One of the wonderful things about my elementary education is that in grades 6-8, my teachers believed in “Hands-on” methods. If we did math, there were always counting cubes around. If we were studying science, we would measure out certain formulas and make things with our own hands. The beauty of learning like that really shows around quiz time. It’s much easier for a child to remember what he/she learned that day when they held the matter of what their being tested on, in there own hands. Mr. Kopple is writing about much of the same thing. He says that he uses reading games in the beginning of each of his classes. Instead of opening their books to chapter seven, the class is involved in a brainteaser about word puns. This is an excellent way to get the creative juices flowing.
Kopple says that the only downside to playing the games is that the real transition from game time to learning time is horrible.
He can hear the hissing and booing when his little games are over and it’s time to learn from the book.
I’m surprised that he didn’t find some way to incorporate those reading and word games into an entire class time. My teachers in my younger years were able to do it. Then he wouldn’t have to have ‘fun’ time and ‘learning’ time. The two could work together. He could find a way to influence group discussion with his games. Make a whole lesson out of it. I understand however, why he chooses to use the games in small doses. It’s very difficult to create a whole lesson plan out of a small brainteaser game. So Kopple believes that they can have a bit of fun learning everyday, instead of just some of the time.
Either way, I fully agree that brain teasers and word games area an excellent way, especially in High School (Because 80% of those students don’t really want to be there any way) is a great way to draw the students in. School should be fun; it doesn’t have to be the teeth pulling event that most say it is.
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7 comments:
I agree with the fact that games are a great way to teach different lessons to students of all ages. However, I feel it is necessary that students also be prepared for college and the real work world in which work can not always be made fun and interesting. It may be a good idea to begin each class with a normal lesson and then play the game to reinforce after the lesson is taught. This solves the problem of transitioning between a game to strict learning time.
When I did my Laubach Literacy training for adult learners, they stressed the fact that most adult learners have a learning disability whether diagnosed or not. One of the reasons they did not succeed the first round of school is that their learning style was not reinforced. Even before this, I was creating lesson plans that broke off into another segment every 10 to 20 minutes with some "quick time" segues making sure all the while I hit on the visual, auditory and kinesthetic methods. Games by their nature speak to the dominant styles of most Americans...which is usually more physical, more kinesthetic. I often teach the "serious stuff" with a lot of the energy and context of games. One of the bonuses that was mentioned in the article is that when games are played EVERYONE is equal. This aspect cannot be stressed enough in a multi-ethnic and/or multi-cultural classroom. Rules are equally applied. Where in the real world does this happen? It is easy to develop an esprit de corps to root each other on in the learning process. This is a nice change up from the jeers and humiliation most people fear when they "get it wrong." When I tutored English as a Second Language, I would purposefully learn a few words of whatever language my learners spoke so that I could stumble in front of them. If I trusted them to be nice about MY rendering of their language, they could trust me the same way. I think so much of learning is getting out of our own way, and games are a kind of a "Macro" to help us do just that. It is AMAZING how much people learn by having fun!
Pun and Games
It is true that games are a necessary part of early learning. Experiential learning
(which is not often taken seriously) is vital for young people to learn social interaction along with the lesson that is being taught. This kind of education is only necessary in young children.
Adults, however, should not require fun and games to learn. A teacher of adults should be able to discuss the material with the students, not talk at them. The students would have to be expected to read the material in order to ask reasonable questions, but the knowledge should be sought, rather than spoon fed in upper grades
Jason Valentine
Pun and Games
I agree that learning should be fun. By starting off the lesson with a fun (yet learning) exercise, you get the attention of the students. I think you also take away the anxiety that people have with grammar. The student is learning the concept of the lesson and may remember it better with fun examples. Coming up with the answers for these puns take a great deal of thought. By practicing this, I would hope that when the student is writing or speaking he will also think carefully what the word is he wants to us before using it. Even in college, it is a nice change to have something fun introduced once in a while (like Tom Swifties that Dr. Voss brought in). Learning can be accomplished in many ways.
Cindy Heisner
Puns and games indeed are a good way to teach lessons, but they should be introduced after your initial lesson is done, to reinforce what you have taught, unless it has something to do with the lesson you are teaching. It could act as a filler if you finished your lesson early. If you make your classroom one big game, students might have a hard time transitioning between grades especially ones that are in High School, when you should be preparing them for college.
I agree with Markie and Justin that the games should come at the end once he material has been taught. I also remember lessons from as far back as early elementary because I was taught in a hand's on approach. I think this is the best way to teach because it increases retention rates. My Mom used a word in front of my 15 year old brother about a week ago, and he laughed and asked what it meant. She told him, and he then started using it in as many sentences as he could as a joke. When he took his standardized tests less than a week after he first heard the word, which I cannot now remember, he was thrilled when he saw it and knew the meaning because Mom happened to use it and he found it funny. Long and short, using words that expand and making jokes with new words helps to expand and remember vocabulary.
Diversity in todays age is something that all teachers will come to love and appreciate. Teachers are trying new methods to get students more involved in their education. Games are a great asset for teachers. I mean who doesn't like to have fun while learning. Maybe a few, but hey they don't really count. Do you think that one of the drawbacks of playing games to teach lessons, is that when they leave his classroom they will expect the next teacher, to do the same?
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