Materials: none
Description: Tell all students to stand up. One person (usually the teacher) is Simon, and the rest of the class has to do what he/she says. Simon begins all instructions with the words “Simon Says,” and then gives a command, like “touch your head.” The class must do as Simon says to, and touch their heads. However, Simon can try to trick the students in two ways. The first is to leave out the phrase “Simon Says” and only say “Touch your head.” Since the class can only do what Simon says to do, anyone who follows these directions is out and must sit down. The second way is to perform an action that is not what Simon Says. For example, Simon tells the class, “Simon says touch your head,” but Simon is actually touching his/her stomach. The class must do as they hear, not what they see. People touching their stomach must sit down.
This game is good for review of body parts (and great for introducing harder words, like elbows and cheeks), but we’ve also used it to review parts of the classroom (Simon Says point to a wall, a desk, a window…) and animals “Simon Says walk like a bear, swim like a fish, jump like a rabbit….). Once the kids catch on, you can go as fast as you’re able, and try to trick them as much as possible. You’ll be surprised how well they catch on!
-Abeth S.
Filed under: Level: Beginning, Skills: Listening, Skills: Vocabulary
