For a long time, I have been looking for interesting reading comprehension board games that would engage my Grade 4 ESL students and allow them to practice their reading skills. Recently, a colleague of mine recommended a series from Edupressinc.com, a company that created a set of leveled reading comprehension games for elementary and middle school students.
Edupress.com
I ordered a set of six different games and chose the easiest reading level for my ESL class. Each game focuses on a different reading comprehension skill. Students practice how to infer information from a text, read for details, look for context clues, draw conclusions and decide between fact and opinion.
The games are interesting and engage students by taking them into different environments like searching for treasure, working their way from elementary school to college, playing soccer etc. During their imaginative journey to reach a specific goal, students have to pick cards and answer reading comprehension questions. If they answer correctly, they can continue in their quest. If not, they need to wait for another turn.
What I like about the game is that it practices different aspects of reading comprehension. My students get to choose which game they want to play. They are always very enthusiastic about it and they are motivated to work on their reading comprehension skills. In addition, the RED level is suitable for intermediate English language learners in ESL programs.
The more advanced levels of these games are very suitable for native speakers in elementary or middle school.
The only tricky part in playing the game is that only one student reads a card and others wait for their turn. On the elementary school level, I supervise the groups and make sure that the person who reads the card reads it out loud and others pay attention. I also recommend forming smaller groups up to a maximum of 4 players so that each player does not need to wait for his/her turn for a long time.
I truly recommend this set of games to every ESL teacher!
Let me know what games you are using in your classes!
