MAKE YOUR STUDENTS PLAY YOUR GAME Motto: I never teach my pupils. I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn. - Albert Einstein MAKE YOUR STUDENTS PLAY YOUR GAME Workshop SEETA – 8-12 December 2010 Melania Paduraru

WHO AM I?/ WHAT AM I? Call one student to the front of the class Show a name/picture on the screen behind them The student asks simple questions, to discover who they are The class gives only “Yes/No” answers

THE ALIEN Tell your class you are an Alien and you are inhabiting a human body to study human ways. You then ask about virtually anything in the room, and ask follow up questions: What is this? It's a pen. What's a "pen"? You use it to write. What is "write"? You make words with it on paper. What are "words"?

THE ALIEN

THE ALIEN - VARIANT Complicate it: find images with odd or useless inventions and print them. These are things the alien has on his planet. The alien shows the images to the class and answers their questions. At this point, it can be even funnier to allow for some improvisation in the language – funny names of objects, funny verbs for different actions, etc.

Variant

Someone would … X because … KISS, MARRY, PUNCH Someone would … X because …

Someone would … X because … Funnier when it’s played for the first time Students write three names and associate one funny reason for each choice Teacher gathers all papers and redistributes them randomly Teacher writes KISS/MARRY/PUNCH on the board In turns, students read what’s on the notes saying: Someone would … X because …