The gist of the game
The basic idea of the game is a dialogue between one child on the one side and the group of children on the other. The game demands empty classroom, gym or open space.
To play the game
One child stands on the one side of the room. He/she is the one who gives the answers and is therefore facing the group of children who are lined up one next to one another on the other side of the room. Then the dialogue begins:
The group of children: "What's your name?"
The child (let's say Frank): I'm Jack.
The group of children:
- No! (and every child makes one step forward)
- Once they do that, they say: "Thank you!"
- And add "What's your name?"
The dialogue continues until the child gives his/her real name. Then, he/she runs towards the group of children and tries to catch one.
The actual act of catching can be played in two different versions:
- children run to the 'safe side of the line' on their end of the room (the line is pre-arranged). If the child doesn't manage to catch anyone and all of the children escape behind the safe line, he/she repeats his/her part.
- children run away randomly and the catching is continues until one child is caught. The caught one then takes the role of answering the question.
Variations
There are many questions that can be answered in the game, either each one separately or in sets of questions, depending on the children's level of knowledge.
Questions:
- What's your family name?
- What's your mother's/father's ... name?
- How old are you?
- Where do you live? / Where do you come from?
- How's the weather? (The song!)
- What's the weather like today?
- What's for dinner/supper/lunch today? (A pre-chosen type of food for the answer.)
- What do you eat Mr/Miss Caterpillar? (A pre-chosen type of food for the answer.)
- What do you eat Mr/Miss Wolf/Fox? (A pre-chosen animal for the answer.)
- and whatnot ...
Practicing plural and numbers:
- QUESTION: Mum/Dad, what's the time please?
The child who answeres, holds the cards of some animals (the number depends on the child's level of knowledge). Each animal is selected by the way they move. The movements have to be defined, for instance:
a bear - big steps; a mouse - small steps (baby steps); a kangaroo - jumps/hops; a caterpillar - crawls; a hippo - rolls; a snake - slithers; a bird/butterfly/insect - flies; and whatnot ...
The child answers according to his wish, stating: (1) the number of movements, (2) the type of movement, (3) the direction of movement.
- THE POSSIBLE ANSWERS: three bird flies forward, one bear step backward, five hippo rolls forward etc.
- The group of children needs to say 'Thank you', or else they have to go back to their starting position.
Material needed
- free space
- CoolTool (Mum, what's the time please; What do you eat ... Weather)
