1

American Classical League June 26, 2016

8:00-11:00 a.m.

Catching Them in the Middle 2016:

Games and Activities for Vocabulary Acquisition Alice Kosnik

alicekosnik@gmail.com 847.212.1846

Every world language teacher teaches vocabulary every day. A primary focus in elementary and middle school level classes is vocabulary development, so teachers of these levels are masters at developing myriad ways to practice new vocabulary. Students of any age cannot learn vocabulary just by studying a list.

Three Key Ideas about Vocabulary Development

A. Most of us can only learn five to seven new words a day. This refers to learning words so well that they will be remembered in the future, not memorizing a list that will be soon forgotten. With this fact in mind, we recognize that most textbook vocabulary lists are way too long.

Shorten textbook vocabulary lists.

• Decide which words are really important: the “non-negotiables.” Eliminate the words that students will never use. Delay teaching of some words that are not needed at this time.

• Let students choose which words they want to learn in addition to the “non-negotiables”.

2

• On quiz day, the students all answer the questions for all of the non-negotiable words but then answer only a designated number of the bonus chosen words.

B. Humans remember new vocabulary only when learned in a meaningful context. Teach new vocabulary in the context of material already known.

‘Chunking” vocabulary doubles the number of words students can learn and provides a meaningful context.

• Teach seven or so words with related words. The brain counts each

set as one item.

the ferocious lion the nervous monkey the friendly elephant the agile cheetah C. It takes at least ten to fifteen repetitions of a new word in a meaningful context in your native language to learn a new word. In a new language, the number of necessary repetitions grows to twenty to thirty.

§ Give students at least twenty opportunities to practice new vocabulary. § Always present and practice vocabulary in a meaningful context. § Never provide a random list of words. § Break down vocabulary lists to groups of five to seven words and

introduce only one group at a time. That list is reviewed on subsequent days and a new group of five to seven words is added.

§ Use many of the following activities to provide the necessary, extensive speaking practice. Practical Techniques to Introduce New Vocabulary

8:00-9:00 a.m. 1. Visuals and Flashcards

Introduce new vocabulary through visuals whenever possible.

• Have students make their own flashcards. o Copy small pictures of vocabulary words on a sheet or two of paper

that you have divided into 16 or 25 spaces. Good legal sources for pictures are your text, student-drawn pictures, or these websites.

§ http://classroomclipart.com § http://www.public-domain-photos.com/free-cliparts

o Students cut out the flashcards and write the target language word on the back of the picture. Do this together in class the first time.

3

• Teach students how to use flashcards using the following hints.

ü Work with only five to seven new words per day. ü Add a new group of five to seven words on subsequent days and

review the previous group(s). ü Look at the first card in one group of cards. If you know the word,

put it on the bottom of the deck. If you don’t know the word, put it about three cards down. (You will move a word from your short-term to your long-term memory better if you look at the word again when it’s just starting to fade from your short-term memory after about twenty seconds.)

ü Study flashcards for short periods of time, and then do something else. Come back to the flashcards and study them again.

• Encourage the use of on-line flashcard sites.

www.quizlet.com (free) www.duolingo.com (free) www.flashcardmachine.com (free) www.studyperfect.com (fee) www.studyshack.com (games and flashcards) www.educationalpress.org (games, quizzes and flashcards) www.eslflashcards.com (free – Can print cards in several sizes) www.flashmybrain.com (fee – Can print or use on portable devices

• Encourage the use of language learning apps. Flashcardlet: (Allows teacher to make flashcard sets with words or photos or use those made by other teachers.) Super Flashcard: (Can create flashcards on the website and study on the iPhone.) Quizlet (Flashcards and study tools) Flashcard Pro (Has random order option. User can select only the flagged or missed cards.) Flashcards+ (Create and study flashcards. Can reorder decks.)

2. Lineups: Have students line up in two rows facing each other. The students In one of the lines hold up the clue side of their flashcards for the facing student to name. Give a signal after students have practiced for a few minutes. One of the lines then moves one place to the right and the last student moves to the beginning of the line. Students practice with the new partner until signaled to move again. Continue until all students return to their original partners. Variation: Inside-Outside Circles: Arrange students in two circles, facing each other. At your signal, one of the circles moves one position and the activity continues.

4

3. Teacher Versus Students (Michelle Farfan, Used with Permission)

• Use a visual of vocabulary pictures and point to one. Say a word in the

target language: either the correct word or a “wrong” word. • If the correct word is said, the students repeat the word together.

If an incorrect word is said, the students remain silent. • If all of the students remain silent when the teacher is “wrong”, they

receive a point. If any student starts to repeat the wrong word, the teacher receives the point. Students LOVE “beating” the teacher.

• This game works best when students are relatively early in the vocabulary learning process. It’s actually a teaching technique.

• The game can also be played with numbers, the alphabet, digital times, opposite words, countries and capitals, or any type of matching.

4. Tennis Ball Hot Potato

This quick game with an element of chance is a good way to review almost anything.

• Make large flashcards of vocabulary pictures, numbers, the alphabet, digital times, or any visual that will elicit a short response. Get a tennis ball or “Koosh” ball for each team and some music to play.

• Divide the class into two or three teams and give a ball to the first person on each team.

• When the music starts, students on each team pass the ball back and forth in order until the music stops.

• The students holding the balls when the music stops must stand. Show a flashcard. The student who gives the correct response first wins the point for his or her team.

Working Group Topics 1. How to shorten vocabulary lists and how to “chunk” Latin vocabulary. 2. Line-ups – Latin applications 3. Teacher Vs. Students – Latin applications 4. Tennis Ball Hot Potato – Latin applications

5

Engaging, Innovative Ways to Process New Vocabulary and Structures

9:00-10:00 a.m. For acquisition of both vocabulary and structure, language learners need at least twenty to thirty repetitions in order to internalize new concepts. The students need repetitions that:

§ are meaningful; § provide variety and; § actually communicate information that the students care about.

Included are:

• Paired Activities • Strategies that appeal to the visual and spatial senses • Active group games and tactics

5. World Geography Provide student A with a blank map of any part of the world. Give student B an “itinerary” – a blank map with lines drawn from one country or city to the next. Student B “dictates” the itinerary to student A who draws lines from place to place. Students compare maps when finished. Example sentences:

o I go from Brazil to Paraguay. o I went (will go, would like to go, have gone) from…

6

6. Visualize Vocabulary

• Have students illustrate vocabulary words by writing the word in large print

with one or more of the letters enhanced or shaped to resemble the meaning of the word.

“to look at”

“to sing”

• Have students illustrate vocabulary words by writing the word over and over again in a pattern that illustrates its meaning.

The hair is the word “pelo” written over and over again. The shirt is the word “camisa” written repeatedly. Pants is “pantalones” written over and over again.

The skateboard is “patineta” written repeatedly. The Spanish words for shoes, hands, and face are

similarly repeated.

Volleyball terms are written over and over again in this example:

“red” on the net, “línea” on the lines, “balón” on the ball, and so forth.

7

• Word Clouds: The following is a Wordle™ (www.wordle.net). Students

can design a wordle based on various criteria. The words in this wordle are bigger or smaller based on how important the student thinks the subject is or on how much he likes each subject.

7. Mad-libs Students are often familiar with Mad-libs. A one-page story is provided with many blanks for students to fill. Each blank is labeled with the needed part of speech or vocabulary category.

§ Before the students see the story, the leader calls out each blank number and its category. The students write down their choice for each blank, being as silly as they can. After all words have been written, the teacher displays the mad-lib and the students read their version aloud.

§ Students may also work in pairs. One takes the teacher role and the other supplies the needed words.

§ This is a very short sample. Mad-libs are not difficult to make as you can easily elicit the vocabulary and structures that you are currently emphasizing in your class.

Every___________I like to go to the __________with 1 2

my_______________. We like to ________ and __________. 3 4 5 At ____________, we eat____________ and drink__________. 6 7 8 Later we go to the _________ for dessert. My favorite dessert 9 is_________ _______and my pet’s favorite dessert is _______.

10 11 12

Other Wordle Ideas:

• Family Vocabulary: Number of Relatives for each or how important them Member is to the student.

• Foods: How much the student likes Each food or relative nutritional Values of each food.

• Descriptive Adjectives: How much each Word describes the student or another Person or thing.

8

1. ___________Day of the week 2. ___________Building in the city 3. ___________Type of animal. 4. ___________Verb infinitive 5. ___________Verb infinitive 6. ___________A time 7. ___________A food 8. ___________A beverage 9. ___________A building in the city

10. ___________A color 11. ___________A salty food 12. ___________A spicy food 8. Pass the Cow

Who would think that students would beg to practice indirect or direct object pronouns! This ultra-simple technique is popular with students because it involves throwing something and an element of chance.

• Choose an item to “pass”, the sillier the better. • Secretly write down one student’s name. • Give the “cow” to any student except the student you chose.

Say, “I pass the cow to_(name)__” The receiving student says “You pass the cow to me?” in a “shocked” voice.

• That student then picks a different student and passes the “cow” to him saying, “I pass the cow to _____(name)_____”. The receiving

student repeats “You pass the cow to me?" • Students continue to pass the “cow” until it is passed to the student

whose name the teacher has written down. • Write down another student’s name and continue the game.

Other variations of the activity include the following.

• I’m going to give the cow to name. I will give the cow to name. • Direct object pronouns:

o Do you want the cow? Yes, I want it. • Double object pronouns:

o I give it to you. You give it to me? To practice all direct object pronouns throw items of differing

numbers and genders Working Group Topics 5. Latin application of World Geography 6. Ideas and topics for Visualizing Latin Vocabulary 7. Development of Latin Mad-libs 8. How to use “Pass the Cow” with Latin grammar

9

Engaging, Innovative Ways to Process New

Vocabulary and Structures – Part 2 10:00-11:00 a.m.

9. The Serpent

This is a great, yet simple reinforcement activity. Students think it is a game—even though it’s not! They are always very on-task.

• Make visuals on card stock, number and arrange them in order. Have students prepare answer sheets with as many numbers as visuals.

• Place one visual on each desk in a winding pattern. • When directed, students note the number of their visual and write the

answer next to the number that corresponds to that visual. • At your signal, the students leave the visuals on their desks and move with their answer sheets to the next desk in the winding “serpent” pattern.

They answer that question, wait for your signal, and move on to the next desk. They continue until they arrive back at their own desk.

• To differentiate the activity for different learners or goals students may use or not use vocabulary lists or maps during the activity.

• Practice the “serpent” pattern before doing the activity. • Keep the activity moving by not allowing too much time to write responses. • Students may, as an alternative, stay seated and pass their visuals.

Topics for “Serpent” Activities

Vocabulary: Name a picture, translate a word, or answer a question. Grammar: Do a grammar task – make plural, conjugate, etc. Geography: Duplicate outline maps of a country or continent. On each map write a target language question in the appropriate map area. 10. Three Tries

This paired activity can be used to practice any concept. This is an excellent differentiated activity as both advanced and struggling students are successful. • Provide each student with a different set of prompts and responses. • Student A says each prompt to Student B. If student B gives the correct response on the first try, student A will put a check mark in the “first time” column. If an incorrect response is given, student A will tell student B the correct response and move on to the next item. • After all prompts have been given, student A repeats only the prompts that were missed in the first round. If student B now gives the correct response, student A puts a check mark in the “second time” column. If

10

an incorrect response is given again, student A will repeat the correct response and move on to the next number. • The same procedure is followed a third time as necessary. Possible Prompts Possible Responses Mountains in the north of Italy The Alps Verb infinitive and subject Correct verb form Sentence with an object Sentence with object pronoun Present tense verb Same verb in a different tense

Three Tries: Countries and Capitals Student A: Ask your partner to give the capital of the following countries. The correct answer is in parenthesis. First try Second try Third try (3 points) (2 points) (1 point) 1. Afghanistan (Kabul) _______ _______ _______ 2. Czech Republic (Prague) _______ _______ _______ 3. Honduras (Tegucigalpa) _______ _______ _______ 4. Indonesia (Jakarta) _______ _______ _______ 5. Kenya (Nairobi) _______ _______ _______ 6. Luxembourg (Luxembourg) _______ _______ _______ 7. Poland (Warsaw) _______ _______ _______ 8. Turkey (Ankara) _______ _______ _______ 9. Hungary (Budapest) _______ _______ _______ 10. Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) _______ _______ ______

11

Three Tries: Countries and Capitals Student B: Ask your partner to give the capital of the following countries. The correct answer is in parenthesis. First try Second try Third try (3 points) (2 points) (1 point) 1. Australia (Canberra) _______ _______ _______ 2. Finland (Helsinki) _______ _______ _______ 3. India (New Delhi) _______ _______ _______ 4. Israel (Jerusalem) _______ _______ _______ 5. South Korea (Seoul) _______ _______ _______ 6. Norway (Oslo) _______ _______ _______ 7. Switzerland (Bern) _______ _______ _______ 8. Thailand (Bangkok) _______ _______ _______ 9. Germany (Berlin) _______ _______ _______ 10. Libya (Tripoli) _______ _______ _______ Total: ___________

12

11. Circumlocution Fly Swatter . Many games are motivating ways in which to practice circumlocution skills. This is one of my favorites. In the traditional version of “Flyswatter”, two teams line up down the center of the class. The first two students hold flyswatters while looking at pictures that are displayed on a screen. The teacher names one of the pictures, gives a “Go” signal, and the students try to be the first to swat the appropriate picture. The bottom flyswatter wins if both hit the same picture. Two problems with this game are that only two students participate at any one time and the words do not occur in a meaningful context. The following variations allow all students to be active participants throughout the game. In both the paired and the triad version, the leader will give the Latin word or a definition or description of the word to provide a meaningful context. • Paired Version: Make (or have students make) flash cards with vocabulary

words or pictures. Provide a set for each pair of students. They put the papers on a desk, and then put one hand on the desk and the other in their lap. After the teacher gives the Latin word or definition and the “Go” signal, the first student to touch and say the correct word gets to keep that paper. Play continues until all words have been used and the student with the most flash cards wins.

• Triad Version: In groups of three, one student says the Latin word orreads

the definition and gives a “go” signal. The other two students play as in the paired version.

12. Dot to dot

Copy a dot-to-dot puzzle from a children’s book. If good dot-to-dot books are not available, use a coloring book with simple drawings. “White out” the lines and and replace them with numbers or “indeclinables” in a random order. Write the numbers or “indeclinables” so that the final picture is upside down or side-ways. Read the clues to the students. For a paired activity, provide one student with the puzzle and the partner with a list of clues in the necessary order to complete the puzzle. As “A” reads the clues, “B” draws the lines to complete the picture.

13

Students can reverse roles and do a different puzzle. This is especially fun to do just before holidays! Students enjoy making these puzzles. Ask volunteers to make puzzles for you and you are likely to get a large collection of puzzles to use in the future.

Clues: 834, 754, 709, 122, 610, 444, 120, 367, 146, 528, 112, 350, 216, 100, 178, 1000, 804, 426, 109, 880, 315, 818, 981, 258, 154, 934, 1000, 777, 319, 500, 101, 911, 600, 820, 186, 725, 471, 834

14

Working Group Topics 9. Latin topics for “The Serpent” 10. Ways to use “Three Tries” in the Latin classroom 11. How to use “Circumlocution Fly Swatter” in the Latin classroom 12. “Dot to Dot” puzzles using Latin clues

15

The following activities will not be demonstrated at the workshop but you are welcome to adapt these to your Latin classroom as you see fit. Words in Strange Places Put difficult words, ideally with some sort of visual cue, on placards in weird places in the classroom: on your shirt, on the door, hanging from the ceiling, on a window. We tend to remember where we learned a word, so students will later look at the window and remember the word that had been placed there. This “place memory” explains why students tend to look at the teacher during a test. Since the teacher is the “place” where they learned, students are more likely to remember things the teacher taught them when they can look at her. This is a good reason for the teacher to remain in the location she generally teaches from while students take exams! Diagramming

To practice new structures and vocabulary, put words or pictures in three columns and copy on both sides of the paper. On one side of the paper, each student randomly draws lines connecting the three columns, using each item only once. Student “A” then “dictates” his sentences and the partner draws the matching lines on the blank side of his sheet. Students then compare papers.

This example can be used to practice weather, the first person singular of present tense verbs and locations. Samples follow.

16

• When it’s foggy, I deliver packages in the harbor. • When it’s windy, I take photographs on the moon. • When it’s hot, I play the piano in the windmill. • When it’s cold, I paint in the cathedral. • When it’s sunny, I solve crimes in the library.

Diagramming can be used to practice many things. For example:

Sample sentences from these possible topics follow

• The principal played tennis with a football. • At 3:30 I would like to take a shower on the sofa. • On Tuesdays the German teacher eats enchiladas. • On May 11, 2017, the principal and I will go to the arena in a jet.

Jig Saw Puzzles Jig saw puzzles are an enjoyable way to reinforce many language skills. Preparation:

• Draw straight lines at various angles to make a “jigsaw” puzzle on a piece of 8½” by 11” paper.

• On one side of each line write a word or phrase. Across each line write a “match” for the word or phrase.

• When all clues are written, make copies of the puzzle on card stock. • Cut the puzzles into pieces and put in numbered zippered plastic bags.

Write the same number on the back of each piece of a puzzle to help identify lost pieces. Have students do the cutting for you! Activity

• Each student or pair of students may work on the desk or on the floor. • Students assemble the puzzle by matching clues and shapes. • Tell students that the edge pieces that have no writing are borders

pieces and may be a good place to start

Column 1 Column 2 Column 3

Any subject Picture of a sport Picture of sport equipment

A digital time Picture of a reflexive verb Location

Day of the week Any subject Picture of food

A date Picture of a place Picture of transportation

17

To make easy puzzles, design a grid with several large pieces. Design a grid with smaller pieces for harder puzzles.:

• Countries and capitals • Numbers in numeral and word formats • Vocabulary words and the opposite word • Subjects and infinitives and matching verb form • Vocabulary word and target language description: “my aunt – my

father’s sister” or “get a haircut” – the barber shop” • Verb form in one tense/mode matching same verb in another tense/mode • Sentences with direct and/or indirect objects and the same sentences

with pronouns: “I buy the book for Jane. I buy it for her.” • Description of a character from a story and the name of the character

Sample English Puzzle About The Family

18

Popsicle Stick Race Preparation: • Buy a box of craft sticks at a craft or dollar store. The tongue depressor size works best. • Make a list of vocabulary that you wish to include in the game.

o The list should be at least as long as your largest class so that each student has one stick.

o Two to three sticks per person are ideal. o It is extremely important not to use any word more than once.

• Use a permanent marker and write one English clue on each stick. Use the same color for all clues. Lay the sticks in a line behind each other. • Using a different color marker, look at the first stick and write the Latin word on the blank side of the second stick. (The answer side of the first stick remains blank at this time.) Follow this pattern until you reach the end of the row. • Finally, on the blank side of the first stick, write the Latin equivalent of the last

English word. • Put the sticks in a zippered plastic bag and record the topic and number of sticks on the bag. Include a list of the words used in case a stick gets lost. Game Play: • Pass out all sticks – one or more per pupil – keeping one for you or for a

student leader. • Use a stopwatch or designate one student as timekeeper. • Read your English word aloud. • Start the timer and record until the end of the activity. • The student who has the equivalent Latin word reads his word aloud, then

flips the stick over, reads the English word on that side and then sits. • The game continues in this pattern until the leader reads the response to the

final clue. • Note the elapsed time. Students can repeat the game to try to go faster or

compete with another class for the fastest time.

19

While the game can be played in a target language to English format, target language to target language clues may also be used: For example, “my aunt” matches “my mother’s sister” or “the bakery” matches “buy pastries and baguettes”. To practice object pronouns, students match a question and answer. “Do you want the pencil?” will match “I want it.” and “Did she give him the watch?” will match “She gave it to him.” Students will need to listen carefully to the number and gender of the nouns and verbs in order to correctly respond.

Students love to repeat the game. Have them exchange sticks each time they play so they don’t just remember who preceded them in the last game. Count the sticks before the class leaves! If a student does not return a stick, you cannot play the game again until you replace the stick. ******************************************************************************************** All material in this document not specifically identified as being reprinted from another source is copyright ©2016 by Alice Kosnik. You have permission to make copies for your own classroom use. You may not distribute, copy or otherwise reproduce any of this document for sale or for commercial use without written permission from the author.