Are you trying to teach grammar to a student, and would you like to know some adverb games which you can play? Grammar games are a great way to get engaged in the material, and a great way to enjoy learning the facts which you are trying to teach. So, what are some fun adverb games which you can play?
An adverb is a particle of speech that modifies a verb, an adjective, another adverb, a phrase, or a clause. The placement of an adverb in a sentence frequently answers such questions as how, when, where, and how much.
You can usually recognize the placement of an adverb in a sentence by the “ly” ending on the particle of speech. However, not all adverbs can be identified simply by looking for the “ly” ending on words. To make sure that you are identifying all of the adverbs in a sentence, you have to look at each clause and determine what words are modifying what words. For example, consider the following sentences:
It might be easier for you to think of adverbs in terms of categories. There are adverbs of time, adverbs of location, adverbs of degree, adverbs of frequency, adverbs of manner, and adverbs that pose questions.
Now that you understand what adverbs are, you might want to learn some adverb games so you can pass this understanding on to a student.
The first game is an adverb acting game. You need the following materials: index cards, strips of paper, a pencil, and two bags.
First, explain to the student what adverbs are. Ask him or her (or the classroom) to give you examples of adverbs. Write down these examples on twenty index cards, with one adverb on each card. Try to only write adverbs which the student will be able to act out, for example “angrily” or “quickly.”
Next, ask the student to come up with ten questions for activities which they do during the day, such as “Can you give me directions to school?” or “eating dinner with the family” and write them on the strips of paper.
After the questions are written down, fold up both the adjectives and the strips of paper, and put them into the two bags respectively. Ask the student to choose a strip of paper, and an adjective and act out the adjective with the strip of paper. For example, if he or she chooses “quickly” and “Can you give me directions to school” then the student needs to ask the question quickly. The point of the game is to guess what adverb the student is acting out!
Another great game to play with students is the “No ly Words Allowed" game. If you are working with a classroom, break the students up into groups and ask them to come up with a list of adverbs. However, they can’t include an adverbs with “ly” at the end. Give them a couple of examples, and remind them what adverbs are. Give each group five minutes, and the group with the most wins a prize!
If you are playing the game with only one student, use the same rules as above, and give him or her a prize when their list reaches twenty adverbs without “ly”!