Category Archives: ESL-Drama- games

0

Teaching colors with 2 year olds

|

Coloured buttons

You can use anything “multi coloured” you like for this game – maxi buttons, bean bags,  crayons, coloured balls, coloured pom poms. (needless to say choose age appropriate and hazardous free objects). Have containers available to match each colour pom pom you have. Sit on the floor and pour out the coloured pom pom and invite your child to pick up all the “red pom poms” he/she can find and put them in the appropriate containers. Then pick up all the “green” pom poms and put also those in the appropriate container. Make sure that you continue to repeat “where’s the green button” “Fantastic , you found a green button” as your child puts them in the correct container  count them out together in English.

You can then evolve the game by having a pretend tea party and give your child a handful of buttons to share with some pretend friends or a favourite teddy – ‘a green one for you, a yellow one for me, a purple one for teddy”. Children love play acting and serving pretend food and this simple game give lots of number and colour recognition practice.

For some more toddler games to develop check out  http://www.babycentre.co.uk/toddler/development/stimulating/gamestwoyearold/

 

 

 

Advertisement
2

Play Parachute

|

I’ve just bought this fantastic play parachute. I bought a 3 m one as I think it’s really big enough for small children. Ideal for doing circle activities and songs with children from ages 2-6. I’ll be posting some parachute games shortly.

Children tend to get very excited as soon as they see the parachute and want to jump on it, wriggle under it, pull it, stretch it  and everything else imaginable. Once they start it’s very difficult to regain any classroom control so one initial sanity saver tip I would like to share with you before you  bring out the parachute in class,  is to practice the “HOLD and DROP” rule . “HOLD” get the children to hold hands. “DROP” – encourage the children to immediately drop their hands and wiggle their hands and fingers in front of their bodies. Practice these movements a few times and only subsequently  introduce the parachute. “HOLD” –  everyone holds onto the parachute. “DROP” –  everyone drops it instantly.  This enables the teacher to put away the parachute at the end of each activitiy with the children acting calmly.

2

Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?

|

I have been working with SUPER SIMPLE SONGS for the last 6 months with my classes ages 4-7 with amazing results. The traditional Anglo-Saxon songs and nursery rhymes have all been re-written in a SUPER SIMPLE WAY and jazzed up especially for Esl learners. They are simple to learn and simple to teach and my young children adore them and remember them instantly. On their website, Devon and his team also give some creative suggestions on how to introduce the song and vocabulary and some role playing games.

Although most of the songs are for younger children, during my recent English Drama Summer Camp my 7-10 year olds really enjoyed “Who Stole the Cookie from the Cookie Jar”. I personally found it better doing the song without the cd as you can go at your own pace and make the song last for however long you desire. I did however take on Devon’s teaching tips. Take a look at the video for inspiration and try it out, a cardboard cookie is a real must!! 🙂

 

Here are SUPER SIMPLE SONGS suggestions:

Language focus: Question and answer intonation. “Who me?” “Who?” Practicing English rhythm.

Classroom benefits: The question and answer patterns learned in Who Took the Cookie are great for a variety of classroom situations. After students have learned the “Who…..? question pattern from the song, it can easily be used to ask classroom questions like, “Who has a pencil?” “Who needs crayons?” “Who took my eraser?” etc. Who Took the Cookie is also another great song for practicing English rhythm and intonation.

Preparation: Have the children sit in a circle. Show them a cookie jar or a picture of a cookie jar and say, “Yummy…cookies! I’m going to have a cookie!” Look inside the cookie jar and then say, “Oh no! No more cookies! Who took the cookie from the cookie jar? Pedro? Did you take the cookie? Rina? Did you take the cookie? Who took the cookie?” Even children with very little English ability will understand this conversation when demonstrated this way.

Next, have everyone make a beat by patting their laps then clapping their hands (pat, clap, pat, clap, pat, clap, pat, clap). Don’t go too fast! Set a slow pace at first. As you pat and clap your hands, do the following chant (with the teacher demonstrating first):

All: Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?

Leader: Pedro (student’s name) took the cookie from the cookie jar!

Pedro: Who, me?

All: Yes, you!

Pedro: Not me!

All: Then who?

Pedro: Rina!

All: Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
Rina took the cookie from the cookie jar!

Rina: Who me?

All: Yes, you!

Rina: Not me!

All: Then who?

Rina: Isabella!

All: Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
Isabella took the cookie from the cookie jar?

Isabella: Who me?

All: Yes you!

Isabella: Not me!

All: Then who?

(Repeat, naming all of the students in the class or in your group. If you are doing it at home, name all the members of the family.)

With older kids, you may want to introduce an element of competition. Try to keep the beat steady and if a child can’t think of another student’s name and stay on the beat, they are “out.” For example:

All: Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
Pedro took the cookie from the cookie jar.

Pedro: Who me?

All: Yes you!

Pedro: Not me!

All: Then who?

Pedro: Umm… Umm… Umm…

Leader: Time’s up!

Make a rule that you can’t repeat a name, so if you go through all of the names and nobody is left, the last student will be “out.” To make it even more challenging and to speed up the game, speed up the beat!

You can also play this game with a pretend cookie (simply cut a circle out of a brown cardboard box and draw chocolate chips on it with a black marker). Have all of the children (seated in a circle) close their eyes. Walk around the circle and place a “cookie” under one of the children so that none of the other children can see it (tap that child on the shoulder so she knows she has the cookie). Tell all of the children to open their eyes. Everyone can look at each other to try and guess who has the cookie. Start the chant once more:

All: Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?

Leader: Pedro (student’s name) took the cookie from the cookie jar!

Pedro: Who, me?

All: Yes, you!

Pedro: Not me!

All: Then who?

Pedro: Rina!

All: Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
Rina took the cookie from the cookie jar!

Rina: Who me?

All: Yes, you!

Rina: (Takes the cookie out from under her) Okay, okay…I took the cookie (or a simple “yes” will do).

You can sing the song from the CD before and/or after playing the game to help the kids remember the words and the rhythm. The names used in the song are Tanja, Troy, Knocky (the Knock Knock English mascot), and Devon. You can assign those names to some of the students in the class. Or you can play the CD as you play the game, and just substitute the names of students.

Lyrics and actions:

(Create a beat with everyone patting their legs and clapping their hands. Pat, clap, pat, clap, pat, clap.)

Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
[Tanja] took the cookie from the cookie jar.
Who me? (Student points to herself.)
Yes you! (Students nod their heads “yes” and point at the student.)
Not me! (Student shakes her head “no”.)
Then who? (Everyone shrugs their shoulders.)

Troy! ([Tanja] points at [Troy].)

(Make a rhythm with everyone patting their legs and clapping their hands to the beat. Pat, clap, pat, clap, pat, clap.)

Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
[Troy] took the cookie from the cookie jar.
Who me? (Student points to himself.)
Yes you! (Students nod their heads “yes” and point at the student.)
Not me! (Student shakes his head “no”.)
Then who? (Everyone shrugs their shoulders.)

Knocky! ([Troy] points at [Knocky].)

(Make a rhythm with everyone patting their legs and clapping their hands to the beat. Pat, clap, pat, clap, pat, clap.)

Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
[Knocky] took the cookie from the cookie jar.
Who me? (Student points to herself.)
Yes you! (Students nod their heads “yes” and point at the student.)
Not me! (Student shakes her head “no”.)
Then who? (Everyone shrugs their shoulders.)

Devon! ([Knocky] points at [Devon].)

(Make a rhythm with everyone patting their legs and clapping their hands to the beat. Pat, clap, pat, clap, pat, clap.)

Who took the cookie from the cookie jar?
[Devon] took the cookie from the cookie jar.
Who me? (Student points to himself.)
Yes you! (Students nod their heads “yes”.)

Okay, okay…I took the cookie!

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Variation

Print and play with the mini-cards below. These cards allow you to play “Who Took the Cookie?” with as few as two people or as many as you have in your class. Also, when you play with these cards, nobody knows who has the cookie…even the student who has it! (When you play the regular version of “Who Took the Cookie?” younger students may have trouble keeping it a secret that they have the cookie.)

First, print the “Who Took the Cookie?” cards (and laminate them if possible).

With two players, shuffle the cards and deal four cards to each player. Each player, without looking at the cards, puts the four cards in a row in front of them. Chant the “Who Took the Cookie?” chant. When it’s someone’s turn to answer if they have the cookie or not, they turn one card over to check, and then answer.

Continue back and forth until one of the players turns over the cookie card. Each time a student turns over a card, the suspense builds. Children will want to play this game again and again, so it really gives them great practice! For variation, print two or three cards so that when one cookie card is turned over, the game continues!

For more than 2 people or a larger class, print several sets of the “Who Took the Cookie?” cards (and laminate them if possible). You can deal one card to each student, or several cards to each student. The more cards each student has, the longer the game will continue. For larger groups, print several “cookie” cards so that the game continues even after one of the cookies is found.

With very large classes, print several sets of the cards (black and white will work just fine), and have the students play in groups of five or six.

Many thanks to a good friend in Germany for this great idea!

Suggestion

Young children really enjoy the rhythm of this song so try playing it in the background during other activities and they’ll be singing it in no time.

2

Zip Zap!

|

Zip Zap!

A great “name game” for older children 7+ . Lively and fast paced. Children love this one.

Level: beginner

Age group: Ages 7+ to adult

Time: 10 mins

Aims: To practice “what’s your name?” and to introduce pronouns “His name is” and “Her name is”

  1. Players sit on chairs in a large circle.
  2. You the teacher walk round the outside of the circle and put your hand on each child’s head indicating if they are “His” or “Her” and repeating their name. E.g His name is Luca. Her name is Sofia etc.
  3. You then stand in the middle of the circle and point to a child and say either Zip or Zap! When you say zip the child indicated introduces the child to his left and says “Her name is lisa.” When you say zap the child introduces the name of the child to his right and says “His name is Marco.”
  4. Keep the pace fast after a while shout out zip zap! On ZIP- ZAP all the children stand up and run and find another available chair . Before repeating the game ,if the children do not know each others names well allow them time to ask their neighbors “What’s your name?” Then play zip or zap again.
  5. This time when you shout out zip-zap run and take the place of a child. This leaves one child without a chair. He or she takes over your role by pointing and saying Zip! Zap! Or Zip-Zap!

Variation :

Change criteria to age , eye/hair colour

1

Miranda’s ESL DRAMA -WARM UP

|

Miranda’s ESL DRAMA -WARM UP

 You will need: Pop music  

This is a very simple warm up , listening and concentration exercise but great fun for everyone. I usually start every lesson with this one. You should actively take part at least initially in this game in order to verbally and physically demonstrate to the children what you want them to do. Instruct everyone to:

– Stand up

– Sit down

– Walk

– Hop

– Jump

– Sit down

– Lay down

– Sit up

– Stand up

– Wiggle (dance the twist)

– Fly

– Swim

– Drive a car (beep beep)

– Clap

– Cheer

– Say hello (wave)

– Spin around

Repeat and change all the action words until the children start associating the verbal instruction with the correct physical action.

Variations:

1. Go round the circle and indicate to everyone which child is a boy or girl. Play the game again this time Instruct “only the girls” or “only the boys” to do a movement or “everyone” in unison

2.For children ages 5+ Simon Says becomes a natural follow on game

0

The Teddy Bear Song

|

The Teddy Bear Song

Here is lovely chant that works well with very young children. Ask the children to bring to class their own teddy bear or cuddly toy to do the song with ( have a few extras in case some children forget)  

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear,

Turn around (turn around)

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear,

Touch the ground (touch the ground)

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear,

Tie your shoe (hit your shoe)

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear,

How old are you?

1-2-3-4 ………

2

The magic chair

|

The magic chair

chair

 

1.            Put a chair in the centre of a circle of children. 

2.          Tell the children that it is hot, sticky, covered with paint or glue, cold, soft, has a pin on it, is broken, very comfortable etc. 

3.          Any child who wants to gets up and sits on the chair. They act out the situation. Eg. If it is hot they sit down and jump up screaming “Ow!”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

0

Musical Clothes

|

 

Musical Clothes

A great revision game for clothes and accessories


You’ll need your costume bag for this game. If you don’t yet have a costume and prop box ask parents to bring in the following items:

  • hats, gloves, and scarves
  • coats and old shoes
  • shirts,  t-shirts
  • Plastic glasses, moustaches, wigs etc

How to play

The children stand in a circle, the music starts – and the bag needs to be passed round the circle. When the music stops, the child holding the bag has to take something out, say what it is and put it on.

The game continues until all the items have been used. The winner is the person wearing the most clothes. You can either put some pop music on and let the children dance in their new outfits

Or

Encourage everyone to find a new way of walking, talking and gesturing using their costumes and props and introduce yourselves to each other in English using your character s voice.

 

Practicing simple ESl introductions,

 

–          Hello, what’s your name?

–          My name is….

–          How are you?

–          I’m wonderful!!!

–          How old are you?

–          I’m 100!!

 

can be made so much more fun by dressing  up  and putting on a silly voice and you will find that even the shyest of children will feel less inhibited to speak as they are able to hide behind another character

 

Happy teaching and have a great weekend

Miranda

0

Pass on the Mime Message

|

IMG_9970 cc

Pass on the Mime Message

 

You will need: Several simple sentences written on cards.

Example:

–          It’s cold outside

–          I have a sandwich for lunch

–          I like to ride my bike

 

Have the group stand in a line facing the opposite direction to you. You tap the first child on the shoulder who turns around and you give him/her the message using only gestures. This player then taps the second child on the shoulder, who turns around , and passes on the message as he/she understands it. Stop the game at a certain point and ask the player whose turn it is if he/she can explain the message vocally without enacting it. Has the message been passed on correctly?

 

This Esl drama game is great fun for older children who are already able to form simple sentences. It encourages creativity and stimulates the imagination. To make the game easier for younger children, instead of sentences use illustrated flash cards to show the first child e.g a bicycle, horse, sandwich, rain.