NAME ACTIVITY CONVERSATIONS IN THE STREET OBJECTIVE
Increase group cohesion
SUBJECT/FIELD Any OF STUDY AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE - All SS stand in the middle of the classroom. - They pair up, a topic/statement/question is given on the board. - SS must talk about this topic for a minute. - After the minute the teacher makes some kind of signal and SS change partners. This is done until all topics have been discussed. It promotes cooperation, SS get to know each other better, there’s no pressure, etc. REFERENCE
No reference.SPAIN
RATING
5/5 (great activity, easy to prepare and very effective). Sandra.SPAIN 5/5 effective and lots of talking Elisabet SPAIN Active learner
LEARNING STYLES
NAME ACTIVITY SCRATCH AND FEEL OBJECTIVE
Increase group cohesion
SUBJECT/FIELD Low levels OF STUDY Language or Maths (learning alphabets or signs or countries) AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE - Materials needed: pencil, paper, and figures on flash cards. - Students are divided into pairs and are designated as person A or person B. - The As are told to sit at their desks and the Bs stand directly behind the As. The As close their eyes and lean forward to allow the Bs to trace figures on their backs. - The teacher shows the Bs a figure (one of the flash cards) to trace on the As backs. When the Bs are finished, the As open their eyes and draw the figure on a piece of paper. - Success is measured by accuracy of the drawing. - The process is repeated several times, with the partners switching position REFERENCE LEARNING STYLES
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3934/is_200010/ai_n8905917/ SPAIN Visual learners, sensor learners, active learners
NAME ACTIVITY ICE-BREAKERS OBJECTIVE
Increase group cohesion
SUBJECT/FIELD Any OF STUDY AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE -members introduce themselves to 4 other people and tell them 3 things about themselves, then the group tries to remember what they learned about others -a bean-bag is thrown between the members, each is to call out their name as they catch it -groups of 4 or 5 spend time finding out what they have in common, then report to the whole group REFERENCE RATING
LEARNING STYLES
http://www.pitt.edu/~groups/kabindex.html SPAIN Very good activity to do the first day of the course. Students like to find out about their new classmates. It's a good ice breaker and a good opportunity for the teacher to get to know his/her students a bit. (Salut)
4/5 Good activity but sometimes it's a good idea to give students ideas on what to talk about, otherwise the conversation may die out quickly as they haven't bonded yet (Sandra. SPAIN) Active learners, intuitive learners
NAME ACTIVITY Noughts and Crosses OBJECTIVE
Increase group cohesion and work cooperatively
SUBJECT/FIELD Any OF STUDY Revision purposes (any subject) AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE - Materials needed: a grid with noughts and crosses. Each box of the grid has the initial of a word or a word (to be revised) - The students are divided into 2 or 3 groups. Each group chooses a name and gets a symbol that represents it. - One group starts. It chooses one box. The teacher gives them a clue to find out the hidden word. If the SS get it right, their symbol is written in the box. All groups take it in turns. - The group who succeeds in placing three respective symbols in a horizontal, vertical or diagonal row wins the game. REFERENCE
No reference.SPAIN
RATING
5/5 Very effective, students revise a lot, you can work on any subject and it's very easy to prepare. It admits lots of variations (Sandra. SPAIN) Intuitive learners, reflective learners
LEARNING STYLES
NAME ACTIVITY OBJECTIVE
SWEET MEET To increase group cohesion
SUBJECT/ Any AGE GROUP PROCEDURE
• Purchase candy bars for each student. Buy the number of varieties necessary for dividing SS in the desired number of groups. • Place all the candy bars in a bag and ask SS to draw a candy bar as they enter the class. • Tell SS to sit with the people who drew the same candy bar and war them not to eat the candy bar yet. • Groups answer a series of questions: why you are in this class (specific reason) Your weakest / strongest point concerning the subject Two things about you that no one at the table may know
REFERENCE Adapted from http://humanresources.about.com/od/icebreakers/a/icebreaker_dev.htm SPAIN LEARNING Active learners STYLES
NAME ACTIVITY CONSENSUS OBJECTIVE
INCREASE GROUP COHESION (getting to know each other)
SUBJECT/FIELD ALL OF STUDY ALL AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE -In small groups students decide upon one item that they all like and one item that they all dislike, for each category on the board. Some suggested categorie are: TV show, gift received, beverage, team game, song, colour, school subject, Saturday activity, house chore, board game, card game, dessert, vegetable, meat, and cartoon character‌
- When the group members have come to a unanimous agreement regarding an item they like and one they dislike for the given category, the group recorder writes down their choices. - whole class discussion
REFERENCE LEARNING STYLES
Building group cohesiveness through cooperation activities http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3934/is_200010/ai_n8905917/ SPAIN Active learners, reflective learners
NAME ACTIVITY
DICTOGLOSS
OBJECTIVE
INCREASE GROUP COHESION
SUBJECT/FIELD OF STUDY LANGUAGES AGE GROUP OR LEVEL ALL PROCEDURE
REFERENCE RATING
1. Teacher reads a short story aloud twice while students listen to it. They can take down notes (keywords or phrases) but they cannot write whole sentences 2. Step 3. in groups SS reconstruct the story 3. Step 4. Teacher projects or gives out a copy of the story to students so they can compare their versions
SPAIN 5-Excellent. Done with intermediate level. Students are amazed to see how close to the original version their stories are. Very good collabotarive activity as they all remember something from the stories that others don't and they help each other to put all the bits and pieces together. Very good to practise narrative writing. Very good collaborative activity (Salut. Spain) It was a very interesting experience which the pupils could profit with a diversified final product (Portugal)
LEARNING STYLES Verbal learners, reflective learners, intuitive learners, global learners
NAME ACTIVITY 1O THINGS IN COMMON OBJECTIVE
Team building icebreaker
SUBJECT/FIELD Any OF STUDY AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE Divide SS into groups of four by having them number off. (Do this bec people generally begin a meeting by sitting with the people they already kn best) Their assignment is to find ten things they have in common with ever other person in the group (warn the SS no body parts (we all have legs; we have arms) and no clothing (we all wear shoes, we all wear pants). This he the group explore shared interests more broadly. One student must take notes and be ready to read their list to the wh group upon completion of the assignment. Volunteers share their lists of things in common to the whole group.
REFERENCE
http://humanresources.about.com/od/icebreakers/a/icebreaker_com.htm SPAIN
RATING
5-Excellent. This activity gets students talking and they really get involved in the task (Salut) 4- Good. I find 10 things a lot, I'd rather ask them for 3 unusual things they have in common. Having said this suggestion would work with high levels better. 5- perfect for the first day! 4-5 things in common should be enough.
LEARNING STYLES
Active learners, reflective learners
NAME ACTIVITY OBJECTIVE
UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS To increase group cohesion
SUBJECT Any AGE GROUP PROCEDURE
Divide SS into pairs Participants have a few minutes to interview each other (studies, job, past jobs, family life, hobbies, favorite sport, etc.). Then, each participant should introduce their partners by name and to share at least two unique characteristics about them.
REFERENCE http://www.reproline.jhu.edu/english/5tools/5icebreak/icebreak2.htm SPAIN 4-Very good. Another Ice breaker activity similar in a way to the third activity in RATING this group. Good to do the first day of a new course. Better than the previous one if you are short of time but not so much fun and with less interaction among students. (Salut)
LEARNING STYLES
Active learners, reflective learners
NAME ACTIVITY OBJECTIVE
BALL TOSS To build group cohesiveness (as SS revise)
SUBJECT Any AGE GROUP PROCEDURE
SS and teacher form a circle and toss a soft ball around the circle. As they toss the ball to somebody, they ask a question (about anything learnt in class: vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, etc.)
REFERENCE http://www.reproline.jhu.edu/english/5tools/5icebreak/icebreak2.htm SPAIN RATING 5/5 Very entertaining.Useful,especially for younger students who need some space to move. It can be used for any kind of revision.(Olga,Greece) LEARNING STYLES
Reflective learners, active learners, verbal learners
NAME ACTIVITY FIND THE MISSING PIECE OBJECTIVE
To build group cohesiveness
SUBJECT/FIELD Any OF STUDY AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE The teacher prepares pieces of paper, enough for everybody in the group. The papers include words that are split into two, for example: COCOA BUTTER MILE STONE ICE CREAM Each student picks one piece of paper and then begins to look for the person who has the matching word. When the participant has found her/his match, s/he should know the other person. Then, they will be asked to introduce one another to the rest of the group. An alternative is to use words that are opposites. For example: BLACK WHITE UP DOWN LEFT RIGHT HOT COLD REFERENCE RATING
LEARNING STYLES
http://www.reproline.jhu.edu/english/5tools/5icebreak/icebreak2.htm SPAIN 5/5. A complete success. The activity was realised in a Chemistry class. The students had to match the names of hydrocarbons with their structular formula and then to produce their molecular formula. It was done right after the presentation of rules for naming hydrocarbons istead of a work sheet. Students loved the activity which was like a game to them and actively participated. Brilliant students formed pairs with weaker students to present their work and group cohesion was clearly promoted. I intend to incorporate this activity into my classes. Spiros Papasideris (Chemist, Teacher of Chemistry, Greece) Active learners
NAME ACTIVITY FACT OR FICTION OBJECTIVE
Increase group cohesion
SUBJECT/FIELD Any OF STUDY AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE Each student writes down four facts about themselves, one of which is not true. Each person takes turns reading their list aloud and the rest of the group writes down the one they think is not true. When all are done reading the lists aloud, the first person reads their list again and identifies the fact, which is not true. The group should compare their written responses with the correct answers.
REFERENCE RATING
http://www.reproline.jhu.edu/english/5tools/5icebreak/icebreak2.htm SPAIN 5-Excellent. Always fun, easy to prepare. I often ask students to think of their sentences at home, as they find it a bit difficult when they have to think about them in class (Sandra).
NAME ACTIVITY OBJECTIVE
MAROONED To promote teamwork
SUBJECT Any AGE GROUP PROCEDURE
Divide SS into teams. Ask SS to pretend they are marooned on an island. Have the teams choose five items they would have brought with them if they knew there was a chance that they might be stranded. Note that they are only allowed five items per team, not per person. Ask each team to write their items down defend their choices with the whole group. This activity helps them to learn about other's values and problem solving styles and promotes teamwork.
REFERENCE http://www.reproline.jhu.edu/english/5tools/5icebreak/icebreak2.htm SPAIN
NAME ACTIVITY
CORNERS
OBJECTIVE
increasing group cohesion getting students emotionally involved SUBJECT/FIELD OF STUDY Any AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE
REFERENCE RATING
Do you always use the screen/board in class? Why don’t you use different corners instead? Prepare each corner with what you want the SS to learn about. One way of carrying out the activity is to have different information for each corner and... a) have the SS from a group tell the ones from another group about what they have read and vice-versa. b) give the SS a few minutes to go through all the information and then have them go to another corner and do the same and so on.
SPAIN 5-The students loved going around the class getting the information they needed, they pretended they were in a museum! Tip: prepare a grid/some activities so that the students know what information they should be looking for.
NAME ACTIVITY
COLLABORATIVE BRAINSTORMING
OBJECTIVE
Group cohesion
SUBJECT/FIELD OF STUDY any AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE
ACTIVITY . The teacher creates and monitors a discussion forum AND poses a problem or situation, the students of different countries respond to the situation, exchange of opinions with Ss from different countries. EVALUATION Sts’ feedback. (Teachers: summary with the conclusions) Visual feedback. Participation, kind of contributions.
REFERENCE
GREECE, PORTUGAL
NAME ACTIVITY OBJECTIVE SUBJECT/FIEL D OF STUDY
Did You Hear? Increasing group cohesion and promoting self-esteem Social life Lower-intermediate to advanced
AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE
1. Elicit the types of rumour that spread quickly through social circles, e.g. couple breaking up, someone losing their job, someone winning some money, etc. Drill the question opener 'Did you hear that John ...?' and invite a confident student to give you a made-up piece of gossip. Respond by asking for more details, then go on to another student and pass on the rumour, slightly exaggerating the details.
2. Put the students in pairs, A and B, and ask the As to start off a made-up rumour about ore or more made-up characters. Tell the Bs to listen and ask for details before finding another A and passing on the rumour in a slightly exaggerated way. A continues by spreading the rumour to another B.
3. After five minutes, ask all the Bs to take the last rumour they heard and try to find the A-studet who started it. It may be hard to recognise!
4. Finally put the students in small groups and invite them to exchange real life experiences of rumours and their feelings about them.
REFERENCE
RATING
"Spontaneous Speaking - Drama activities for confidence and fluency" by David Heathfield ROMANIA Excellent! The students loved it, especially because, let's face it, people like gossiping. It was great fun! They enjoyed taking part and noticing that the story which resulted was so different from the one they stared with. It really increased group cohesion and self esteem. (Andreia)
NAME Find the title of our movie ACTIVITY OBJECTIVE To increase group cohesion SUBJECT/FIELD Languages-Improvisation OF STUDY 10 upwards AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE 1. The teacher divides the class into pairs. For example, a class of 24 is divided into 12 pairs. Half of these pairs (only 6 pairs) are given 6 different pieces of paper with half of the title of 6 well known films. 2. Each pair must guess the complete title of the film. Then they must mime it to the other pairs who don’t have a strip of paper. 3. The first pair who guesses the film right, joins the pair who mimed the title and they become a team of 4.The other pairs must mime their film until they find the pair who understands them right and can form a group of 4. 4. The teams of 4 are given 5 minutes to create the title of an imaginary film and find a way to mime it to the others. 5. Each team of 4, mimes their title and the other teams try to find it. The team who finds more titles is the winner. REFERENCE
Greece
NAME Play a short! (e.g. Videoclip) ACTIVITY OBJECTIVE To increase group cohesion with a unique target SUBJECT/FIELD Multimedia OF STUDY AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE Teacher define the roles of a movie crew:
Director, planner, responsable of scene, location scout, actors, music, writers, cameraman, video editing, etc...
Then all participate to all activities but only one responsable has the "final cut" Start chosing a song: the responsable of music has the final cut Decide where you can play it: location scout has the final cut Decide if you want to add other words on the music: writer has the final cut Decide when you'll play it: planner has the final cut ...etc...etc... till the shooting day. Director decides if a scene is good. Teacher supervise all.
REFERENCE
Italy
NAME ACTIVITY
The Magic Box
OBJECTIVE
INCREASE GROUP COHESION (getting to know each other)
SUBJECT/FIELD Language OF STUDY Beginner- Elementary AGE GROUP OR LEVEL PROCEDURE - Construct a "magic box" which can be any kind of a box with a mirror placed to reflect the face of anyone who looks inside. Begin the activity by asking the group, "Who do you think is the most special person in the whole world?" After allowing the student to respond individually, continue: "I have a magic box with me today, and each of you will have a chance to look inside and discover the most important person in the world." Give each student a chance to look into the box after you ask them who they think they will see. Some client may have to be coaxed, because they may not believe what they see. Be ready with some of the following comments: "Are you surprised?" "How does it feel to see that you are the special person?" "You smiled so big -- are you happy to see that you're the special person?" Before rejoining the group, ask each client to keep the special news a secret. After all the Ss have had their turns, ask the group who the most special person was. After each student has had an opportunity to say "me," explain that the box is valuable because it shows that each of them is special. You might ask how it is possible for everyone to be the special one. A discussion about each individual's uniqueness may ensue.
REFERENCE
Turkey