Wednesday, March 13

Family Tree

Write down the name of three members of your family.
(a brother, a cousin, a grandmother etc.)

With somebody else, look at your lists and ask each other the following questions:

1, Who's _____?
2, How old are they?
3, What do they look like?
4, What do they do?
5, What do they like doing in their free time?
6, Do you get on with them?
7, How do you stay in touch with them?
8, Do they have any bad habits?
9, What plans do they have?

Tuesday, March 12

On The Road

Complete the following sentence using exactly twenty more words:

It was a trip i'll never forget ____

Just writing a sentence might be too easy, if so, can you make it a story where there is a change of emotion or a problem solved.

If inspiration lacks use a random word generator 

Monday, March 11

Sunday, March 10

White

All these things are of a similar colour:

1, flour | milk | rice | polar bear | golf ball

2, Arctic wolf | iceberg | bird poo | bones | snow

3, cauliflower | cloud | Donald Duck | wedding dress | ghost

4, mozzarella chocolate | house | teeth | toilet

Choose one of the four groups above and:

1, Say three things you know about one of the words.
2, Are any things in the group that are sometimes not white?
3, How are some things similar in the group?
4, Which one(s) is/are the odd one out in each group? Why?
5, Which ones are useful / positive for you?
6, When was the last time you experienced one of them?

Saturday, March 9

Eight Ways with Meatballs

What words
What people
What feelings
What nature
What actions
What sounds
What numbers
What sights

do you associate with meatballs?*

* You may like to try another common noun, abstract noun or unit topic...

examples:

What sounds do you associate with playgrounds?
What people do you associate with happiness?
What feelings do you associate with holidays?
What words do you associate with chicken?
What sights do you associate with Australia?

Thursday, March 7

The Power of the Tree

The word is tree

Make some sentences – perhaps using some grammar you've learnt recently – using the word tree.

Some efforts from my class placed into verse:

The Tree

A:
    I have bought a tree
        I sat under the tree yesterday
        You should look at the tree
        because it has beautiful flowers
        The tree is going to grow
        You should draw the tree

B:     I have eaten the tree

Wednesday, March 6

Alphabet Dialogue

In this activity you simply have a chat with a friend
however
the first word of each new sentence must start with the next letter of the alphabet
For example

Speaker 1: A
Speaker 2: B
Speaker 1: C
Speaker 2: D
Speaker 1: E
Speaker 2: F

Speaker 1: Are you ok?
Speaker 2: Bored actually
Speaker 1: Come on lets go out
Speaker 2: Don't feel like it
Speaker 1: Even if i buy you some chips
Speaker 2: For real?

Now try some new letters or even the whole alphabet. Some letters you may like to omit.

Tuesday, March 5

Bad Habits

Here are some bad habits:

1, Not studying

2, Eating a lot of junk food
3, Comparing your life with others
4, Screen time before/in bed
5, Skipping breakfast

Do you do any of them?
Why is each habit bad for you?
Which habit do you think is the worst?
Can you think of another five bad habits?

Saturday, March 2

Red

All these things are of a similar colour:

1, a STOP sign | a bus in London | a fire engine

2, a poppy | a tomato | a strawberry

3, nail varnish | blood | the planet Mars 

Choose one group of three and:

1, Say three things you know about one of the words?
2, Are there any things that are sometimes not red?
3, What things are similar about them?
4, Which is the odd one out in each group? Why?
5, Which ones are useful / positive for you?
6, When was the last time you experienced one of them?

Sunday, February 25

Incomplete

How could the things on the list below be incomplete?

a window
a garden
a movie
a lamp
a guitar
a wedding
a mobile phone
a bee
a ship
a website
a bottle

Example
A window without glass
a garden without grass
(it doesn't have to rhyme but it could)

Look around you at some of the objects. How might they be incomplete?

Here were my classes ideas. I have removed the rhyming word for you to guess.

a farm without grass
a window without _____
a lamp without a light
a movie without a _____
a guitar without strings
a wedding without _____
a mobile without a screen
a valley without the colour _____
Monopoly without money
bees without _____
bottles without caps
mobile phones without _____
a ship without a rudder
a pencil case without a _____
a pen without ink
a website without a ____ 

Saturday, February 24

Toast

Do you eat toast?
If not, what do you eat instead?
If yes, when do you eat toast?
How do you like bread to be toasted? (see image)
What do you like putting on toast?

Image source: https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/


Friday, February 23

Pink

All these things are of a similar colour:

1, bubble gum | candy floss | a grapefruit

2, a pig | a flamingo | The Pink Panther

3, ballet shoes | a tongue | lungs

Choose a group of three and:

1, Say three things you know about one of the words
2, Are there any things that are sometimes not pink?
3, What things are similar about them?
4, Which is the odd one out? Why?
5, Which ones are useful / positive for you?
6, When was the last time you experienced one of them?

Drawing by Alicia



Thursday, February 22

Odd One Out

A) Which word in each number is different from the others and why?

Can you explain using the word in (brackets)?

1, February April, Monday (however)
2, cat, dog, turtle (but)
3, dolphin, shark, elephant (on the other hand)
4, aubergine, carrot, strawberry (neither)
5, Spain, Italy, Argentina (although)
6, ear, nose, feet (the difference)
7, knife, fork, teaspoon (both)
8, coffee, hot chocolate, lemonade (whereas)
9, doctor, teacher, student (unlike)

Example: February and April are months however, Monday is a day of the week.

B) Which word in each number is different from the others and why?

This time think of a reason why any of the four words could be the different one.

1, lake, pond, river, sea
2, Art, Maths, English, P.E
3, London, New York, Paris, Sydney
4, bus, car, motorbike, train
5, helicopter, plane, rocket, kite
6, bear, fox, tiger, wolf
7, Arabic, English, Spanish, Mandarin
8, gloves, jeans, shoes, socks
9, dream, read, sleep, sleepwalk

Tuesday, February 20

Ditloids

'A ditloid is a type of word puzzle, in which a phrase, quotation, date, or fact must be deduced from the numbers and abbreviated letters in the clue. Common words such as 'the', 'in', 'a', 'an', 'of', 'to', etc. are not normally abbreviated.' - Wikipedia.

How many can you get

365 D in a Y = 365 days in a year

1, 24 H in a D
2, 26 L in the A
3, 60 M in an H
4, 12 M in the Y
5, 7 D in a W
6, 11 P in a F T
7, 64 S on a C B
8, 18 H on a G C
9, 8 T on an O
10, I have 1 B and 1 S

Monday, February 19

Rain Moistens the Soil

It's raining again
It's raining cats and dogs
It's raining again
and I can't go out and play
I am bored

It's raining again
the clouds are grey
sometimes black
water is falling and it's damp
houses are
steaming

It's raining again
the streets are empty and it's cold
Inside, my dad is
cooking

It's raining again
It drives my mum crazy
because she can't put out the
washing

This is good
because I don't have to help.


@theirwordsmyverse

Drawing by Junior 4 2019/2020

Sunday, February 18

Breakfast

The word is breakfast

Make some sentences – perhaps using some grammar you've learnt recently – using the word breakfast.

Some efforts from my class placed into verse:

Breakfast

I always have to eat breakfast
(even if I'm late for school)
Today I have had breakfast
What about you?

We should eat breakfast every day
or we will die
Yesterday my mum was going to prepare the breakfast
but the phone rang

So I had ice cream

@theirwordsmyverse

Saturday, February 17

Innovation

Shimpei Takahashi shares a simple word game anyone can play to generate new ideas. (Ted Talk in Japanese with English subtitles.)

Friday, February 16

Almond Appreciation

A classic test of creativity. Complete the drawings below with your own ideas. Higher praise is awarded for detail, humour or fantasy. To present the drawing: I have drawn... In this picture... This picture shows... 




Thursday, February 15

Unconditional Love

First make a list of five to ten objects or places and then complete the sentence below with your own ideas. Look at the examples from my classes to see how it's done.

1, If I were ___ you'd be ___

If I were a book you'd be the words
If I were a dance you'd be my moves
If I were a beach you'd be the sea
If I were a mountain you'd be my gravity

If I were a song you'd be the lyrics
If I were the trees you'd be the forest
If I were a chicken you'd be the potatoes
If I were a cliff you'd be my
w
a
t
e
r
f
a
l
l

Drawing by Guillermo



Wednesday, February 14

Love

What I love about ___ 

Generate a list of objects, people and actions you love then complete the sentence above with your own ideas. Here are some examples from my class to help. 

Lower Level Love

What I love about my grandma
is her cooking

What I love about my computer
is it’s really fast

What I love about summer
is not going to school

What I love about cats
is they are so cute and furry

Advanced Love

What I love about my mobile phone
is its staggeringly-biblical capability

What I love about Tik Tok
is peoples absolutely amazing creativity

What I love about thin-crust pizza
is its emotional support

What I love about fries is they go well with everything
and are extremely versatile

Drawing by LucĂ­a G



Wednesday, February 7

The New Rose - by Spike Milligan

 The new rose

trembles with early beauty The babe sees the beckoning carmine the tiny hand clutches the cruel stem The babe screams The rose is silent Life is already telling lies.

Drawing by Blanca

Tuesday, February 6

Advice Bureau

What advice would a ____ (animal, object, place) give to its offspring?
Think of 3 or 4 things.

Saturday, February 3

Read

something out loud.

Wednesday, January 31

sdrawkcaB

:saedi emos

1) Spell your name in reverse
2) Count / say the alphabet backwards
3) Write a word in reverse (example: yadretsey)
4) Write words in a sentence in reverse (example: park the to went I yesterday)
5) Write a sentence completely in reverse (example: krap eht ot tnew I tadretsey)
6) Read reversed sentences, maybe make it a game
7) Reverse the rules of a game. For example first team to get 3 in a line loses.

Monday, January 29

Sunday, January 28

Opposites 2

Here is a list of opposites:

1) Day and Night
2) Rich and poor
3) Sea and beach
4) Read and write
5) TV and phone
6) House and flat
7) Walk and drive
8) Cat and dog
9) Car and bus
10) Sweet and savoury

With another person, choose one word each from a pair and then argue why the word you chose is better. The other will argue that the opposite thing is better. 1 or 2 minutes?

Saturday, January 27

Cake

Using the word cake and the words below

Make some sentences

1, If
2, yet
3, not as
4, since
5, quickly
6, might
7, than
8, most
9, should
10, never

example:
2, I haven't eaten the cake yet

Drawing by Miguel



Friday, January 26

A Land Down Under

G'day

After you've decided if each sentence below is
a FACT, FALSE or an OPINION
make some about the country or place where you live.

AUSTRALIA

1) The official language is French
2) It is the best country in the world!
3) The doctors have wings and can fly
4) The people are so friendly
5) Your teacher is from Australia
6) Below is a picture of your teacher in Australia
7) My mum thinks that Australia is dangerous
8) They use € for money
9) The capital is Sydney
10) There are lots of tigers in Australia

Thursday, January 25

Opposites

What is the opposite of these words?

1, read
2, cheese
3, clean
4, easy
5, beach
6, sunrise
7, tidy
8, zebra
9, noise

Quote from @purlandtraining'The aim is to foster discussion among language students. Not all antonym pairs have to be binary e.g. yes/no, black/white. What is the opposite of 'beach' for you? For me it would be 'office'

Wednesday, January 24

My Life Had Stood a Loaded Gun

This poem is a powerful look at the gun violence issue framed through a classroom writing exercise.

The Opposites Game (Youtube video)