- Read the story out loud to the class. Have the kids clap or stand up and then sit down every time they hear a
real or fake superlative.
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Play "My Dog's the Most".
- The first player says, "My dog's the _____ dog in the world." The player fills in the blank with a
superlative.
- The second player then says, "My dog's the _____, ______ dog in the world." The player repeats the first
player's superlative and then adds their own superlative.
- Each additional player says, "My dog's the..." They then repeat all of the previous players' superlatives,
and then add their own.
- You can end play a couple of ways. The game can be over when everyone's had a chance to play. Or, if a
player is unable to repeat all the superlatives, they are out, and the game is over when there is only one
player left.
- Play "Hangman". Players guess which adjective, comparative or superlative "It" is thinking of.
- Have a spelling bee, with players spelling adjectives, comparatives or superlatives.
- Have a reverse spelling bee, where players have to spell out the adjectives, comparatives or
superlatives--backwards.
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Fairy tales, fables and legends are ready-made stories that are well-suited to adaptation. Following are some
approaches that can be used to adapting such tales:
- The further adventures of a character from the story.
- The story told from a different point a view.
- A parody of the story.
- Change the ending.
- Change the location.
- Change the characters.
- Change the conflict.
- Rewrite the story in a different style.
Most fairy tales have a lesson. Imagine the situation that led to the first person telling the fairy tale. Write a
story about that situation.
You can find fairy tales to adapt at www.rickwalton.com/folktale/folktale.htm
- Read the original story of the Three Pigs. Then read Pig Pigger Piggest, Jon Scieszka's The True Story
of the Three Little Pigs, and David Wiesner's The Three Pigs. Discuss how they're similar, and how
they're different.
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Play "My Teacher's Cat". This is a good game for reinforcing adjectives. Players sit in a circle. (Although staying
in rows is okay too--play can go up and down rows. Just make clear before the game which direction play will go.)
Players start clapping in rhythm. One player is chosen to begin. They say, "My teacher's cat is a ____ cat, and her
name is ____." The player says and adjective and a name that begin with the letter "a". The second player, without
losing a beat, then says the same thing, only choose an adjective and name that begins with "b". Play goes around
the circle, with each player using the next letter in the alphabet. You can skip X and Z if you want. A possible
game might go...
- 1st player: My teacher's cat is an angry cat, and her name is Anna.
2nd player: My teacher's cat is a boring cat, and her name is Bob.
3rd player: My teacher's cat is a cautious cat, and her name is Cathy.
etc.
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Play "Adjective Bingo".
- To prepare, write thirty adjectives on small pieces of paper. Put them in a hat or a sack.
- Have the kids draw a Bingo grid on a piece of paper. (Show them a grid on the board. A Bingo grid consists
of twenty-five squares--five squares across and five squares down.)
- Have kids X out the middle square.
- Read out the adjectives. As you read each adjective, kids write the adjective down in one of the blank
squares on their grid. They can skip any six of the adjectives.
- Put all the adjectives back in the hat or bag. Then pull them out one at a time and read them. If a kid has
the adjective on their bingo grid, they cross it out.
- When a player has five squares in a row crossed out, they shout out "Bingo". The game can end there, or you
can keep playing until everyone has a Bingo, or until all the squares on all the grids are full.
Variations: Play "Comparative Bingo", or Superlative Bingo". Or play Bingo with adjectives, comparatives, and
superlatives.
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Play "Wrong Letter". Players can be in a circle, or play can go up and down aisles, or around tables, however you
define it. Choose one player to be "It". "It" says..."I'm thinking of an adjective. It has ____ letters and starts
with a '__'" The player tells how many letters the adjective has, and what letter it starts with. The next player
guesses what the second letter is. If they guess right, the third player guesses the third letter. If they guess
wrong, the third player guesses the second letter. Players take turns guessing until someone gets the letter right.
Play continues, with players guessing the next letter, until finally someone completes the word. Then another
player is chosen to be "It".
Variation: "It" can be thinking of either the adjective, the comparative, or the superlative form.
Competitive Variations:
- Class competes against itself. Score five points for each correct guess, lose one point for each wrong
guess. Try each game to top your best score.
- Divide class into two teams. Teams take turns playing the game. Score five points for each correct guess,
lose one point for each wrong guess. After each team has done five words, the team with the most points wins.
Strategy here can be fun, since longer words can get the team more points, but they might also allow for more
wrong answers.
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Play "Toss the Adjective". Players sit in a circle, or at their desks or tables. One player has a beanbag and
starts the game. They shout out an adjective and toss the beanbag to another player. They then shout an adjective
and toss it to another player. Players keep shouting out adjectives and tossing the beanbag until someone can't
think of an adjective, repeats an adjective, or shouts out a word that is not an adjective.
Variation: Play "Toss the Comparative", or "Toss the Superlative"
Competitive variations:
- All players stand while playing. If they repeat an adjective, can't think of an adjective, or say a word
that is not an adjective, then they are out and sit down. The last player standing wins.
- Divide the class into two teams. One team lines up on one side of the room, the other team on the other side
of the room. Players toss the beanbag bag and forth, from one team to the other, and shout adjectives. If
they can't quickly think of an adjective, or if they shout out an adjective that's already been said or a
word that's not an adjective, the other team gets a point. The first team to get five points wins.
- Piggy drawing. Have kids draw a picture of a pig...with their eyes closed. Share pictures. Find the silliest,
and the most accurate.
