At first, I was thinking, this sounded really fun, but not very academic. But after listening to their reasoning, I realized it was a brilliant idea.
As suggested by my first instinct and a natural instinct really, playing games is fun. Fun for both adults and children. But as linguistically developed adults, we take for granted the language skills involved with understanding the rules of the games that we play. For younger children, especially English learning younger children, learning to play fun and mind-challenging games is an exciting and engaging way to develop a new language and even a specific form of language.
As the eight weeks went on, students learned to read the directions and rules of the different games they played. While playing these games with other kids, they also had a lot of opportunities to develop their authentic use of language. They were then challenged even further to by making up their own games and rules. Finally, in order to play their own games, they had to teach the rules to other students.
Along this process, every moment was evidently a learning moment. The most brilliant part of it all was that my fellow teachers have proven the point that learning does not have to be boring! Thanks Brooklyn and Pha Pha, my brilliant teaching divas!
Game: Castle Land
Characters:
- Rattle Snake (yellow)
- King Cobra (red)
- Dragon (blue)
- Dinosaur (green)
Game: Iceberg - This one has very complex directions and rules!
Game: North Pole Soccer
I just love the name of this game. I wonder who the players would be if there really was a soccer game at the North Pole. Maybe Polar Bears (Home) Vs. Penguins (Away)
I just realized right now that all the games I saw were created by boys. I really wonder what the girls decided for their theme?
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