Teaching
vocabulary is clearly more than just presenting new words. It also includes a
decision that words should teach the basic of how frequent they are used by
speaker of the language. However, learning English vocabulary using games has
an importance role for elementary teachers and students. The first, as
students, they have strong and goodmotivation to deepen English language. The
second, they are easy to accept theEnglish language because they learn by
playing games that nowadays has been grownand developed in Indonesia. The
third, teaching English vocabulary using games canhelp teacher in teaching
learning process. Finally, they (teacher and students) canteach and learn
English vocabulary using games.
TIPS for teaching Vocabulary:
1.
Synonyms: These can be effective since they build on words and phrases that
students already recognize. Adjectives often have several symptoms, and phrasal
verbs will usually have a non-phrasal verb equivalent. Use caution that you do
imply that all the words have exactly the same meaning, since different words
often are used for different connotations or to imply different meanings.
2.
Antonyms: Like synonyms, antonyms build on words or phrases that students
already know. At lower levels, you can use words like rich and poor. However,
this does not work for all advanced vocabulary lessons, since rich actually has
more meanings than "having a lot of money." For older students,
prefixes and suffixes are also helpful.
3. Drawing:
For visual students, drawing can be a fun medium to explain vocabulary. You do
not have to be a perfect artist - stick figures and basic sketches will often
work well. You can even have students do their own drawings, which further
reinforces their understanding of the vocabulary.
P1. Drawing.
4.
Rankings: If you have several gradable words to introduce at the same, you can
introduce them together on a scale. For instance, you can use frequency, such
as always-often-occasionally. Or you can do emotions in this way, with
cheerful-happy-joyous-ecstatic.
5.
Cuisenaire Rods: This is another tactic to help visual students. You can use
different colored rods to symbolize different types of words, such as
prepositions, verbs, or adjectives.
6.
Pictures: Some words work well with pictures, particularly nouns. This can also
be a good way to introduce blocks of related words, which is often utilized in
foreign language classes, such as nouns and verbs related to the classroom or
the house. Pictures can also be used in printable worksheets and flashcards,
where pictures are matched to the word they represent.
7. Mime:
Miming works well with younger students. You can mime out emotions and everyday
activities to teach new words.
8. Sound:
Sound can be an easy way to illustrate words that describe sounds, such as
whistle, scratching, and tinkling. You can make the sounds yourself, or bring
in tapes or CDs for students to listen to and write down the words that they
hear.
9. Total
physical response: This works well with young students or students studying a
foreign language to help introduce them to new concepts. After explaining new
vocabulary, you can then ask the students to perform the actions. This can work
with simple words like blink or sneak, or more complex ones like eat a sandwich
or read a book.
10.
Reality: When it is convenient, bringing in the actual item can help students
remember the word better and allows for a hands-on experience. You can also use
this to introduce step-by-step concepts, like how to play a card game or run a
computer program.
Games for teaching Vocabulary
1.
Taboo
Divide the
class into Teams A and B. Team A sits in a group on one side of the classroom,
Team B sits on the other side. Bring two chairs to the front of the room so
that when seated, a student is facing his or her respective team and their back
is to the blackboard or white board. One member from each team sits in their
team's chair. The teacher writes a word, phrase, or sentence on the board. The
students in the chairs mustn't see what's written on the board. Once the
teacher yells 'go', the teams have one minute, using only verbal clues, to get
their seated teammate to say the item written on the board. The only rule (or
taboo) is that they MUSTN'T say the item written on the board, in full or part.
The first student in the hot seat to utter the word scores a point for their
team. 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.
Variation:
To ensure a slightly quieter and less chaotic game, the teams can take it in
turns. Rather than two students in the hot seat, only one member from each team
plays at a time. The teacher as usual scribbles a word on the board and gives
the team one minute to get their teammate to say the item. If the hot-seated
player manages to say the word, the teacher quickly writes another item on the
board and so on until the minute is up. The team scores a point for every item
they manage to say within one minute.
V1. Taboo.
2. Memory Challenge
Put the
students into pairs or small groups. Give them a time limit (e.g. 3 minutes)
and ask them to write down as many words, phrases, and/or expressions as they
can from the last lesson on topic X. The pair or group that can remember the
most items wins.
Variation:
To add a spelling accuracy component, teams can also earn an extra point for
each correctly spelt item.
3. Last One Standing
Give the
class a topic (e.g. food, clothes, animals, things in a kitchen) and ask them
to stand up, in a circle if possible. Clap out a beat and say, one, two, three,
followed by a topic-related word. After the next three beats, the next student
in the circle gives 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.
4. Pictionary
Divide the
class into Teams A and B. Team A sits in a group on one side of the classroom,
Team B sits on the other side. One member from each team goes to the board. The
teacher flashes them a word, phrase, or expression written on a piece of paper.
The students have one minute to get their respective team to say the item only
by drawing pictorial clues on the board. Written words, verbal clues, or
gestures are forbidden. The first team to say the word scores a point.
Variation:
The teams review their notes from prior lessons, and collectively come up with
a list of items the other team will have to draw.
P2. Pictionary.
5. 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 (bits of paper from a hat, for example)
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.
P3. Bingo.
6. Outburst
Divide the
class into Teams A and B. The teacher assigns each team a particular topic
(e.g. sports, vehicles, things in an office) which is to be kept secret from
the other team. Each team meets for 5 minutes in private and collectively draws
up a list of ten items related to the topic. After the lists are made, the game
begins. The teacher tells Team A the name of Team B's topic. Team A then has
one minute to try to guess the items on Team B's list (hence producing a noisy
outburst). The members of Team B must listen and tick the items which Team A
manages to guess. For every word Team A guesses correctly, they score a point.
For every word they miss, Team B gets a point. After the points are recorded,
it's Team B turn to guess Team A's list. Additional rounds can be played with
different topics assigned by the teacher. The first team to score X number of
points wins.
7.
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. Students 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.
Variation:
Rather than using word + definition/picture cards, students can match the first
and second half of common phrases, expressions, idioms or other multi-word
lexical items; e.g. "have" on one card, "a good time" on
the other card.
8. Scrambled Letters
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. Tip: Don't make them too difficult.
Variation:
Phrases, expressions, and idioms larger than 2 words can also be used (e.g.
"you're having when time flies fun" for "time flies when you're
having fun".)
9. Q & A
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. Each student takes each word from
their list and contextualizes it into a coherent question. Ideally, the
question should demonstrate some understanding of the word (e.g. Is your family
very hospitable?, NOT What does hospitable mean?). If students need help, they
can consult the teacher, their notes, or their textbook. 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. In their answer, they need to use the same word
that is underlined in the question. After the answers are written, the papers
are exchanged again and read by the original student.
example:
Student A's
question: Are there any skyscrapers in
New York City?
Student B's
answer: Yes, New York City has
several skyscrapers.
10. Categories
Divide the
class into 3 or 4 teams and assign a secretary for each group. On one side of
the board, write down six categories related to the current topic or syllabus
of your course (e.g. countries, sports, jobs, movies, furniture, verbs, things
that are round). To start the game, the teacher randomly selects a letter of
the alphabet and scribbles it onto the board. Each team must then work together
to quickly find a word for each of the six categories that starts with the
chosen letter. 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. If the
quickest team has filled in each category correctly, they earn one point 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.
As you can see, you have a lot of options in order to create a good environment in class. Games gives you the chance of have a great moment with your students.
