When you teach the concept of countability in English, students have to learn to use the words A, SOME, THE, ANY, AN in front of the nouns correctly. To decide correctly, students have to take several mental steps.In this post I explain the mental process and I offer your students a chance to practise it in several games.
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In this post you will find a simple infographic, which explains the thinking process. Moreover, there are three brand new games in which students can practise the grammar.
A SOME THE ANY AN – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] To decide correctly which word should be used in front of the given noun, students should ask the following questions in this order:
If the students have already spoken about the thing, then we have to use the article THE. If not, then they have to ask whether the noun is in plural or uncountable. If any of the answers is Yes, then two more questions have to be asked. Is the sentence a request or an affirmative sentence? If the answer is YES, then SOME have to be used. If the answer is NO, then ANY have to be used.
If the noun is not in plural or uncountable, then A or AN is used. AN is used if a vowel is pronounced at the beginning of the noun. Otherwise A is used.
The process might seem a bit complicated when you read the text, but my students found it very easy when they could use the infographic.
[su_spacer][su_heading]A SOME THE ANY AN – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] To practise the grammar, I created three brand new games. All the games are in HTML5 and they will play on desktops and mobile devices.The first game is called Shooting Game. Your task is to read the sentence and shoot the correct answer. To shoot the word, just click it. Speed matters and you will see your score at the end of the game. Will you be better than me?
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/a some any the/ShootATHESOME/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Shooting Game[/su_button][su_spacer]The second game is called Dice Game. Your task is to type A, SOME, THE, ANY or AN (do not use the capital letters) and then stop the dice. The more points the dice show the more points you get. Moreover, if both the dice show the same number, you get a bonus – 10 points.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/a some any the/DiceAtheSome/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Dice Game[/su_button][su_spacer] ADVERT:[showmyadsa] The third game is called Time Guess. Your task is to complete the sentence with the correct word and then click the button STOP at the moment you think the countdown got to zero. The closer to zero you get the more points you get. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/a some any the/TimeAtheSome/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Time Guess[/su_button][su_spacer] [su_spacer][su_heading]
Poll – Which game do you like best?
[/su_heading][su_spacer]Which game do you like best?
The usage of Some and Any in English is quite simple. Some is used in positive statements, requests or offers and ANY is used in questions and negative sentences. However, many textbooks confuse students by mixing this simple concept with the concept of countability.
In this post I will try to keep the explanation as simple as possible. There is an infographic, an online quiz and two games in this post.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Some or Any – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Print or display the following infographic and ask your students to explain it to you. I am sure that there will be at least one student who will understand the infographic and will be able to pass the knowledge. If there is none, you should explain that SOME is used for positive statements, requests and offers while ANY is used in negative statements and questions.ADVERT:
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Some or Any – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The first game is called Penalty Shootout. In this game you should choose the option and then try to score a goal. Good luck.As the game is in Flash, it will only play on desktop computers. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/some and any/Some any football.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Some or Any – Penalty[/su_button]
The second game is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers. It is called On Target, and your task is to choose the correct option and then shoot all the bad cows and ducks. You can shoot one of the bottles on the wall to get a bonus. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/some and any/Some any on target.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Some or Any – On target game[/su_button]ADVERT:
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The following quiz can help your students practise Some or Any either at school or at home. The quiz consists of two parts. In the first part, students should complete the sentences with Some or Any. In the second part, students have to match the beginnings and ends of the sentences. The students will be rewarded with a game if they pass. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices.
Some or Any – links
[/su_heading][su_spacer] You can find some interesting materials on Some or Any at the British Council site.And on Youtube you can see the following great video with the explanation of Some and Any.
I have already published several posts on past simple tense. There are several posts on irregular verbs, a post on regular verbs in past tense and now I would like to explain how to make negative sentences in past simple. It is quite simple – you just add DIDN´T and the infinitive. To help you and your students absorb this concept there are two games and a graphical explanation.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Past tense negatives – video
[/su_heading][su_spacer] In this short video a man ends up in prison because his grammar is bad. The aim of this video is to introduce the basic forms of negatives in past tense.ADVERT:
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Past tense negatives – mind map
[/su_heading][su_spacer] In this mind map you can see how the past tense negatives are formed. There is the explanation and below there is a mind map depicting three frequently asked questions and their answers.
If you are a teacher it might be a good idea to let the students deduce the rules and complete the table. However, beware that this way of teaching is not suitable for weaker students.
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Past tense negatives – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] I firmly believe that practice makes perfect. If you practice the things you will understand the things better. That is why I think that students should go through the following games at least twice or three times.The first game is in HTML5. Your task is to choose the correct form and if you pass the test you will play the game called Tower defence. This game will play on all mobile devices.
If you want to play the game on the full screen, click below:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/past_tense_negative/Past tense negatives (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#771f9b” size=”6″]Past tense negative – Tower defence[/su_button]The second game will play only on your desktop. It is called a Penalty Shoutout and once you choose the correct option you will get a chance to kick a penalty. Will you score all ten penalties? Good luck.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/past_tense_negative/Past tense negative penalty.html” target=”blank” background=”#771f9b” size=”6″]Past tense negative – Penalty shootout[/su_button]