking in the mirror and patting your hair)

Eating (mime: wiping your lips, taking off your napkin, pushing away your plate and standing up)

Running (mime: panting for breath, leaning forwards and putting your hands on your knees)

Variation 8 Future with going to

Mime an action that suggests very strongly what you are going to do next. While miming ask, What am I going to do?

Teacher: (standing with your legs together and your arms outstretched together in front of you) What am I going to do?

Learner: You’re going to dive.

Examples of other situations to elicit the future with going to

Going to brush your teeth (mime: squeeze toothpaste on to a brush and bare your teeth)

Going to shout (mime: take a breath, put your two hands on either side of your mouth, open your mouth and move your head forwards)

Variation 9 Future in the past

Mime as for the future tense but clearly stop the mime, move to another part of the class (to place the action in the past) and then ask, What was I going to do?

Teacher: (mimes ‘going to dive’, then stops and moves to another part of the class and even points back to where he or she was standing) What was I going to do?

Learner: You were going to dive.

Variation 10 Future in the past and simple past

Invite all the learners, in pairs, to prepare a mime in which one learner is about to do something and then is prevented from doing so by the other learner.

Learner 1: (mimes ‘going to dive’)

Learner 2: (after about five seconds Learner 2 pulls Learner 1 backwards to stop him or her diving)

Learner 1: What was I going to do?

Learner 3: You were going to dive.

Learner 2: What did I do?

Learner 4: You stopped him.

Reference

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for Language Learning (3rd ed., p. 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 130). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Writing Game: Draw the bank robbers

Posted on November 22, 2014 by kubraf

The TOP 15 games that are presented in the following posts are the games that we personally love playing in the classroom with my students’. They are from the book “Games for Language Learning” by Cambridge university (reference can be found below).

GAME # 2

Language

Defining the appearance of a person in writing using descriptive language

Reacting to written descriptions of physical appearance by drawing the characters described

Preparation

Preparation Provide a copy of a description of a fictional bank robber for each pair of learners. When inventing your bank robber, you may want to draw a picture of him/her before writing the description, but do not show the picture to the learners.Procedure

Tell the learners to write WANTED at the top of a piece of A4 paper.
Ask the learners to study your description of the bank robber and to make a large drawing of him or her on the poster. (Don’t let the learners see your drawing of the robber, if you did one.) Here is an example of the kind of description you might provide:

He has got a very small head.

His head is the shape of a pear.

His right ear is as big as a plate.

His left ear is small and like a cup.

His left eye is very small and his right eye is very wide.

His left eyebrow is longer than his right eyebrow and it is nearer to his eye.

His eyebrows are very bushy like hairy caterpillars.

Games for Language Learning

Display all the drawings and discuss those that do not tally with the Help the learners to appreciate the need for precision.
Invite pairs to invent a bank robber of their own and write a description of him or her, guided by your description of your robber. Set a time limit for this.
Ask each pair to exchange their description with another pair, who tries to make an accurate drawing of the person described.
Tell each pair to pass the new drawing to yet another pair of learners, who write a description of the person based on the drawing.
Ask pairs to give this second description to one last pair, who must try to make an accurate drawing of the person described.
Invite learners to display and compare the sets of drawings and texts.

Variation 1 Describe from memory

Preparation

Find four pictures of people who look somewhat similar.

Show the four pictures all at once to the whole class. Tell the learners to decide which picture they want to describe, and not to let anyone else know their choice. Give them a short period of time, e.g. 10 seconds, to look closely at it, and then (from memory) to write a description of it.
Encourage the learners to mill around, asking three other learners, in turn, to read their description. They should then try to identify which picture has been described.

Variation 2 Describe an object

Brainstorm a list of objects on to the board.
Ask each learner to write a description of one of the objects.
Tell the learners to mill around, asking at least three other learners to read their text and to see if they can identify which object has been described.

Examples of language items the learners might find useful

It’s red/green/brown with white spots. (color)

It’s big / small / very small / smaller than a bottle top. (size)

It’s round / square / long. (shape)

It’s made of wood / metal / rubber / plastic. (substance)

It’s used for eating / fighting / working / feeding dogs. (purpose)

It belongs to Harry / an old man / a young woman. (owner)

Mainly writing

Note

Even beginners can write descriptions by listing single words or short phrases, for example Green. Write. Draw. Teacher. (These four words describe a chalkboard.) Or: It is a rectangle. It is made of wood and it is painted white. It has a handle and a lock. (A door.)

More advanced descriptions might proceed along the following lines:

People may like an object or a situation or other person, but sometimes they may have a much stronger feeling. Sometimes this strong feeling is positive in its effect and sometimes negative. (Love.)

Examples of other ‘describe-and-do’ activities

Learner A describes a fantasy animal. Learner B draws it.

Learner A describes a route through a town. Learner B draws a street map plus features which are important in finding the way.

Learner A describes a journey through the countryside. Learner B draws the route and the things which can be seen.

Learner A describes his or her room. Learner B draws an exact plan and location of each object.

Learner A describes a scene and a simple series of actions. Learner B represents the scene and actions with three-dimensional objects, e.g. a box representing a house, an eraser representing a person, and then carries out the actions.

Learner A describes an event or film or an institution or abstract concept and Learner B identifies it.

Other images that can be used with this game:

Reference

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for Language Learning (3rd ed., p. 60, 61, 62). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Vocabulary and Spelling Game: Feely Game

Posted on November 21, 2014 by kubraf

GAME # 3

Language

Asking questions, and naming objects:

What is it? It’s a …

Expressing uncertainty:

I don’t know. It could be a …

I’m not sure. I think it’s a …

I know what it is, but I don’t know what it’s called.

I know what it’s called in (Swedish), but I don’t know what it’s called in English.

Variation 1 Describing objects and speculating about them

Variation 2 Asking questions about objects and their owners

Variation 3 Speaking whole sentences, e.g. lines from a song, and identifying the speakers

Variations 4–9 As in main game

Preparation

You will need about ten small objects of different shapes and sizes and a piece of cloth, a thin towel, or a headscarf, which must be large enough to cover four or five of the objects.

For pair work, you should provide enough objects and pieces of cloth, etc., to keep all the learners occupied. If the objects are very different, then it is not really a challenge to identify them by touch, so choose some which are similar to feel, e.g. pens/pencils, coins of different denominations, plastic bags/paper bags, screws/nails. (optional) You could provide some pairs of gloves, to make feeling more of a challenge.

Note

Instead of a covering cloth, you may choose to conceal theobjects for touching in a box or bag.

Procedure

Make sure that the learners know the names of the majority of the objects which you have collected.
Put four or five of the objects under the cloth on a table without the class seeing which ones you have chosen.
Ask a learner to feel one of the objects through the cloth and to tell you what they think it is. Let the learner remove the object to see if they were correct.
Repeat with other learners.

Notes

The language in this game can be restricted to:

Teacher: What is it?

Learner: It’s a …

Alternatively, the language of uncertainty might be used (see the information box above).

If you think that the learners, divided into pairs, can collect a sufficient number of objects, you will find the game easy to arrange for pair work.
To make the game more challenging, do not show the objects beforehand. You might also make the ‘feeler’ wear gloves!

Variation 1 Touch and describe

Ask more advanced learners to talk about each feature of the object they are feeling in such a way that the rest of the class can identify it. This will require the use of descriptive terms and the language of speculation, for example:

Learner 1: (feeling the object) It’s hard.

Learner 2: What’s it made of?

Learner 1: I think it’s made of plastic.

Learner 3: What shape is it?

Learner 1: It’s long and rectangular.

Learner 4: Is it a ruler?

Learner 1: Yes.

Variation 2 Identify an object and its owner

Preparation

You will need a scarf, or other blindfold, and a collection of objects, as above.

One learner is blindfolded and sits in the centre of a circle. One of the other learners places an object (or objects) in his or her hands, and asks:

Learner: What is it / are they? Who does it / do they belong to?

That is to say, the blindfolded person must identify both the object(s) and the owner.

If this is done correctly, the two players change places. If not, another object, belonging to a third person, is placed in the first person’s hands, and the game goes on as before.

Variation 3 Identify by listening to a voice

Preparation

You will need a scarf, or other blindfold.

Blindfold a learner.
Ask another learner to come forward and stand quietly next to the blindfolded learner and say something to him or her, for example, an English proverb, or a quotation from a song, rhyme or textbook being studied by the class.

Teacher: Who’s this?

Learner 1: To be or not to be, that is the question.

Learner 2: (blindfolded and listening to the voice) Eva?

Learner 1: No, listen, again. To be or not to be, that is the question …

Learner 2: Julia!

Teacher: Yes.

Variation 4 Identify by listening to an object

Preparation

As above, provide a collection of objects. For classwork, erect a barrier or screen of some kind on your desk, for example, a cardboard folder, to prevent the class from seeing what it is that you are doing.

For pair work, provide a barrier – books work well – or blindfold for every second person.

Drop an object behind the barrier and encourage learners to guess what it is.

Teacher: (dropping a pencil sharpener behind the barrier) What’s this?

Learner 1: A pen.

Learner 2: No, it’s a pencil sharpener.

Teacher: Yes, well done.

Repeat with different objects.
Move into pair work, if the pairs can get enough objects ready to drop.

Learner 1: (dropping an object behind the barrier on to the desk) What’s this?

Learner 2: A key.

Learner 1: (dropping the same object again) No, it isn’t.

Learner 2: A coin.

Learner 1: Yes.

If appropriate, encourage learners to use the language of uncertainty (see information box above).

Variation 5 Identify by smelling

Preparation

Provide a blindfold and a collection of objects, all with distinctive smells, e.g. coffee, tea, bread, cheese, chocolate, apple…

Blindfold a learner and invite him or her to identify something by smell.

Teacher: (holding the substance near the learner’s nose) What’s this?

Learner 1: I think it’s …

Variation 6 Identify by tasting

Preparation

Provide a blindfold, a collection of objects, all with distinctive tastes, and spoons for feeding the foods to the learners.

Check that none of the objects is unsuitable for use with the learners, whether for reasons of health (allergies), or for reasons of diet (vegetarian, halal, etc.), and, in the interest of hygiene, use a clean spoon for each learner.

Blindfold a learner and invite him or her to identify something by taste.

Teacher: (feeding the learner with a spoon) What’s this?

Learner 1: I think it’s …

Variation 7 Identify by looking

Preparation

Choose a picture with details which the learners can identify and name, for example, a footballer, or an animal, or a distinctive building.

Pull the picture slowly out of an envelope, or reveal it bit by bit from behind a book, starting from the top.
Keep asking the learners what they can see. Get them to speculate. Encourage different opinions. There is then a reason for listening and speaking.

Teacher: What is it?

Learner 1: It’s a head.

Learner 2: Hair.

Teacher: Is it a man or a woman?

Learner 3: A man.

Variation 8 Building up a picture

Progressively draw (or have a learner progressively draw) the parts of a picture, all the while inviting guesses as to what is being drawn.

Teacher: (draws a dot on the board) What is it?/ What do you think it is?

Learner 1: It’s a dot. It’s an eye.

(Teacher adds another element to the picture.)

Learner 2: It could be a door.

(Teacher adds another element.)

Learner 3: It’s a window.

Teacher: And what’s this and this?

Learner 4: Another window… and a door… It’s a house.

Variation 9 Strip of a magazine picture

Preparation Cut off a strip of a magazine picture, about 5 mm or 1 cm wide and as long as you like. Choose a picture which contains on the strip fragments of several objects, all of which the learners can name. Glue the strip on to a card which is slightly wider than the picture strip. Draw arrows aiming at all the fragment of objects, and give each arrow a number. Write the names of the objects on the reverse of the card.

Ask the learners to try to guess what each numbered part of the strip is.
Tell the learners to check their guesses with what you have written on the reverse of the card.
Once the learners have seen how to do this, you can ask them to make a magazine strip of their own, and give it to you for others to play with.

The example can be found below.

Note

Select the pictures that you use for this game according to the topic and vocabulary area you want the learners to practice.

Reference

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for Language Learning (3rd ed., p. 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Listening Game: Listen and Draw

Posted on November 20, 2014 by kubraf

GAME # 4

Language

Listening for detail in the description of a person, object, animal or place and drawing according to the details described. Possibly describing an imagined person, object, animal or place using descriptive language.

Preparation

Write a description of a person, object, animal or place, keeping in mind that the learners will be asked to draw it. Make an enlarged copy of the description to display.

Procedure

Read a description of a person, object, animal or place. First of all, ask the learners to listen to the whole description without drawing. For example:

Teacher: My neighbor is a very tall, thin woman. She wears a T-shirt. She wears narrow trousers. She has big feet, very big feet. And she wears big black boots. She has a square face and a long, pointed nose. She has two small eyes right in the middle of her face. She is always miserable and she has a long, miserable mouth. She has a lot of hair. She never combs her hair. It is full of birds. She has long thin arms and she always carries her little cat in her arms.

Then read the description again, slowly, and ask the learners to draw what you describe. You may decide to encourage the learners to ask you questions for more clarity. Be willing to read the description several times.

We suggest that the learners draw in pencil until they are sure they have made a very accurate drawing. When they are sure, they may use a thin, black pen.

Display all the pictures drawn by the learners and display an enlarged copy of the text you have used. Check the pictures against the text to see if the details are correct.

Let the class vote for the top five most accurate pictures. Consider asking the learners to do a similar activity in pairs or groups. For example, each pair of learners can be asked to describe, in writing, a subject that they can then describe to another pair for them to draw. Descriptions and pictures can then be displayed.

Notes

This is a classic ‘communication game’. There is an information gap: the speaker has the information and the learner does not, and must listen to understand it. The drawing shows, non-verbally, how well he or she has understood.
If the teacher describes, then it is a listening game for the learners, but if the learners describe, it is also a speaking game. The art of describing is a very necessary art in daily life.
The tall thin woman and the animal could both provide the starting point for a fantasy set of characters and stories.

Some other subjects which might be used for describing and drawing

a street map on which learners have to write the names of the streets and key buildings

a plan of a bedroom on which learners have to write the names of furniture and other objects

a fantasy machine, e.g. a machine for exercising dogs, which learners have to describe in detail

an abstract drawing in response to a poem a diagram showing a technique or process

a graph or chart showing statistics

Reference

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for Language Learning (3rd ed., p. 44, 45, 46). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Writing Game: Create a soap opera

Posted on November 19, 2014 by kubraf

GAME # 5

Language

Using as wide a range of language as possible to continuously or periodically create and share a core of characters and episodes in their lives, guided by questions, photos, and the creative contributions of other learners

Preparation

Choose two photos of people as the starting point; as the ‘series’ progresses, you or the learners may wish to introduce other materials. For younger learners you may prefer to choose two soft toys.

Procedure

Discuss with the learners what they know about soap operas: titles, names of characters, the personality of the characters, etc. Tell the learners that they will be creating a soap opera.
Show the learners the two photos of people that you have selected, and tell them that these are the central characters. Ask questions to establish an identity, personality and concerns about each of them according to the learners’ language level and level of sophistication. Encourage the learners’ inclination to make the characters serious portrayals of real people or to create fantasy people. It is better not to imitate an existing soap opera. Emphasize that they must come to a consensus and may not arbitrarily change the information about the characters. Any changes that do occur must be brought about through the forces of experience in the lives of the characters. In order to develop a feeling for character and the influence of character on the development of the story, you might like to suggest that the learners think of a few aspects of the personality, appearance and abilities for each character.

Examples of character identity

A character can be created based on age, sex, job, family, friends, pets, hobbies, food/music preferences, etc.

Further characteristics might be added: aspects of the character’s personality and behavior, concerns, successes, frustrations, use of language.

Examples of further character detail

She is very pretty but not intelligent.

He wants people to think that he is intelligent, but he isn’t.

She is very warm, friendly and helpful.

He is a bully and he is dangerous.

She is jolly and always singing.

He can’t stop stealing things.

She is very ambitious.

He is very lazy.

She works very hard.

He lives in his dreams.

She likes animals more than people.

Ask the learners to find pictures (or, in some cases, real objects) for homework which illustrate different aspects of the protagonists’ lives, for example, a car, a house, a holiday, etc. Discuss and agree on the appropriate information about these aspects according to the learners’ language level.
Display these photographs and real objects together with the pictures of the characters. Write on a poster what the class has agreed about each aspect. This will act as a guiding model for the learners when they invent their own person.
The learners make a copy of this poster in their Soap Opera books. They can represent the two protagonists by their names.

Example of the first few lines of description

His name is Henry Coconut.

He is 25 years old.

He lives with his mother.

Example of later descriptions

He pretends that he is confident, but really he is always worried.

He can’t sleep at nights. He has nightmares. He is frightened of all animals and birds.

Extend the community by asking each pair or group of learners to create another protagonist, to choose a picture of him or her, and to write down his or her particulars, then introduce their character to the rest of the class. Discuss how the new characters might relate to the central protagonists. This must be in their Soap Opera book.
The learners can then walk about in the class holding the picture of their character in front of them and pretending to be that character. They meet other characters, exchange names and ask for other information and decide whether they want to be friends or not with each of the others.
After this activity the learners can make a relationship diagram and write a description of the relationships. They can also write a letter to some of the others, telling them about their meeting and why it was important to them. Copies must be kept in their Soap Opera books.
Discuss and agree on a place for these people to live. It might be a city district, or a small town or a village. It might be on an island. Decide where each person lives. Draw plans and maps, find or draw pictures, etc. and record these in the Soap Opera book.
Introduce an event, for example, the electricity supply for the town breaks down. Help the learners explore what the different people do, how they interact, what stories they have to tell. You can help by asking questions about where the characters were, how they were affected, what they thought, felt, said and did, etc. Ask the learners to write articles about the event for the local newspaper. Again, record everything in the Soap Opera book.
Decide, with the learners, what will happen next, based on your teaching program and in accordance with the living drama the class has created.

These are some of the topics you might introduce

Creating …

a village, town or city district for the community (the topography, flora and fauna,

industry, history, etc.)

relationships in the community: families, friends, enemies

dramatic events affecting the characters, e.g. natural disaster and its effect

(flooding, epidemic)

differences in the community about issues, which can be real, contemporary

issues, e.g. young and old generations in conflict about modernizing versus

preserving traditions

Examples of ways of using writing in a class soap opera

Creating a book of the characters, places and events

Sending letters from one character to another

Writing a community newspaper

Designing posters, invitations, graffiti

Writing a book of ghost stories set in the community

Writing a history of the community and area

Writing dialogues for particular events in preparation for video or audio recording

Writing a journal about the characters and events

Creating a real website for this fictitious community

Games for Language Learning

Notes

The procedure given here is one of the many ways in which a fictitious community can be established and the dramas created. Please note that in this game the learners are not primarily actors but creators of the characters and the dramas. However, there is no reason why parts of these dramas cannot be extracted and produced as video soap opera episodes.
This game offers a wonderful opportunity to recycle language and to introduce new language items. It also offers a natural context for all skills including writing and reading (letters, e-mails, websites, newspapers, party invitations, etc.). It can be played at any language level.
Because the learners create the community and the drama, they can blend realism and fantasy in any way they wish.
Because they are creating together, there is an enormous feeling of good will.
Many learners are familiar with this idea through computer games which allow the players to create characters and places and to create dramas with them.
You, as the teacher, might like to use such an idea only occasionally or you might like to make it a complete alternative to the course textbook … or somewhere in between!

Reference

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for Language Learning (3rd ed., p. 75, 76, 77, 78, 79 ). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Speaking Game: Slowly Reveal a Picture

Posted on November 18, 2014 by kubraf

GAME # 6

Language

Speculating about the contents of a partially obscured picture using expressions of uncertainty (e.g. I think it is a …) and certainty (e.g. It’s a …)

Using particular vocabulary or language points (as determined by the teacher’s choice of picture)

Preparation

You will need a picture (drawn or from a magazine) which is big enough for the class to see (A4 size is usually big enough) and an envelope or a book to pull it out of.

Procedure

Put a picture, for example, a magazine picture, in an envelope or hide it in a book.
Pull out a very small part of the picture and ask the learners to try to identify it.
Pull out a little more of the picture and ask the learners what they think it is now. Ask them to tell their neighbor what they think it is. This makes everyone participate by using the language and expressing their view.
Gradually show more and more of the picture. Encourage the drama of different opinions.

Some photos you can use with this game:

Reference

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for Language Learning (3rd ed., p. 24, 25)). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Writing Game: Create an island

Posted on November 17, 2014 by kubraf

GAME # 7

Language

Creating a map of a fantasy island, guided by questions with a focus on geography (directions, distances, lakes, rivers, mountains, etc.)

Writing a travel journal describing travels and adventures using a wide range of language Adapting the travel journal into a story form

Working collaboratively

Preparation

You will need a large sheet of paper (A1 or A2).

Procedure

Invite the learners to create a fantasy island on the board and help them by guiding them with statements and instructions. For example:

Teacher: Draw an island on the board. Draw it as big as you can. North is at the top. South is at the bottom. West is on the left. East is on the right. How long is your island?

Are there any mountains or hills on your island? Where are they? So the mountains are in the north of the island. And they are about five kilometres across. How high are they? Has your island got any rivers? Where does the river begin and where does it finish? Has your island got any lakes/marshes/forests? Are there any villages/castles or other special places on your island?

Once the island is created on the board, copy it on to a large piece of paper (A1 or A2), so it can be displayed for all the class to see, and can be re-used in future lessons, and ask the learners to copy the map into their
Introduce the idea of adventures on the island. Begin by saying that you are the captain of a ship that is going to put them on shore and come back for them in a week (or more, if you wish the game to last longer). They must try to survive during that time. Discuss and agree with them what provisions and tools they should take with them.
Ask the learners to form groups of two or three, in which they will continue the adventure. Tell them that they will keep a travel journal in which they make entries including the date and time, as well as notes about what they see, hear, say, feel, and the situations which occur.
When their journey is over, after a week (or whatever other duration you chose at the beginning of the game), have the learners write their full story and draw a map to show their exact route. Display their maps and Learners might even want to display their notes, adding to the sense of adventure and intrigue by singeing the paper, tearing it, dropping stains on it, or letting it suddenly stop in mid sentence to show that the journey ended prematurely for these unfortunate travelers.

Notes

The potential of the created island is considerable. The map can be used again and again in reference and in full activities over the following months.
Details can be added, perhaps on separate paper: caves, buildings, sources of danger or fun or food, etc. Residents can be introduced and their characters and concerns built up over the months.
Such an island becomes an important part of the learners’ lives and a source of increasing creativity and a reason for writing as well as for reading, speaking, listening and cooperating as a class.

Reference

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for Language Learning (3rd ed., p. 73, 74, 75). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Vocabulary and Spelling Game: Would you make a good witness?

Posted on November 16, 2014 by kubraf

GAME # 8

Language

Vocabulary of whatever pictures you show: clothes, cars, food, etc.

Asking and answering questions

Preparation

Choose a picture or make a montage, big enough for the class to see, which will elicit the language you want to practice. Examples might be: clothes – a page from a mail-order catalogue showing five men in different clothes

actions – a general photo of a scene with a lot of people doing different things

personal descriptions – a montage of portraits of people

Procedure

Ask the learners if they think they would make good witnesses. Are they good at remembering the details of what they see? Tell them you are going to test them.
Show the picture to the class for twenty seconds, then turn the picture If the picture is not very big, walk through the class making sure that all the learners see it properly.
Tell the learners, working in pairs, to ask each other questions about what they remember about the picture. For example:

What did you see?

How many people were there?

What were they doing?

What did they look like?

How old were they?

What were they wearing?

What do you think they might have been saying or thinking?

What color, shape, size, etc. was the …?

Interrogate the learners to discover what they can remember about the picture.

Teacher: What can you remember? What was in the picture?

Learner 1: There were some people.

Teacher: How many people? Can you remember?

Learner 2: I think there were five or six people.

Teacher: What were they wearing? etc.

Images that can be used with this game:

Reference

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for Language Learning (3rd ed., p. 117, 118). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Grammar Game: Kim’s memory game (Variations 6 and 7)

Posted on November 15, 2014 by kubraf

GAME # 9

Variation 6 Present perfect, past simple, prepositions

Language

Detecting and describing changes in position orally using the present perfect (e.g. You’ve put …), past simple (e.g. It was …), and prepositions (e.g. next to …)

Preparation

You will need a collection of objects.

Place six to eight objects on a table. Make sure that several of them are positioned, for example, on top of, underneath, next to, and/or inside other objects.
After 20 seconds, ask the learners to look away. Change the position of one of the objects.

Teacher: What have I done?

Learner: You’ve put the tape underneath the dictionary.

Teacher: And where was it?

Learner: It was next to the watch.

Variation 7 Present perfect and comparisons

Language

Detecting changes made to a drawing and describing them orally using the present perfect and comparatives (e.g. You’ve made the tree taller.)

Instead of using objects or prepared pictures, as in the main game, ask a number of learners to draw some simple objects on the board. Some of the objects might have color on them.
Tell the learners to close their eyes whilst you, or a learner, change some of the drawings, making them longer or shorter, fatter, taller, greener, etc.
Challenge the class to tell you what you have done. For example:

Teacher: What have I done?

Learner: You’ve made the tree taller.

or:

Teacher: What is different?

Learner: The tree is taller.

Note

The learners can play the same game in pairs using paper, pencil and rubber.

Reference

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for Language Learning (3rd ed., p. 164, 165). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Vocabulary and Spelling Game: Silent Speaking

Posted on November 14, 2014 by kubraf

GAME #10

Language

Any area of vocabulary, focusing specifically on pronunciation of limited sets of words, for example, colors, numbers, animals, minimal pairs

Preparation

Choose a topic you would like the learners to practice.

Procedure

Brainstorm on to the board words related to the topic you have chosen.
Select one of the words and speak it silently to the class, moving your mouth as if speaking it, but not making any sound.
Ask the class to identify the word.
Have the learners take turns doing the same thing with a partner.

Reference

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. (2006). Games for Language Learning (3rd ed., p. 101). New York: Cambridge University Press.