Archived from Englipedia.
Originally submitted by Susan Gowans on Jul 08, 2010.
Note that this activity was originally made for the New Horizon "Magic Box" story and that it may have changed in recent revisions of the textbook. Let us know if the story isn't in the textbook anymore!
MATERIALS NEEDED:
- MagicBoxScramble worksheet: You will need Part 1a/2a (p. 32-33) or Part 1b/2b (p. 34-35) of the worksheet. All parts can be achieved in one lesson, however you may want to split it into two lessons, or simply chose the set you prefer and only use that one.
DETAILED EXPLANATION:
PART 1a: (p. 32-33)
- Divide students into pairs then give each pair Part 1 of the worksheet.
- Everyone begins the activity at the same time, when you say "GO!"
- Without looking at the textbook, students have to work out the correct order of the skit by numbering the boxes. Circulate and monitor to ensure both students in the pair are working together and help where necessary.
- When students feel they have completed the exercise correctly, they must come to the front for their paper to be corrected by either the ALT or JTE.
- The first five pairs of students to finish correctly write their names up on the board.
- Set a time limit for this activity. For example, for my class, I gave the students ten minutes.
- When the time is up, award the winners then go over the answers with the whole class.
PART 2a: (p. 32-33)
- In teams of four, students race to complete the questions taking turns to write the answers.
- When they have completed the answers, they have to come to the front to have them corrected
- For every correct answer give them a 'magic word'.
- When they have collected all four magic word cards they have to assemble them into a question and write the answer on the board.
- The first team to complete their Q and A is the winner.
TEACHING SUGGESTIONS:
- This activity is a great TPR activity which practices reading writing and speaking.
- I feel this type of activity turns boring reading practice into something a little more exciting and competitive. It also a test to see if groups/pairs can work well together.
- In a class of 40 students I divided them into ten teams, I wrote ten different colour-coded sentences onto four small cards per team, some cards contained two words each. One of the 'magic questions' I used was, "Where is (ALT's name) from?" You can really be as creative as you want with the questions. Just rememberr to review past lessons' grammar points so you don't use grammar the students haven't learned yet.
- For Part 1b/2b (p. 34-35), the same rules reply. Both Parts (A & B) can take up the whole 50mins, however if your class ability is quite high, it is possible to complete both sections
- Please leave comments below if you find any errors in the activity or if you have any suggestions to make it better.
TIPS/CAUTIONS:
- Quite often stronger members in the team take over and try to complete the worksheet alone. Monitor the class to ensure everyone is taking part.
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