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All you have to say is, “Let’s play a game!” and you will naturally engage your students. But there’s more than PLAY going on with these games! Active learning, executive function, purposeful practice for automaticity, and social skills are other benefits of games.
These flash card games can be adapted for online or the traditional classroom when you have a few extra minutes. Change them for letters, sight words, shapes, math facts - whatever skill you want to reinforce. Every child can be engaged, move, and be a winner with these games.
BOOM!
Make flash cards for a skill you want to reinforce. Write “BOOM!” with a bright marker or glitter pen on several of the flashcards. As you “flash” through the cards, children identify the information. When “BOOM!” appears, children jump up and shout out “Boom!”
*Change the surprise word for different holidays and seasons. In October use a skeleton and when it pops up they stand and “shake their bones.” In November use a turkey and the children jump up and go “gobble, gobble”!
Cowboys and Chickens
Here's another silly game where you can insert a few pictures of cowboys and chickens. When the cowboy comes up the children make a roping motion as they say, “Yeehaw!” If the chicken comes up they flap their arms and cluck.
Johnny Jump Up
You will need a photo album and index cards to make this game. Write words, letters, math facts, etc. on the index cards and insert them in the plastic sleeves. On several cards draw a stick figure jumping and write, “Johnny jump up!” Randomly insert the Johnny cards in the album. As you shuffle through the book children identify the information. When Johnny appears they all jump up!
Where’s Kitty?
Place flash cards in a pocket chart. Take a small picture of a cat and explain you will hide kitty behind one of the cards. Have children close their eyes as you hide kitty. “Who knows where kitty is?” Children take turns calling out a word and then looking behind it for kitty. The first child to find kitty gets to hide it for the next round.
*Adapt kitty for holidays or seasons. It could be a skeleton, turkey, cupid, etc.