What Does a Lion Say?: And Other Playful Language Games

The games help children appreciate books, comprehend stories, and become aware of many other functions of language and print. Suggested games: Do a word comparison of food: tasty, tastier, tastiest; explain a “dream dinner,” describing how it tastes and smells, why you would choose particular foods; tell who is with you and where you are eating. Imagine if clothes could talk, what stories would they tell about you; begin a story with one sentence and then each person adds a sentence. Tape a sheet of paper around the children’s arms and pretend they wear casts. To get signatures on his cast, each player must tell a story that ends with “…and that’s how I broke my arm.” – Mary Popham, Foreword Reviews

“This small volume is chock full of ideas to help adults entertain and teach the children they care about. It’s a resource to keep for countless occasions: fun on a rainy day, puppet shows, sing-alongs, and trolling the dictionary. The back pages list a multitude of book titles with descriptions of contents. This section alone makes the book invaluable–a go-to-reference book for parents, teachers, and children.” – Mary Popham, Foreword Reviews

Oral language benefits include listening to and responding to others, being attentive to stories, poems, and songs, and increased vocabulary. A game to heighten this skill: One player thinks of an animal and the others ask “yes or no” questions until they guess the animal. Questions may be: Is it a pet? Is it bigger than this book? Does it have four legs? – Mary Popham, Foreword Reviews

The authors detail each genre with informative components: general age group guidelines–most are for ages four to nine; the number of players required to play the game–usually two or more; and which specific educational skill is of primary focus. On-the-go games help pass traveling time in a car, on a bus or train trip; while waiting in a doctor’s office, or anytime to share fun and learning. For example: use the twenty-six letters of the alphabet to give names to imaginary lion cubs. – Mary Popham, Foreword Reviews