grammar games

Memory tricks

Grammar       : Past simple

Level               : Lower-Intermediate

Time                : 30 menit

Materials         : Story (for your use only)

In Class

1.      Send four of your better students out of the room with an exercise they can do outside in about 15 minutes.

2.      Dictate a story to the others. The story should be fairly easy for the languange level of the class, e.g. at lower –intermediate level:

Story The time about 200 years ago in Paris. The streets were full of people. They were angry. They broke shop windows, they burned down houses, they were rioting. A colonel came to clear a square. His soldiers raised their guns. There was silence . The colonel stood on a wall. ‘ladies and gentlemen,’he shouted.’I have orders the to fire on the mob. I can see only good, honest people. I want all the good, honest people to leave the square, because i want to fire the mob!’ Two minutes later the square was empty.

3.      Make sure they understand all the words in the story.

4.      Explain that one student in the group is to prepare to read the story aloud to one of the four who have gone out. Then the student will be allowed to ask two questions about the story.

The second ‘outside’students will be brought back in, and the first one will tell the story he or she heard to the second one. During this telling the group are to note down how the story gets changed using these three categories :

Things added             Thing left out            Things changed

5.      ‘Outside’student A comes back in . A group member reads him or her the story twice. He or she has the right to ask two questions about the story.

‘Outside’Student B comes back in and A tells the story as he or she understand it. B can ask A two questions . C is brought in and B tells the story. C  can ask two questions. D comes in  and C tells the story to him or her. D can ask two questions . D then tells his or her by now much modified story the group. Finally someone in the group reads out the original story. Meanwhile the people in the group have been taking notes.

6.      Put the three categories up on the board and ask people to volunteer what was added, left out or completely changed/distorted.

Nia Nurhasniza@home january17,2013