Sign Score Shutdown

I am always looking for new and fun ideas to get students engaged with content in the classroom. I try to use inexpensive things I have lying around my classroom like cards and dice. I recently created this game for students to play in the classroom that I call Sign Score Shutdown. Sign Score Shutdown is an engaging communication game designed to enhance teamwork and knowledge retention. Participants are divided into teams, and the objective is to accumulate points by correctly answering questions. However, incorrect responses lead to deductions, adding a strategic element to the game. The team with the highest score at the end emerges victorious.

Materials needed:

• A deck of cards (it is best to have one for each team)
• A set of teacher-created questions (tailored to the subject or theme of the content being taught or for review)

Game setup:

1. Divide players into teams, ensuring an equal number of participants on each team.
2. Prepare the set of questions, ensuring they are appropriately challenging but not overly difficult for the participants’ level.
3. Create enough questions to play several rounds of the game.
4. Give each team a deck of playing cards, shuffled and placed face down in the center of the group.

Game Play:

1. The game begins with the teacher posing a question to the first team.
2. The team can use the target language to discuss then answer. You can set a time limit.
3. If the team answers correctly, they flip over a card from the deck of playing cards and earn points corresponding to the value on the card. For instance, if the card is a 5 of hearts, they earn 5 points.
4. If the team answers incorrectly or cannot provide an answer, the team flips the card over and loses the points corresponding to the value of the card.
5. The teacher then moves on to the next team, repeating steps 2-4.
6. The game continues in this manner, with teams taking turns answering questions and accumulating or losing points.
7. Play continues until all the teacher-created questions have been asked.
8. At the end of the game, teams tally their points.
9. The team with the highest score wins the game.

Scoring:

All cards are at face value regardless of the suite. If teams turn over an Ace the value is worth 10 points. Kings are worth 50 points, Queens are worth 35 points, and Jacks are worth 25 points. These values are for both positive and negative so it depends if teams answer the question accurately or not!

Game variations:

You can add variations to the game if you want. Try one of these ideas to spice it up!

• Time Limit: Introduce a time limit for each round to add urgency and excitement to the game.
• Point Multipliers: Assign point multipliers to certain cards to add unpredictability to the scoring system. Or add the multiplier to a round.
• Team Challenges: Incorporate team challenges where multiple team members collaborate to answer a single question, fostering teamwork and communication skills.
• Customized Questions: Tailor the questions to specific subjects or themes relevant to the participants’ interests or learning objectives.
• Allow teams to ask other teams the questions.

This game is great for teamwork and collaboration but it is also excellent for language development and modeling. Give it a try in your classroom today!

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