This isn’t necessarily true. I’m sure you can find some literacy games that kids don’t even want to touch. While other literacy activities, you can hardly get the kids to put them down. It can be an additional challenge to locate great learning activities, prep them, teach them to your students, and keep them organized. (As well as making sure everyone is engaged).
Although that is an added benefit of utilizing learning activities and games in the classroom setting–to ensure all students have access to the learning and are engaged in the activity. Once literacy games are purchased or created, the goal is also that there is minimal teacher preparations for playing the game in the future. As a specialist that sees over 40 students a day, the less preparations I have to make in a day the better. These literacy games can be selected and modified to tailor the needs of your students wherever they are. There should also be the potential that students could lead the activity. Thus further promoting everyone’s participation and engagement. (A win-win!)
But first some research as to why the use of literacy games in language learning is effective and appropriate. Robert Marzano, education researcher and founder of Standards Referenced Grading, believes in learning games to boost student engagement and comprehension (Ferlazzo & Hull-Sypnieski, 2018, p. 227). Learning activities also tend to generate intrinsic motivation, as students are engaged in their own voice and learning. Literacy games and learning activities allow students to demonstrate knowledge of word relationships and language comprehension through the four areas of language learning. Listening (L), Reading (R), Writing (W), and Speaking (S) skills are the basis of learning any language, and the focus of ELL classes. Stephen Krashen, literacy researcher, found that learning activities helps to lower the “affective filter,” which reduces anxiety. The lower the affective filter is, the easier it is for students to learn a new language (Ferlazzo & Hull-Sypnieski, 2018, p. 327). The use of literacy games and learning activities gives students access to language and communication in a way that isn’t always readily available to them. Learning games allow students to learn rules to new games, turn taking, and social behaviors not regularly addressed through regular education. These games and activities help to break down difficult barriers and boost social skills and interactions with peers.
Literacy learning activities also help to ease the stress of language learning and unknown language barriers between diverse peers and early learners. Many newcomers and early learners are quite shy, so starting off with some of these learning activities begins to open up what the student knows as well as make them feel more comfortable in this new, positive learning environment.
BINGO Games [All Lakeshore Learning products] (Bingo requires students to LRS)
- Alphabet Bingo
- Picture Word Bingo
- Rhyming Bingo
- Beginning Sounds Bingo
- Blending Words Bingo
- Sound Matching Bingo
- Sound Switching Bingo
Bingo literacy games allows students to listen, read, and speak in English. Many of these games are compromised of actual pictures of the objects being asked to find, as well as the word included in each Bingo space.
Literacy Games
- Ready to Write Prompt Box [Lakeshore Learning] (RW)
- Pop & Match Beginning Sounds Game [Lakeshore Learning] (RWS)
- Can Do! Reading Sight Words Game [Lakeshore Learning] (RS)
- Wrap Around Vocabulary Games [Lakeshore Learning] (LRS)
- Alphabet Picture Blocks [Lakeshore Learning] (RS)
- Colors and Shapes Matching Card Games (RS)
- Rory’s Story Cubes (SW)
Literacy games are not something used in the ELL or regular education classroom everyday. These activities may be used as a warm-up, along with a lesson, guided practice, or as Fun Day Friday activity to celebrate a week’s worth of learning.
Resources: Ferlazzo, L., & Hull-Sypnieski, K. (2018). The Ell teachers toolbox: hundreds of practical ideas to support your students. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Ms. D's Teaching Adventures 