Questions and Sentences

Ellen Read

Preparation:

Initial time to make cards can vary: est. 30 min. - 3 hours

PROCEDURE:

1. Cut thick paper into cards, roughly the size of credit cards or playing cards. You’ll need a stack at least 10 cm thick; the more the better. Write as many words as you can think of (that the students should know), one on each card. Make multiple copies of the more common words, prepositions, conjunctions, question words, a, an, the, etc. Make sure to use many different modifiers in addition to subjects and verbs, such as "in 1600", "quickly", "in New York City", "because", etc. Depending on the students' ability, be sure to include both plural and singular nouns and VERBS, comparatives, superlatives, possessive, past tense, present perfect, past participle, "will", "could", etc.

2. Split the class into lunch groups, with 2-3 recorders per group.

3. Students from the 6 groups form a line in front of the ALT and ask questions. Students may not ask questions that have already been asked or read questions directly from a source, although they may look at books before asking (These rules are at the ALT's discretion and judgment of the student's abilities and may be modified to make the activity easier or more challenging).

4. Every time a student asks a question (and gets the ALT's answer) he or she receives a card from the ALT. They then take the cards back to their groups where the students not currently asking questions try to form proper sentences using the words. The JTE makes rounds around the class checking each of the sentences. The ALT may help with this if he or she runs out of cards. The group with the most sentences at the end wins.

NOTES:

1. For first years or special needs, using letters to form words may be easier. Make sure to include many copies of vowels and the more common letters.

2. Give the students materials or specific parts of the text from which to get inspiration for questions and sentence/word forming.

3. To challenge the students more, you can rate the difficulty of each sentence they create. For example, a first-year difficulty sentence might get one point, a second-year sentence two, and a third-year three. The group with the most points, not necessarily the most sentences, wins.

4. Add blank cards into the stack on which the students may write any word they wish in pencil. Following classes may erase these words and write others.

5. Challenge advanced classes to write not only sentences, but also related sentences that may form stories. You might give them additional materials (keywords, pictures, newspapers, magazines, props) for inspiration.

6. Play English music in the background--it gives the class more of a fun, free, and interesting atmosphere and may even inspire sentence or question ideas. It may be used to add a sense of urgency or rhythm (for speaking), and may pique students' interest in foreign language and culture. This may be especially useful in quieter classes.