Happy Summer!

Today marks the end of the first semester. Like most teachers I am ecstatic.  Don't get me wrong, I love my job but to be effective in the classroom we as teachers deserve a lot of rest and relaxation.  Being an ESL teacher in Korea limits this time to 8 days during the summer vacation (as per our contract) and we are required to teach a summer camp for 2 weeks prior to our vacation.  But, the upside of the camp is that you have complete control of how you use your time.

 Summer in Korea is HOT and HUMID and the last thing the students want is to sit and listen to me lecture on. So, keeping that in mind I have planned a series of interactive games which doesn't require too much prep work and will allow for time to pass swiftly.  


One of my favourite games is "Stop the Bus"  It's excellent to review vocabulary or parts of speech.  

How to play:   Write 5 categories on the board, for example: 

1. Animals

2. Sports/games

3. People

4. Places

5. Food

Then choose a letter. Get them to write one word for each category that starts with the letter. I also place a time limit which makes things a little more competitive but the students have a lot of fun.

You can put the students into teams if you're working with a large group.  

Variation:  Instead of the categories mentioned above you can get the students to write down a noun, verb and adjective beginning with a certain alphabet.  

The first team to fill in all the categories shouts "STOP THE BUS!" and all other teams must stop writing. Points are awarded for every correct answer. 

The students get really into this game and even when I say "game over" they beg to continue.

NB: Take a look at my post on games for more ideas. But, above everything else, have a SUPERB SUMMER!!!