Activity 1 : Hae-tataki game

Theme: Hiragana, Katakana, Kanji and vocabulary
Level: Any levels
Goal: Recognize writing symbols and vocabulary
Format: Whole class (2 groups)
What you need: Transparent sheet with Hiragana, vocabulary etc., Overhead projector, 2 fly swatters (cover with gloves to reduce the noise)

This is definitely one of the favorite activities of my students. This fun activity helps students remember writing symbols and new words/ expressions. Good for review before tests.

Divide the class into two groups. Decide the order of the students in each group. (To make it fun, do Jan-Ken-Pon, decide by the birthdays, how many pets students have, parent's ages etc.) One student from each group come up to the front and get a fly swatter.

Project the ramdomly written list of symbols or vocabulary on the board. Teacher reads one of the symbol/vocabulary out loud, and two students compete to find the correct one and hit it with the fly swatter. Student who hits the correct word quicker gets 1 point and stays for the next round. Slower student has to go back to his/her group and pass the fly swatter to the next student. Keep scores of each group. (If one student stays more than 3 times, ask him/her to pass the fly swatter to the next student)

Variation 1: Teacher says the English meaning of the vocabulary. Student have to find and pronounce it correctly to get a point.

Variation 2: Use the pictures instead of written Japanese for adjectives and verbs. Students find and slap the antonym, past tense, or negative form of adjectives, and say it aloud.

Variation 3: Students say the different tense of verbs to get a point.

Variation 4: Students make a sentence using the vocabulary to get a point.

etc. etc... The variation is infinite! Especially younger students love this game.

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Activity 2 : Show me your writing

Theme: Writing
Level: Any levels
Goal: Write correctly
Format: Individual
What you need: 1 small white board, 1 dry erase marker and an eraser
(a piece of tissue paper or paper towel is fine) for
each student.

Students write what the teacher says on their white board. As soon as they finish writing, they lift the board up and show it to the teacher. What they write can be symbols, vocabulary, sentences or the answers for the teacher's questions. This also helps teacher assess students if they are writing correctly or if they are understanding the class content.

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Activity 3 : Tenki Yohou

Theme: Weather
Level: Beginners to Intermediate
Goal: Be a TV reporter and tell today's, yesterday's or tomorrow's weather
vocabulary: Weather vocabulary (Hare, Kumori, Ame etc.), desu/ dewa or ja arimasen, deshita/ dewa or ja arimasendeshita, deshoo/ dewa or ja arimasendeshoo, Turn on TV, Turn off TV etc.
Format: Whole class What you need: TV screen (Presentation board with a square cut out in
the middle works), remote control(fake), pictures of each weather conditions, a big red cross mark.

This activity can be used as a warm up in the beginning of the class.
One student becomes a TV reporter for the today's weather. When it is affirmative, the reporter simply shows the picture of the certain weather condition saying "Kyoo wa haredesu./ Kyoo wa hareteimasu." etc. When the reporter says the negative sentence, he/she covers the weather picture using the big red cross mark. Students take turns and other two students do the yesterday's and tomorrow's weather. Students also practice the command form "Terebi o tsukete kudasai./ Terebi o keshite kudasai." etc. using the remote control.

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Activity 4 : Verb tense TPR

Theme: Verbs
Level: Any
Goal: Say the different tense and TAI-form of the verbs
using action
Format: Whole class
What you need: Fairly large space

Students make a circle. Teacher says the verbs in English such as "to listen". Students do the following:

  1. Step one foot forward and say the present tense of the verb. (Do the regular action to describe the verb too)
  2. Step the foot backwards and say the past tense of the verb.
  3. Step one foot forward with arms crossed. Say the negative present tense of the verb.
  4. Step one foor backwards with arms crossed. Say the negative past tense of the verb.
  5. Make a fist and rise the arm upward, and say the "Let's" form (__Mashoo) of the verb.
  6. Put arms on the side of the body and shake, and say "want" form (__tai) of the verb.

Repeat with different verbs.

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Activity 5 : How was your day?

Theme: Dairy life, Time
Level: Beginners to Intermediate
Goal: Tell about your actions at a certain time.
vocabulary: Time vocabulary, Gozen, Gogo
Format: Group of 3-5
What you need: A dice, time chart, chips

Students roll the dice and proceed from the "start" square to move as many spaces as the number they have rolled. When they land on a time, they tell other students what they do everyday. Tense can be changed to past or "deshoo" form.

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Activity 6 : Around the world (popular among any FL teachers)

Theme: Any (work good for the review of writing symbols)
Level: Any
Goal: Answer to the teacher's question quickly and correctly
Format: Whole class or a group of up to 15.
What you need: Flash cards of Hiragana, Kanji etc., or teacher can give questions orally

Two students stand up and compete to answer to the teacher's question quicker and correctly. The quicker and correct student moves to the next student and compete for the new question. Student sits on the chair where he/she loses. The first person who comes back to his/her own chair wins the game.

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