All is well that ends well: Developing Vocabulary through Games

Favorite Cartoons:

Cartoons are the most viewed and enjoyable for the children. Hence we shall teach vocabulary through it we shall ask for the favorite cartoons and we shall make them to explain the various activities of the cartoon. There are number of cartoon characters available such as “Tom and Jerry”,”Dora the explorer”.

When the class was enjoying they never forget the words/phrases so easily. Hence one of the ways to teach vocabulary is through cartoons with cartoon mask.

Imaginary Boundaries:

The teacher or a student can draw imaginary boundaries of their own may be an object, living being or an action verb. Everyone who got their answers should write in their note books and never shout. Then we shall ask for the names of the words they have written and work towards the verbs and they can draw a story of their own and we get to know more words and when they are asked to construct a story we just develop the creativity.

“If we hear we forget

We see we remember

We do we never forget”

Nine Box Grids

We use this simple game, to learn English. It’s a way of collecting nine words into a block

Then, we give students mini-whiteboards (sometimes they play with a partner and sometimes individually), markers, and erasers/cloths (if you haven’t invested in a class set of mini-whiteboards, we’d strongly advise you do so - either buying them from a store or making your own – search “make mini-whiteboards” online for instructions).

Next, we take out two huge foam dice we bought online for a few dollars. One student rolls the dice and then everyone gets one minute to write a sentence on their board using the chosen word or writing a word using the letter. If they roll an eleven or twelve, they must use their choice of two words or letters on the grid. Students are told to hold up their boards at the end of a minute and the teacher gives some quick feedback.

Then, another student rolls the dice and the game continues. Unlike some of our other games, we don’t keep score in this one and students enjoy it just the same.

After a few turns, we’ll ask the rollers of the dice to change a word or letter on the grid. This move promotes more student engagement and ownership (though it can get a bit loud each time the dice roller is lobbied by the rest of the class when they are at the board!).

It’s important that a lesson reaches a conclusion. I personally like to use the last five minutes or so to tie up any loose ends, set any homework and play a game. However, for me, one of the most important things that learners can do at the end of the lesson is reflect on what they have learnt and their own contribution to the lesson.