Here is a fantastic game you can make this summer and use throughout the school year. Write the categories below on index cards. Punch a hole in the cards and attach to a book ring. If you’ve got a few minutes before lunch or while you’re waiting during other transitions you can flip through the category cards and see how many words children can “pop out.”
*Whisper - Let the whole class participate by whispering as many words as they can.
*Toss and Tell – Throw a beanbag around the group and each child must add a word to the category as they catch the beanbag.
*Brainstorm - Write words on the board as the students call them out.
*Think Time - Give older children 2 or 3 minutes to write all the words they can think of. You could also divide students into partners or small groups to do this.
shapes cars
something in the yard animals
fruit or vegetable movie stars
something in the kitchen body parts
river, lake, or ocean towns or cities
country or state machines
type of transportation foods
something you wear actions
something in the zoo plants
toys books
songs nouns
famous person verbs
something in the school games
TV shows feelings
colors occupations
restaurants or stores adjectives
sports teams candy
cartoons things that fly
Hint! Adapt the categories to the specific age, skills, and interests of your students.
Alphabet Categories
To make this variation of categories you will need 2 sheets of poster board of different colors. Cut the poster board into 4” squares. (You will need 23 squares of each color.) On one color print alphabet letters. (Print “u & v” on the same card and “x, y, z” on another card.) On the other color print one of the above categories.
Shuffle up each set of cards. Draw a card from the “letter pile” and a card from the “category pile.” Encourage the children to make the sound of the letter. Can they think of a word in the category that begins with that sound?
