Ten good games for recycling vocabulary
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The document describes 10 vocabulary games that teachers can use to help students review and reinforce new vocabulary words in an engaging way. The games include Taboo, Memory Challenge, Last One Standing, Pictionary, Bingo, Outburst, Concentration, Scrambled Letters, Questions & Answers, and Categories. Most of the games involve dividing students into teams to compete against each other to recall or identify vocabulary words from a lesson in a timed activity. The games aim to stimulate long-term memory retention of new words through repetition and retrieval practice in a fun, motivating context.
Ten good games for recycling vocabulary
- 1. Ten Good Games for Recycling Vocabulary Written by Mark Koprowski Retrieved from the Internet TESL Journal on 13th February 2015
- 2. Principle of Expanding Rehearsal • This idea suggests that learners review new words shortly after they are presented, and then at increasingly longer intervals.
- 3. To stimulate long term memory 5-10 minutes after class, 24 hours later one week later one month later six months later
- 4. To stimulate long term memory • Creating regular opportunities in their learning program • Encourage students to make form- meaning connections of new vocabulary items. • Both repetition and retrieval practice of new items are key.
- 5. How to achieve? • By organizing fun, competitive, and motivating vocabulary games and activities.
- 6. Vocabulary Games Summarized by: Asmah Hanim Che Ani SISC+ JPN Perlis
- 7. Taboo (aka Hot Seat) • Divide the class into Teams A and B. then....
- 8. Taboo (aka Hot Seat) Step 1 • One member from each team sits in their team's chair. • The teacher writes a word, phrase, or sentence on the board (choose one) Step 2 • The game start with the teams having one minute, using only verbal clues, to get their seated teammate to say the item written on the board. • The first student in the hot seat to utter the word scores a point for their team. Step 3 • When the round is over, two new team players are rotated into the hot seat and a new item is written up. • The first team to score X number of points wins.
- 9. Memory Challenge Put the students into pairs or small groups. The pair or group that can remember the most items wins. In 3 minutes, ask the pupils to write down as many words, phrases as they can from the last lesson on topic X.
- 10. Last One Standing Give the class a topic In circle, the first pupils will clap out a beat and say, one, two, three, followed by a topic-related word. Next pupil in the circle will give a word related to the topic, and so it continues. Anyone who can't think of a word or repeats a word already said has to sit down and it's the next person's turn. The winner is the last one standing.
- 11. Pictionary • Divide the class into Teams A and B. then....
- 12. Pictionary One member from each team goes to the board. The teacher flashes them a word/phrase/ /expression written on a piece of paper. In one minute the group rep will draw the item on the board. The rest of the group members will guess the word/phrase/ expression. Written words, verbal clues, or gestures are forbidden.
- 13. BINGO The teacher writes up 10 words, phrases and/or expressions on the board. Each student chooses any 5 of the items from the board and writes them down. The teacher then selects one of the items at random and offers a brief definition or synonym of the item but does not say the word itself. If a student thinks they have the word the teacher described, they tick it. When a student ticks all of their words, they shout BINGO!! The first student to shout BINGO wins the round. Additional rounds can be played with different sets of words.
- 14. Outburst • Divide the class into Teams A and B. then....
- 15. OutburstStep1 Each team will be assigned a particular topic (which is to be kept secret from the other team). Step2Each team will brainstorm word list based on the topic for 5 minutes. Step3 The topic for each team will be revealed and the other team needs to guess the word list of the other team. Step4 The correct word guessed will be awarded marks and wrong guess will be marks for the other team.
- 16. Concentration • Divide the class into small groups. • Each group is given a set of cards which are spread out on the table face-down. The sets are made up of two kinds of cards: word cards + definition/picture cards.
- 17. Concentration Pupils in turn pick up a card, turn it over, and try matching it to its corresponding card. If there's no match, the cards are returned to their original place on the table and play passes to the next student. If a match is made, the student keeps the pair and tries to make another match. Once all the cards are matched, the winner is the player who has matched the most number of cards.
- 18. Scrambled Letters Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 • Write up eight words with their letters shuffled (e.g. eicscen for science) on the board. • When the teacher says 'go', the students, individually or in pairs, endeavor to untangle the words as quickly as they can. • The first student or pair, to do so wins. • The teacher can then quickly run through each of the scrambled letter groups on the board, eliciting information about each word or concept
- 19. Q & A Step 1 • Write up two separate word lists on the board; an A list and a B list. • Assign half the class the A list and the other half list B. Step 2 • Each student takes each word from their list and contextualizes it into a coherent question. Step 3 • When the students have finished writing their questions, As and Bs pair up and exchange their list of questions. • The students read each question and write an answer to the question on the same piece of paper. Step 4 • In their answer, they need to use the same word that is underlined in the question. • E.g. A: Are there any skyscrapers in Kuala Lumpur ? B: Yes, Kuala Lumpur has several skyscrapers.
- 20. Categories (aka The Alphabet Game) • Divide the class into 3 or 4 teams and assign a secretary for each group. Then…
- 21. Categories (aka The Alphabet Game) Writes category • Teacher writes six categories related to the current topic or syllabus. Select a letter • Teacher randomly selects a letter of the alphabet and scribbles it onto the board. • Each team must work together to find a word for each of the six categories that starts with the chosen letter. Checking the work • The first team to complete all six categories shouts "stop!" • The class then stops writing, and a member of the team goes to the board to fill in the categories. • The teacher then checks each word with the class and also elicits what other teams had for each category. Scoring • If the quickest team has filled in each category correctly, they earn points for their team. • The teacher then chooses a different letter and another round is played. • The first team to score X number of points wins.