Revision games
Teaching tip
The class have all arrived for the new semester and now, before the students start with new material, it’s a good time to have a fun look at what they have already learnt and do some revision games.
1 Sticky-note word game (You will need sticky notes and dice.)
On the board write the following three questions: What is your favourite free-time activity? Where was your last holiday? What is the name of your best friend? Give each student three sticky notes and tell them to write the answers to the questions, one answer on each sticky note.
Divide the class into groups of four or five (depending on numbers in the class).
Students take their sticky notes and lay them in a circle (like a board game). Player 1 rolls the dice and lands on a note. He or she reads out the word(s), for example: Greece. The person who wrote the answer then talks about their answer, for example: I was in Greece on my holiday last year with my son and daughter. The weather was very hot. That sticky note is removed from the table. Then Player 2 rolls the dice and so on. By the end of the game everyone should have told the group about their hobby, holiday and best friend.
2 First to five
On the board write the following categories:
Drinks Fruit Colours Buildings Jobs
In pairs, students have four minutes to find five examples for each category. Explain that if they chose a word that no other pair has, then they get two points and only one point for a word that another pair has chosen.
Set your timer and off they go! Check answers together and see who wins.
3 Missing word
On the board write the following sentences:
Yesterday, I ate ___________.
Is there a/an __________ on your street?
On holiday the weather was ____________.
Ask everyone to think of a word to complete the sentences. Ask students to read out their answers – see who has the most interesting. Then play again and choose one letter of the alphabet.
4 A mouse is smaller than an elephant.
On the board write big, small, mouse and elephant. Point to the words and elicit: A mouse is smaller than an elephant and An elephant is bigger than a mouse.
Write the following adjectives on the board: expensive modern popular rich funny hot cold high sunny difficult
Ask students to write down two words (things or people) which can be compared.
In turn each student reads out their two words, for example: Mount Everest and Zugspitze.
Other students make a comparative sentence using the two words, for example: Mount Everest is higher than the Zugspitze. Mount Everest is more difficult than the Zugspitze. It is sunnier at the Zugspitze than at Mount Everest.
Encourage students to use all the adjectives – and to be creative.