In this blog post, we’ll explore a way to to make FUN listening games in your English language classroom. Listening tests and exams can often be met with groans and sighs from students, but fear not! We have an exciting solution to make the process more engaging and interactive.
Using Blooket’s Audio Feature:
To implement these activities, I recommend using Blooket, a popular game site with an excellent audio feature. With Blooket, you can record your voice for students to listen to, and then answer related questions. It makes the learning experience more personalized and engaging.
How to Get Started with Blooket’s Audio Feature:
Let’s take a closer look at how you can get started with Blooket’s audio feature in your classroom. Once you access the website, creating a test is straightforward. Simply click on “Create a Test,” and you’ll find the audio button on the left-hand side. Click on it, and you can begin recording your own voice through the computer. Add the answers and specify the correct one, and you’re ready to go!
Comparing Blooket to Other Sites:
While Blooket offers the most budget-friendly option at just three dollars a month, Kahoot and Quizzes also provide audio features. Kahoot’s automated voice costs around six dollars per month, and Quizzes’ audio feature is the most expensive at nine dollars a month.
Embracing the Power of Listening Practice:
Listening is a vital skill in language learning, as it improves not only comprehension but also pronunciation and overall language fluency. By incorporating Blooket’s audio feature into your classroom, you allow students to practice listening in a fun and interactive manner. They can hear authentic English spoken by their teacher, making the experience more relatable and engaging.
If you need a lesson plan that focusses on improving listening skills, then take a look at this!
Customize listening games to Suit Your Students:
One of the best aspects of using Blooket’s audio feature is its versatility. You can create a wide range of listening activities tailored to your students’ needs and proficiency levels. Whether it’s focusing on word stress, sentence stress, or emotional comprehension, the possibilities are endless.
Encourage Peer Participation:
Another exciting aspect of Blooket’s audio feature is the opportunity for peer participation. You can assign students to record their own voices for the class to listen to, adding a dynamic and interactive element to the listening exercises. This fosters a supportive learning environment where students can learn from one another.
Listening Activity 1: Choose the Correct Sentence
Just like a dictation activity, I present four different options, and students must listen to the sentence and select the correct one. For example, “Do you want to come over tomorrow to watch a film?” This activity helps students improve their listening and comprehension skills.
Listening Activity 2: Word Stress Focus
Word stress can be tricky, especially for Spanish-speaking students. Using the audio feature, I provide a recording of myself saying a word, such as “important,” and students have to identify the correct stress pattern using symbols. This activity sharpens their word stress awareness.
Listening Activity 3: Sentence Stress Awareness
Moving on to sentence stress, I use the audio feature to read out sentences like “I’ve gone to France.” Students need to identify the stressed words, which are usually content words, to grasp the main message of the sentence.
If you need listening resources for your classroom, then check out this blog post here.
Listening Activity 4: Long and Short Vowel Sounds
Pronunciation challenges often arise with long and short vowel sounds. To address this, I provide examples like the word “car” and ask students to distinguish between the long and short vowel sounds.
Listening Activity 5: Identifying Emotions
Listening exams frequently inquire about speakers’ emotions. To practice this, I present four emotions: satisfaction, happiness, regret, and surprise. Students listen to a sentence expressing a particular emotion and must correctly identify it.
Incorporating Blooket’s audio feature into your classroom opens up a world of creative listening activities. From dictation exercises to stress awareness and emotional comprehension, these activities will make listening practice enjoyable and productive for your students. So, embrace the power of technology and keep your students motivated to improve their English language skills. Feel free to share in the comments below how you’ve used Blooket or any other listening activity with your students. Thank you for reading, and see you next time on Charlie’s Lessons!