Relative Pronoun Bingo: A Fun and Effective Activity for Your Students
Are you looking for a fun and engaging way to teach your students about relative pronouns? If so, you might want to try Relative Pronoun Bingo! This is a simple but effective activity that helps students identify and use relative pronouns correctly in sentences. It also helps them distinguish between restrictive and non-restrictive relative clauses. All you need are some bingo cards, chips, and a list of relative pronouns. Read on to find out how to play this game and what benefits it offers for your students’ learning.
Introduction:
Relative pronouns are words that introduce a dependent clause and connect it to an independent clause. They are who, whom, whose, which, and that. They can act as subjects or objects in the dependent clause. For example, in the sentence “The book that I borrowed from the library was very interesting”, the relative pronoun that introduces the dependent clause “that I borrowed from the library” and acts as the object of the verb borrowed.
Title:
Relative Pronoun Bingo
Objectives:
By the end of this activity, students will be able to:
- Identify relative pronouns in sentences
- Use relative pronouns correctly to join two clauses
- Distinguish between restrictive and non-restrictive relative clauses
Materials:
- Bingo cards with sentences containing relative pronouns (one for each student)
- Bingo chips or markers (one set for each student)
- A list of relative pronouns (for the teacher)
Procedure:
- Explain the concept and function of relative pronouns to the students using examples and exercises.
- Review the difference between restrictive and non-restrictive relative clauses and how they are punctuated.
- Distribute the bingo cards and chips to the students. Each card should have 25 sentences in a 5x5 grid, with a free space in the center. The sentences should vary in length and complexity, and use different relative pronouns in different positions.
- Tell the students that they will play bingo with relative pronouns. The teacher will call out a relative pronoun from the list, and the students will look for a sentence on their card that contains that pronoun. If they find one, they will mark it with a chip. The first student to mark five sentences in a row, column, or diagonal will shout “Bingo!” and read their sentences aloud to check their answers.
- Start the game by calling out a relative pronoun at random. Repeat until someone gets bingo or all the pronouns are used.
- Congratulate the winner and review any errors or questions that arise.
Assessment:
- Observe the students’ participation and accuracy during the game.
- Collect the bingo cards and check them for correct identification and use of relative pronouns.
- Give feedback and reinforcement to the students.
Extension:
- Have the students create their own bingo cards with sentences containing relative pronouns.
- Have the students write their own sentences using relative pronouns and share them with a partner or the class.
Variations:
- To make the game more challenging, use only one relative pronoun per card and have the students find all the sentences that contain it.
- To make the game more fun, use themed sentences related to a topic or interest of the students.
Reflection:
- Ask the students to reflect on what they learned about relative pronouns and how they can use them in their own writing.
- Ask the students to give examples of sentences with relative pronouns that they encounter in their reading or everyday life.