(SKKN 2022) using language games effectively in warm up activities of english grade 11 lessons

INDEX CONTENTS PAGE PART I: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale of the study Aims of the study Scope of the study Method of the study PART II: CONTENTS Theoretical background 1.1.Warm-up activities 1.1.1 What are warm-up activities ? 1.1.2 What teachers use warm-up activities for? 1.2 Language games 1.2.1 What is a game? 1.2.2 The advantages of using games in warm-up activities Some problems before applying initiative experience 3 Some solutions to solve the problems by applying some games for warm-up activities 3.1 Some suggestion for applying games in warm-up activities th 3.2 Useful games for warm-up activities in 11 grade English lesson 3.2.1 Square word 3.2.2.Guessing game: “What is it?” 3.2.3.Kim’s game 3.2.4.Jumped words 3.2.5.Guessing word game 3.2.6 Matching game 3.6.7 Network game 3.2.8 Slap the board 10 3.2.9 Looking and guessing 11 3.2.10 Categorizing 12 The effect of experience initiative 12 PART III: CONCLUSION AND PROPOSAL 13 Conclusion 13 Proposal 14 PART I: INTRODUCTION Rationale of the study Nowadays English plays an important role in our lives because it is the most international of languages It not only provides us an access to world scholarship and world trade but also gives the youth a chance to get a good job and to join the international activities English has now become one of the compulsory subjects in the curriculum of general education However, it is a fact that most students usually find it difficult to master the language Especially, at Cam Thuy high school, a school in a remote and mountainous area, the students have to learn English under the difficult conditions with little access to modern equipment and no opportunity to communicate with native speakers Many students learn English passively and ineffectively This situation raises big questions to English teachers The first concerns are “ how to raise students’ interest”, “ how to draw students’ attention” or “ how to help them study in active mood and practice flexibly” In fact, there are many techniques that teachers can use to motivate students before starting a new lesson such as using songs, pictures or videos Among them applying games is one of the most effective ways Games not only create challenges, motivation but also a relaxed atmosphere in which students learn and remember things faster and better Recognizing the importance of using language games in warm- up stage, I decide on choosing “ Using language games effectively in warm-up activities of English grade 11 lessons” I this study with the hope of investigating into ways to organize games effectively in English classes, which makes lessons more interesting and stimulating This study, therefore, is intended to make a modest contribution to an increased understanding of using games in teaching English at high schools Aims of the study The specific aims of the study are as follows: - Clarify the nature of warm-up activities in English lessons - Present the advantages of games in warm-up activities - Investigating the present situation of teaching and learning English of the 11th form students consisting of problems facing both teachers and students - Make some suggestions of how to apply games and useful games in warm-up activities Scope of the study The study focuses specifically on some games applied in warm-up activities in teaching English lessons to the 11 th grade students at Cam Thuy high school, namely, four classes 11A1, 11A3, 11A9 and 11A12 Method of the study To implement this study, the following methods are used: - Consulting related materials: For the sake of getting knowledge and useful ideas, I read many books and materials on internet about how to use language games in warm-up stage - My real teaching at four 11th grade classes at my school and observing during the lessons - Analyzing the statistics from the test results of the school PART II: CONTENTS Theoretical background 1.1.Warm-up activities Teachers of English may use many different activities to promote student’s engagement Among these, warm-up activities can be used flexibly before students start learning It is true that proper warm-up activities ensure that students are ready to move into the next task of the lesson 1.1.1 What are warm-up activities ? Warm-up activities, which are also called icebreakers or motivator activities , are structured activities that are designed to encourage students, wake them up – the first thing in the morning and after lunch people are often a little sleepy, prepare them to learn by stimulating their mind and/ or their body Warm-up should last about minutes, which creates a sense excitement in classroom It has been found that students were usually drawn into the activity, finding the questions and listening to the answer when they discover solutions to the puzzles or questions which were set by teachers in warm-up activities 1.1.2 What teachers use warm-up activities for? Warm-ups set the tone of the lesson, get students to begin thinking and focusing on English, provide a transition into the topic and allow the teacher important opportunities to access character and ability With effective warm-up activities, students come into the classroom and immediately begin their job for the day- learning The aim of these activities is various depending on the teacher’s purposes before the lesson Teachers may try to - connect students prior learning - review a lesson from previous day - assess skill level - lead in the topic of the new lesson For theses reasons , warm-up activities require more consideration from teachers with careful planning before class 1.2 Language games 1.2.1 What is a game? We should know what exactly a language game is According to Tooth (1995), “ A game is an activity with rules, a goal and an element of fun There are two kinds of games: competitive games in which players or teams to be first to reach the goal, and co-operate games, in which players or teams work together toward a common goal The emphasis in the games is on successful communication rather on correctness of language” Obviously, language games helps learners know how to the language instead of just thinking about learning the correct forms 1.2.2 The advantages of using games in warm-up activities Firstly, Games are said to help and encourage many learners to sustain their interest because games are exciting for students Applying games in warmup stage, teacher may enliven the class, create relaxed atmosphere in which students learn and remember things faster and better As a result students will find it interesting and challenging when starting a new lesson Applying games in class also helps teacher create situation and context in which the language is practical, useful, functional and meaningful Students want to take part in the process because they want to participate and understand what others are saying or have written and they have to speak or write in order to express their own ideas or give information Furthermore when students play games, they will have chance to increase the cooperation They will cooperate with their friends to try their best to win the games Finally, at the end of the game, learners may have the opportunity to evaluate other groups ,which raises the cognitive ability of the children To sum up games are effective tools for teacher to apply in warm-up activities Some problems before applying initiative experience To begin with, Cam Thuy district is considered a poor , mountainous area of Thanh Hoa province Although my school is located in the center of district, students have to learn English in difficult condition with little access to modern equipment and no up-to- date materials There is not real language environment for students to practice English frequently Students have no chance to communicate with native speakers Secondly, each class normally consists of over forty students And all of the class are fixed with rows of desks and chairs, which make it difficult for teachers to organize communicative tasks and keep control of the class Thirdly, although students have studied English since grade or even grade 3, their competence of the language are limited Most of them have poor vocabulary, bad grammar and pronunciation Some of them are quite deficient in the base of learning English Finally, a large number of students just attend classes with a view to fulfilling general education and receiving a high school diploma They have no ambition for higher study Students, therefore, learn English as a compulsory subject and try to get the score enough to pass the national examination not because of their passion or interest Some solutions to solve the problems by applying some games for warm-up activities 3.1 Some suggestion for applying games in warm-up activities In order to apply games effectively in warm-up activities, the following points should be taken into consideration - Types of games The choice for game genres depends on the aim of the task, the content of the new or previous lesson and the purpose of the teacher Some games are mainly appropriate for practicing and checking vocabulary while others are better for grammar and pronunciation The choice also depends on the teacher’s creativity - Level of difficulty One game is not suitable for all students Therefore the different level of difficulty of the game is based on students’ ability Games with simple vocabulary and structures should be applied for weak and average students while advanced learners should play with more complex structures and rich vocabulary Make sure the game is enough challenging because inappropriate games would discourage students rather than to raise their interest for the new lesson - Classroom arrangement Teachers can choose one of various forms of classroom arrangement such as: + pairs + small groups of four or five students + large groups of two tables + two teams + individual with the class - Preparation Teacher should make a good preparation in order for the game to take place smoothly and interestingly The preparation may consist: + Power point : is often useful for designing tasks, showing pictures and introducing sounds and effects + Sub board/ board + Handouts + Cards + Real objects + Paper: including lists of words or questions + Gifts - Rules and steps - Rules: Before starting the games, teachers should give a clear explanation of the rule Try to make it briefly and easy to understand and ensure that students know how to play If necessary, teacher can give an example - Steps: Teachers should follow the main steps below + explain the rules + encourage students to take part in +control the game + announce the winner + give marks/ gift or ask the class clap hands to congratulate the winner + introduce the new lesson - Length of time The proper amount of time for the game at this stage is about minutes If it is too long, it may reduce the amount of time for other tasks in the lesson Before starting , time limitation should be given to students and the teacher should stop them whether finished or not - When to use games Teachers should not use games in all their lessons during the school year Applying games continuously may make student less excited and interested Games and other techniques such as brainstorming, listening to songs, watching videos or looking at picture and answering questions should be alternately applied 3.2 Useful games for warm-up activities in 11th grade English lesson 3.2.1 Square word UNIT 1: FRIENDSHIP B SPEAKING WARM-UP: (5 minutes): Square word - divide the class into two teams - hang two posters on the board - ask each team to find out the name of parts of the body - call the representatives to circle and write down words on board - check and give feedbacks - the team with more words will be the winner ( for weak or average students, teacher should give words) O M E C U N F I F O R E H E A D L U S Y A U C W T T W E I R E Y U H A S R E F J V A M P N O S E Expected answers: - eye/ eyes - hair- nose -head/ forehead - ear/ears - mouth - lead in the new lesson: Today we will learn how to describe physical characteristics as well as personalities of a person 3.2.2.Guessing game: “What is it?” UNIT 2: PERSONAL EXPERIENCES C LISTENING WARM-UP: (5 minutes): Guessing game: “What is it?” - divide the class into four group (each consisting two tables) and ask students to guess what it is - read aloud some facts about the things one by one + It destroy buildings, houses and forests + It can kill people + It gives out a lot of smoke + You need water to put it out - The group giving the correct answers first will be the winner Expected answers: Fire - Teacher leads in the new lesson: Today we will listen to an unexpected event: Fire 3.2.3.Kim’s game UNIT 3: A PARTY A READING WARM-UP: (5 minutes): Kim’s game - divide the class into four groups - show some real objects or pictures of things relating to the topic “party” for 30 seconds and ask students to look and remember - put the objects or pictures away - call the present of each group to write down the names of objects on board - In the same period of time, the group with more words will be the winners Expected answers: Cake, Candles, Flowers, Toys, Gifts, Card, balloons - The teacher leads in the topic of the new lesson “Unit 3: A party A reading” 3.2.4.Jumped words UNIT 4: VOLUNTEER WORK B.SPEAKING WARM-UP: (5 minutes): Jumped words - divide the class into four groups - write jumped words on the black board ( They are words in the previous lesson) OVRECMOE ROMETE 3.VOLENUTER 4.HOSAPITL MATOUNINOSU - let students work in groups for one minute - ask the represents of each group to write down their answers on board - the group with more correct answers will be the winner Expected answers: 1.OVERCOME REMOTE VOLUNTEER HOSPITAL MOUNTAINOUS - lead in the new lesson: “Unit 4: Volunteer work B Speaking” 3.2.5.Guessing word game UNIT 6: COMPETITIONS B SPEAKING WARM-UP: (5 minutes): Guessing word game - divide the class into two teams - show questions on the screens one by one - ask students to look at pictures / definitions and say the words aloud - the teams with more correct answers will be the winner What are they? 2.They are…………….10 million dong for winning the completions ……….means happening or done once every year Who are they? 5…….… means without problems or difficulties Expected answers: Competitions/ contests Awarded Annual Judges Smoothly 3.2.6 Matching game UNIT 7: WORLD POPULATION E LANGUAGE FOCUS WARM-UP: (5 minutes): Matching game - show some pictures and words on screen - ask students to look and match - call two students to write down their answers on board A B E F glass Quarter Glass C G Ugly Group D H Crash Grass Queen - the student who has more correct answers and finish the task more quickly is the winner Expected answers: 1.A 2.B H 4.C 5.G 6.F 7.E 8.D - introduce the new lesson: “ Unit 7: World population E language focus” 3.6.7 Network game UNIT 8: CELEBRATIONS C LISTENING WARM-UP: (5 minutes): Network game - divide the class into four groups - let student work in group to find outs words or phrase related to the topic “ Tet holiday” for one minutes - call the represent of each group to write down their answers TET HOLIDAY Lucky money - the group with more correct answers will be the winner - introduce the new lesson: “ unit 8: Celebrations C listening” Class 11A1 playing “network game” 3.2.8 Slap the board UNIT 11: SOURCES OF ENERGY E LANGUAGE FOCUS WARM-UP: (5 minutes): Slap the board - The teacher writes some words on boards - The teacher calls two students to play The students stand at the same distance far from the board -The teacher reads a word aloud and students slap the word that they hear The student who slaps the correct word first gets 10 points At the end of the game the student with more points is the winner shred shrim p splash spring spray spleen splutter shrine - introduce the new lesson: “unit 11: Sources of energy E Language focus” 10 Class 11A9 playing “slap the board” 3.2.9 Looking and guessing UNIT 12: ASIAN GAMES C LISTENING WARM-UP: (5 minutes): Looking and guessing - The teacher divides the class into two teams - The teacher prepares five cards including names of different sports One student expressing the word/ phrase by only using actions Other students guess the word/ phrase - The team with more correct answers is the winner High jump basketball swimming Table tennis golf volleyball - The teacher introduces the new lesson: “ Unit 12: Asian games C listening” Class 11A1 playing “looking and guessing” 11 3.2.10 Categorizing UNIT 13: HOBBIES E LANGUAGE FOCUS WARM-UP: (5 minutes): Categorizing - The teacher shows words on the slide or the poster - The teacher asks students to listen the words and write down the words into the correct column in which the word has the sounds - The teacher calls two students who volunteer to play - The student with more correct answer is the winner Jumped robbed rubs maps Clubs shops bribed stepped /pt/ /bd/ /ps/ /bz/ - The teacher introduces the new lesson: “ Unit 13: Hobbies E Language focus” The effect of experience initiative During the school year 2021- 2022, I have applied the above suggested games in two classes 11A1 and 11A9 and I didn’t apply games in two classes 11A3 and 11A12 In classes 11A1 and 11A3 , students have the similar result in the previous year And so are classes 11 A9 and 11A12 But At the end of the school year, in the classes in which I applied games in warm-up stage students become more active and have better result than those in class with no games In contrary, in classed 11A3 and 11 A12, students are not really interested in the lesson They just listen and write down the lesson in their notebook The atmosphere here is serious and silent Both teachers and students sometimes feel tired and bored The result at the end of the previous year ( 2020-2021) Weak Class Classes number of students 3.5