Introduction
The Miming Competition is a fun and easy game that does not require a lot of preparation. The students form small groups. One after the other each group picks up a card and the group acts out the word on the card together. The other group(s) must guess the word. Each right answer is rewarded with a point and the group with the highest score is the winner. The game is also suitable for more introverted children because nobody is forced to act out in front of the class alone, the teams always do the miming together.
Target group and Time
The target group is grade 3 to grade 8. Depending on the complexity of the words, the game can be adapted for various ages and language levels.
The time needed for this game depends on several factors:
- the amount of cards
- the students’ knowledge of the vocabulary
- the students’ energy level
- the type of word (Generally, verbs and non-abstract nouns are easier to mime than adjectives and abstract nouns.)
During my usage of the game with fifth graders, it took two groups of four only twelve minutes to mime twelve relatively easy words.
Learning objectives
The students can revise their vocabulary by playing this game. The miming and/or guessing of words, in contrast to learning new words by the book, allows the students to be creative and enables them to draw a strong connection between the acting/guessing and the vocabulary. Movement in addition to seeing and hearing has been shown to have a greater effect in vocabulary learning.
The miming competition also allows students to practice working in a team. The pupil who draws the card must show the other team members what is written on the card. Then, they can quickly discuss how to mime the word together and, if necessary, explain the word to team members who are not familiar with the vocabulary. This has worked out very well in my trial lessons using this game, where the children often helped each other to understand the word. Further, the pupils took on different roles in order to mime different aspects of the word (e.g. With the word ‘bus driver’ one student mimed the driver and the others waited at an imaginary bus stop.) Team work is an important social skill for children to learn and the miming competition might be a fun context to practice this skill. In addition, the game might also improve the pupils’ ability to improvise and cope with new situations spontaneously.
Instructions to set up the activity
Prepare the cards with the words beforehand. The cards only contain words not pictures which is good for vocabulary revision. For more complex or newly introduced words, adding pictures might be helpful.
Before starting the game, inform the students that they will play a game and ask them to from groups of 4 (other small group sizes are also possible). Explain the game and place the deck of cards with the words face-down in an elevated position in the middle of the room (e.g. on a chair). Ask the first team to draw a card and remind them beforehand not to show it to the other teams and to whisper when discussing the word with their group. Ask them to begin the miming if they do not start on their own. Keep track of the teams’ points on the board and motivate them by announcing the score from time to time if necessary. Play until all cards have been drawn. The group with the highest score wins.
Letting it run
Some groups of students like the competitive aspect of this game, some do not care too much about it. If the children are motivated and are having fun without paying attention to points, collect the score on the board, nonetheless. But there will be no need to mention the score during the game.
If there is still time left, have the students think of words themselves. This approach emphasizes teamwork as the pupils will need to discuss and agree upon a word in their group setting.
Adapt the vocabulary to the group. The words chosen might have a thematic focus. Start with easy to moderate words and have some more complex words in reserve so you can add them to the game if it turns out to be too easy for the students.
