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Here's how it works: connect two well-known ESL games to make a single, game that's more effective!
1 Play Hangman and Twenty Questions at the same time. Choose a word, which must be
a concrete noun, and write a blank for each letter on the board. Divide the class into two teams. Team A play Hangman,
thye guess the letters of the word, team B play Twenty Questions, they ask yes/no questions. Teams take
it in turns, so teacher alternately write letters and answers questions.
Benefit: Students work on spelling and meaning at the same time.
2 The Shopping List game and Word Chain.
In the Shopping List game, one student starts: I went shopping and I bought (an apple).
The next student repeats this and adds an item, and so on round the group.
In Word Chain, one student says a word and the next says a word which starts with the last letter of the
word, eg, house, egg, goat, tree, exercise bike, elephant, tank and so on.
Put the two together, and the words in the list are joined in a chain.
Benefit: This makes the list easier to remember, since each word contains a clue to the next word,
eg I bought a horse, egg, gun, newspaper, radio, orange, eraser, rat etc.
3. Play Simon Says based on spelling.
This is not really two games but a variation of Simon Says. Each instruction has a 'sh' sound. However,
students should only perform the action if the instruction contains the letters sh. If the sound is represented
by other letters (eg station, where ti is the sh sound or the ss in tissue),
or the sound is ch, as in chat, they should not do it. If they do it, they are out, as in the
orginal game.
Instructions:
With sh:
Shut your book/ show me your book/shout/ look at your shoes/ push your hands together/ draw a ship/ imitate
a fish/ touch your shirt/sharpen your pencil/ wash your hands/ shine your shoes/ touch your shin/ spell ship
Without sh:
open your dictionary/ stand to attention/ say 'I'm sure'/ say church/ do swimming
action/ stand on your chair/ look at the television/ chat to your friend/ draw the ocean/ pick up a tissue/
write an examination answer/ touch your chin/ spell explanation
Benefits: Students have to relate sound to spelling and distinguish between ch and sh
Comment
Mix up the two types of instruction and give instructions quickly to catch students out!
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