Students will use knowledge of topics they are currently studying to create a weekly game to play. The game will not only review the material that has been studied that week, but will also give students a chance to challenge the knowledge of people they know while working with their fellow students.
Setting Up the Family Feud Game
Begin by breaking students into 2 separate groups. Ask each group to come up with a list of twenty questions pertaining to current subjects they are studying. For instance, if the students are currently studying Physical Science, some questions they might ask would be similar to the ones listed below.
- Who developed the laws of gravity that are used today? (correct answer: Newton)
- What word describes the length of time it takes any given planet to circle the sun one time? (correct answer: period)
Another fun method of playing is to have more than one correct answer to the question. For example, if the class is studying the civil war, students may ask for most popular generals of the civil war. Once they come up with questions, they need to take them home and ask family members the same questions. This is how they come up with the most popular answer. Highest points in the game are given for the correct answer, then the most popular and so on.
Playing the Family Feud Game
If the teacher is able to switch questions and answers with another classroom then that really is the best scenario. If the teacher is unable to, then simply ask students questions from the other group. The teacher should group the answers to questions into like groups, then add up number of similar answers so that they have a "top five" list. An example is shown below.
The question is "What is the name of the solar body that was once called a planet?" The answer of course is Pluto, so it would receive the highest points in the game. But assume that there was a variety of different answers and they added up like this:
- Saturn 23
- Comet 11
- Venus 3
- Asteroid 7
- Sun 12
- Uranus 18
There are six answers but the teacher only needs five, so the she uses the top four answers because students already know that "Pluto" is the correct answer. Hence, in order of scores the answers would be listed like this:
- Pluto 100
- Saturn 23
- Uranus 18
- Sun 12
- Comet 11
Rules of Family Feud
To play the game, the teacher simply lines up the two teams. One person from each team gets to answer the question. The person answering the question can consult with other members of her team, but the person who is "up" must give the answer. If using questions from another class, then the other team gets a chance to answer the questions once the first team gets three strikes (misses 3 questions). Set the timer for 30 seconds for each person. Of course, this may be adjusted according to the needs of the classroom.
The team with the most points at the end of the game wins. Teachers can use some type of positive reinforcement such as extra free time on Friday for the winning team in order to motivate the students to try their best at the game. This is a great way to build teamwork in the students. They are working as a team even as they are brushing up on their academic skills!
 |
