Guess the Flashcard

 Guess the Flashcard

For this activity a target of circles within circles needs to be drawn on the whiteboard.

Or you could use half circles like this:

(((( ))))

Next you write numbers within each circle (or bracket if you choose to draw it in the way shown here) to represent how many points can be won. The numbers written below are just an example:

-200(-25(50(75(100)75)50)-25)-200

A board magnet for each team is placed on the outside of the outer circle in the [-200] position, e.g., a blue magnet for team A on the outer left and a red magnet for team B on the outer right.

The teacher takes a set of flashcards and stands at the front with this wad of FCs in their hand, just like the Random Card activity. This time however, only the teacher can see which FC is at the top of the pile: “No peeking!” says the teacher, holding the pile of FCs close to their chest so none of the students can see which FC is at the top of the pile. “Ok, hands up,” says the teacher, and selects a student to make a guess as to which FC this is. …

Let us say for example that the FCs are for school subjects. The students have already come into contact with the vocabulary and have played a selection of the games described so far in this book. They are now at a level where they know and can say the vocabulary: they are being tested on their pronunciation and on how well they can remember the target language.

The teacher twirls a board marker on the floor to determine which team can go first. Team A is selected and the teacher picks the #2s from that team who has their hand up. “Geography” guesses the student. “Good guess, but it’s not right,” says the teacher, already in the knowledge that the card at the top of the pile is [history]. The #4s from team B is chosen next. “Science!” says this student. “Good again, but it’s not the right answer,” replies the teacher.

And so the game continues until one of the students guesses correctly. When this happens, their team’s magnet can be moved one circle further in (with the above diagram it would move to the ‘-25’ position).

Next the teacher shuffles the FCs (holding them closely so no students can sneak a glance) and the game starts up again.

The first team to get their magnet to the centre is the winner and receives [100] points. The losing team receives however many points their magnet’s current position shows; possibly [75] points, possibly [-200] points.

This game requires very little set-up and is an excellent method of reviewing the FC vocabulary and of getting the students to take turns in saying it individually.