Dipping and Dripping Rhymes Players soak nonsense word cards in water to reveal a target word to rhyme.
Age Range: 7 to 10 Skills Used: reading, rhyming Number of Players: 2 to 6 Noise Level: moderate Activity Level: moderate Materials: hidden word cards, markers
(permanent and washable), bowls of water, paper and pencils, paper towels
Setup This game requires advance preparation of cards with hidden words on them. The target words are written on the cards in permanent ink with random-sized spaces between the letters. The spaces between the target word’s letters are filled with distracting letters written in matching washable ink. For example, the word cat might appear on the card as bocrutangetable. Any number of distracting letters can be added to the target word, including letters that are in the target word. There should be enough of these cards prepared so that each player can have at least four. Each player should have a cereal bowl with about an inch of water in it. The bowls should be large enough to allow the word cards to lie fairly flat at the bottom and get completely wet. Paper towels, paper, and a pencil for each player are also needed.
Language Arts Games
How to Play Play begins with all the cards faceup spread on the table. Players take turns choosing one card from the array. When each person has a card, a signal is given for players to place their cards in the water. The letters written in washable marker will begin to fade as the card is agitated in the water. As soon as a player can read the target word, he or she should write down as many rhyming words as possible. There is no time limit for this part of the game, and there is no need to do this secretly because each person will have a different target word. When all players have exhausted their ideas, the results are shared. Incorrect rhymes are crossed out, and the number of correct rhymes is tallied to complete a round of play. Once dunked, the word card should be removed from the bowl and placed on the paper towel to dry. Another card is selected by each player for a second round and play continues until all the cards have been used. The number of correct words written in each round is added up by each player, with the highest total for all rounds determining the game winner.
Variation To change this game into a synonym game,
the target words can be overused words such as nice and big. The task would then be to write a list of synonyms for the target word revealed when the card is soaked in the water.
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