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The Eraser/Keyword Game is a listening comprehension game from the Eigo Noto activities. Paired students face their cleared desks towards each other and place an eraser in the middle. A ‘keyword’ is given, perhaps by placing a flashcard on the blackboard. A teacher then says that keyword or another. The goal for the students is to take the eraser first when the teacher says the keyword, but not to take the eraser another word is said.
Instead of saying only one word, the keyword can be part of a Q&A pattern, or in a short dialog:
‘What fruit do you like?’ ‘I like blue.’
‘I have a green pen.’ ‘I have a blue pen.’

Ohajiki is another game from the Eigo Noto activities. It looks like a blend of Karuta and Bingo...
Each student has several words, pictures, letters, numbers, etc. in front of them (on a page in the textbook, for example). Or the students or teacher can make a print similar to Pair Karuta.
To begin, each student places a small cover over a set number of the words/pictures (five). As the teacher calls out the word, students can take the cover off the word (if they have covered it). The first student to remove all of their covers wins.
Instead of calling out a single word, the word (or letter or number...) can be included in a sentence, Q&A, or short dialog.
Time: about 10 minutes (with 5 words covered)

The O/X Game is a very powerful classroom activity- In one activity students participate in all of the categories of activities on The Minimalist ALT. It is also very flexible, making it useful for almost any language pattern. Learn to use it well!

This is the activity sequence for the O/X Game--
*Listen, Repeat, Respond, Repeat, Answer & Score*

For Sentences:
Ready (optional, but suggested for elementary classes):
-WRITE a target sentence or question pattern on the blackboard, underlining or using a different color chalk for the part/parts that will be changed.

Play:
-CHOOSE a student with the dice.
-SAY a sentence aloud.
-All students REPEAT.
-All students RESPOND-raise hand for ‘O’, or don’t for ‘X’.
-SAY the sentence again.
-Students REPEAT.
-Chosen student ANSWERS- ‘O’ or ‘X’.
-Correct students SCORE a point (chosen student, too).

For Yes/No Questions:
Play:
-WRITE and PRACTICE answer patterns on blackboard.
-ASK a question.
-All students REPEAT.
-CHOOSE an answering student with the dice.
-ASK the question again.
-All students REPEAT again.
-All students RESPOND by raising hands (‘O’) or not (‘X’) to guess the chosen student’s answer.
-ASK the question again, to the chosen student.
-The chosen student ANSWERS.
-Correct students SCORE a point (chosen student, too).

Hints:

• be creative with play style and language use. For example, when teaching the pronouns he and she, ask the student a question, or use a sentence, using the student’s name. Then, ask the same student a second question, or say a second sentence, using he or she in the question or statement. When teaching we, first ask the chosen student a question, or say a sentence. Then the second time, stand next to the student, use the same language, except use we for the subject. Or, you can use a second student: after asking the first student a question, or saying a sentence about the student, use the same sentence, except use they, indicating the first student and second student.

• If you use English names for the students, this is a good time to practice ‘What’s your English name?’ before making a question/sentence about that student.

• For Wh- questions (for example, ‘What color do you like?’), put two (or more) choices for the chosen student to answer from on the blackboard (O=I like blue. / X=I like red.) This will also show the students a written model of the correct answer form.

Karuta is a classic Japanese school game. A set of cards is spread face up on the desk, and when a clue is called out, students try to be the first to take the matching card.
In this simplified version, there are no prepared cards. Instead, a pair of students is given a blank piece of paper. They then write in random places on the paper a list of words, numbers, letters, phrases, etc., that the teacher tells/shows them. The teacher then calls out, or gives a clue to, one word at a time. The paired students each use a different colored pencil to circle the words they get first. Points can be given to the student winning in each pair (most words circled), each student receives all or half of the number of their circles, or the student pairs can play Hand Sandwich.
Variations to use:
Prepare a print with written material on it for the students to use (when the students can’t write English letters yet).
Students can write words in Japanese, and the teacher calls out the words in English (great for vocabulary practice).
Students write individual words in English, and the teacher calls out in Japanese or English.

Time: about 15 minutes with 12-15 words/letters, etc.

Small Group Creative Substitution Drills for Sentences or Questions.
materials: prepared sentences or questions, timer
time: 10-15 minutes

For each of 3-6 rounds, write a sentence, a question or a short 2 person dialog on the blackboard, and underline one word or phrase for students to change with their own word or phrase (I always use the same colored chalk for this). Make successive sentences/questions/dialogs varied, and/or a little more difficult. Two parts to change for the last pattern give the students a fun challenge.
In groups of 3 or 4 (small groups give each student more chances to speak), the beginning student says the target pattern on the blackboard, then passes a pen case, or other hot potato, to the next student. If the pattern is a question, the next student must first answer the question before making a new question and passing the hot potato. If the target pattern is a sentence, the next student makes a new sentence before passing the hot potato. Students continue like this in a circle until the time limit is reached (1 minute to 1 minute 20 seconds for short patterns, up to 2 minutes 15 seconds for dialogs). Use a count-down timer that beeps loudly when the time has finished.
If you use points in the classroom for motivation, all the students can start with 5 points, and the losing student (those holding the hot potato when the time has finished) lose one point.

Example rounds for one activity:

• Have you ever been to Kyoto?
• I have never seen an alien. How about you? Me, either./ I have seen an alien before.
• Kenta has played gate ball many times.
• How many times have you climbed Mt. Fuji?I have climbed Mt. Fuji once.

*This activity was chosen by a group of elementary teachers as the main activity for their English classes. It is the best way to teach and practice Conversation Skills. It can be used for meaning- or pattern-focus, and for all of the language structures. Learn how to use it well!

Materials: target sentence or question

Time: 1-5 minutes

Ready-
Students sit at desks in paired rows, facing forward.
Write or post the Rotation Pattern on the blackboard (click for print 1, print 2).

WRITE A SENTENCE & RESPONSE or QUESTION & ANSWER pattern on the blackboard as an example. UNDERLINE or WRITE IN A DIFFERENT COLOR the part of the sentence or question that the students are to change. Write this in order of W (winner) and L (loser), W and L representing the two students. If there is a choice of responses, number the choices (see below).
Next to the above, WRITE also the CONVERSATION PATTERN OR SKILL to be used on the blackboard (so students learn to recognize it on the ConFluency Card Game cards. See Conversation Skills for a list. Click here for a Practice Order List of the skills).
For example:

(W) I play tennis. (Say a Sentence) (L) I play soccer. (Say Another Sentence) or

(W) I play tennis. (Say a Sentence) (L1) I play tennis, too. (plus don’t) (L2) I don’t play tennis. (plus ,too.)

All students LISTEN AND REPEAT the target conversation from the blackboard or text poster. You might ask for volunteers to first say some optional phrases for the underlined/colored section.
All students are given time to think of a sentence or question in the given pattern.

Play-
Students, in seat pairs, play Janken (Rock-Paper-Scissors, or R-P-S). Usually, the winner (W) begins the conversation according to the posted pattern, and the pair continue until they finish the posted conversation pattern.
When the conversation pattern is finished, the student on the rotation side moves one seat forward or back (according to the posted Rotation Pattern). The new pair again plays Janken (R-P-S), and does the posted conversation, as before.
The activity continues until students return to their own seats and sit down.

Hints/Options-

For vocabulary (single words), students simply say the word in English or Japanese, and the other student translates.

For sentences, to make the activity communicative, use the conversation patterns (plus ,too.) and (plus don’t) as a two-choice response.

To TEST any of the language focus patterns, have students translate from English to Japanese, or from Japanese to English in their conversation pars.

Try to use the same colors or writing style every time you do the activity. This will help students easily recognize the patterns.
Try also to use the same words/phrases every time for students’ easy recognition. Using the same names as are on the ConFluency Cards will also promote easy success when students begin to play the card game.
Varying the rotating side, and front-to-back or back-to-front will help keep students’ interest.
Depending on time, there are a variety of rotation options: seats pairs can play one time together; seat pairs play first, then once more with the student in front/behind. Rows can be split in half, or played full length. When you have enough time to repeat the activity, in classes with six rows, the 2nd and 3rd rows, and the 4th and 5th rows, can change seats. In this way, all students get new seat partners.

a meaning-focused sentence pair practice activity
(with a time-adding writing/testing option)

materials: target sentence pattern, and return comment
time: 5-10 minutes (with writing, 15-20 min.)

Ready-

-Write a sentence pattern on the blackboard. the part that the students will change should be written in a different color, or underlined. Write also the partner’s return pattern *.
-* teachers here can choose what language the students react with. for example, ‘I play tennis.’ --> ‘You play tennis?’ or -->‘Liar! You don’t play tennis!’ or -->‘I think you don’t play tennis’ or -->‘Do you really play tennis?’, etc.

-Students think of two sentences in this target pattern-one TRUE and one FALSE.

-Writing/testing option--students write the sentences in their notebooks (or elsewhere) for checking before the next speaking activity.

Play-

-With all students standing, pairs play janken, and loser says/reads their two sentences aloud. janken winner must guess which is the FALSE statement, using the teacher-chosen language (above *).

-If points are awarded, correctly guessing students get one point for each correct guess.

Hints-
For classes that don’t interact well in a free-moving activity like this, have the students move in their seating rows, seat pairs playing janken, and one side rotating back one seat after their conversation is finished.

materials: target sentence and return comment, or
question & answer pattern
time: 5-10 minutes (with writing, 10-20 min.)
group size: pairs-row rotations, or free moving

Ready-
-WRITE A SENTENCE-AND-COMMENT* or QUESTION-AND-ANSWER PATTERN ON THE BLACKBOARD. UNDERLINE or WRITE IN A DIFFERENT COLOR the part that the students will change.
-* teachers here choose what language the students respond with. for example, W)‘I play tennis.’ --> L)‘I don’t play tennis.’ or L)‘I play tennis, too.’
-writing/testing option--students write the sentence-and-comment or question-and-answer patterns in their notebooks (or elsewhere) for checking before the next speaking activity. You could first write the patterns in Japanese on the blackboard.
-Students think of an original sentence or question based on the given pattern.

Play-
-With all students standing, PAIRS PLAY JANKEN, and winner says/reads his/her sentence or question. Janken loser responds or answers, using the teacher-chosen language (above *).
-GOAL of the pair activity is to find 3 students with a Yes or No answer (teacher chooses before starting); +,too. or +don’t response; or for Wh- questions, an answer pre-chosen by each student.
-When a student has found 3 of the target answers/responses, he or she returns to their desk and sits down.

Hints/Options-

• Communicative ability testing option--When a student has found his/her 3 people, he or she must come to the teacher and perform the dialog before sitting down.

• Pattern accuracy testing option--Students answering the target responses form a group. When a group of 3 has been formed, they come to the teacher. The teacher can choose a variety of options here. For example, when studying subject pronouns, each of the students can say, ‘I play soccer. He plays soccer. She plays soccer. We play soccer. They play soccer.’

• If points are awarded, students get one point for each janken win.

• For classes that don’t interact well in a free-moving activity like this, have the students Janken Conversation Round style-- seat pairs playing janken, and one side rotating back one seat after their conversation is finished.