Games for English Classes

Matt’s ESL Games and an d Quizzes: Book Boo k 1 © Matt Errey 2013 First published 2013 by teflgames.com All rights reserved. This e-book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the copyright holder, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Available online in electronic book format at http://www.teflgames.com/Matt's-ESL-Gam http://www.teflgames.c om/Matt's-ESL-Games-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.h es-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.html tml

Available as Adobe Acrobat PDF file. Suitable for Windows and Mac OS File size: 1.4 Mb Mb / 101 pp. For more more details: [email protected]

Also by Matt Errey Word Up Home Edition™ Word Up Classroom Pack™ 1000 Phrasal Verbs in Context Matt’s ESL Games and an d Quizzes: Book Boo k 2 1000 Phrasal Verbs in Context ebook is available for immediate download from: http://www.teflgames.com/1000-phrasal-verbs-in-context.html

Word Up ESL board games are available (with free airmail delivery worldwide) from: http://www.teflgames.com/order.html What people are saying about Word Up , Matt’s best-selling ESL board game: ‘All the students in the school who tried it loved it. Some even asked where they could buy it so they could play it at home ... All in all, the biggest hit in our school school this year.' Alex Case, Reviews Editor - TEFL.net ‘My students and I really enjoyed Word Up , and I think it would be a fantastic f antastic addition to any ESL/EFL teacher's bag of goodies.' Kaye Mastin Mallory, Founder - English-Zone.com ‘I highly recommend Word Up as a unique languagelearning aid that should be in every teacher's toolkit.' Josef Essberger, Founder - EnglishClub.com EnglishClub.com 'Word Up has always been the board game of choice with our students and teachers ... it is great to see that Word Up can rekindle that spark and get them speaking and laughing again.' Jennifer Tradewell, Head Teacher, Inlingua, Bangkok, Thailand

'We recently bought this game for use with our classes, and have to tell you that it is definitely a good investment ... they love it!' Shaun Fitzhenry, Coordinator of Studies EnglishBusiness, Hamburg, Germany

All Matt Errey’s ESL games, books and online materials are available now at

http://www.teflgames.com Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes : Book 1 © Matt Errey 2013 www.teflgames.com/Matt’s-ESL-Games-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.html

2

Table of Contents Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Part 1 Icebreakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

The Circle Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Icebreaker Interviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . What’s the Question? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Classroom Questionnaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resource: Classroom Questionnaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Language Learning Survey. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resource: Language Learning Survey . . . . . . . . . . . . . Part 2 Fillers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jumbled Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Teacher’s Resource: ‘Jumbled Words’ Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shiritori . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ‘What happened to me recently...’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Line Up, Line Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A to Z Circles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Part 3 Classic Games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Twenty Questions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resource: ‘Twenty Questions’ Topic Cards . . . . . . . . . Hot Seat. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Coffee Pot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resource: ‘Coffee Pot’ Sample Questions . . . . . . . . . . Telephone or Chinese Whispers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resource: ‘Telephone’ Instruction Slips . . . . . . . . . . . . Word-O-Bingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resources: ‘Word-O-Bingo’ Lists & Slips 1- 5 . . . . . . . Part 4 Quiz Games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . General Knowledge Quiz 1 ( Quiz Show) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resources: ‘Quiz Show’ Question Sets 1-4 . . . . . . . . . General Knowledge Quiz 2 (Team Quiz) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resources: ‘Team Quiz’ Question Sets 1-8 . . . . . . . . . Vocab Quiz 1 (Small Group Version) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resources: ‘Vocab Quiz 1’ Question Sets 1-10 . . . . . . Vocab Quiz 2 (Worksheet Version) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resources: ‘Vocab Quiz 2’ Worksheets 1-10 . . . . . . . . Phrasal Verbs Quiz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resources: ‘Phrasal Verbs Quiz’ Sets 1-5 . . . . . . . . . . Answers to Phrasal Verbs Quiz Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Part 5 Spelling Games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Spelling Quiz For Teams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Spelling Quiz For Individuals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Spelling Bee. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Printable Resource: Graded Word List for Spelling Games . . . . . Appendix 1: Printable Templates for Card Games . . . . . . . . . Appendix 2: Selected Extracts on Using Games . . . . . . . . . . . Appendix 3: Recommended Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes : Book 1 © Matt Errey 2013 www.teflgames.com/Matt’s-ESL-Games-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.html

11 12 14 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 25 26 28 29 30 32 33 35 36 37 39 40 42 52 53 55 59 60 68 69 79 80 85 86 91 92 93 95 97 99 100 106 111

3

Introduction Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes: Book 1 is the first of two ebooks created to give

teachers quick and easy access to many of the best games and activities for teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language. This book includes icebreakers, fillers, quiz games, spelling games and classic ESL games like 20 Questions and Hot Seat. Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes: Book 2 covers card games, acting and miming games, vocabulary games and a section of games and activities in which learners can practise their conversational skills. While nearly all of these games and activities give students the opportunity to practise and develop communicative skills of speaking and listening, each game also has a particular focus, such as building vocabulary, improving spelling ability, or developing awareness of idiomatic usage.

How the Games are Presented Each game’s description includes a table showing the levels a game is suitable for, the number of students it can accommodate, it’s duration, the amount of preparation it requires, and the language forms and functions it focuses on. Level: Elem -> Int

Class size: up to ~12 students

Time: 15 to 20 minutes

Preparation:

None

Focus:

Breaking the ice, learning names, introducing people

Fig. 1. Tables like this make it easy to find the features and functions of each game.

Levels The games are described as being suitable for a range of proficiency levels, namely Elementary, Lower Intermediate, Intermediate, Upper Intermediate and Advanced. Teachers should use these levels as a rough guide only when choosing games, however, and always check the instructions, and any supplementary materials, before deciding whether a particular game is suitable or not. This is because these terms can mean very different things in different parts of the world. A proficiency level termed elementary in an ESL institute in Canada, for example, may well be termed intermediate in a secondary school in Japan. Therefore a range of levels that each game could be suitable for is usually given, rather than a single level. For example, the table in Fig. 1 above gives the level as Elem -> Int , meaning “from Elementary to Intermediate”. This means that the game could be suitable for Elementary, Lower Intermediate, or Intermediate students, depending on how these terms are used in a particular school or region. It does not, however, mean that the game will definitely be suitable for all of the levels within the indicated range.

Class size The recommended class size is a general guideline only. If you think a game would be suitable for your students, but the class is a little bigger, or a little smaller, than the recommended size, you should still be able to use it.


4

Time The times given in the table should also be taken as a rough guide only. The duration of a game usually depends on a number of variables. These could include how long it takes the class to understand how the game works, how often the game is stopped while the teacher answers questions or explains points of grammar or usage, how quickly and effectively the students communicate while playing, how familiar they are with classroom games and typical game vocabulary, and so on. Nevertheless, the times given in the table should give teachers a rough idea of how long it usually takes to complete a game.

Preparation Teachers can see at a glance what sort of preparation is required, if any, and gauge how long it should take. In some cases, writing tables or word lists on the board will be all that’s needed, while in others supplementary materials will have to be selected and printed. These materials could be worksheets, quiz questions, card sets, instruction slips, word lists, name tags, and so on. In most cases preparing the materials won’t take too long, but in a few cases, such as when preparing card sets, you’ll need to allow a fair bit of time for preparation. In such cases you might even consider having students prepare the materials themselves. (ideas on how this can be done can be found in Book 2 in the section on Card Games).

Focus This part of the table tells you what the students can learn or practise by playing the game. It could be a basic function such as introducing people, or it could be asking and answering “yes” or “no” questions, or maybe the introduction or revision of lexical sets such as “emotions” or “moods”, or simply testing and improving spelling ability, for example. One very important function that is not mentioned, however - because it is common to virtually all the games - is the basic one of providing students the opportunity to use their English in an authentic social situation, and to gain confidence in their ability to communicate face-to-face in “real life”.

How the Games are Categorized The games in this book are arranged into five categories, each of which is given its own section in the book. The categories are icebreakers, fillers, classic ESL games, quiz games and spelling games. In Book 2, the categories are card games, acting and miming games, vocabulary games and conversation games.

Icebreakers The first section contains games that help learners in a new class get to know each other and feel relaxed with one another. Many involve information gaps or information exchanges from which they can learn about each other’s hobbies and pastimes, likes and dislikes, ambitions and goals for the future, and so on. The games are also intended to create a fun, non-threatening atmosphere that encourages students to feel comfortable in, and develop a positive attitude towards, their new class. Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes : Book 1 © Matt Errey 2013 www.teflgames.com/Matt’s-ESL-Games-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.html

5

Fillers As the name suggests, these games can be used whenever you find yourself unexpectedly faced with a few minutes to fill during a class. This could occur when waiting for latecomers to arrive, when a lesson has to be put on hold some reason, or when a lesson has been completed five or ten minutes before the end of a class, for example. The games require no preparation, are easy to explain and organize, and are flexible enough in terms of duration to keep your students happily occupied for as long as necessary.

Classic ESL Games The games in this section have been used in classrooms for so long that they’re often referred to as “classic ESL games”, and many teachers would consider their “box of tricks” incomplete without them. They include Hot Seat , Coffee Pot , Telephone (or Chinese Whispers), Word-O Bingo , and the most classic of them all, Twenty Questions .

Quiz Games Most of us enjoy having our knowledge tested in quiz games, and classroom quiz games are almost always a big hit with learners. In this section you’ll find games in which general knowledge is tested, as well as games in which various aspects of English are tested, such as vocabulary, phrasal verbs, common idioms, and so on. You’ll also find spelling games in which some of the most commonly-misspelled words in English are tested.

Spelling Games Spelling quizzes and spelling bees have long been a part of life for native English-speaking students in schools throughout the English-speaking world, and they’re now becoming part of the TOEFL world as well. The games in this section include spelling quizzes for both teams and individuals, as well as a game based on the traditional spelling bee.

Competitive and Co-operative Games When reading about or discussing the use of games in the classroom, you’ve probably heard particular games referred to as being either “competitive games” or “co-operative games”. The tendency to label games with one or other of these terms seems to have first become widespread in the 1960’s and 1970’s during debates among Western academics on teaching methods and classroom practices. These debates occurred within a broader debate on how Western social institutions such as the family, religious organizations, mass media, schools and universities, etc., were contributing to the socialization of the young. Social critics of the day, most notably Herbert Marcuse in One Dimensional Man (first published in 1964), suggested that these institutions conditioned the young so as to produce a population of docile citizens willing and able to accept their role as diligent producers on the one hand, and enthusiastic consumers on the other, in a modern capitalist society. Other critics, such as Ivan Illich in his 1971 book Deschooling Society , began to examine the role of the classroom, and particular classroom practices, in this process of socialization. Critics argued that in the traditional classroom the Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes : Book 1 © Matt Errey 2013 www.teflgames.com/Matt’s-ESL-Games-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.html

6

teacher was regarded as the sole possessor of knowledge and authority, while students were regarded as passive receptacles for the teacher’s knowledge and approval. This classroom structure was widely criticized at this time, as were many other aspects of the traditional educational system, such as rote learning, exam-based assessment, and the rigid division of knowledge into distinct and separate subjects. Another aspect of traditional education that was widely criticized was the use of competition in the classroom, either as a means of grading students, or as a means of motivating them. It was seen as a reflection of the overly competitive nature of life in modern capitalist societies, and also as a means of preparing the young for life out there in the “dog eat dog world” that awaited them. One often-cited example of the use of competition in the classroom was the practice of having students compete against one another for awards, scholarships, and access to further education. This practice of pitting students against one another was widely criticized as it was seen as encouraging students to regard a classmate’s failure to perform well as boosting their own chances of success in the struggle for the rewards on offer. These radical critiques of the role of competition within the education system led to a tendency among certain academics and writers to regard anything that could be labelled “competitive” as problematic, including games or classroom activities that involved any form of competition. An example of this tendency can be found in a book published in 1986 entitled No Contest: The Case Against Competition by U.S. “independent scholar” Alfie Kohn in which he argued that all competitive games are bad for children, and that a teacher should never inflict the evils of competition upon his or her students. This book was quite influential at the time of its publication, especially in the U.S., and for several years thereafter the view it had put forward was widelyheld among progressive teachers, although the fact that children continued to insist on playing competitive games in the playground, and on the sports field, suggests that students themselves weren’t entirely convinced of the merits of its “anti-competitive” stance. In the succeeding decades, this view has gradually come to be seen by more and more educators as being somewhat extreme, and many have shifted to a more balanced viewpoint. One of the reasons for this shift is the fact that the practice of labelling games as either “competitive” or “co-operative” has itself been challenged. Classifying games in this way is seen by many as being overly simplistic in that it obscures the fact that all games are, by nature, highly co-operative activities, not only the so-called “co-operative games”. For any so-called “competitive game” to work, players must co-operate in a number of ways. They must all behave in ways that accord to the basic premise of the game, they must all agree to obey the rules of the game, and they must all accept the authority of an adjudicator, if there is one, even when they are convinced that he or she has made a mistake. In addition, the fact that many so-called “competitive games”, including many of those described in this book, are team games means that players must closely cooperate with their teammates while playing. As such, playing a competitive game requires a great deal of co-operation, and this fact is only obscured by the use of words like “competitive” and “co-operative” to distinguish different types of games. Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes : Book 1 © Matt Errey 2013 www.teflgames.com/Matt’s-ESL-Games-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.html

7

The development of a more balanced view in relation to the use of competitive games in the classroom meant that both the benefits, on the one hand, and the pitfalls, on the other hand, were acknowledged. The challenge for educators then became one of determining how to enjoy the benefits of competition while at the same time minimizing any potential pitfalls. What educators were looking for has often been characterized as “healthy competition”, as opposed to “unhealthy competition”.

Healthy and Unhealthy Competition While most educators now agree that using competition in the classroom is not necessarily problematic, most would agree that it’s important to distinguish between healthy and unhealthy competition. For most, healthy competition means placing the emphasis on having fun while learning with one’s classmates, rather than on winning at all costs. In order to ensure the emphasis is on fun and learning, teachers shouldn’t offer any special reward to the winner of a game. It doesn’t matter whether the reward is something material like a prize or a medal, something symbolic like the title of “class champion”, or even something more subtle like special affection or approval. Offering any such reward is unhealthy as it can lead to an overemphasis on winning, which in turn can lead to undesirable consequences such as arguments about the rules, accusations of cheating, feelings of shame or failure when losing, feelings of anger and frustration with teammates who make mistakes, and so on. As long as teachers don’t make winning the focus, students can enjoy the fun, excitement and learning opportunities that playing a competitive game can bring. Another problem that is sometimes cited is the possibility that students might feel that losing a game means they’ve “lost face”, or that losing a game could damage a student’s self-esteem, even when winning has not been emphasized by the teacher. While there’s very little evidence to support such a concern, if you feel that it’s a valid consideration in the culture in which you’re teaching, you could consider only using team games rather than games in which students compete as individuals. Doing so should mean that responsibility for losing a game is shared among team members, and individual players might be less likely to feel as if they’ve “lost face”. While some of the games and activities in this book could be labelled “cooperative” or “non-competitive”, the majority involve some degree of competition. This is because the book is, in part, a collection of some of most popular and widely-used ESL games, and most of these are, to some degree, competitive. It is also because many teachers nowadays believe that the benefits of using competitive games outweigh any possible drawbacks, especially when they are used in the spirit of healthy competition outlined above. References: Kohn, A. No Contest: The Case Against Competition Houghton Mifflin, 1986. Revised 1992. Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes : Book 1 © Matt Errey 2013 www.teflgames.com/Matt’s-ESL-Games-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.html

8

Shindler, J. (2009). Examining the Use of Competition in the Classroom. In Transformative Classroom Management. Pub. by Jossey Bass Wiley 2009 Zan, B and Hildebrandt, C (2005). Cooperative and Competitive Games in Constructivist Classrooms. In The Constructivist Fall 2005 Vol. 16, No. 1

Additional Notes and Key to Abbreviations On adapting the games Sometimes teachers come up with their own variations on traditional classroom games, and we encourage you to take the same approach to any of the games included here. If you come up with a variation that works well, and you’d like to share it with other teachers, please let us know and we’ll consider including it, along with an acknowledgement, in any future editions.

On the printable materials Many of the games and activities in this collection come with printable materials such as worksheets, word-lists, card sets, instruction slips, and sets of quiz questions. While these materials are protected by copyright, and cannot be reproduced in any form for sale or further distribution in any form without written permission from their creator, Matt Errey, anyone who buys the book is free to print, photocopy, and use any of these materials for their intended purpose.

How to contact the author If you’d like to get in touch with the author in order to make any comments or suggestions, or to request permission to use copyrighted materials, please feel free to contact Matt Errey at [email protected] He’d love to hear from you!

Key to Abbreviations Elem Lwr Int Int Upr Int Adv

Elementary Lower intermediate Intermediate Upper intermediate Advanced


9

Part 1 : Icebreakers The first time a new class meets many students will feel a little nervous and shy, and one of our first jobs is to help them to relax and feel comfortable. The games and activities in this section have been designed with this in mind. They should help students to “break the ice” by providing a fun, nonthreatening atmosphere in which they can get to know one another and begin to feel relaxed. Most of the games and activities involve some sort of information gap or information exchange that should help your students to learn about one another. They’ll find out about each other’s hobbies and pastimes, likes and dislikes, ambitions and goals, and so on, and by doing so they’ll get to know one another better and feel more comfortable in the class. One of the main reasons we use games and fun activities is to create a relaxed, non-threatening atmosphere, and this is especially important the first few times a new class meets. The sooner students get to know one another and feel comfortable together, the sooner they feel relaxed enough to really concentrate on the material and the tasks at hand. And the sooner they begin to really concentrate, the sooner they begin to learn.


10

The Circle Game Level: All

Class size: up to 12 (more if

Time: 15 - 20 minutes

groups are formed) Preparation: None Focus: Breaking the ice, remembering names, introducing people.

This is a great game to play with a new class. It gives everyone the chance to memorize the names of their new classmates by repeating them over and over again. The instructions below are for a small class, but if you have a large class you can model the activity first with a group of around ten students, and then have the rest of the class form their own groups once they understand how it works. How it Works

Sit in a circle with your students, either in chairs, on cushions, or around a table. Part 1: First round

Start by saying your name: “Hi, I’m Pete. ” Then tell the student to your left to do the same: “Hi, I’m Maria.” and so on around the circle. Part 2: Second round

Say your name again, and then introduce the student to your right: “Hi, I’m Pete, and this is Kim .” Then tell the student to your left to do the same: “Hi, I’m Maria, and this is Pete.” and so on around the circle. Part 3: Third round

Say your name again, then introduce the student to your right, then the next student to his or her right, and so on around the circle: “Hi, I’m Pete, and this is Kim, and this is Tony, and this is Sarah, and this is... .” (Stop after three or four names, and say you can’t remember any more) Then tell the student on your left to do the same: “Hi, I’m Maria, and this is Pete, and this is Kim, and this is Tony, and this is Louise, and this...” When Maria can’t remember someone’s name, her turn is over and the next student to her left has a turn, and so on. The game continues until someone manages to remember all of the names. Once someone has done so, keep the activity going until one or two more students have managed to remember all of the names as well, and then stop. Note: Whatever you do, do not force a particular student to try over and over again until he or she can remember all of the names. Pressuring particular students is one of the worst things you can do in a new class, especially if they are shy or nervous.

*********** Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes : Book 1 © Matt Errey 2013 www.teflgames.com/Matt’s-ESL-Games-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.html

11

Icebreaker Interviews Level: Lwr Int => Adv Class size: Up to 20 students Time: 30 - 60 minutes Preparation: None Focus: Breaking the ice, asking/answering questions, note-taking, learning about

new classmates, public speaking.

This is an excellent icebreaker activity, especially if you have students who are feeling a little shy in their new class. It starts with a group discussion in which students can begin interacting if they feel ready. No-one has to speak at this stage if they don’t want to. Then there’s a pair activity in which students have to speak, but with just one other person, and within a highlystructured format. Then, in the final part, students are encouraged to speak in front of the whole class. The activity is designed to help shy or nervous students to gradually overcome their fears and begin to feel more relaxed. It is also useful in that it allows students to start getting to know one another by asking each other questions in English. How it Works

Have your students form a semi-circle facing the board so that everyone can see everyone else without having to turn around. Part 1: Class brainstorming

Begin the brainstorming activity by asking “What sort of things would you like to know about your new classmates?” If no-one offers any ideas, suggest some yourself to get the ball rolling. If it’s the first class, and students don’t yet know each other’s names, you could say, “How about names? Don’t you want to know everyone’s name?” Then elicit more questions, and write them on the board as you go. Continue until you have a list of 8 to 10 questions, something like this: “What’s your name?” “Where were you born?” “How old are you?” “What’s your favourite hobby?” “What sports do you play?” “Who’s your favourite singer?” “Do you have a boyfriend or girlfriend?” and so on... Part 2: Pair-based interviews

After your class has come up with a list of questions, and they’re written on the board, have your students form pairs. Then tell them to use these questions to interview each other, and to jot down each other’s answers. Continue until all the pairs have finished interviewing each other. Tell any pairs who finish sooner than the others to think of some more questions to ask each other. Note: If there’s an uneven number of students in the class, form one group of three students. Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes : Book 1 © Matt Errey 2013 www.teflgames.com/Matt’s-ESL-Games-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.html

12

Part 3: Introducing partners

Invite a pair of students to stand together in front of the class and take turns introducing each other to their classmates. Tell them they can check their notes for details if they need to, but they shouldn’t just read the notes. They should tell everyone their partner’s name, their place of birth, their age, their hobbies, and so on. When the first pair has finished, ask them to return to their seats and invite another pair to come forward, and so on. Continue until everyone has had a chance to introduce their partner, or until time runs out. Note: For a lower-intermediate class, you might like to model this activity by introducing one of the students yourself. Ask one of your students for their notes and introduce their partner to the class.

***********


13

Classroom Questionnaire Student 1

Questions

Student 2

Student 3

1. What’s your name? 2. When’s your birthday? 3. Where were you born? 4. How many brothers and sisters do you have? 5. What languages can you speak? 6. Do you live alone or with your family, a partner or friends? 7. Do you exercise or play sport? If so, what do you do? 8. Can you play a musical instrument? If so, what? 9. What do you like doing in your free time? 10. What is an important goal you have for the future?

Additional Questions

Name:

Name:

Name:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. (Printable resource for activity on page 16)


14

Coffee Pot Sample Questions Do you coffee pot every day? Have you coffee potted today? Do you coffee pot with your friends? Did you coffee pot when you were young? Will you coffee pot when you are old? Do you ever coffee pot by yourself? Is coffee potting free? Is coffee potting fun? Is coffee potting good for your health? Would you coffee pot more often if you could? Do you need special equipment or clothes to coffee pot? Do most of your friends coffee pot? Does coffee potting feel good? Do you sometimes coffee pot too much? Do you coffee pot at home? Do you coffee pot outside? Do you coffee pot at night?

Sample verbs and phrases Verbs: work / exercise / cook / eat / sing / dance / shop / study / shower / drive / run / swim / meditate / travel Phrases: ride a bicycle / go to a restaurant / clean my teeth / read books / watch movies / watch TV / play computer games / wash clothes / do housework (Printable resource for activity on page 35)


15

Word-O-Bingo List 1: Mixed Words

Level: Elementary Clues

teacher

a person who works in a school

hospital

a place for sick people

bedroom

a room for sleeping

station

a place where trains are caught

kitten

a very young cat

umbrella

a thing you carry when it’s raining

violin

a musical instrument

cinema

a place where movies are shown

doctor

a person who treats sick people

rose

a type of flower

refrigerator

a place for keeping food cold

laundry

a place for washing clothes

kangaroo

an Australian animal

tea

a hot drink

pilot

a person who flies a plane

banana

a yellow fruit

bank

a place for saving money

dentist

a person who fixes teeth

clock

a thing we look at to tell the time

kitchen

a room for cooking food (Printable resource for activity on page 40)


16

Word-O-Bingo Slip 1: Mixed kitten

laundry

cinema

rose

violin

banana

pilot

clock

teacher

kitchen

doctor

hospital

refrigerator

bank

dentist

station

tea

umbrella

kangaroo

bedroom

kitten

laundry

cinema

rose

violin

banana

pilot

clock

teacher

kitchen

doctor

hospital

refrigerator

bank

dentist

station

tea

umbrella

kangaroo

bedroom

kitten

laundry

cinema

rose

violin

banana

pilot

clock

teacher

kitchen

doctor

hospital

refrigerator

bank

dentist

station

tea

umbrella

kangaroo

bedroom

kitten

laundry

cinema

rose

violin

banana

pilot

clock

teacher

kitchen

doctor

hospital

refrigerator

bank

dentist

station

tea

umbrella

kangaroo

bedroom

kitten

laundry

cinema

rose

violin

banana

pilot

clock

teacher

kitchen

doctor

hospital

refrigerator

bank

dentist

station

tea

umbrella

kangaroo

bedroom

kitten

laundry

cinema

rose

violin

banana

pilot

clock

teacher

kitchen

doctor

hospital

refrigerator

bank

dentist

station

tea

umbrella

kangaroo

bedroom

kitten

laundry

cinema

rose

violin

banana

pilot

clock

teacher

kitchen

doctor

hospital

refrigerator

bank

dentist

station

tea

umbrella

kangaroo

bedroom

(Printable resource for activity on page 40)


17

General Knowledge Quiz Show Question Set 1 Science


(Lower Intermediate)

1. How many legs does a spider have? 2. What is H 20? 3. Which travels faster, light or sound? 4. Which planet is called “the red planet”? 5. What force makes things fall down to the ground? 6. Which is lighter in weight, gold or silver? 7. What instrument do scientists use to look at the stars? 8. Which large organ is inside your head? 9. What happens if water is heated for a long time? 10. Which part of a tree is under the ground?

eight water light Mars gravity silver telescope brain (it) boils (the) roots

Geography 1. What is the capital city of Peru? 2. What country is off the southern coast of India? 3. What type of natural disaster can make buildings shake? 4. Which mountain is the tallest in the world? 5. On which continent is the Nile River? 6. Which ocean is the world’s largest? 7. Is the Arctic Circle around the North Pole or the South Pole? 8. How many square miles is an area 10 miles by 10 miles? 9. What do most rivers flow into? 10. Which is the largest country in North America?

Lima Sri Lanka earthquake Everest Africa Pacific the North Pole 100 sq. miles sea/ocean Canada

Sports 1. In which country were the Olympic Games first held? 2. What do football or soccer players try to score? 3. What do tennis players hold while they’re playing? 4. How many holes are played in a round of professional golf? 5. What sport did Michael Jordan play? 6. What sport is played in the FIFA World Cup? 7. What do cricket players hit the ball with? 8. What do boxers wear on their hands? 9. In which country is the Liverpool Football Club located? 10. In which country did judo originate?

Greece goal/goals racquet/racket eighteen basketball soccer/football bat gloves England / U.K. Japan

Music 1. Which country did The Beatles come from? 2. What was Beethoven’s first name? 3. How many strings does a lead guitar usually have? 4. In which year did Michael Jackson die? 5. What nationality is Lady Gaga? 6. Is the trumpet a wind instrument or a brass instrument? 7. Which instrument in a rock band is played with sticks? 8. How many strings does a violin have? 9. On a piano, which hand usually plays the lower bass notes? 10. What does a singer on a stage sing into?

England / U.K. Ludwig six 2009 American brass drums four left hand microphone


18

General Knowledge Team Quiz Question Set 7

(Advanced)

Science 1. Which physicist wrote a paper on special relativity in 1905? 2. What hormone is released when we feel afraid or stressed? 3. What type of mammals are wallabies and kangaroos? 4. Which of the planets in the solar system is the largest? 5. What is the common name for ascorbic acid?

Geography 1. Which African country has the largest total land area? 2. Which large island is to the south of mainland Australia? 3. What layer of the earth is between the crust and the core? 4. Which of the world’s oceans is the deepest? 5. What’s the capital city of Laos?

Sports 1. In which sport can you “hit a six” or “bowl a leg break”? 2. How long is each half of a football or soccer match? 3. What are you doing if you score with an upper cut or a jab? 4. What sport did Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus play? 5. In which sport do players slide stones across a sheet of ice?

Music 1. What nationality was the composer Frédéric Chopin? 2. What type of music did Miles Davis play? 3. What does an orchestra's conductor wave to keep time? 4. Which country does the 13-stringed koto come from? 5. What’s a traditional Indonesian orchestra called? (Printable resource for activity on page 59)


19

Vocab Quiz Question Set 4

(Lower Intermediate)

1. What do we chew food with?

t

2. In which sport can we serve an ace or hit a backhand?

t

3. A flying animal, but not a bird.

b

4. What is poker played with?

c

5. What is food baked or roasted in?

o

6. What do you call the son of your uncle or aunt?

c

7. Which planet has rings?

S

8. Frozen water.

i

9. What are car tyres made of?

r

10. What do we call someone who rides racehorses?

j

11. What is soup served in?

b

12. What do you click when you’re using a desktop computer?

m

Answers: 1 teeth 3 bat 5 oven 7 Saturn 9 rubber 11 bowl

2 golf 4 cards 6 cousin 8 ice 10 jockey 12 mouse



20

Name: __________________

Phrasal Verb Quiz Question Set 4 A

Upper Intermediate

Write the missing word in the space in each sentence. 1. Did you ever _ _ _ away from home when you were a kid?

3 letters

2. She shops _ _ _ _ _ _ to find the best price and save money.

6 letters

3. The teacher told me _ _ _ because I was late.

3 letters

4. Could you _ _ _ _ _ up a bit, please? I can’t hear you.

5 letters

5. We’ve _ _ _ out of milk, so I’m going to get some.

3 letters

6. Can you _ _ _ _ _ of the missing word?

5 letters

7. Governments try to play _ _ _ _ bad economic news.

4 letters

8. Let’s _ _ _ _ the day off work and go to the beach.

4 letters

9. The company will _ _ _ _ off some assets to pay its debts.

4 letters

10. Soldiers have to _ _ _ _ _ out their commander’s orders.

5 letters

Phrasal Verb Quiz Question Set 4 B

Upper Intermediate

Write a synonym for the phrasal verb that begins with the given letter. 1. Do you think these shoes and this bag go together?

m___________

2. I hate it when my cat throws up on the carpet.

v___________

3. Don’t give up. Keep on trying until you can do it!

q___________

4. School kids often pick on boys who look feminine.

b___________

5. My salary is too low, so I’m going to ask for a pay rise.

r___________

6. Can you help me blow up these party balloons?

i___________

7. We’ll have to put the wedding off until early next year.

p___________

8. Liz came into a lot of money when her rich husband died.

i___________

9. You should bring that issue up at the meeting.

r___________

10. The government should cut back on defence spending.

r___________

(Printable resource for activity on page 85 - answers on page 91)


21

Answers to Phrasal Verb Question Sets Set 1A

Set 1B

Set 2A

Set 2B

Set 3A

Set 3B

1.

get

enter

try/put

return

blow

visit

2.

up

visit

back

recover/recuperate

out

discover

3.

out/off

return

out

exercise

throw/chuck

removed

4.

put

start

in

lift

up

cancel

5.

in

watch

get

invent/imagine

pick

keep

6.

take

arrive

out

met

like

drop/decline

7.

out

repay/return

look

rise

in

raised

8.

turn

test

up

begins

away/back

escaped

9.

up

remove

off

choose

pay

return

10.

work

follows

come

died

off

queue

Set 4A

Set 4B

Set 5A

Set 5B

1.

run

match

fell

happening

2.

around

vomits

catch

established

3.

off

quit

on

demolish

4.

speak

bully

rely

suppress

5.

run

request

set

confused

6.

think

inflate

up

extinguish

7.

down

postpone

sit

interrupt

8.

take

inherited

together

occur

9.

sell

raise

tell

eradicate

10.

carry

reduce

get

renovate

The instructions for Phrasal Verbs Quiz are on page 86 The Phrasal Verbs Quiz Question Sets can be found on the following pages: Sets 1A and 1B Sets 2A and 2B Sets 3A and 3B Sets 4A and 4B Sets 5A and 5B

page 87 page 88 page 89 page 90 page 91


22

Graded Word Lists for Spelling Quizzes Elementary to Lower Intermediate solution, because, address, science, bicycle, million, cough, valley, company, island, January, complete, se veral, weight, measure, Wednesday, country, December, restaurant, Saturday, desert, d essert, vegetable, difficult, eighteen, quiet, elephant, chocolate, wonderful, yesterday, exciting, system, temperature, mountain, thought, exercise, picture, expensive, famous, special, forty, answer, friendly, caught, fruit, listen, machine, August, balloon, microphone, triangle, should, trouble, twentieth, understand, nurse, pair, minute, soldier, electricity, square, night, tomorrow, pear, stomach, peace, guess, hospital, suddenly, information, beautiful, instrument, adjective, fifteen, alphabet, dictionary, excellent, different, amazing, interesting, knew, language, piece, weather, possible, enough, president, delicious, quickly, remember, sentence, breakfast, medium, building, opposite, captain, young, circle, shoulder, through, impossible

Intermediate to Upper Intermediate separate, minimum, synthesizer/synthesiser, affect, postpone, autumn, society, business, grammar, calendar, pronunciation, cancel, immediately, comfortable, weird, referred, commission, unusual, experience, committee, reference, community, relevant, concentration, principal, copyright, accident, definitely, successful, description, succeed, equator, February, social, foreign, government, transferred, guilty, headache, whether, height, twelfth, intelligent, laughter, cauliflower, lawyer, signature, library, sincerely, refrigerator, manufacture, therefore, miniature, advise, misspell, o ccasionally, cemetery, occupation, achieve, occur, typical, oxygen, symbolism, paragraph, century, parallel, communicate, pastime, advice, precede, elevator, p rinciple, embarrassed, psychology, queue, receive, European, receipt, b roccoli, recommend, column, responsibility, independent, saxophone, innocent, summary, effect, tongue, uniform, vowel, explanation

Advanced pneumatic, xylophone, fascinating, temporarily, governor, psychiatrist, camouflage, physique, entrepreneur, questionnaire, reciprocal, aisle, rhyme, memento, conscientious, millennium, accomplishment, nanotechnology, discipline, o ccurrence, abbreviation, accent, proceed, cyanide, accidentally, miscellaneous, rhythm, schedule, maintenance, sincerely, consciousness, supersede, gymnasium, hierarchy, personnel, humorous, syllabus, technique, counterfeit, thermodynamics, infrastructure, paradigm, genuine, consonant, permanent, bureaucracy, photosynthesis, grotesque, rhinoceros, privilege, amateur, processed, sympathetic, syllable, Buddhism, cappuccino, guarantee, liaison chromosome, tyrannically, vaccinate, mortgage, accommodation, cynical, achievement, illegible, indispensable, consensus, perseverance, curriculum, psychic, descent, sacrilegious, exhilarated, vacuum, leisure, mischievous, conscience, procedure, minuscule, irresistible, occurrence, ecstasy, inoculate, c hlorophyll, Fahrenheit, souvenir (Special resource for Spelling Games on pages 93 to 97)


23

APPENDIX 1: Printable Card Set Templates Card Set Template 1 (print and then write your own words or phrases)


24

APPENDIX 3

Recommended Books Games for Language Learning

by Andrew Wright, David Betteridge, Michael Buckby Cambridge University Press, First published 1984 One of the earliest widely-available collections of games for learning languages. It arranges the games according format or type rather than language skills or structures, though it does include summaries intended to make it easy to find games that focus on particular structures such as tenses, determiners, etc. or functions such as stating facts, asking questions, etc. Chapters include Picture games, Psychology games, Magic Tricks, Caring and sharing games, Card and board games, Sound games, Story games, Word games, True/false games, Memory games, Question and answer games, Guessing and speculating games and Miscellaneous games. Grammar Games : Cognitive, Affective and Drama Activities for EFL Students

by Mario Rinvolucri Cambridge University Press, 1985 This collection is limited to games that can be used to help learners come to terms with English grammar, with each game focussing on one or more grammatical points. A summary is provided for each, including its level, materials needed, grammar points practised and time needed. The collection contains fifty-six games and activities in five sections; competitive games, collaborative games, awareness activities, grammar through drama, and miscellany. More Grammar Games : Cognitive, Affective and Movement Activities for EFL Students

by Mario Rinvolucri, Paul Davis Cambridge University Press, 1995 A follow-up work by the same author, together with Paul Davis, with more games and activities intended to help learners understand English grammar. Once again each game is introduced with a summary specifying the area of grammar to be practiced, the level aimed at, and the time and materials needed. Five-Minute Activities: A Resource Book of Short Activities

by Penny Ur and Andrew Wright Cambridge University Press, 1992 A collection of around 130 activites, most of which require little or no preparation. While many of the activities actually take more than 5 minutes to use effectively, and many will already be familiar to a lot of ESL teachers, many teachers find this collection quite useful. Matt’s ESL Games and Quizzes : Book 1 © Matt Errey 2013 www.teflgames.com/Matt’s-ESL-Games-and-Quizzes-Ebooks.html

25

Keep Talking: Communicative Fluency Activities for Language Teaching

by Friederike Klippel Cambridge University Press, 1985 Contains over one hundred fluency-building activities, with each activity’s structural or functional focus being clearly defined. They are categorized according to language level, skills practiced, and preparation and time required. The instructions are clear and most activities are fairly east to organise in the classroom. Many teachers have found this a very useful resource for a wide range of levels and class sizes.


26

Games for English Classes

Recommend Documents