Review And Fact Sheet Games

Submitted by Martha Stanley, Tallahassee, Florida

Idea posted July 21, 2004

With only 8-12 answers to dream up, the teacher need not spend so much brain power or money creating or buying games. This really works. Be careful that you have EASILY copied rhythms for your students, or your whole class period will be eaten up with the making the playing card.

Have your students independently create questions and answers on index cards. Put the question on one card and the answer on another, or do it front/back to lessen confusion. Use these kid generated questions and answers for the game. (Of course, go through them first for accuracy and appropriateness.) If you have lots of things to review, you can split them up into three parts (i.e., on three separate days have them create questions/answers, create playing sheet, and play the game. You could also increase the grid to 4x4 or 5x5.

The little ones can't write fast enough, so it's fun to adapt this game into a board game. You can ask them to generate questions and answers, which you write on cards or put on the board. Then you pull out the questions randomly and get individual children to come to the board and cover the right answer. Celebrate a three-in-a-row with cheers or something fast, silly, and loud (my favorite).

Have the students create the review questions and answers and add a few of your own. Divide the class into four teams. Having individuals answer the questions correctly in order to cover a space. Here's the catch - this time, the game is Blackout, in which the students have to cover their whole card. Whenever they get an answer correct, they get to cover a spot of their choice. When someone answers incorrectly, the teacher gets to cover a spot. Whichever team fills in their card first wins. It's so much fun for the kids to beat the teacher!

Say I want to do a presentation to the kids about Scott Joplin. There are several facts that I want to cover. I create an overhead or PowerPoint with bullet points on it that I reveal one at a time while I'm talking. This can be biographical dates, titles of works, famous events happening concurrently, vocabulary, etc.

I introduce them to the activity and say, "I will be doing a lot of talking and I want you to work on remembering as much of this as you can. I'll ask questions about it later. ANYTHING on the overhead can turn into a question later. I'll be sure to call on anyone who looks like they aren't paying attention." And believe me, I do!

Then I proceed. I can make the presentation engaging to the kids, but I want them to remember stuff too.

Then I reveal that I'm going to ask them questions. If they can answer correctly, they get a point. If not, then I get the point because I already know the answers.

I make two big columns on the overhead or board - kids vs. teacher. Above that, I put a column called "Sportsmanship Points."

I start asking questions and reminding them that the answers were on the overhead. I've found that it's fun to call on people who slide into the background - the quiet ones.

I write the correct answer down in the appropriate column. By writing it down, it reinforces the reading and vocabulary. At the end, I add up the answers.

Now here's the kicker. This is a hard task for kids, and I know it, so I give them a lifeline. The child I called on may answer the question OR ask anybody else in the class for the answer. Caveat: the child may not call on someone who has already been asked for help, and they may not ask anyone who is begging to answer. This keeps the kids from asking "the smart kid" all the answers. So if "Chelsea" knows the answer and is waving her hand like Hurricane Hugo to get called on, it won't work. The child I called on has to choose someone who doesn't raise his/her hand and may or may not know the answer. If someone besides the appropriate child answers the question, I get the point. If neither child answers correctly, I write the answer down in my column.

At the end, I add up their points, my points, and THEN factor in the sportsmanship points. Sometimes they have more knowledge points and lose the game because they've been jerks - now that's a lesson!

I noticed that about the third time I did this for composer review or other facts, the kids started being very careful to look at the overhead and TRY to remember. At that point, I consistently lost - and ain't that wonderful!

In a box on the board or overhead, put a column for each team participating. Tell the class that these are sportsmanship points and that you will dole them out whenever you feel like it. Give plus and minus points, and do it randomly. Be unpredictable. Sometimes verbalize why you're giving them and sometimes don't. Keep them guessing! Use it for applauding other teams' or individual's successes, being positive in the face of wrong answers, on giving reminders to each other nicely. Give minus points for talking, put-downs, saying boo, etc.

I have discovered that putting +1, -1 is more reinforcing than keeping a running total. It also makes it a little more interesting and suspenseful at the end of the game.

Add the totals up at the end and let the most sportsmanlike team line up first, and brag on them to their classroom teacher.

And if students ask you "Whatdda we get if we win?" my standard answer is "Smarter!"