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In class Japanese GRAMMAR Teaching Ideas

Ideas for teaching or reviewing Japanese grammar in class.

 The teaching ideas have been categorized into two sections:  
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2. General grammar ideas (ideas for any grammar point) SCROLL DOWN

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Handball Directions R. Jeffers Introduce direction vocabulary (した、うえ、ひだり、みぎ、まえ、となり) by getting Ss to tell the Tt where to pin up direction signs on the whiteboard.  Divide the class into two teams.  Get each team to stand or sit on either side of the room.  Create a line on the floor in front of the whiteboad.  Get one student from each team to stand behind the line.  Tt says a direction word in Japanese eg. ひだり.  Both students then bounce a ball on the floor, and then tries to get the ball to touch the corresponding direction sign (ie. ひだりsign).  The student that first hits the sign gets a point for their team.  Another student from each team comes to the line.  Tt says another direction word and continues the game as described.  The team with the most points at the end of the game wins.


In-class Japanese GRAMMAR SPECIFIC teaching ideas

Adjectives & Descriptions"Funny Profiles"A Suzuki Fold a piece of paper into 4.  Ss see only the top square the rest folded away and then draw a head on it. When finished Ss fold back the head so that the other Ss can’t see it. They pass the paper on to the next person who then draws a torso. They fold and pass the paper on.  The next person drawing from waste to knees. Then fold and passes the paper on to the last person who draws the legs and feet. The last Ss then unfolds the paper to reveal the character. The Ss then write a short profile about this character and describes it to the rest of the class.

Adjectives & Descriptions  "Post-it Celebrity Heads" Sit the Ss in a circle.  Write various celebrities on post-its.  Put a post-it on each Ss head.  The aim is for the Ss to guess the celebrity on their head before the other Ss.  Each Ss takes turns at asking yes/no questions to the rest of the class. Eg. The class may answer or.  If the question is answered with a 'yes' then the Ss may ask another question.  Continue asking questions until one person guesses who is on their post-it.    Celebrities can be replaced with objects around the house, animals etc.

Adjectives & Descriptions "Guess what"A Suzuki Fold a piece of paper in four. Write a sentence about something on each section of paper. Eg. Fold one – ぼくはせが高いです。Fold two – ハンバーガーが好きです。Fold three – あかときいろのようふくが好きです。Fold four – レストランで働いています。Ss read each section aloud to their partner.  Ss listens and tries to guess what the object is. The final fold should reveal what was being described. (The answer here is Ronald McDonald). This could be used to describe animals, places, famous people, careers etc.

Adjectives & Descriptions "Mystery object"  L Brandis Fold an A4 piece of paper into ½ vertically then fold that into quarters.  Unfold the paper keeping the paper folded in ½ vertically.  At the third crease cut a circle shape.  Unfold the paper completely.  Then fold it in half horizontally.  One side of the paper will have a hole in the middle of it.  The other side will not.  Ss open the folded paper and draw an object underneath where the hole is.  Then fold the paper up again and write four sentences around the hole.  The Ss exchange their papers.  By reading the description and seeing only the small portion of the object under the hole the Ss has to guess what the object is. 

Adverbs of frequency "Say the adverb" http://www.eslcafe.com/idea/index.cgi Dave's ESL Cookbook S Patterson Two teams of Ss, each person has cards from a set with adverbs of frequency (ときどき、あまり、いつも、いっかいだけ、ぜんぜんetc). Nobody knows who has adverb.  One person from team A asks person on team B a question, trying to get them to respond with the adverb they have on their card. So, if I am on team A and have the card ときどき, I will ask a student from team B: 「どれぐらい友達に会いますか。」Hopefully s/he will say 「ときどきに会います。」 and I will get a point for my team. If not, then a person from team B asks a question so on.   The team with the most points wins.

Comparatives  "CD comparisons"  http://www.eslcafe.com/idea/index.cgi Give students a sheet with the covers of 5 CDs on it. The CDs should include information such as the artists name, length, date of release, price and a space to give it a score out of 20. Include 4 groups/singers the pupils are likely to like/know plus one terrible/old fashioned CD to have a laugh. Dictate the price and ask them to give the CD a score. Then, ask them to compare the CDs eg.マドンナのシーディーのほうが高いです。マドンナのシーディーはビートルズのシーディーよりにんきがあります。マドンナのシーディは一番新しいです。

Comparatives "Dice comparisons"  http://www.eslcafe.com/idea/index.cgi  Dave's ESL cookbook
Elicit six nouns within a specific category from your students and write them up on the board. Number them from 1 to 6. For example: 1)オーストラリア 
2)ブラジル 3)かんこく  4)ちゅうごく 5)日本 6)スペイン   Put students into groups of three or four, with a dice for each group. The first student in a group rolls the dice twice, they must then (preferably within a fairly short time limit) make a comparison between the two nouns that correspond with the numbers they have rolled. Eg. If a student rolls a 5 and a 3, they might say: ちゅうごくは日本よりおおきいです。 Students can carry on until the possibilities have been exhausted. Then, have each member of the group write a list of six new nouns and pass it to another member. They then each have a new list and continue making comparisons from the words on that list.

Comparatives "Comparison Line Up"  V McDaid Prepare a set of about 30-40 cards with miscellaneous nouns on them. Don't repeat any words. Divide your class up into two teams and have them stand in two lines. Give the first two a card each. They must read out their words at the same time, and then make a sentence comparing the two nouns. The first to make a comparison between the two words gets a point. (Obviously the more varied the nouns, the more creative the sentences will be.) They then move to the back of their line and the loser stays on to compete with the next challenger, and so on.

Conditionals"If I were…chain" http://www.eslcafe.com/idea/index.cgi
The teacher writes on the board the beginning of a conditional sentence, i.e.「お金がたくさんあれば、…」 , so the first student has to finish it. Then, the next classmate has to begin a new sentence using the last part of his/her mate sentence. For example, if the first pupil said: 「お金がたくさんあれば、ロンドンに行くでしょう。」then the second one has to start by saying:「ロンドンに行けば、… Students link one sentence with another, making any necessary changes.

Conditionals  "If I were…erase" F Mirtasari Write down several interesting nouns on the whiteboard  (the same as number of students), such as そうりだいじん、さる、くるま、ひこうき、りんご、か、etc. Then, Ss make sentences using one of the words. Eg. もしひこうきだったら、アメリカにいきます。 After that, erase the word so the other students can’t use that word again. Once all the words are erased get Ss to write down as many sentences as they can remember.

 

Have to  "What are the rules?" R Hespe Divide the students into pairs or small groups. Pass out copies of an amoeba shaped playing field bisected horizontally by a wide moat filled with sharks (or draw it on the board and have the students copy it). The moat is too wide to jump over. Explain to the groups that they will create a game with two opposing teams. The teams must score points on the opposite side of the moat. They can only use equipment from existing sports, athletics, or games. They have to create and list the rules of their game using: なければなりません、ないでください、なくてはいけません、だめです etc. Encourage them to be as creative (or silly) as they possible. The groups will present their games to the whole class. One prize will go to the team who uses the most equipment. Another to the team who invents the most rules. And the class will vote on the best game.


I like… "Fruit Basket" A Suzuki      Ss sit in a circle with one Ss in the middle. The Ss in the middle says a statement that reviews a target structure.  Eg. 「~が好きです。」Ss with the same opinion then they must stand and swap chairs. The last person standing becomes the new person in the middle. (To make this more challenging the Ss can’t take a seat that is next to them they must move at least two seats away.)

Imperatives/Modals  "Shape the Statue" Get two volunteer Ss to stand at the front of the class.  One of the Ss tells the other to move certain body parts (in no particular identifiable shape).  Eg.  ひだり手をあたまのうえに上げて。ひざをまげて。Once the shape is complete then the rest of the Ss guess what the statue might represent.  せんしゅかもしれません。Extra: each Ss in the class tells the statue one movement. Or, Ss write a story based on the statue.

Particles "Fun Grammar Cards"A SuzukiTt writes a sentence on the board leaving only particles Eg.  (person a) (person b)(place)(verb). All Ss write on a piece of paper “person a”. Tt collects them all and puts them on a separate desk labeled “person a”. Repeat for all the other missing words. Ss then go around and collect one random card from each pile of cards. They then read to the class their sentences.  (Which are grammatical, which are funny?) etc.

Past Simple   "Round Robin Actions"L Ford     Introduce the game by saying a target structure with an action.  (Eg.  日本へ行きました。うちわを買いました。Moving your hand like a fan.)  The next Ss has to repeat the structure but add one more item and action.  (Eg. 日本へ行きました。うちわを買いました。そして、おはしを買いました。Moving your hand like a fan and then like chopsticks).  Continue around the class.

Past Simple “Party Mingle” J Webster Each student is given a small piece of paper with a sentence on it, describing what they did last weekend. 「東京に行って、すもうを見ました。」「ハワイに行って、さめと泳ぎました。」etc. The more outrageous the sentence the better. Once students have read their sentence and the teacher makes sure that they understand their sentences, students are instructed to stand up and mingle as if they were at a party asking 「先週、なにをしましたか。」 After everyone has had a chance to mingle, the class sits down again and the teacher asks 「トムさんはなにをしましたか。」 and the class reconstructs what everyone did. You can also have students practicing little phrases like 「すみません」 if they bump into people, or opening lines like 「ひさしぶりですね。」Teachers can add in props like empty glasses, or ask students to dress like they were going to a party.

Present continuous "Charades" R Schorr Type a list of phrases using the present continuous such as: 「おとこのこは公園で歩いています。」「ねこはとりを見ています。」「女は海で泳いでいます。」Cut these sentences into strips and place them in a bag. Each student takes a strip from the bag and attempts, in turn to act out or draw their sentence. The other students attempt to guess the sentence.

Present perfect  "Circle - Have you ever" S Wagner Give everyone a slip of paper and ask them to write a sentence about something unusual or interesting that they did. Have them use the simple past tense. For example, they might write 「カンガルーを食べました。」 Make sure they don't write their names on the paper. Take the slips of paper and pass them out to different people. In a circle, have one person start by asking their neighbor, 「カンガルーを食べたことがありますか。」If the second person says no, they pass the paper to him/her and that person asks their neighbor the same question. Go around the circle until you find the person who says "はい。食べたことがあります。」 You can make it somewhat shorter by having one person guess whose paper it is, and asking them only. If they don't find the person in three guesses, they have to ask whose it is. Then go on to the next person.

Present perfect  "Fruit basket - Have you ever" http://www.eslcafe.com/idea/index.cgi  Get all the students sitting on chairs in a circle then stand in the centre and say: "Swap chairs if you 日本に行ったことがあります」or 「ごはんを食べたことがあります。」If the students have 'been to Japan' (or whatever) they MUST swap chairs with another student who has also stood up. The first time they do this - stay where you are. The second time - quickly sit down in one of the free chairs - this of course leaves one student standing in the middle and now it’s their turn.  As they play, the students will realize that the more general their sentence is the better, because more students will move. If only one student stands then they swap with the speaker, if no students stand the speaker just makes another sentence. After several tries you can move up a gear by making new rules such as: you can't swap with anyone immediately to your left/right, who has the same colour t-shirt, etc, which contributes to the chaos.

Questioning Techniques    "Dicey Questions"   One Stop English - R Hewin  Elicit question words from the class (e.g. 「なに、いつ、どこ、どのぐらい」 etc) Show the dice to the class to elicit what it is, and how many sides it has. Assign number 1 to 「なに」, 2 to 「いつ」 etc, until each question word relates to a number on the dice. Demonstrate by rolling the dice and asking a question to the class - the number indicates which question word to use... e.g. a roll of 1, means a 「なに」 question - e.g. 「お母さんの名前はなんですか。」Do a few more examples to make sure everyone has the idea, then let students continue in their pairs / threes!

Questioning Techniques  "Mechakucha"  L Ford Ss stand or sit in a square (approximately four students on each side) with one Ss standing in the middle. Tell all Ss to close their eyes.  Tt tags a few of the Ss. Ss in the middle asks questions randomly around the circle. Eg. 「お名前は何ですか。」The Ss that weren’t tagged answer the questions accordingly. Eg. 「僕はジョンです。」 The Ss that were tagged say めちゃくちゃ. All the Ss from one side of the square must change sides to another side of the square before and the person in the middle takes their position in the square.  The student left standing becomes the new student in the middle.  Continue until all Ss have been in the middle.

Questioning Techniques "Question Swap" http://www.onestopenglish.com/                   R Hargreaves Give out strips of paper, one for each student. Then name a topic, e.g. 「ゆめ」「おかね」etc., and ask students to write a question related to the topic on the piece of paper. Give a short amount of time to do this. Next, students stand up and move around asking their questions. When a pair have asked each other their questions, they swap questions, and move off to ask that question to a new partner, then swap again and so on. Set a time limit, or just let it run.. If you want to 'spice' it up a bit, you can run two or more topics at a time. Students often notice grammar errors in others' questions, and correct them.

Questioning Techniques  "Roaming Q&A"  A Suzuki   Ss write on an A4 piece of paper a question in the target language. Pin the questions around the room. Ss then roam around the room and write their answers to the questions on the paper. Ss then retrieve their original question and summarise the answers to the class.

In-class teaching Japanese GENERAL GRAMMAR Ideas

Backs to Boards Divide the class in half.  One Ss from each team sits in front of the whiteboard facing their team members (back to the board). Tt writes a phrase on the board and each team must elicit it from their team member at the front. The Ss to guess the word first gets a point. Rotate Ss until everyone has had a go.

 

Balloon afloat www.genkienglish.netPut the students into small groups. Each group forms a circle. Give each group a balloon.  As a group they have to keep the balloon in the air, but when it touches a part of someone's body they have to shout out a sentence using the target structure.  The group that can keep the balloon in the air the longest is the winner.  (A hackey sack is a good alternative to a balloon.) Variation: Give Ss fly swats which they must use to keep the balloon a float.  AND, randomly show a flashcard, if the students use the word from the flashcard as well as using the target structure they get an extra point.

 

Card Collect  www.genkienglish.netGive each student 4 or 5 mini cards with pictures or vocabulary on them. They fan them out so other people can see how many cards they have, but can't see what's on them. The students find a partner. The first student asks "What's that?" (or some other target structure i.e. What are you doing?  Where have you been etc.) whilst pointing to one of their opponent's cards. The other student answers. The student who just answered points to one of the cards from the first student and asks "What's that?"  This student answers. Now they "janken”.  The winner takes the loser's card and adds it to their fan of cards.  They go around asking different people until someone has a full set of 8 different cards, then they are the winner!!  If anyone runs out of cards, they come and ask the teacher who has an infinite supply!

 

Chinese Whispers Put Ss into rows of 6 facing the back of the room.  Give the last Ss in each row a whiteboard pen. Take the first Ss of each row of six to the front of the class and whisper a sentence with the target  structure. Ss then run to their group and whisper it to the first person in the row.  That person then tells the next Ss in their team and so on.  When the sentence message gets to the last person he/she runs to the board and writes it on the board.  1 point is allocated to the fastest person.  5 points to a correct sentence.  3 points for a mostly correct sentence.  0 points for a very incorrect sentence.  This is repeated several times and the winner is the group that has the most points at the end.

 

Disappearing Smilies (adverbs of frequency, adjectives, verbs…)  A Suzuki  Give Ss a piece of paper with medium sized circles in 8 rows by 5 columns.  Next to the rows and columns are target words. Eg. 8 different verb phrases on the rows - playing tennis, washing the car, etc.  And 5 different adjectives under the columns - interesting, fun, boring, difficult, easy. Ss need to draw randomly in 15 of the circles little smilie faces. Tt reads a sentence using the target words. Ss cross off the circles corresponding to the words Eg. Playing tennis is fun.  (Ss cross off the circle that corresponds to tennis and fun.) The first person to cross off all of his/her 15 smilies yells out “Disappearing Smilies” (Little bit like bingo!) and wins. Extra: Tt can be replaced by a confident Ss and create appropriate sentences. (Other word combinations are: days of the week/activity, subject/adjective, object/adjective, object/location, body parts/adjective, time/activity, name/activity)

 

Dominos Get a dominos template. Split a sentence over two dominos. Put a picture on one side and a verb on the other. Verb on one side another tense on the other. Etc.

 

 

Eight page bookA Suzuki Fold a piece of paper into 4, then in half (creating 8 squares). Tear along the middle of the second and third square (creating a hole). Fold the paper into a star shape. Now fold up into a book form. (This book can be used for practicing writing: eg. introduce a friend, days of the week, daily routine, family members, likes and dislikes, a short story etc.)


Eraser madness Adapted from Dave's ESL Cafe Write on the board.  'Subject' wa 'Adverb of frequency' 'object' o 'verb'.  Then below it write a starting sentence using the structure.  Eg. 子供はときどきごはんを食べます。Go round the class have each student change only one word from any column.  After he/she says a complete sentence, you the teacher must change the word by erasing it and writing a new one.  Eg. 子供はいつもごはんをたべます。The ideas is for the students to say new sentences quickly so the teacher gets to the point where he/she can't keep up with the necessary erasing and writing so then the students win. (Students could change two words at a time, or change the sentence structure.)

Grass Skirts
Ss work in pairs.  One student is a runner the other is a scribe. Add words or grammatically incorrect sentences below.  Cut into strips (leaving the left margin attached) – like a grass skirt.  Tape the grass skirts around the room (one for each pair).  Allocate one grass skirt per pair. The runner runs to grass skirt and takes one strip.  He/she then runs back to their partner.  The runner reads the words or sentence aloud to their scribe who writes a grammatically correct sentence from the words or corrects the grammar mistake. Continue until all strips have been torn off. The pair of students who finish first are the winners. (To make the game more exciting and to prevent cheating through Ss overhearing other Ss play some loud fast paced music.)..DOWNLOAD WORKSHEET.

Grammar Fan L Brandis
Give Ss a ½ an A4 piece of paper.  Fold the paper like a fan.  Ss write on the first section of the fan a verb (or target structure) and then on the next fan section how the verb changes. Fold 1: あそびますFold 2: あそんでいます(or Fold 1: target structure in English fold 2: Japanese target structure. ) Continue until the fan is completely full.  Ss fold up the fan and test each other by slowly unfolding the fan.


Grammar Bingo  
Have students brainstorm a list of verbs ie (work-related, home-skills related, hobby-related, etc.) and write them on the board. Give students each a Bingo card and have them randomly write one item that they can do from the list in each square. While they are writing, copy the items from the list onto slips of paper and put them in a box. When students are done filling in their cards, have them take turns pulling a slip out of the box and use the target structure. Ie "I can..." The students who have that activity written down should cross it off. The first student with a complete row crossed off yells, "BINGO!".  DOWNLOAD BINGO CARDS WORKSHEET.


Hide Smilie  (Question and Answer) L Brandis   
One Ss goes outside and waits.  At the same time one of the remaining students receives a doll (such as a smilie cushion) and hides it.  The student who is sent outside comes back inside and has 4 chances to guess who has the doll.  The student has to ask 4 other students a question (using one of the target structures recently learnt) eg. ‘What is the weather like?’   The student who has the doll can only respond in one way for example ‘It's sunny’.  All the other students have to say any other answer than the doll hiding student eg It's snowing, It's cloudy etc.  If the student guesses correctly who had the doll they win.  If not then a new person would be sent outside and the game continues.


Line Quiz www.genkienglish.net
Split the class into two groups. One lines up on the left side, one on the right. Ask the first student in each group to use a word in the target structuer or ask a question making the students use the target structure. The first one to answer correctly gets to sit down. The other goes to the back of his/her team.  The winning team is the first where everyone is sat down! (With younger classes or classes with behaviour management problems select 9 students ie 3 groups of 2, rather than getting the whole class to stand up). (Alternatives - Verbs change to past tense etc.)


MaruBatsu  Patricia Little         
Divide the class into two teams.  Each team has a leader.    On the board is the target structure eg. Today’s weather is ~.  The Tt selects one of the learnt words eg. sunny and the Ss have to guess the correct word by using the target structure.  The leader comes to the front and asks one Ss to complete the sentence.  Once a Ss has correctly used the target word and structure they get a naught or a cross according to which team they are on.  The team that has 3 naughts or 3 crosses in a row first is the winner.


Musical Chairs grammar    
Play music and everyone tries to sit down when you stop. The person who can't sit down has to make a sentence using your (already presented) pre-selected skeleton sentence (on the white board). ie. I have ..., but I've never.... I like it because.


Naughts and Crosses Grammar
Give pairs of Ss a list of grammar exercises (with answers on the back). Ss answer the grammar exercises in turns.  Each time a student gets an answer correct they can put a naught (or a cross for the other player). The winner is the person who gets three naughts (or crosses) in a row first. DOWNLOAD WORKSHEET.


New words pass
Put Ss in a circle or line.  Show first flashcard to first Ss and ask a question using the target structure. Tt: “Is he swimming.”  Ss: “Yes he is.' Tt: “Good”. That Ss then turns to the Ss next to him/her and asks the same question. Tt gives the first Ss another flashcard.  Repeating the above process till all of the flashcards go around the room back to the Tt. To make it more challenging Tt can send cards from another direction around the circle.


Numbers mingle www.genkienglish.net
Put large number flashcards on the floor around the room.  The students stand by a number.  Throw a dice (later get the students to do this) and ask what’s the number? The students on that number need to answer a question or create a sentence with one of the target words being studied. If they get it correct they get a point card (or equivalent).  Shout change and continue.  The person with the most points at the end is the winner.  (Numbers and other vocabulary or grammar can be studied using this game.)


Pair Flip L Brandis
Two Ss come to the front of the class. Both are given a card with a verb written on it.  They are to hold that card facing them.  The Tt and the class count down from 3.  When they reach 1 the Ss at the front of the class both turn over their cards and show their partner.  The Ss that says the verb in the past (or any other target tense) first is the winner.  The winner selects the next Ss to come to the front of the class. Extra: Ss can be asked to make a sentence using the word on this card.


Plane target Draw a target in the middle of the board with different points in each ring.  Two Ss come to the front of the class.  Tt asks Ss a question in the target language (grammar question).  If the Ss knows the answer they throw the plane.  The Ss plane that first hits the target gets a chance to answer the question.  If the Ss answers correctly they keep the amount of points they hit with their plane on the target.  This person then sits down and is replaced with another Ss.

Post it grammar  Dave's ESL cookbook S Varalyay
Take a cloze exercise and write or project it onto the board.  Write the answers on post it notes and randomly distribute them around the class. The students then need to place the post-it they received in the correct blank space.


RollieMake a large dice with some vocabulary from the unit.  Ss roll the dice.  When the dice stops the Ss that threw the dice must use the word using the target structure.   (This can be made into a competition by dividing the class into two teams.  Each team gets a chance to say a sentence and points are allocated for grammatically correct ones.)

Row and Columns  www.genkienglish.com  
Ask everyone in the class to stand up.  Ask a question in the target language or say a word the students need to use in the target structure.  The first person to correctly use the target structure can sit down and is given the option to choose "left," "right," "forward," or "back."  The students sitting in that direction can also sit down.  (ie.  If the student who correctly answers says "forward" all the students to the front of him/her can sit down as well).  Continue until there is no one standing. 


Running Dictation Groups  David Powell
Pin up a list of grammar exercise. Divide the class into teams of two or more.  Allocate a scribe and a runner.  The runner must run to the grammar list and remember the first one then run back to their team.  Tell the scribe the sentence who then writes it down.  The team then swap jobs.  A new runner and a new scribe.  Continue until the entire list is complete. (EXTRA: Make the sentences incorrect and the students have to correct the sentences.)  The first team to complete gets 5 points.  Second gets 4 and so on.  Then the Tt reads the list or puts a copy of it onto the OHT.  Ss check what they have written. (Check the answers to the grammar questions.)  1 point is allocated for each correct sentence.  The group with the most points at the end wins.


Sentence Race
Write on small pieces of paper vocabulary you want to revise, write each word twice eg. once on a blue card and once on a green card (different colours will help distinguish who is on what team). Divide the class into 2 teams. Distribute the cards between the Ss. Every Ss should have a paper and both teams have the same words.  When you call a word, 2 Ss should stand up, one from each team. The Ss must then run to the blackboard and race to write a sentence using their word and the grammar point you wish to study (ie past tense). Points can be allocated to the Ss who wrote a sentence first and the Ss who wrote it grammatically correct.


Snakes and ladders Grammar    
Draw a few snakes and ladders (or other specific items according to the culture of the language) on the grid.  (Snakes means go down and ladders go up.) Give Ss a list of grammar exercises (with answers on the back). Give a group of Ss a grid (about 10 x 10 squares) marking start and end. Ss roll the dice and go around the grid. Each time they land on a snake or a ladder they need to answer a grammar (or other type of question).  If they are correct they can remain on the square if it’s a snake or go up if it’s a ladder. If they are incorrect they go down on a snake and remain still on the ladder.  The Ss (or pair of Ss) who are first to the top win.


The Weakest Link
All students stand up behind their desks.  Tt asks a question or shows a flashcard with vocabulary recently learnt.  The first Ss to put up their hand and answers the question or says the vocabulary correctly can then select 3 other students to sit down.  Continue.  The last person standing is the winner


Time bomb
You need a timer (such as an egg timer or a fake bomb from a toy shop) for this game.  Set the timer, ask a question and then throw it to a Ss.  S/he must answer and then throw the timer to another Ss, who in turn answers and then throws it to another Ss.  The Ss holding the timer when it goes off loses a life.  This can also be done with categories (e.g. food, animals, etc.).

 
Triangles (Sankaku) A Suzuki
Play rock, paper, scissors (
janken).  Each time a player wins they can draw a small circle. After three wins they can make a complete triangle and then put their initial in the triangle. The player with the most initials in the triangles wins. (Extra: Tt can give Ss a list of grammar questions after each Rock Paper Scissors game the winner needs to correctly answer a grammar question before he/she can draw a small circle.)


True or False Grammar betting  
Take a grammar point you would like to revise and put them either grammatically correct or incorrect sentences. Eg. A dog are an animal.  Ss guess if the sentence are correct or not ie (T) or (F). (In pairs or alone.) Ss bet points from 100 to 0 on how confident they are. For each correct answer they keep the betted points and for each incorrect answer they lose the bet. Calculate all the points and see who got the most points!


Wall of Correct
One wall of the classroom is "Correct".  The other side of the classroom is "Incorrect".  The Tt reads a sentence.  If what the Tt says was grammatically correct they go to the "Correct" Wall.  If it is incorrect they go to the other wall.  (Ss can replace the teacher.)  Make this a fast paced game so Ss are running from one side of the room to the other.   EXTRA: Divide the class into teams.  Points can be allocated for the first person to reach the wall or the number of team members correct.  The team with the most points in the end wins. 

Useful Japanese grammar websites

Grammar explanations
http://www.guidetojapanese.org/
List of Japanese grammar explanations in English with example sentences.

Running_dictation WORKSHEET blank.doc
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Naughts and crosses grammar WORKSHEET.doc
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Grammar bingo cards WORKSHEET.doc
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