Recently I published a post on TV programmes vocabulary. In this post I would like to add a few activities to help the teachers prepare a great lesson on this topic and to give students a few more activities to practise the vocabulary.
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Unlike in the previous posts, there are several worksheets which you can print out and use. There is a song and a gap fill, a bingo worksheet and a worksheet with five more activities to practise the vocabulary connected with TV programmes. And of course there is a mind map to help you remember the new words better.
TV programmes – song
For this lesson, I am going to use the song Throw Away your Television by Red Hot Chilli Peppers.
Complete the lyrics:
I you need the lyrics for your classroom or a you simply prefer paper materials, here are two pdf files.
TV song_red hot chilli peppers
TV song red hot chilli peppers – key
At the end of the song I will elicit the topic of the lesson by the following questions:
What will be the lesson about?
What will we learn?
Once I get the topic of the lesson out of the students I move to the other part of the lesson.
TV programmes – Vocabulary presentation
If you do not like any of the materials above, all the new vocabulary is listed in the worksheets too.
TV programmes – Vocabulary practice
If you have already presented the students with the video and a mind map, start with the second exercise. Students should put the words into the correct form and complete the sentences. Once they complete them, discuss the questions in pairs and then as a whole class.
The other exercises are quite simple and quite fun. Ask the students to do as much as they can in 10 minutes. You can give them the answers at the end of the activity or you can check their answers.
Once we do the worksheets, I give my students a chance to use the new words creatively. Ask them to write 3-10 questions using the new words. Help the struggling students by giving them the simple example What sports programmes do you watch? and show them that they can create 12 questions by replacing the words sports programmes with other TV programmes vocabulary.
When the students write the questions give them a chance to ask you their questions. Answer the questions and at the same time you have a chance to correct the most striking mistakes.
After a while ask the students to discuss the questions in pairs.
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At the end of the lesson I try to put a game. This time I have prepared the Bingo game for my students. Print out the following worksheet and cut it. Shuffle the cards and give each student one. Ask them to work in pairs and say the names of the TV programmes they have on their cards. They can ask you if they are not sure.
If you are sure that the students know all the words there are two options for you. You can either read the words yourself or I ask each student to say one of the words. Remember to state the winning combination before you start the game.
And that is the end of the lesson. If I count correctly, the lesson will take about 40 minutes.
The word “HOW” is one of the most productive words in English. It helps us create meaningful questions and sentences. The word “HOW” combines with many other words to create these questions. The way you can create questions with how.
In this post I try to introduce the basic phrases “How much”, “How many”, “How often”, “How well”, “How long”, “How far” and “How old”.
How in questions – mindmap
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How in questions – games
In the second game you should choose the correct answer and shoot only the BAD ducks. You can try to shoot one of the bottles too and get a bonus.
Shooting gameI hope that by now you know all the basic usages of the word HOW.
I had been using these phrases long before I learnt that they were a grammar item. However, as I have to teach them to my students at school, I have created this short post. There is just a simple graphical presentation of the phrases and two games to practise them.
To practise phrase there is someone doing in a more realistic and communicative way I recommend using some similar picture where students should find the differences. Nice pictures for spotting the difference can be found at Maryglasgowmagazines (you have to pay to be a member though).
There is someone doing – Mind map
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The way these phrases are formed.
There is someone doing – games
The second game is called Teacher invaders. Your task is to shoot all the invaders and finish the sentences with the correct for of the verbs in the brackets. Be careful with your spelling.
Past simple or past continuous? – quizMore grammar games
Two days ago we encountered a simple exercise in our textbook. Students’ task was to fill in the missing prepositions. Even though my students are strong lower intermediate students who can understand a lot of English and speak quite fluently, they were not able to use the correct prepositions. Although the students met the adjectives and prepositions many time before, they could not use them. So I have created this post where I will teach the adjectives and prepositions.
This post contains only a few adjectives but I believe it is better if you always use a few adjectives with the correct preposition than if you know a lot of adjectives and use the prepositions wrongly.
Adjectives and prepostions – infographic
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Adjectives and prepostions – games
I have been using games in class for quite a long time, but I never fail to be surprised how easily students learn the correct answers to the questions just because they want to win the game.
The first game is called Teacher Invaders and your task is to shoot all the invaders and complete the sentences with the correct prepositions.
Teacher Invaders gameThe second game is called On target and your task is to shoot as many bad ducks as you can. You can shoot a bottle too and get a bonus. Give it a try.
On Target game
More posts on prepositions
If you need more practise on prepositions there are two more posts on prepositions at our site. They explain the usage of the prepositions AT, IN, ON for places and time.
You can find the posts at:
https://engames.eu/prepositions-place/
https://engames.eu/prepositions-at-in-on-time/
This will be quite a short post. But sometimes easy does it. So, I hope it will be the case.
I would love to explain the usage and form of Used to here. To achieve this I have created the following mind map:
Used to – mind map
In this mind map I try to explain the form and usage of the form USED TO:
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Used to – games
There are two simple games to practise the grammar explained above. The first one is called On target. Your task is to choose the correct form to complete the sentences and then you will get a chance to shoot the bad ducks. You have 5 shots but you might win a bonus if you shoot one of the bottles 🙂
Used to – On Target
Used to – Teacher invaders
The second game is called Teacher invaders. Shoot all the invaders and save the Earth. Moreover, your task is to complete each sentence with the correct form of “USED TO”.
Many elementary students feel they cannot see the difference between these two tenses. To help them I have created a rap which explains the grammar and gives some example sentences, two mind maps explaining everything simply and several games to practise this grammar point. I hope you will find it useful.
Present tenses – mind maps
The first mind map explains the basics about the present simple tense:
The second mind map has already been published here in the post on Present continuous tense. The mind map explains the usage and form of the present continuous tense.
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Present tenses – rap
Watch the rap and then try to answer the comprehension questions in the game On target. The rap explains the usage of the two tenses and gives some examples.
Now try the comprehension game. Answer all the questions and then shoot the bad ducks 🙂
Play the game here.
Present tenses – games
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Now it is time to check whether you understand the grammar point. Here is a game called En Garde. Your task is to choose the correct tense and then hit your opponent. Good luck.
You can play the game En Garde here.
There are very few grammar points that I know so well as conditional sentences. Students always ask about them and they appear in tests and students. I have tried many times to explain this grammar, but I feel that I have always failed. I have created about 5 different presentations and three mind maps till I got to this simple one.
Conditionals – mind map
This is the simplest mind map I have managed to create and students say it is fine and they can understand it now. I hope it works the same way for you.
Read the map from the left side. The two arrows in the midle of the map show that the RESULT part can be at the beginning and the IF part at the end.
The horrible mess in the middle of the Unreal conditionals, shows the mixed conditionals, where the IF in the past can have a RESULT NOW. Or where IF now can have a RESULT in the past. I hope you understand.
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Conditionals – games
It is very important to understand the grammar rules, but it is even more important to be able to use them correctly. You can try this out in the following games.
The first one is called On Target and your task is to answer the questions and shoot all the BAD ducks. You can get a bonus if you shoot one of the bottles.
The second game is a new one. It is called darts. You should choose the correct answer but then WAIT and click it only at the moment you aim at a high number. It is not as easy as it seems. You can leave your score at the comments section and the winner will get ELM magazine from us.
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Scientists claim that the center for rythm is located next to the long-term memory in our brain. Knowing this, we could exploit it to the students’ benefit and teach them vocabulary through rhymes or raps. So, I tried to create the following rap to teach the students the following words: beach, prefer, rhyme, crazy, bone, railway, clothes, lots, fun, sand and shower.
Crazy Vocabulary Rap -video
First listen to the following rap and answer the comprehension questions under the video.
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Now check your comprehension by playing the following game:
Crazy vocabulary rap – Hoop shoot
Crazy Vocabulary Rap – mind map
Now that you met the vocabulary it is time to introduce it. I love introducing new things using mind maps, so here is another one. Each word contains a definition and three examples.
Crazy Vocabulary Rap – Vocabulary games
Once you think you know all the words it is time to test your knowledge. There are three games to check whether you really know the words. In the first two your task is to complete each sentence with the best option. If you answer correctly you will get to play a game.
Crazy Vocabulary Rap – Hoopshoot game
Crazy Vocabulary Rap – Fling the teacher game
The last game is a bit different. You will see a definition and then you have to write the word. Do not forget to shoot the invaders, though 🙂
Crazy Vocabulary Rap – Teacher invaders game.
Crazy Vocabulary Rap – Lyrics
You might want to learn the whole text, so here you are:
I’m going somewhere on this train
I’m going somewhere fun
A place that has a beach and sand
Railway take me to that sun….
I prefer to go somewhere out west
But any beach will do
Before I go I need a shower
I have no water, what to do….
I need a beach where clothes aren’t needed
Cuz mine I do not have
They got destroyed by a beast
Doing something reasonably bad….
He was drinking lots of milk he was
This milk I wanted some
Cuz in my youth I want strong bones
To stay in shape and have some fun
This rhyme is really crazy
This I really know
Time for me to say bye bye
It’s time for me to go….
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Negative prefixes are very productive. It seems that if you learn these then you might be able to create countless English words. However, it is not enough to learn only the prefixes. As each word has its own prefix and there are just a few rules you have to learn the whole words.
Knowing this, I took 4,000 most frequent words in English and I looked for the words with negative prefixes among them. Once I found them I created the following mind map:
Negative prefixes – a mind map
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Go through the mind map above and use a dictionary if you do not know any of the words.
Negative prefixes – games
Once you think that you know the words with negative prefixes I believe it is time to test your knowledge in games. This time there are 4 games. The first two (En Garde and On Target) contain the same tasks in different games. Choose the one you like better and plaaaaaay!!!
Negative prefixes – En Garde
Negative prefixes – On target
In the game called Half a minute your task is to put the jumbled word into the correct order. It is not easy but if you know the words you should manage to do this.
Negative prefixes – Half a minute
The last game is called Teacher invaders. Your task is to shoot all the invaders and write the words with negative prefixes. I believe this is the most difficult game, so give it a try!!!
Negative prefixes – Teacher invaders
Negative prefixes – a blind mind map
Have you played all the games and they were a piece of cake? Let’s try something more challenging. Print the following mind map and complete it with the missing words:
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This material is a demonstration of the approach called CLIL. In CLIL You learn the content and thus you learn the language. However, experimenting a bit with the approach I like to do this a bit differently. First, I introduce the vocabulary through the mind map, then I present the text (this time in a video) and then we assess the understanding and play the games to practise the vocabulary.
Battle of Hastings – video
Watch the video and try to understand it.
Battle of Hastings – mind map
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Battle of Hastings – games
Once you have watched the video you should try the comprehension questions in the game. Your task is to shoot only the evil figures.
Battle of Hastings – On Target game
Vocabulary games: In the first game you should read the definition and guess the word. Then click the arrow and you will see the correct words
Now that you know the words it is time to see whether you know the words:
Fill in the blank – vocabulary
Battle of Hastings – For teachers
As many of the readers of this blog are teachers here is a brief section for them. When I teach this section I display the second slide of the Powerpoint presentation and I teach the vocabulary there. Then I play the video and play the comprehension game On Target with the students (divide the students into two teams to make the game more enjoyable.) Then I display the last slide and the students have to retell the story of Harold, Harald and William. Moreover, there is a pdf file with the mind map and a presentation which is easy to display on the IWB as it is in Powerpoint.
1066_Battle of Hastings
Battle_of_hastings
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Three days ago we were talking about presents with my students and I could hear that they were using the verbs buy,give, get etc. in a way that everyone would understand them but which was wrong. So, I created the following presentation and several exercises. What surprised me was that even after my presentation the students protested that some other forms (the ones they used) were correct too. But it is not true. They are not and you have to use the verbs in the way demonstrated here to be understood and correct.
Verbs with two objects – mind map
I am really proud of this mind map. It took a lot of time to construct and I think it clearly demonstrates the verbs and their usage:
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Verbs with two objects – games
Once you have mastered the three possible patterns it is time to use them. There are two game to practise this grammar point. In the first one you should choose the correct option to get a chance to hurt your opponent. Are you good enough to win the fight?
Verbs with two subjects En Garde game.
The second game is quite quick. You have to shoot all the invaders and answer all the questions. The best I have ever seen was level 5. Can you get further?
Verbs with two objects – Teacher invaders
Verbs with two objects – for teachers
I have realised that this site is frequently visited by teachers. And that is why I have decided to enter this part into my post. Here I would like to offer the teachers the materials tuned for teaching. First is the mind map in powerpoint file. If you have an IWB you can display the parts of the mind map and explain the concept.
The other file contains the mind map in a pdf file.
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BBC site offers a lot of interesting and really useful materials for learners and teachers of English. However, they just present something and they do not give you much chance to learn what they teach. That is why I prepared this short post.
Take a rain check – video
Some time ago a researcher proved that students can learn a lot if they just read and listen to a text. Therefore I turned the BBC recording into the following video which follows this principle.
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Take a rain check – mind map
Once you have read and listened to the recording it is time to identify the most difficult parts which you should learn. Here is a mind map with all the important language from the recording:
Take a rain check – games
And to remember all the key words and concepts from the recording it is best to practise them in games. Here are two games:
Enjoy
In time clauses it is important to understand that you cannot use WILL after certain conjunctions, even though you are referring to the future. And that is the whole trick. If you do this (not will do this), your English will be fine. And that is what you need.
Time clauses – mind map
To make this concept clearer I have created the following mind map. Read the mind map clockwise and start at 12 o’clock.
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Time clauses – games
As the grammar point is quite simple to understand, I have created only two games to practise this. The first one is called Fling the Teacher and if you answer (not will answer) all the questions correctly you will fire the teacher because you won’t need him any more. So what are you waiting for? FLING THE TEACHER!
Fling the teacher – time clauses.
The second game is ideal for a classroom. You can work in two teams and the teams fight against each other. If you answer incorrectly your opponent gets a free chance to hurt you.
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As there are no articles in my mother tongue, using them correctly in English is a real challenge. Like many other non-native speakers, I often leave them out or use one too many. And my students do this too.
I have been thinking for years how to teach articles effectively and finally I feel that I found the way. I created a mind map which shows the thinking process you should go through to have the articles correct.
Articles – mind map
There are two mind maps. The first one is simpler and the other is for more advanced students.
The mind maps show the thinking process you should go through to get the articles correct. Start at 1 o’clock and go clockwise.
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The following Mind map is for intermediate students:
Articles – Video
If you still feel that you need more explanations, you can watch the following video explaining the usage of the definite article “THE”. The recording was prepared by BBC learning English.
Articles – games
For those of you who regularly come to our site there are two new games this time. The first one is a classical game called Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. You have to answer all the questions correctly to win this game. Good luck!
Articles – Who Wants to be a Millionaire.
The second new game is called Fling the teacher and your task is again to answer all the questions correctly. If you manage to do this you will fire the teacher :-), because you will not need him any more.
The last game is the Penalty game which has been used here several times (eg. for teaching prepositions AT, IN, ON or verb patterns )
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The concept of uncountability is very difficult to understand and use correctly for learners of English. However, even the English sometimes need to count the things which are uncountable. To do this they count the containers the things are commonly packed in or they have a countable expression which is used with the given noun. Thus, they have one pair of trousers, two pieces of cake or a carton of milk. To master this you have to learn the containers by heart. To make it easier I have prepared a short video, a mind map and three games for you.
Containers – video
Watch the video and repeat the phrases with the native speaker.
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Containers – mind map
The following mind map visually maps the containers and their usage.
Once you have learnt the containers it is time to see whether you really know them. Play the following games and if you win you can be sure that you know the vocabulary.
Containers – games
The first game is the easiest one. You have to choose the correct container for the given phrase. If you succeed you will be given the chance to shoot a penalty. Can you score 10 times? No one ever has. BE THE FRIST ONE.
The second game is slightly more difficult. Your task is to choose the word which fits into the gap. You have to choose a noun which is commonly used with the given container. If you are successful then you can try to win the fencing duel.
The last game is the most difficult one. While in the previous games it was enough to choose a word, here you have to make it up. And in the meantime the invaders get more and more aggressive. Will you save the planet?
Containers – Teacher invaders game.
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A week ago I published a post on prepositions AT, IN, ON for time. Several students asked me if I could do something like that for prepositions AT, IN, ON but for places. So here you are. There is a mind map graphically explaining the usage of the prepositions and then there are 3 games to practise the grammar point. Enjoy.
Prepositions AT, IN, ON for places – MIND MAP
Here is a mind map, where I try to explain the difference between the three prepositions. I tried to make it as illustrative as possible, so I hope everything is clear.
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Prepositions AT, IN, ON for places – GAMES
[/sociallocker] Here you can try three games to practise the grammar point. The first game is called penalty and your task is to choose the correct preposition and then score a goal.Prepositions AT, IN, ON for places – penalty.
The second game is called teacher invaders. Your task is to shoot the invaders and every few seconds complete the sentence with the correct preposition.
Prepositions AT, IN, ON for places – teacher invaders.
Are you looking for something quieter at the end? Try the quiz and if you complete more than 80% of the questions correctly you will get to play the game called Angry Finches.
Prepositions AT, IN, ON for places – cloze test and Angry Finches.
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Phrasal verbs are always difficult to learn. Even though they consist of two or three tiny words, which are easy to remember themselves, they can create so many different combinations that students quickly become totally confused. Moreover, the meaning of the phrasal verb cannot be deduced from its parts. Therefore the students do not know the verbs and refuse to use them.
I really like the programmes which BBC produced some time ago. They are called Face up to phrasals and they are several short, entertaining stories introducing 12 phrasal verbs each. However, they created nice stories and wonderful explanations and that was it. There were no activities to help you really learn the phrasal verbs. And here I stepped in and I created a mind map and several games to help your learn the 12 phrasal verbs.
Fred and Betty – the video
You can watch the video here
Phrasal verbs – mind map
Here you can see all 12 phrasal verbs in a mind map. Each verb contains a definition and examples of its usage.
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Phrasal verbs – games
I have prepared 3 games for you to practise the phrasal verbs. First of them is called hoop shoot and your task is to choose the correct phrasal verb which best fits into the gap.
Phrasal verbs – hoop shoot game.
The second game is slightly more difficult. You have to read the tasks carefully, as here you have to choose the wrong or correct option.
The last game is called invaders and it is the most difficult game. Your task is to shoot all the aliens and in the meantime complete each sentence with the correct preposition.
Phrasal verbs – invaders game.
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Many students have problems with the prepositions AT, IN, ON. Prepositions are such small words with nearly the same meaning that it seems that you can use any of them. But that is not true. If you want to sound well, you have to be careful with the prepositions. And believe me, it is not so difficult to use the prepositions AT, IN, ON for time expressions correctly. There are many clear rules and only a few exceptions.
Prepositions AT IN ON for time – mind map
Go through the mind map. Start at 1 o’clock and then go clockwise. There are the rules of usage for the prepositions AT, IN, ON.
At the end of the mind map you will see that if you use the words NEXT, LAST, EVERY or THIS, there is no preposition in front of these words. (You cannot say “ON NEXT FRIDAY”).
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Prepositions AT, IN, ON for time – games
If you want to really learn the prepositions correctly, you should practise them as often as and as much possible. Here there are three games to make your training more enjoyable. In the games there are 48 different phrases with the prepositions AT, IN, ON. If you finish all the games I am confident that you will know the usage of these prepositions fairly well.
The first game is called Teacher invaders. You should shoot all the Invaders and after some time you have to fill in the correct preposition in the sentences. Good luck.
Prepositions AT IN ON – Teacher invaders game.
The second game, HOOP SHOOT, is slightly easier as you have to pick the correct option and then stop the sliders in the center of the basket.
Prepositions AT IN ON – Hoop shoot game.
The third game is a more of a traditional quiz. Read the text and complete it with the prepositions AT IN ON. If you get more than 70% of your answers correct you will get to play the game called Indiara. Good luck!
Prepositions AT IN ON – Cloze test.
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Clothes vocabulary is useful and quite easy to learn. Here you will find a video introducing the correct pronunciation (American English) of the words. Watch the video and repeat. In the second part of the video you should say the words yourself.
Then there is a mind map introducing the new words. You can add more to the mind map if you want to. Further you can find here several games to practise the clothes vocabulary.
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Video
Watch the video and repeat the words. Then say the words for the clothes you see.
Clothes vocabulary mind map
Here is a mind map of the clothes vocabulary. You can (and you should) print this mind map out and add more words you want to learn.
Clothes vocabulary games
Once you went through all the words and you think you know them, it is time to practise them in the following games. First one is fill in the blank. Your task is to write the word you see in the picture. You will get 10 words to practise.
The second game is a matching activity. Your task is to click on the word that you see in the picture.
The last activity to practise clothes vocabulary is a crossword. Click into the crossword and you will see the clue. Write the words.
The last game is called Click the word. Read the sentence above the pictures and then click on the correct picture and on the button submit.
I hope that by now you know all the new words pretty well.
Other games to learn English
The Kiss is a classical story by the American author Kate Chopin. You can read and listen to the simplified story and then try several comprehension games at http://www.aj3000.org/TheKisspage/the_kiss_story.html .
I like teaching adverbs to students because it is very simple, there are only a few exceptions and you can see that they have learnt something immediately. Adverbs are an easy grammar point and students can use them in the same lesson and feel that they achieved something.
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Forming adverbs – infographic
Forming adverbs – games
Adverbs – half a minute game. You have 30 seconds to put the letters into the correct order to create the right adverb.
Adverbs – Teacher invaders. Your task is to shoot all the invaders but from time to time you have to form an adverb from the given adjective.
Adverbs – Penalty game. In this game you should choose the correct option to complete the sentence. If you get it right you will have a chance to shoot a penalty.
Adverbs – Hoopshoot game. Choose the correct option and then score.
I hope you enjoyed the lesson and that your knowledge of adverbs is much better than it was a few minutes ago. If not look at the links section, too.
Forming adverbs – links
Here is a great video explaining what adverbs are. I believe it can be used for teaching English as ESL too. Enjoy.