I’ve always had a lot of fun playing games. I play board games with my own children almost every day, and it should come as no surprise that I have utilized a wide variety of games* as instructional tools in my classroom. No student has ever asked, “Why are we playing games?” Instead, they frequently inquire, “Can we play this again soon?”
Some individuals might ask, “Why play games in class?” I think it’s important to explain to my students, coworkers, parents, and others the benefits of playing games. Over the course of my career who is the king of ipl, I have compiled my own list of the top five reasons why I believe that playing video games can be a useful teaching tool.
Through playing the game, students gain knowledge.
Students may be able to experiment with new options or variables, gain a new perspective, or comprehend a novel idea by playing a game. For instance, during the first week of school, I frequently participated in a card game in my beginning Spanish classes. There were four to five students in each group. The instructions for the card game were read aloud by each participant; The game was then played without a sound. One student from each group (usually the “winner”) switched groups after the first round. In most cases, we played three or four rounds. My students were unaware at first that there were distinct rules for each group.
When a student joined a new group, he frequently felt lost and unsure of why the other players were acting differently (students typically respond, “They were playing wrong”). This served as a foundation for our discussion of moving to a new country. I shared my own experiences of learning new cultural norms and today lottery result, at times, feeling like others were “playing wrong” after moving from Spain to Venezuela to the United States.
After that, we played the game once more, but I let each student talk. The game went more smoothly as a result of students discussing the rules with “newcomers,” and students reported feeling much more satisfied. At least one person said, “I get it.” at this point. You are attempting to demonstrate to us why we require language proficiency. so that we can all discuss the rules with one another.”
Engaging practice can take place in a game setting.
As someone who teaches world languages, I am aware that students need a lot of practice to learn important vocabulary and structures. However, students must be engaged for the practice to be meaningful—and let’s face it—many workbook pages and textbook exercises are not always very engaging! My students willingly use the vocabulary and structures in lively games like charades, the $25,000 pyramid, and others, gaining much-needed practice repeatedly.
Students can acquire a variety of essential skills through games.
Through playing games, students can learn a plethora of skills, including the ability to think critically, creativity, work as a team, and sportsmanship. For instance, circumlocution is a very important skill for my Spanish students. I have observed a significant improvement in my students’ circumlocution proficiency through word guessing games. During game sessions, I enjoy watching my students’ creativity (we have used Play-doh, drawing, acting, and a variety of other activities in our games).
One of my first years as a teacher, a student said that the verb game we were playing, which was a version of “Yahtzee,” was his favorite. I informed him that while I was pleased that he enjoyed it, it was not my creation; rather, it was based on a game he might have played at home. He then informed me that I was the only adult who had ever sat down to play a game with him and that he had never played games at home. I sometimes find it surprising that students don’t think logically about how to play “Guess Who?” Then I think back to the fact that this 14-year-old had never played a game with an adult before he came to my class! I see this as an opportunity to teach a wide range of life skills that aren’t always covered in my curriculum.
Students can create positive learning memories and make a variety of connections to the material while playing games.
Game times are some of my favorite classroom memories. As Miguel helped his classmates guess the word “Mono” (monkey), I will never forget watching him scurry around the classroom. It’s a good thing that the students won’t forget it either—they all got “mono” right on their tests. Students tend to recall the fun, silly, or interesting moments, and they latch onto the vocabulary and structures we are studying. Learning can be made easier when there is a positive emotional connection. Additionally, numerous games provide a wide range of stimuli; Some students may recall the vocabulary words by acting them out, while others may recall reading the clues or hearing their classmates call out the answers. Students can benefit from a variety of sensory experiences through games.
Games actively engage students and keep their attention.
It is a good way to focus students’ attention and actively immerse them in Spanish, in my opinion, because students really enjoy playing games. There are numerous ways in which this can be especially beneficial. Students sometimes have trouble settling down and returning to class after a fire drill, for instance. Students can quickly get involved in a game and return to the material we were working on. My students frequently report feeling energized and tired after sitting for long periods of time on state-mandated standardized tests; They might require an energetic game with a lot of movement.
Author Bio
Zara white is graduated from London University and she writer blog from more than 5 years. In various topics like education, finance, technology etc. Visit his website at Fastitresult.com.
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