Digital Play » toptens

Top Ten For Halloween

kylemawer — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 01:24:47 +0000

It’s the run up to Halloween and one way to have fun, get your learners orientated towards the theme and get some reading practice in is to do some Digital Play activities with a scare factor. Here is a selection of 10 Halloween lead in activities to try out with your learners. All the links lead to lesson plans posted previously on Digital Play.

1 Dark Visions A Gothic Horror Story

This atmospheric and written text heavy thriller is great reading practice for a mature higher level language learner. You arrive at a strange house with a mysterious doctor who introduces himself as James Thaxton Smith, an assistant to your uncle who is the doctor at this psychiatric hospital. He sees you to the guest room where you are to stay but time passes and you soon get bored waiting. Explore the house and discover dark secrets and strange goings on. Can you solve the mystery before it’s too late?

2 An Interactive Story

Can you help a young girl travel through the woods before it gets too dark? A walk through the trees, a chance encounter with a strange creature and an opportunity to practice the third conditional or maybe set up a writing activity using the game events to scaffold the storytelling. Ideal for an upper intermediate class but has also worked successfully with a strong intermediate group. I like this game as it is simple, easy to play and the story book feel to it adds a different dimension to the game – as you flip through the pages you can ask learners about the language or predict the story.

3 Pirates of The Undead Sea

This game is not as gory and bloody as it gets by a long stretch but it is just about as far as we go here at Digital Play. The story is of a zombie pirate who is trying to solve the mystery of how he ended up being a zombie and how he can get back to being a pirate. Nice thing about this game is that there is lots of in-game text that builds the characters and moves the plot/ game forward. Use the walkthrough for extra gaming support and additional reading practice.

4 Halloween Dress Up Games

You can find ten different online games here to practice clothes, colours, parts of the body and lots more language. All these games were chosen to tie in with the Halloween theme of trick or treat and dressing up in costumes. Great for younger learners and activities include writing descriptions, telling a partner about a halloween picture and relay dictations. If you have a printer you can even get your learners to print off some of their creations to decorate the classroom.

5 A Zombie Story

This hand drawn online choose your own adventure game has 8 different endings depending on what actions you decide to take in the game. Getting learners to discover these different endings encourages them to engage on a deeper level with the text and storylines to such a degree that they really get into the different plot twists and the decisions they need to take in order to reach they ending they want. Maybe your learners will be inspired enough to draw and write their own similar stories.

6 Nearly Departed

Sometimes an internet connection or connectivity is a problem while a class full of students on multiple computers are all trying to access the same game. For this reason we’ve included this game which you can download and save on a computer. An added bonus is that you can save your progress and return to the same computer at a later date. This means this visually attractive and engaging game can be played over a few classes. Using a walkthrough can be a help but be warned there are incidences of cartoon blood and gore i this so use appropriately.

7 Spookymatch

This online game of pelmanism is great for drilling beginner levels on halloween vocabulary. It’s also great for introducing your learners to and drilling on a few ordinal numbers. Play this game in a connected classroom as a warmer for a bit of halloween fun. Vocabulary includes spider (as pictured on the left), green eye(ball), blue eye(ball), green worm, spider’s web/ cobweb, skull/ skeleton and (scary) ghost.

8 I Remain

As is often the case, there is a zombie outbreak and you have managed to survive and find yourself inside an abandoned house with the undead horde pressing in from all sides. Can you read the story and figure out how to reenact it in the game? This online game can be played while reading a story which is a great way to get your upper-intermediate learners reading. Playing the game becomes a comprehension check to the story.

9 Spot The Difference

This is a speaking activity where your class is either in teams or just one big chaotic crowd. Learners look at the two pictures and have to describe to you the teacher what they are and where they are. You may find that pre-teaching some of the vocabulary may make for a better activity but that’s up to you. I find it’s surprising how much learners learn in a game just from dealing with new language as it comes up. If you do want to pre-teach then play the game or or take a look at the picture on the left here – you can spot the vocabulary for yourself.

10 Ten Halloween Treats

Finally here is a selection of ten different halloween themed games covering a range of ages, language levels and scare factors. Some of the activities can be used in a connected classroom with a single computer and others can be used with learners on multiple computers in either the classroom or a computer room.

Get ya gaming mojo back

kylemawer — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 02:47:52 +0000

Did you ever play computer games as a kid?
Is there a game you remember that you always used to play?
Would you like to play it again?

If your answer to any of these questions was ‘Yes’ then why not play it again? Maybe you can’t. Either you or your parents sold on your console or simply at some point it broke and never got replaced, became obsolete or you just moved on. Nowadays, though, you don’t need to dust off an old piece of electronics from the attic or scour ebay to relive those digital days gone by. Use an online emulator. Here is a list of a few online emulators that allow you to play those games from years ago:

1 ZX Spectrum

If you owned a spectrum in the 80s or 90s then this is the site for you. This site has a listing of spectrum games through the golden years from 1982 to the mid 90s. What’s great about this site? Well if the errrr-eek sound of a loading spectrum game cassette holds a lot of nostalgia for you I’m afraid this site has got rid of that. However, if you get misty eyed at the mention of Manic miner or Elite then both these games and more can be played online and for free. Get playing now!

2 Atari

Remember those clunky cartridges you had to shove in the machine at the top? Well, whether it was the Atari arcade games or one of the home cartridge games that you used to play then one of these sites is for you. Do you remember staring at awe at the amazing graphics? Well goggle no more if you’ve played any game from this decade.

3 Commodore 64

I only knew one kid with a commodore 64 at school which may say something about the PC system or not. Nevertheless, I got the impression that Commodore owners were very much a minority. No doubt this debate is continued by our young learners with the xbox versus playstation debate. What’s the commodore equivalent then? If you had this system or would just like to see what all this fuss is about then play one of their games and get misty eyed with ‘paperboy’ or ‘ghosts and goblins’.

4 Apple

Apple design has certainly got sexier over the years. Anyone remember this little number? Possibly not but for those of you that do then why not play a few of their old timey games on the virtual apple site. Can anyone spot the similarities between this (picture on the right) and the new ipods and ipads? I don’t!

5 80s 90s arcade games

Maybe you spent a lot of your misspent childhood playing or hanging around game arcades. I know john Connor in Terminator II did. Maybe you played Missile Command or After Burner like he did in the film. If you didn’t and another title was the joystick/roller ball of your choice then check out this 80s arcade game site – it lets you play your favourite 80s arcade game.

6 Gameboy

Over 20 years old now and superceeded by a whole generation of different handheld gaming platforms. Still, at one time you may have been that kid on the bus/train/ waiting room/ playground (delete as appropriate) and may want to see some of those Gameboy games again. You may have to configure the keys before you ‘Load ROM’ (the game you want) but I’m sure it’ll be worth that little inconvenience.

Now you have to ask yourself:

What would your learners think of you playing these games?
What would they think of the games themselves?
How do they differ to games nowadays?
What do they think of the look of the hardware itself?
Can they name 6 differences between the consoles and games of then and now?
How have the specifications changed?
How has gaming changed for them over the years?

10 Gaming Genres To Adapt In Class

kylemawer — Fri, 13 May 2011 04:13:17 +0000

Here’s a brief description of ten gaming genres and some tips on how they can be used in the classroom. All these games were chosen because they are popular with young language learners, engaging and fun. You can read lesson ideas and plans on this blog by following the links.

1 Point and click

These games rely on you moving the cursor around the screen and clicking the mouse. By printing off a written walkthrough or by using a video walkthrough, a large variety of language activities can be generated. Try a relay dictation using either a written or video walkthrough or simply use either of them yourself to dictate game play. Alternatively check out these games – the anti-bullying Dixie the Nerd, a selection of ten point-and-click games and their walkthroughs or Windosill.

2 Escape the room

A sub genre of point and click games where typically you have to find and possibly combine objects in a room or house to get out through a locked door. As previously mentioned above, with a written walkthrough or a video walkthrough a large variety of language activities can be generated. You could also get learners to write out their own walkthroughs as they play. Alternatively check out these games – MOTAS, Kitchen Escape or the scary reader for the the zombie game I Remain.

3 Arcade

Arcade games generally rely on reaction speeds rather than logic or puzzle solving skills. Passing to the next stage usually means completing a simple task within a specific time limit. The next stage and subsequent stages usually require the player to complete the same task but with an increasing complexity or in a faster time. Language generated tends to be quite simple and repetitive. Some of these games are great for drilling the language of directions (pacman), colours (sveerz) and spelling (Alphaattack and Type ‘em up).

4. Puzzle Games

These games tend to be quite abstract and typically involve arranging geometric forms to achieve a goal (e.g. Tetris). Puzzles usually involve solving rather simple problems. Problem solving games generally test a players awareness of patterns and/ or short term memory. Language generated tends to be isolated to individual language items such as object vocabulary, instructions and prepositions. Puzzle games include spookymatch or Orbox. They are great games to play as a reward for good work or behaviour as they are generally over very quickly or can be paused and returned to later.

5 Strategy Games

This is a game in which the gamer is presented with a number of possible choices in game play which will effect how they progress in the game. Try the games stop disasters, 3rd world farmer or Age of Empires. The first two provide a context for some interesting discussions when used in a classroom while the last one takes place over a longer time frame and provides writing practice and an opportunity for learners to report on the game and progress in class time.

6 Adventure Games

Adventure games are a sub genre of point and click games but usually differ in that the game has got strong narrative elements. There is usually a central character, a storyline, objectives to be achieved, an enemy and an outcome at the end. Games covered in this genre on this blog include Morningstar (a sci-fi story), The Miller Estate (a spooky mystery), Hetherdale ( a jungle adventure) and Avalon (a fantasy text based adventure game) to name just four.

7 Casual Games

These games are aimed at a mass audience of people who tend to play games on a casual basis. These games have been brought into the news recently with their rise in popularity on social network sites such as facebook. Games such as farmville, mafia wars, scrabble like game, word games and puzzles can all be included in this genre. Why not ask your learners if they play any and if they play any in common then get them to describe and compare their game playing. Here’s a list of 10 casual games on facebook.

8 Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs)

Is a computer role playing genre in which a massive number of players interact with one another within a fictional virtual world. The player assumes the role and takes control of the actions of a fictional character. There are a lot of MMORPGs out there but one we have looked at already on this blog is Astro Empires. The most famous MMORPG is probably World of Warcraft.

9 Alternate Reality Games

Sometimes abbreviated to an ARG. These games consist of an interactive narrative that is based in the real world. Typically they often use multiple media and game elements, to establish a narrative that the gamer can affect by either contributing ideas or taking actions. Two ARGs we’ve already looked at on this blog were Smokescreen and Urgent Evoke. We have also done a spotlight on ARG developer Jane McGonigal.

10 Virtual Worlds

This is a computer based simulated environment which has a strong online community element. A virtual world such as second life has generated a lot of interest in education. Here is a post we did on a Robin Hood learning Quest in Second Life.

10 Online Games with Walkthroughs

kylemawer — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 02:06:03 +0000

Here’s a brief description of ten online games that have walkthroughs. What is a walkthrough? Text written by a gamer to help another gamer complete the game successfully. All these games and walthroughs were chosen because they have proved popular with language learners, use language that is not too complicated or dense and are not to difficult to play. You can use walkthroughs to provide a live listening (play dictation), a reading activity (on screen or as a relay dictation) or can be adapted to provide skills practice or a focus on a particular language item.

1 Il Destino

The game

The walkthrough

Explore the car show room and find objects which interact with each other and solve puzzles in order to get the sports car out. The game can be played in tandem with the walkthrough as a reading activity (along with an online dictionary to hand) or as a relay dictation in a computer room. A popular game with juniors.

2 Chronon

The game

Play Read the story in your best scary voice and encourage your learners to join in. When it comes to the ‘spot the cat’ bits in the game get your learners to describe where the cat is or build dialogues between you and the class:

“Is it under the tree?” “No!”

“Is it behind the tree?” “No!”

“Is it in the tree?” “YEAH!”

2 Pumpkin carving

Level Low Level Primary learners in a connected classroom

Play Why not drill the language of giving directions (“up, down, left, right and stop”) in a fun way. Carve an online pumpkin blind man’s bluff style. Blind fold a learner who listens to their classmates instruct them on how to carve the pumpkin. The class can rate their classmates pumpkins out of ten after each learner has taken their turn. Declare the winner/s at the end of the activity.

3 Ghost Hunter

Level Any Level Primary or Juniors in a connected classroom.

Play Do you award points in class as a way of maintaining discipline? Well what do points make? Prizes? How about points make seconds which they play a game? In one really difficult class I gave points for everything – the person who opens their books on the right page, whoever completed the exercise first and whoever got the answers right. Points for just using basic classroom language. I took points away just as quickly – last to open their book, not listening and not working on their exercises. At the end of the class, count up individual’s points, convert into seconds and let the highest scorers play first. The learners to score the highest in the game get to leave the class first.

4 Funny Halloween

Level Intermediate Juniors in a computer room

Play Done that unit from the book on clothes? Then why not set a writing activity using a game. As learners play this game they write down the description of what their character is wearing. Each Learner then swaps descriptions with another learner and try to reproduce the character’s costume. The learner who wrote the description can then judge the reproduction saying what differences there are between the reproduction and the original.

5 Garfield Scavenger Hunt

Level Intermediate and above Juniors in a computer room.

Preparation Print a copy of the walkthrough

Play Do a relay dictation using the game’s walkthrough and the game itself. Blu-tac the walkthrough to the door in the computer room. Learners can now take it in turns to go to the walkthrough, read and return to their ‘ game playing’ partner and relay the walkthrough information that they remember. Learners swap after 3 minutes. Encourage them to ask you to define difficult vocabulary.

6 Halloween wordsearch

Level Any Level Primary or Junior learners in a computer room.

Play This is a fun vocabulary activity. Learners note down the vocabulary and when they return to the classroom they can make a Halloween poster using the new vocabulary items for inspiration. Ask about what they are drawing as you monitor and take an interest in what they are doing. Finally, Learners label the objects they drew on the poster.

7 Trick or Treat Bear

Level Upper Intermediate Juniors or seniors in a classroom

Preparation Print a copy of the ‘Too many clicks spoil the walkthrough‘ for each learner.

Pre-Play Learners read the walkthrough and ask teacher about/ look up in a dictionary any of the difficult language. Learners work in pairs to identify and cross out the repetitive language (verbs) and add a range of different verbs. They should also expand on any of the text (e.g adding articles) when possible.

Play Learners play the game for homework using their expanded walkthrough. They should make any changes they feel is appropriate or that makes the walkthrough better. Next class discuss and compare the changes they made to their walkthroughs at home.

8 Halloween Escape

Level Intermediate and above Seniors in a computer room

Preparation Play the game yourself using the walkthrough to assess whether the content of this game is appropriate for your learners.

Play Learners play the game in order to create and write down their own walkthrough. As they play they should write down where and what they did in each location. Monitor, input language and make sure that walkthrough is being written. If learners are playing the game and not doing the activity then they have to start the game again.

9 Trick or Treat Adventure Quest

Level Upper Intermediate Seniors in a computer room.

Preparation Print a copy of the walkthrough for yourself.

Play This is like a ‘picture dictation’ but more a ‘play dictation’. Using the walkthrough dictate to your class how to do the game. Monitor their screens to check on their progress and encourage them to ask questions to clarify any difficult language points.

10 Spelloween

Level Advanced Seniors in a computer room

Play Looking for a quick word building activity for your advanced learners? Then this is a nice little warmer. Learners play individually or in pairs and when they have finished they compare their score with other the groups. The highest scorer wins. As a follow up activity in the classroom, how many can they remember and write down? Check their spelling and can they describe the meaning of the words to the class?

Notes

Primaries are aged between 7 – 11 years old, Juniors 11 – 14 and Senior 14+.

Computer room = a room with enough computers stations (with an internet connection) for two learners to a computer.

Connected classroom = A classroom equipped with a computer station (with an internet connection and possibly a data projector or electronic whiteboard).

Classroom = You, your learners, writing materials and printed worksheets and a Whiteboard/ blackboard.

Top Ten Guinness Book of Gaming Records

kylemawer — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 02:48:00 +0000

Here’s a list of World records from the Guinness World Records 2010 Gamer’s edition. Can you identify which numbers below go in the spaces for each record?

376 1 million 24.84 million 2,468 214 156 379,552,748 200 million 45.7 million 161,600 100 million

1 Most people dressed as a videogame character.

On May the 29th 2009 the MCM (Movie Comic Media) expo was held in London and _______ enthusiastic participants got dressed up as their favourite video game character. If you could dress up as a videogame character, which one would you be?

2 The Fastest selling DS title

When the Nintendo DS (dual screen) version of Pokémon Platinum went on sale in Japan in September of 2008, it sold over _____________ copies in the first two days that it went on sale. Pokémon is a combination of the words ‘pocket’ and ‘monster’. How many can you name?

3 The best-selling FPS franchise

HALO has sold over _____________ copies world wide making it the best-selling FPS (First Person Shooter) in history. At the moment the fourth in the series HALO: REACH is set for release in September this year. Do you know the name of the main character pictured on the left?

4 The most money taken by a single arcade machine

The most income generated by a single arcade machine in just one week was $____________ in the states in 1993. The arcade machine played the game NBA Jam which is a basketball game. Have you ever played an arcade machine?

5 The game with the largest in-game soundtrack

The highly rated GTA (Grand Theft Auto) IV has ___________ licensed music tracks that can be heard while playing the game. The previous record holder was, in fact, GTA: San Andreas with _________ tracks. Did you know that Burt Reynolds, Chris Penn, Ice T, Kyle Maclachlan, Michael Madsen, Phil Collins, Ray Liotta, Ricky Gervais, Samuel L. Jackson and many more actors have appeared or provided their voices in the game.

6 The most successful movie franchise based on a videogame

The series of Resident evil films have all together generated revenue greater than $_________________ and with a fourth called Resident Evil: Afterlife due for release later this year, it looks like that figure will increase. The story follows the outbreak of a biological weapon that causes monstrous mutations in evryone and everything that it comes into contact with.

7 The most successful game franchise

The honour of this title goes to a short fat character with a black moustache. That’s right, Mario. The Mario series have sold over __________________ copies worldwide. Did you know he first appeared in a game called Donkey Kong? at this time though, he wasn’t called Mario yet. He was called jumpman.

8 The best selling videogame

Wii sports sold over ________________ copies from between the time it was launched in 2006 to May of 2009. With this game you can play a physical game of Tennis, Bowling or Boxing in the comfort of your own living room. Do you know anyone who has played one of these games?

9 The largest environment in a videogame

In the PC and Xbox role playing game called The Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall it is possible to explore over ______________ km² of in-game land. This area contains villages, towns, cities and dungeons.

10 The best selling PC series

The very popular life-simulation game called The Sims has proved to be the best selling PC series in the world with over _______________ sold around the world. Did you know that Lily Allen, The Black-eyed Peas and the Pussycat Dolls (and other bands) have all re-recorded songs in Simlish – the official language of the Sims.

Answers: They are in the right order at the top

10 Reasons Why Video Games Are Good For The Soul

kylemawer — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 02:09:22 +0000

Here’s a brief description of ten online articles about how video games have been seen to successfully teach or educate for real life skills.

1 Computer games make maths fun in school.

An article from the online UK Guardian newsgroup about how a school in nottinghamshire is developing lesson plans and activities for the wii sport. The console game is being used as a platform to enrichstudents learning experience in a maths class and seems to be proving very popular with students.

2. Using ICT to inspire a creative approach to writing

Homepage for the MYST writing project which sees a visually stimulating adventure video game called MYST to stimulate writing. It is being used in over 200 schools in Kent, England.

3 .Video games valid learning tools

BBC article that talks about a study stating that video games may be more effective than reading written text. Looks at a video game set in Victorian England and how pupils retain facts from the game.

4. Research shows video games lead to fewer mistakes on the operating table

Article by the American newsgroup USATODAY on how viddeo games are being used to improve hand eye coordination skills in surgeons. Playing video games before going into surgery increases a surgeon’s success rate.

5 Consolarium on BBC News – Gaming in Education

Scotland’s Derek Robertson explains how gaming education projects with the Nintendo DS are motivating and improving attainment in Scottish Students.

6 Unlocking learning through video games with Clasemovil

Online technology article by Techcrunch about a South American fun learning community project that seeks to target a wide range of the curriculum using educational games.

7 Free online games develop ESL students’ language skills

Tech and learning article by Larry Ferlazzo, an teacher, blogger and materials developer. He talks on how he has successfully incorporated gaming into the English language learning classroom with young learners..

8 How Video games changed a generation of athletes

Wired article on how an American football game win owed its winning strategy to a video game inspired move.

9. Using World of Warcraft to Teach English?

Gaming website Gamasutra interviews Edd Schneider and Kai Zeng who presented their idea for ‘ English Speaking Players as In-Game Content: New Ideas for Marketing to Youth in Asia at a Game Developer’s Conference.

10 Fast ForWord program designed to improve literacy skills

This is a reading intervention program based in the United States that claims to not only improve literacy skills but also leads to stronger memory and greater self esteem. Have a look at some of the sample games they have.

10 Educational Games

kylemawer — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 02:10:27 +0000

Here’s a brief description of ten games with strong social awareness and education in world issues that require very little preparation and some tips on how to use them. All these games were chosen because they are free, easily accessible, engaging and fun for English Language Learners.

1 Against all odds

A game that aims to educate gamers about the problems that face immigrants and political assylum seekers. The games are divided into three stages (each stage has 4 games) that cover war and conflict in an immigrants native country, escaping across to a border country and finally starting a new life in a new country. Links here will take you to previous blog posts with ideas on how to use the game in a connected classroom.

2 3rd World Farmer

A strategy simulation game based on a 3rd world farm that’s great for a connected classroom note taking activity. Use the game notes to stimulate discussion and drive a writing task for homework. The interesting thing about this game is that it reflects the ‘real’ situation 3rd world farmers are in – you can’t win in this game!

3 Ayiti The Cost of Life

This game simulates a a farmer and families life on the farm in Haiti. If you’ve played 3rd world farmer then this is a very similar game. Get your learners to write an instruction manual on how to play the game. Great for eliciting 0 conditionals and contrasting what is ‘always true’ in some parts of the world ‘won’t necessarily be true’ in others.

4 Stop Disasters

A disaster simulation game in which you choose a disaster scenario (tsunami, hurricane, wildfire, earthquake and flood) and “try to build upon an established community; providing defences and upgraded housing to prepare for the inevitable disaster.”

5 McDonald’s Video Game

A subversive look at the business process behind the fast food company ‘McDonalds. Game takes place over four scenarios (agricultural section, the feedlot, the fast food restaurant and headquarters). If you or your learners have ever seen ‘supersize me’ or read ‘fast food nation’ then you will like this.

6 Climate Challenge

BBC commissioned game that looks at the problem of climate from a presidents viewpoint. This is quite a serious and mature game with complex rules. There is a tutorial that helps familiarise a player with the game play but I would only recommend this game to a more mature higher level class. Go through the tutorial on the board but explain you want to learn how to play it as much as they do so help each other out. When the class is familiar with the rules they could then progress to the computer room to play in pairs and later compare how well they did.

7 Disaster Watch

A look at Nicaragua and the the warning signs and possible measures that can be taken in the event of an earthquake, flood or food shortage. Three different levels offer reading practice, some fun timed activities and a great platform for discussions. Ask Learners to make notes, write conditional sentences or discuss possible game strategy.

8 The Peace Doves

A quiz game aimed at testing knowledge and raising awareness of nuclear weapons and the importance of the peace process. Read the clues to identify a country and select your answer by clicking on a country on the world map. You then launch a peace dove to that country. Treat it as a quiz to vote on the answers in open class or as a webquest for pairs in the computer room.

9 Ars Regendi

“Ars Regendi is a browser-based political game that lets you take the reigns of your own, realistically simulated state. You will be asked to weigh in on various matters of state and – faced with a number of choices – any decision you make will have ramifications for the well-being of your virtual populace! In addition, you will be able to form alliances with other countries, initiate reforms and adjust the budget. Ars Regendi is a highly realistic and complex economic simulation that squares you off against other state leaders and puts your political and financial abilities to the test.” Great long term project for higher level language learners with lots of reading and writing practice.

10 Darfur is dying

Darfur is Dying is a browser game about the political and social crisis in the Sudan. The game starts with a race to and from a pumping station in the desert. Avoid roving militia patrols by hiding (space bar also pauses the game) where you can. Get learners to finish a short exercise in their workbooks and let a winner run a section of the game. The next stage of the game requires a little more discussion but great for group work and collaborative gaming.

Top Ten football games

kylemawer — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 18:26:42 +0000

Below is a list of ten football games you can ask learners who are getting ready to watch the world cup. All these games were chosen because some of your learners may well be playing them at home or at friends. As well as being popular, engaging and fun to play they also offer great opportunities to learn some soccer / footie vocabulary or a discussion platform for English Language Learners.

1 Soccer manager

“SoccerManager.com is free of charge. You manage your team using your web browser. Matches are played at least twice a week.

You can log on at any time to check the status of your squad, check results and fixtures, make player transfers or just have a chat with the rapidly expanding SoccerManager.com community.” Learners learn new vocabulary as they play, can discuss matches, strategies and their team in class.

2 Footie Manager

“You take control of a football club and compete against other managers from all over the world in your bid for the domestic championship and international cup glory.

As a football manager, you have full control over your club including managing the club finances, wheeling and dealing in the transfer markets, managing club staff and a myriad of other options that will challenge even the best budding football managers.”

Learners learn new vocabulary as they play, can discuss matches, strategies and their team in class.

3 All football games

A games site dedicated to football. In class I showed this game page (right) in class and went through each one asking learners what they thought they would have to do. As they predicted some very useful football vocabulary was fed onto the board and copied with some enthusiasm by the boys in the class. Topics and vocabulary covered included the role of different players/ positions in a game, football violence on and off the pitch, the pros and cons of penalty playoffs etc Class ended with students writing down and perfecting the best definition of “The off-side trap” in exactly 50 words.

4 Planetarium Manager

“The objective of the game is different from manager to manager. It can be to have one or more players in a national team, to aim for league or cup glory, or simply to achieve stability by raising and training your players properly. You define your own objectives. However, we can say Planetarium Manager is all about starting from the very bottom and achieving planetarium success.” Learners choose their in game objectives and present their progress to the class in the form of a powerpoint pecha kucha presentation. Can they justify their decisions to the class afterwards?

5 FIFA 11

This is a video of a console game that was released by the EA Sports trademark. Turn the watching into a game. Divide the class into teams. Tell the teams that they take turns to say ‘stop’ anytime, you’ll stop the video and they can ask the other team a question about what they can see on the video. Award points on the nature of their questions in the following way 1 = general knowledge 2 = language 3 = Connected question (related to picture on screen).

6 Time Lines

Why not get learners to make their own timelines based on the history of football video games? This site has a lot of information but only three pages which learners can scan read for dates and short event descriptions. e.g.

1980s Atari rules the gaming market

1981 Pele’s soccer is released (passive)

1987 Nintendo release ‘soccer’ (active)

Use timelines to focus on tenses as well as vocabulary items.

7 Premier Skills

A site run by the British Council aimed at football fans of all ages with a definite emphasis on language, fun and football. Either play games in a computer room and test your learners reading skills and football knowledge with a football rules quiz or play a game in open class and vote on the right answers while testing their football vocabulary. There are plenty of games to play here as well as a ‘Behind the scenes‘ section providing listening practice as real footballers talk of their footballing experiences. Definitely worth a look.

8 Freekick Fusion

Use the single player option in this game as a reward for work done well in class or as an incentive to learners to do some more boring work. My class were doing an end of unit assessment in their coursebook which was split into a dozen sections over two pages. The first person to finish a section, bring me their book for me to check, got all the answers right then got to take the freekick. Young learners loved it.

9 Dress a footballer

A great game for low levels to practice colours and clothes vocabulary (top/ t-shirt, long-sleeved top, shorts, trainers, and sunglasses). It was also useful to use ordinals (first, second, third etc). I played this in a connected classroom and had learners sitting at the front of the class in front of the IWB where they dictated their player to me. Because they all had an opinion on what they wanted the player to wear this acted as a drilling activity (even if a little chaotic). I chose learners randomly at first then if I heard any mispronunciations, I focused on that. The activity lasts longer if you ask learners to make the worst football strip, one for their school, one for an enemy to wear, one they would wear etc

10 Football quizzes

A selection of quizzes that cover a wide range of national and international teams as well as football personalities. You can set challenges to your learners and see who gets the best score in one particular quiz, use them for reading practice for fast task finishing football fans. If you find a ‘quiz generator‘ or ‘make your own quiz‘ online you can use the quizzes as models to get learners to make their own.

With the FIFA World Cup starting it seems a wasted opportunity not to use football in the classroom.