Category: Games

  • Circumlocution Games

    Circumlocution is a learned skill. In my classroom I try to model the skill for the students and to build toward them using it for themselves. The first two games offer the students examples of how to circumlocute. In the final game, one student is actively circumlocuting while the others guess the answer. You can…

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  • Game for the first month of class

    Many years ago I learned the game Saute from Joshua Cabral.* My students have always liked the game and today I was thinking about how to play it with beginning students who have limited vocabulary. Instead of using categories, you can try the same game with logical / illogical answers. And, this version has the…

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  • Online games that promote proficiency

    When you want to play games with your students yet you want the games to promote proficiency, try out a few of these ideas.

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  • September 2020

    When we are headed back to school in September, the learning our students will need most will be in the realm of social emotional learning. How do we address this while still practicing French? I have put together some resources to help start off your school year. Here is a set of slides dedicated to…

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  • Fighting the Winter Doldrums with Games

    There are many large group games that prioritize communication and are perfect for the proficiency-based classroom. In addition, these games work to strengthen relationships between students and increase the intent to speak because they are fun. You will find game ideas under the games category on this site. To escape the winter doldrums, I have…

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  • Jeopardy: Large-group Games using Technology

    As I have come to understand proficiency-based instruction, my games have become so much more interesting for students. In my current Jeopardy games, students are doing a guessing game from a clue. My clues use circumlocution to talk around the terms and lead students to the answer. There are a few choices for large-group games…

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  • What makes a good game?

    I used to play Jeopardy at the end of every unit. I liked it because years ago Jeopardy was novel for the student and the element of competition would get them motivated. Then I noticed that there was a lot of Jeopardy playing in other classes and the idea got a little old. In addition,…

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