The Adjective Game

Material 

  • A model environment; a farm is a good one as the children know the names of the animals. You could have a zoo, garage or aerodrome etc. 

Direct aim 

To make the child aware of the function and position of the adjective. Transposition makes the child aware of the importance of the position of the words. 

Age of interest 

From 5 years approximately. 

Teacher’s presentation 

  1. Take out the animals one at a time and talk about them while setting them out.
  2. Write down the name of the animal or thing that you want; you might want a cow.
  3. You give the slip of paper to the child who gives you the cow.
  4. You then say, ‘Yes, that is a cow, but it is not the cow that I wanted.‘
  5. Then write down on another piece of paper in another colour an adjective which will describe a cow from the farm.
  6. Tear the first slip of paper between ‘the’ and ‘cow’ and insert the adjective. The child will then give you the object described which you place on the slip of paper and put to one side.
  7. When you have done a few in this way you may insert the adjective immediately. 

Second presentation 

  1. When all the animals have been placed on the paper, take one of the slips and rearrange the words and show them to the child asking him if it makes sense; do this in a few different ways before putting them back in the right order.
  2. Take out the box of symbols. Ask the child which word told him what you wanted. The child points to the noun. Take out the large black triangle and put it over the noun. Ask the child which word told you whether there was one of that object or many; the child should point to the article, the pale blue triangle is put over the article. Then ask the child which word told which specific object you wanted; the child points to the adjective which is marked with a dark blue triangle. This is the first exercise in which the symbols are used. 

Exercises 

  1. As in presentation.
  2. Have a box with strips of phrases which describe the objects from the farm and leave the child to match up the phrases with the objects.
  3. Box of grammar symbols for the child to use on the phrases.