Building Up Vocabulary Through Card Games

One of the most difficult aspects of learning a foreign language is the retention of vocabulary. The role of context, which provides the lexical environment, has been identified as one of the crucial factors in vocabulary acquisition. Teachers are faced with the task of providing a means by which students/pupils can go beyond the limitation of short term memory and begin to make the lexis their own through the development of learning strategies and active use. As practice shows, it is much more interesting and useful for students/pupils to learn through games. There is a great variety of them for students in their attempts to build up vocabulary. The following is the list of activities based on the use of word cards.

Word cards are prepared by students for words they fail to remember or find difficult to memorize. On the front of the card there are 10 words in English (their phonetic transcription if the teacher feels it is advisable). The back of the card contains the translation of the words.

1. Students play in groups. Groups exchange the cards (5 players in a group = 5 cards) and place them face up on the desk. All players study the cards for 3 minutes, the cards are then turned face down. One player (or team) chooses a card and gives a synonym, antonym or sentence with the word missing to elicit the word. Cards are turned face up as they are identified. Play continues until the words have all been identified. The group with the most cards showing at the end of the game wins.

2. Students play in pairs or groups. Each group gets the cards of the opposing team and places them with the English side facing up. All players study the cards for 3 minutes. Then the teacher collects the cards from both groups. The teacher calls out a word in the native language, and the team must give its English interpretation. Students should remember all words on the list. The team with the most cards wins.

The same can be done by asking one person from each group. Alternatively, the language order can be reversed. One more variant is to ask students from both teams at a time and put a tick on the blackboard for each correct answer. (Divide the blackboard into parts for 2 groups) The group which gets more ticks wins.

3. Students stand beside their desks – each row comprises a team. The first player receives a piece of chalk. When the teacher calls out a word, the students must run to the board and write it. She/he then gives the chalk to the next student in their row and goes to the end of the line. The team with more words spelled correctly wins.

Alternatively, the teacher can give a synonym, antonym, etc., to convey the meaning of the word, and the students discuss the meaning before the representative runs to write it.

4. Each group works out a list of 5–7 words (out of the words in the lesson or the topic of discussion) and writes these words on a card. The teacher collects the cards and chooses 1 person from each group. Then the teacher hands in the cards of the opposing team and asks a student (or one by one) to explain the word which comes first on the list (the second student explains the second word). It is allowed to give definitions, discriptive situations, explain, use gestures and mime, but not to name the word. The two students or those chosen by the teacher must write these words on the blackboard or on paper. The team from which the student writes down more words correctly wins.

5. The dealer shuffles all cards and picks out two cards at random. Each group is given one card and the students memorize the words for 1 minute. Then the groups exchange the cards and again memorize the words for a minute. When the time is out the teacher collects the cards and begins to name the words one by one in English and the students must give their Russian interpretation. The representative who translates the word first earns a point for his or her group. The group which gets more points wins.

6. Students play in groups. Each team is assigned a group of words (the number depends on their ability and time restraints) that they must use in a story. The words may be used in any order, but must all be used in the course of the story. A time limit should be imposed. (Note: the teacher should choose the cards carefully.)

7. Students play in groups or pairs. The teacher asks the representatives from each group to choose one card and give it to the opposing group. All players study the card for 3 minutes. Then the teacher collects the cards and gives a spare sheet of paper to each group. Students one by one begin to write the words from memory. The team which first writes all words correctly wins.

Alternatively, the teacher writes 10 words on the blackboard. Students have a minute to look at them, then the teacher covers them, and one student from each group is asked to write down as many as she/he can remember. The representative who writes all/more words correctly earns a point for his or her group.

While these activities are neither new nor the final solution to the problem of vocabulary acquisition and retention, they are interesting and easy to use, and encourage students to take a more active, personal approach to vocabulary development. They have the added advantages of being self-paced and regulated, and of encouraging students to learn cooperatively. The game is worth the candle.