How to play the Alibi Game.

Think of situations where alibis may be required. Participants choose a scenario and then make up alibis for each. Remember to keep it fun! You can either have everyone make up alibis for the same scenario and give a prize to the best alibi, or just go around and respond to each scenario.

Here are some example scenarios:

• Yesterday, Friday, at 5:35 pm, someone robbed the Bank of the West on South First Street. The police suspect you of being the robber. What is your alibi?
• There was a hit-and-run accident Wednesday 9:43 pm near your house. Witnesses said that the car resembled yours. What is your alibi?
• Sunday at 12:00 noon someone shoplifted diamonds from the jewelry store at the mall. The video camera shows someone that looks a lot like you. What is your alibi?
• Thursday morning at 7:30 am someone stole a newspaper from in front of your neighbor’s house. Your neighbor says it was you. What is your alibi?
• A couple was walking their Chihuahua this morning at 10:25 am. They said that their dog was attacked by a pit bull being walked by someone who lives close to your house. What is your alibi?
• Last night at 2:00 am someone set off fireworks on your street. A neighbor called the police, who knocked on your door. What is your alibi?

How to play ESL Scattegories.

This quick game is a great way to wrap up the class if you have a few extra minutes left over. It is an easy version of the ‘real’ board game.The objective is to score points by uniquely naming objects within a set of categories. So, you first say the category, and then everyone goes around in a circle naming things in that category. If someone can’t think of one, have them pass and keep going until the topic is stale. Have students talk about each thing they name. Some good categories:

• States - what do you know about the state, have you been there
• Colors - your favorite color, what is a good color for a car or a house.
• Emotions - when you felt that way, how does it feel, opposite feeling.
• Stores - what do you like about it, what kind of a store is it
• Animals - favorite animal, where have you seen this before, zoo vs. wild

What is the best part about conducting an ESLCC?

Wondering if an ESLCC is worth the effort? I asked my colleauges what they enjoyed best about facilitating a ESLCC and for most of us, it's a lot of fun while being a highly rewarding, enriching experience. Read on...

"The attendees always are happy to be in a safe, comfortable environment where they can practice their English. It’s very difficult to live in a “monolingual” society even though our population doesn’t reflect it at all! It’s just always a positive experience." - AM

"The inter-connecting with students" - TC

"Seeing adults step out of their comfort zone and attempt a challenging task like pronunciation and succeed." - ND

"Hearing everyone's opinion about the article topic and how it is different or non-existent in their country. Lots of timse they don't respond to the topic like I expected. I find that interesting from a sociological point of view." - CW

"Incredibly rewarding - it is fascinating on the level of language and how linguistic structures can inform our thinking about other cultures, perspectives, norms, in the way that we advance in understanding. I love learning about people, their motivations, and helping people navigate the world of English more successfully." - CR

"Look for creative ways to make the discussion fun and energetic. I like our customers to leave the class full of energy and motivation." - MA

"I love meeting new people, learning something about them and their homes. We have a lot of fun discussing 'American-isms' or challenging words such as 'indigenous'." - LJ

"I enjoy giving ESL learners the opportunity to practice their verbal skills. I simply enjoy talking and listening to them try out their new-found skills." - CT

"I love learning about the cultures and lives of the members of the group. Some of the group members become great friends." - JW

"The personal relationships, and the pride in group members increasing their confidence and skills, or reaching their personal goals." - HK

"A great opportunity to enrich lives and promote literacy" - MD

"The students are so much fun. I learn a lot from them." - RK

"Participants are lively, have good questions, are eager to learn, and have a sense of humor - it's my favorite time of the week!" - PE

"I have become friends with a lot of these people and they are freinds with each other. We all laugh a lot. I can see how they improve every week." - KM

"I love meeting the people, hearing their stories, and having fun with them by playing games and more!" - ST

How to play ESL Bingo.

This is a great game to play with your ESLCC. As long as you change the story, you can use the same game every time. Learners like taking home a vocabularly list, and the competitive element makes it fun and engaging. Another librarian from MPOE says: "Since we’ve been playing games, the participants seem to converse more freely and look forward to learning and having fun."

To prepare, print out a story and highlight 16 vocabulary words within the story. Make sure the story is at the appropriate reading level - even if you find something online, you'll have to edit some of the words. I usually adapt a story from http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com.

You'll need to bring the following materials:

• Copies of the story
• Paper with grids (4 squares x 4 squares) or have students make their own grids
• Pens or pencils
• Strips of papers with a word and its definition
• Some prize - sugar-free and regular candy, stationery

Then, follow these steps.

1. Pass out the story and grids. Read and discuss the story. Review the vocabulary words.
2. Instruct students to randomly fill in the squares with each of the words.
3. Explain that you can win with four across, down, or diagonally in case this is a new game for them.
4. I like the drama of pulling the strips out of a bowl but you can also just pick a word from a list. Read the definition of the word and wait for guesses. Provide hints if the guessing starts to slow down.
5. Continue until you have a winner.

You can expand the grid to 5x5 but it takes them a while to fill in the blanks and the game can get rather lengthy.