Materials: ohajiki

Damsel in Distress

Description

Students are in groups. Each group gets a game board, a set of quest cards, a set of small flashcards and a die. Student’s place their ohajiki at the stairs of the castle. The set of small flashcards is shuffled and placed in a pile face down. The quest cards are shuffled and placed face down in the spaces on the game board.

The group asks the first player the question. The first player then rolls the die and moves their ohajiki to the number on the board. They then take the top card from the set of small flashcards and answer the question using the target English. Once the student has said the answer, they turn over the quest card associated to the number they rolled. Each round has certain rules for certain cards:

Round 1: If the quest card is the key, potion, shield or sword, nothing happens. The card remains face up and the next player has their turn. If the quest card is the dragon, all quest cards are shuffled and reset. All players are moved back to the stairs and the game continues. If the quest card is the princess, the player that found the princess gets 1 point. All quest cards are shuffled and reset. Players are moved back to the stairs.

Round 2: In round 2 there are 3 dragon defeating cards. If the potion, shield or sword is found BEFORE the dragon is, then the dragon card has no effect if found. If the dragon is found before the potion, shield or sword, then the quest cards are shuffled and reset. 

Round 3: In round 2 the key must be found BEFORE the princess. Once a player finds the key, any player who finds the princess after gets the point. Once the princess is found, the quest cards are shuffled and reset. Players are moved back to the stairs. The rule about the dragon, shield, potion and sword remains the same as round 2. 

The player at the end of the game with the most points is the winner!

Notes

I played this game with my 5 graders for ‘what do you want’ ‘ want~’ and it worked pretty well. We only did the rules for round 1 (but we did 2 rounds of it) but I plan to play it again sometime this year with a rule escalation. 

I have also made a 2nd version of the cards in case you don’t plan to use the key rule (I have replaced the potion card also). I added a ‘nothing’ card in which nothing happens when that card is revealed. There is 2 per set. 

This game was designed for question and answer lessons, but should also work for answer only lessons too.

Touch Game

Description

The teacher puts up flashcards on the board, where all the students can see them. The students make groups and put an ohajiki (or eraser, etc.) between them. The teacher calls out the target English and the students repeat. When the teacher touches one of the cards, all the students try to grab their ohajiki. The first student to grab the it wins one point.

Notes

  • It’s best to always gesture towards each card as you call it regardless of if you intend to touch it or not, so the students can associate what you’re saying with the flashcard.
  • Make sure to stand to the side of the flashcards when gesturing towards/touching the cards so all of the students can see clearly!
  • Students who grab the ohajiki at the same time should play janken to decide who gets it.

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Connect 4

Description

Students make pairs and a Connect 4 worksheet. Each student takes turn in picking a space and saying the associated target English that matches the picture. The first student to get an unbroken line of 4 wins. Students can ‘block’ their partner by picking a space that interrupts their partner’s line.

Notes

  • One way to play this game is with either one student drawing circles on their chosen spaces, and the other drawing crosses. If students use pencil, they could erase their marks between each round.
  • Another way is for the students to use ohajiki or small cards to put down on top of their answer. This makes it easier to reset the game between rounds, but logistically it means there would be a lot of materials needed for each student and it may not be practical.

Race Game

Description

The students put small cards randomly onto the spaces on the board. The teacher picks random vocabulary and the students move an ohajiki onto the matching small card. If they don’t have that card on their board, they can’t move for that turn. For every lap of the board they complete, they get 1 point.

Notes

  • Students can shuffle their cards after a certain period of time.
  • The game can be played solo, or in pairs to reduce the number of boards and cards needed. If the students are in pairs, they work together and share points.
  • If the target English is the question, the students first ask the question to the teacher, who gives their answer using one of the possible vocabulary words.

Ohajiki Zone

Description

Students make pairs and get a set of vocabulary cards. The cards are split into 3 groups. They also get one ohajiki (a counter/game piece) each. Each student puts their ohajiki on one of the cards. The teacher sets a random time on the timer (between around 30 seconds and 2 minutes), but turns the timer away from the students so they can’t see how long the round will be.

The teacher starts the timer, and calls random vocabulary. The students repeat them. When the timer stops, the students check the final vocabulary they said. Any student who has an ohajiki on the card that matches the last vocabulary called wins three points. Any student that has an ohajiki on the same group as the last vocabulary wins one point. The teacher then sets a new random time and the students pick a new vocabulary card for the next round.

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Unlucky Ohajiki Time

Description

Students get a set of small vocabulary cards. They also get one ohajiki (a counter/game piece) each. Each student puts their ohajiki on one of the cards. The teacher sets a random time on the timer (between around 30 seconds and 2 minutes), but turns the timer away from the students so they can’t see how long the round will be. All students start with 5 points.

The teacher starts the timer, and calls random vocabulary. The students repeat them. When the timer stops, any student who has an ohajiki on the card that matches the last vocabulary called loses one point. The teacher then sets a new random time and the students pick a new vocabulary card for the next round.

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Ohajiki Game

Description

Students make pairs and get a set of vocabulary cards. They also get one ‘ohajiki’ (a counter/game piece) each. Both students put their ohajiki on top of any card they like.

The teacher calls out random vocabulary words from the set currently being studied, and the students repeat them. When the teacher says the vocabulary that matches the card the student placed their ohajiki on, they win one point. They then put their ohajiki onto a new card.

Notes

Students can change pairs between rounds.

Keyword Game

Description

Students make groups and each get a set of cards with the target English on them. The teacher picks a keyword from the set. The students put an eraser (or pen lid, ohajiki, etc.) in the centre of their group.

The teacher/ALT says the vocabulary in any order. The students repeat. When they hear the keyword, the students try to grab the eraser. The student that grabs it wins one point.

Notes

  • The game can be played by putting the eraser on top of a small flashcard that matches the keyword, to associate the sound of the word with the image.
  • It’s easier if students don’t need to repeat the keyword before trying to grab their eraser.

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