Sunday, February 27, 2011

Activity 10- Bigger, Better Bingo

                                                            picture credits: millwardbrown.com

How about practicing the comparative form and playing bingo at the same time? This bingo game requires a lot of strategy and creativity!

Grammar Point: The Comparative Form
Level: Basic
Skill: Writing
Materials needed: bingo grid and bingo cards

Instructions:

Each student gets a copy of the board. The teacher draws a card and reads the word. The students look at their boards and choose a square with a word that can be compared to the word that was read. Each student writes a sentence in that square that compares the two objects. For example, the teacher reads, “a diamond ring”. One student might write, “My diamond ring is more expensive than my bicycle.” Another student might write, “My diamond ring is more elegant than my watch.” Any correct and logical sentence can be used to mark the square. When a student has written sentences in 4 squares in a row (horizontally, diagonally or vertically),he or she should call out “BINGO!” The student reads sentences and teacher verifies if they are logical and correct. Students who strategize will get "Bingo" first.



Source:  The Great Big Bingo Book. Nina Ito and Anne Berry. Pro Lingua Associates, 2001.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Activity 9- Words in Words

                                                         picture credits: konversasdekafe.blogspot.com


This is a very simple activity that works with general English vocabulary. It`s a great trick under your sleeve when you have some time left before you dismiss your students.

 Level: all
Skill: writing
Material needed: none

Instructions:

Write a large word or phrase on the board. Divide class into teams of 3. Give them 2 minutes to come up with as many words as possible by using the letters on the board. When time is up, one leader from each team says the team's words. Each team gets 1 point for each word they write.Suggestions of words that can be used:  communication, international, strawberry, catastrophic, accidentally, experience, independent, pronunciation.

* Tip: If you want to make the game more challenging, you may not allow them to duplicate letters. And if you want to add a more competitive score to it, give the team 1 point for each letter used in a word.

Source: adapted from http://www.teachenglishinasia.net

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Activity 8- Go, Went, Gone Bingo

                                          picture credits: submarino.com.br

 How about playing bingo, but in a different way? In this game students review and work with the past participle form of verbs.


Level: basic and intermediate
Skill: writing
Materials needed: bingo grids and bingo cards (downloadable)

Instructions:

Each student gets a copy of the board. The teacher draws a card and reads the verb in the base form and in the simple past.  The students may write the past participle form in any square that already has the first letter of the answer. When a student has written a participle in five squares in a row (horizontally, diagonally or vertically),he or she should call out “BINGO!” To confirm the win, the student tells the class which five they have in a row and spells the words out loud while the teacher verifies that these are correct and spelled correctly.

To download the bingo grid:


To download the bingo cards:
 

Source:  The Great Big Bingo Book. Nina Ito and Anne Berry. Pro Lingua Associates, 2001.