Proof that language games really do get students talking

Hello my dear enthusiastic teachers,

The Proof is in the Pudding!
Language games really do get your students talking, even the shy ones.

Rewards really do come to teachers who make the effort to teach in a way that appeals to their students, and not in a way that anaesthetizes them!!

Today I received an email which I like immensely because:

1. The teacher is using my free games rather than letting them sit in her inbox.

2. She immediately had good results

3. Suddenly all her students who were reluctant to speak were calling out sentences in English

4. And she added her own innovative and amusing twist to the game which I will share with you now.

This email is about the Blanket Game, which is the first free one in my series.
This teacher immediately used it and found it got her students talking enthusiastically right away.

Check out her short story here. There are mistakes in the English but I preferred to leave the email in it's original form so you can see that it is really genuine.

Dear Shelly,
>
> Thank you for your free games. I have tried your game and it's fun, both
> for me and the students. I'm teaching English to students aged 10 to
> 13. But here in Thailand our language is nothing
> similar to yours. So even the kids are big kids but they still don't want
> to speak.

> As soon as I tried your blanket game, 5 out of 6 kids are happy
> shouting "What are you doing? What are you cooking?" (I have some cheap
> plastic toys for them to pretend cooking behind the blanket.) Of course,
> I sat among them and joined in the game and left the two chairs do the job
> of holding the blanket.

> We have cooked roasted lemon, boiled french fries,
> baked garlic, donut soup and many more funny food. Except only one
> thirteen-year-old girl that still kept quiet most of the time - perhaps
> she's not that thrilled like younger kids.
>
> I have used tricks and rewards and everything I could think of since I
> started some years ago. I believe it's the same technique (make them fun
> and love English) but your games safe me a lot of time preparing."

Putting on a little English language show

Putting on a show to parents and to the school assembly every term is really great thing to do to demonstrate what you have all been up to in class time. It motivates children during lessons and is a really fun and satisfying thing to do. If you can have someone film the show for you you can even give a copy to the children at the end. If you are teaching small groups privately this is ideal and it helps your teaching business grow as well as enhances your lessons. Parents like to see what is going on too and children love to show off so everyone wins.

Ideally you want to put on a show every term but don't panic, it doesn't have to be Broadway! A few songs, some English language games in action and perhaps a short play if you have a small group are all it takes.

If your children enjoy songs have them perform a couple of songs in English with actions. You have the children play some language games so parents can see them responding to listening games and hear them speaking. And you can also have the children act out a story while you read it. Children can also be given some lines in the story where these are simple, such as counting or naming the colours, or saying a line if it is the same each time. Then if you have a small group you can do mini-role plays, but this does not work with a large class or there is too much sitting around for everyone. A twenty minute "English" show is enough with 5 minutes beforehand for parents to arrive and sit down, and 5 minutes at the end.

If it is the first show the children may be dumb struck with nerves, daft as it seems! Therefore start the show off easily with some listening games where the children show they understand words and sentences you have taught followed by a song with actions every one sings together. Many songs have far too many words so you can always do verse 1, chorus and verse 1 again. You can also simplify the words by repeating lines 1 and 2 as lines 3 and 4, if that fits OK. Now the children are warmed up you can do some speaking games and finally any role plays and plays.

Enjoy!
Shelley

PS Wonderful ideas for preschool games and stories!

Welcome to Teaching English Games Blog

Hello there,

Thank you very much for coming to this blog on teaching English games. I hope you enjoy the teaching tips you read here and that they give you renewed enthusiasm for being a teacher. If you are new to teaching English the fun games and tips are sure to be a big help.

I created this blog because I have seen just how badly English as a second language is taught. Children come out of YEARS of ESL lessons and cannot say a WORD! Apart perhaps from "Hello." and "My name is Shelley." This is so ridiculous but many teachers are doing their best with the resources that they have and yet these are not working effectively.

There are so many reasons why using games in class help ESL students learn better there is not room to list them all here right now, but think about these for starters:

ESL Games give a meaningful context to the language

Speaking games allow students to practise what they are learning

ESL Games tap into all the different learning styles which aids retention

English Games allow for language to be drilled in fun ways

ESL Games can diffuse tension between students

They can be used to usefully fill a gap if you finish a class early

ESL Games are ideal to usefully use the time if not all of your students have arrived to class yet

English Games are very effective for learning large amounts of vocabulary quickly

ESL Games are fantastic for revising vocabulary and grammar effectively

Language Games make students appreciate you more and feel closer to you

A good selection of games cuts your prep time right down

So stay tuned by signing up to receive my posts and bring more joy to your ESL or EFL classroom, whether you are teaching preschool children, primary age or adults, because as a teacher you can make such a difference in the world if you go about teaching the right way.

Visit also the full website on teaching english games