Ostrich Game

 Ostrich Game

Again this is a game that is difficult to explain the first time you play, but once you have done it a few times, it is fairly easy to set up.

For this game the students run around the class with the FCs behind their backs. The team A students try to see what FCs are behind the backs of the team B students. The team B students do the same. As they tentatively run about, bobbing their heads to look behind other students’ backs while at the same time not wanting to reveal what is behind their backs, the students look a little like ostriches.

So to begin the game, the [team A] students line up facing the whiteboard, while the [team B] students form a similar line on the other side of the room.

WHITEBOARD

#1s     #2s     #3s     #4s     #5s     #6s

Team A                                  Team B

#1s     #2s     #3s     #4s     #5s     #6s

The students are all facing away from each other, facing their corresponding walls. “No peeking,” says the teacher, as they walk around handing FCs to the students to take behind their backs. Usually the students will have their hands out ready to blindly take the FC as it is handed to them – the students will not know what FC they are holding; this is not important. “Remember, don’t cover the picture with your hands,” the teacher says. “Hold it like I showed you before.”

Once the teacher has handed out all the FCs, they shout, “Go!” and all the students quickly turn around to face each other. Subsequently the action commences.

When a student from one team catches a glimpse of what FC a student from the other team has, they shout to the teacher who acts as the referee.

“Teacher!” shouts the [#2s] from team B who has caught a glimpse of what FC the [#3s] from team A is holding. “He has [mountain],” the [#2s] shouts, pointing to the [#3s].

“Ok, stop,” says the teacher, and goes to check if this is correct. If so (i.e., the #3s is actually holding a [mountain] FC behind their back), the [#3s] from team A must return to their seat and is out of the game.

The first team to have all their members return to their seats is the losing team. The team with members still standing are the winners.

Sometimes you will inevitably have a student cornered against a wall, pushing their back against the wall so it is impossible to see which FC they have. The teacher must explain that this is not allowed (“No cheating!” says the teacher) and when this occurs the teacher can count down a “5, 4,3,2,1 …” to give this student a chance to move away from the wall. If the student fails to do so, they are out and must return to their seat.

The Ostrich Game can also be played with sentences. For example, if a student spots another student holding a mountain FC, they can say, “He has climbed a mountain!” or, “He is climbing a mountain!” etc. Simply give them a suitable question and answer form (Q&A) to use before you begin the game.

Finally note that the Ostrich Game does not have to involve the whole class at once. You can optionally play it as a 1v1 or 2v2 contest, picking the required amount of students to take part each time.