Board Game Project

Despite all the technology available in the classrooms (iPads, data show equipment, computer labs, etc…) I still think that drawing, coloring and cutting out are fun. Also, the project below promotes collaboration/ cooperation among students. My Junior students were learning the affirmative, negative and interrogative forms of the verb THERE TO BE. After some significant practice and in order to wrap the lesson up, students were arranged in small groups (3 or 4 tops) and I assigned a different task for each member.

BOARD GAME

MATERIAL NEEDED: Brown paper, magazines, glue, markers, colored pencils and scissors.

FOCUS: Any Grammar Point or Vocabulary Practice.

Student A: Selects and cuts out pictures from the magazines.
Student B: Draws and colors a START/FINISH track on the brown paper.
Student C: Creates the tasks to be performed in the game. (Assisted by the teacher/peers.)
Student D: Pastes the cut outs. (In case the group has three students, student A selects, cuts out and pastes the pictures.)

Possible tasks to be performed when playing the game:

1) Fill in a blank:

(For instance, in one of the squares, you see the picture of a cat on the couch and you read:  Is there a cat on the couch? Yes, ________. Or: ____________a cat on the couch? Yes, there is.)

2) Answer a question:

What is there in the picture?________________________. 
Are there any cars in the picture?__________________________.

3) Ask a question:

__________________________? Yes, there is.
________________________? No, there aren´t.

4) Correct the mistake.

There is three children in the picture.
There is a dog in the picture?

The teacher has to make sure (and students should be told that) that during the entire time that they are performing their tasks, they should discuss every decision they make with their peers and collaborate with each other whenever necessary. After they finish making the game, they play it.

In the end, the teacher can have the board games laminated for future classes.

The Fridge Song

This activity has been designed for a group of children. The grammar focus here was the verb THERE TOBE. 

STEP 1: First, students draw what they have in their fridges. (Teachers can use a data show equipment so they can share their drawings with peers)

STEP 2: Students guess what the teacher has in his/her fridge. The teacher projects a photo of his/her fridge, so students check whether they were right.

STEP 3: Students listen to "THE FRIDGE SONG".


STEP 4: The powerpoint presentation provided for the activity allows students to write their own version of the song, so they are arranged in small groups and work on what food items they will use in it. When they finish, they write their version of the song on the board.

STEP 5: Finally, they share their song with all their peers.

   

Activity - Downloadable


P.S. Steps 1 and 2 are interchangeable.

COOL TIP:

A nice activity to be done in the following day is:

1) Arrange students in two teams.
2) Project the images of the students' fridges' drawings and give them 1 minute to memorize them.
3) Ask them questions using IS THERE ANY...? and ARE THERE ANY...?

Wacky Race

Material needed: A die, sheets in blank, duct tape and colored pencils/markers. 

I do this activity with all levels. I give each team a sheet in blank so they can draw, color and cut out a car. I draw a race track on the board and tape the cars to it. I also draw a couple of bombs on the way. Then, I ask students questions about the lesson learned or show them sentences to be completed or questions about vocabulary. In other words, any task related to the content. Students take turns performing the task proposed. If the team is right, they roll a die and move their car. If they stop at the bomb, they go back to the starting point. The winner is the car that reaches the finish line first. Once the game is over, I collect the cars but I do not throw them away. I tape them to the wall, so I can use them again in the future.

Once the game is over, I collect the cars but I do not throw them away. I tape them to the wall, so I can use them again in a future activity.