Presented at the IP exbhibition on September 4 2016 with Alexander Makarios, CELTA tutor at CELT Athens

1. Are we Playing Games
or Being Serious?
Sunday 4 September, Athens
IP Autumn 2016

2. What turns an ’activity’ into a ‘game’?
A game consists of ‘play’ governed by ‘rules’ which
add...
•purpose / objective
•competition and/or collaboration
•an element of fun / carelessness

3. Where can we find games?
•Hidden inside a boring exercise
•In coursebooks
•On the web (FL sites)
•On the web (non-FL sites)
•In games EFL books
•In non-EFL games books

4. Let’s Play: “–ing or –ed?”
Well, it’s not so
amusing, you
know.
You don’t seem
amused at all
with my story.
You don’t look
very convinced
to me.
Well, you do
not sound very
convincing!
You look so
depressed!
But your story is so
depressing!

5. Passive Voice Questions Practice
The Pyramids When were the Pyramids built?
A.5th century BC B. C. 8th century BC
Why were the Pyramids built?
A. to house a library B. to bury a king
QUIZ SHOW
You work for a new TV show in the team that makes the
questions! Write questions about the following:
e.g.

6. Grammar Auction
1.I suggest he ask several questions during the
interview.
2.Please, explain us this word because we don’t
understand.
3.It was impossible to know if he would have
wanted to spend so much money.

7. Unusual Uses

8. http://marisaconstantinides.edublogs.org/2014/01/13/the-giant-storymaker-ideas-for-a-hundred-million-stories/
Storymaking games & competitions

9. Storymaking games & competitions

10. Why use games?
•focus on the
learner
•reduce anxiety
•motivate
•have fun
•collaboration
•team-building
•communication
•meaningful practice
•creativity
•skills integration

11. When should we use games in a lesson?
•early on in your lesson: to warm-up / present new
language / diagnose / revise
•mid-lesson: to offer controlled practice
•towards the end of the lesson: to offer freer
practice

12. Lead ins

14. Mystery Ice Smashes Roof
In America the strange case of the block of ice that smashed through the roof
of a house in the small town of Timberville, Virginia, still defies explanation. It
happened on 7 March 1976 as Wilbert Cullers, his son’s girlfriend were
watching The Six Million Dollar Man on television. The local Daily News-
Record reported what happened on that peaceful Sunday evening:
"We heard a roar just like dynamite, and pieces of the ceiling came through,"
Mr Cullers said. The pieces of ceiling and several large pieces of murky ice
splattered onto the near the middle of the room, about a yard from the
television.
Several of the pieces bounced into the rooms adjoining the living room. When
they looked up through the large hole in the living room ceiling, they could
see all the way into the clear, star-speckled sky outside."
Where, then, had the ice come from?

15. COMPETITION: The Craziest Explanation Wins!
Where DID the ice come from? Brainstorm some theories
•It could/might/must have been (caused by) a....
•The ice may/might/could have come from... etc.
Most & least believable theories win prizes!!!!!!!!

16. From Arthur C. Clarke’s Mysterious World (Collins)
A question the Daily News-Record lost no time in putting to all
available authorities. Dr.Lehman, an astronomer from the
University of Virginia, and officials of the National Weather Service
were found to be in agreement: the ice probably came from an
aircraft. Dr.Lehman and his colleagues surmised that ice had
formed at a broken water vent on a plane and had fallen off when it
reached a weight of 10 or 15 lb (4.5-7 kg). Others, however, seemed
to be less sure. Not only did local meteorologists say there was
nothing in the atmosphere that night that could have caused a
large block of ice to form on aircraft, but none of the people who
were outside in the area of Wilbert Cullers’ house saw or heard an
aircraft, although the night was clear.

17. Lead out

18. Age-appropriate games
Factors affecting the choice of games:
•Amount of background knowledge needed to play the
game
•Cognitive abilities
•Content suitability
•Level of ‘silliness’ allowed in the game
•The learners’ perception of the usefulness (or not) of
games
•The type of course, i.e. Business English

19. ‘Serious’ or ‘Playful’ games?
Cognition Playfulness

20. Practical problems... and solutions!
•Large classes
•Noise
•To compete or not?
•Ιnfantilising effect
•Time
•Language produced

21. Keep Talking
Cut up
cards –
distribute –
each
student
must talk
for a
minute in
order to
get rid of a
card – the
winner is
the one
who
finishes
first
1
Talk about one of the
games you used to
play when you were
10 years old
2
Talk about where
you used to go on
Saturday nights
when you were 20
3
Tell us where you used
to go on summer
holiday when you were
in your teens
4
Talk about the school
where you used to go
as a child
5
Tell everyone about
some of the places
you used to go to
with your parents
6
How did you use to
spend your weekends
five years ago?
7
Talk about the clothes
8
What did your
9
Talk about some of the

22. Story Dominoes
He loved her
passionately
So, she decided
to get rid of him.
Make it look like
an accident'
'You are a real
psychopath!'
The detective looked
round, sniffing for
clues
'Don't ever seek
refuge here', the
general
commanded.
'My nerve has
gone completely,
darling!'
They ordered
champagne and
caviare to
celebrate.
She was a really
quiet and religious
girl.
Their parents
believed them to
be very happy.
He would have
done anything to
make her stop
crying!
She thought she
would never
forgive him for
this.
'Oh, no! He is still
alive and kicking!'
'I think we ought
to call the police.'
He finally
persuaded her to
'What a bizarre
dress you are

23. Teacher roles
1. Code-control games
•Master of ceremonies / Quizmaster
•Evaluator of responses / Judge
•Scorer
2. Communication games
•Informant / Language consultant
•Monitor / Corrector
•Referee

24. Let’s play!

25. Thank you very much!
Ευχαριστούμε πολύ!
CELT Athens © 2016
Web: www.celt.edu.gr
Email: info@celt.edu.gr
Tel: +30 210 33 02 406