Archived from Englipedia.
Originally submitted by Mark Best on Oct 26, 2010.
MATERIALS NEEDED:
- ExplodingSentences flashcards & bombs: The flashcards I've included were designed for New Crown's 2-1, 2-2, 3-1 and 3-2 areas. Probably little vocabulary needs to be changed to make them adaptable to other textbooks. Also, I write an example sentence and unit on the back of each card. It helps me keep track of them later for later use. As for the 'bombs', you will need one bomb for every 10 'word cards'. Print out the credit card sized flashcards and bombs and put them into the Mystery Box.
- Mystery Box: Spend a bit of time and make a nice one. It makes a big difference!
- Prizes (optional): I buy a box of stickers from E-Bay every six months or so. The extra motivation I get from my students is worth the price.
DETAILED EXPLANATION:
- Students take turns drawing cards from the box, reading the word and example sentence.
- If they can say the word/sentence correctly, they keep the card. If they can’t, they have to return it to the box.
- If they get a ‘BOMB!’ card, they have to return all the cards they have collected, except the ‘BOMB!’ card.
- Play until the cards are gone or until you think the class is getting bored, whichever comes first.
- The winner is the player with the most cards. 'BOMB!' cards count as a point as well.
VARIATIONS:
Sliding Scale Challenge: Instead of the 'BOMB!' cards, use the following activity. This is a good variation as it involves group work and has no 'waiting time' issues.
- Students work in small groups (with large classes) and draw five cards for each team and then have to try to use them to form as many sentences as possible.as many of the cards as possible in one sentence. Let's say one group draws: rain, above, today, by bike, breakfast. Some sentences might include:
- I don't like the rain. (1 target word used = 1 point)
- It rained today. (2 target words used = 3 points)
- I ate my breakfast and went to school by bike today. (3 target words = 10 points)
TEACHING SUGGESTIONS:
- I use this activity for 'general vocabulary review' but it literally can be used for any type of vocabulary and/or grammar practice.
Files: