CRAZY WORD RELAY RACE

The goal of this activity is to have students know how to use an English dictionary - how to look up words using the alphabetical system, whether a word is a noun, verb adjective etc., and of course, understand the meaning of the English words used in this game in Japanese, and be able to use it in a sentence (not the one in the dictionary).

1) This is a group game. Have students assemble themselves into six groups.
2) Set up six dictionaries at the front of the classroom. I set them on extra desks or chairs, whatever I can find.
3) Hand them a worksheet with a list of six words (not in alphabetical order!). I used words that they just learned from lesson 1, plus a few new words that they'll learn in lesson 2 for a challenge.
4) One at a time, a student from each group must run to the front of the class, and look up the word in the dictionary. They must memorize the Japanese meaning and run back to their group to tell everyone. Everyone then writes the answer on their worksheet. (NB: Some students last year also memorized whether it was a noun, verb, adjective etc., and wrote down that information as well, that's good).
5)Next the students in the group work together to make an English sentence using that word (This is where writing down whether something is a noun, verb, adjective etc., may come in handy). Of course, it is preferred that they do not use textbook sentences.
6)If you have the entire class, I like to have the one student then memorize the sentence and come up to me and say it!
7)When everyone is finished, they then take the six words and list them in alphabetical order and recite them to me as the final task. The first group to do this wins!