Feelings
Minefields

The cards can be used in a variety of ways, depending on the level of students you are teaching. Why not add some of your own as well? The object of these exercises is to demonstrate that the question, "How are you?" is not the same as the Japanese, "Genki desu ka". It is more similar to, "Kibun wa d( desu ka".

i) Make enough copies of the cards so that there is one for each student. Deal the cards out at random, and then have the students find those students whose cards match theirs by walking around the class and asking everyone they meet, "How are you?". When they have found all their partners, they must come to the front of the class and demonstrate their group feeling, with vocal stress and gestures, in response to your question.

ii) Divide the class into groups of four. Make two copies of the cards for each group (i.e., 24 cards per group). Play the same as for 'Memory' or 'Concentration', except each player must say how they feel as they pick up a pair. If they are unable to describe that feeling, the first player to do so may take the pair instead.

iii) Feeling 'Karuta'. Divide the class into groups of four. Have two sets of feelings for each team (24 cards per team). The JTE and ALT take turns calling out a feeling, and the students must touch the corresponding cards first to score that card. Only one card can be scored per student, per turn.

iv) Make enlarged copies of each of the feelings (one feeling per A4 sheet of cardboard) and make masks of these using rubber bands, card paper and staples. If you use thickish cardboard the masks can be used again and again. Colour the faces appropriately, and you might want to use elastic instead of rubber bands to make the band that holds the masks to a head. Pass the masks out at random. Have the students put them on and then stand up and answer the class's chorused question of, "How are you?" with their mask-feeling using appropriate vocal stress and gestures. It will require a little drama on your part demonstrating this, but be positive and encourage the students to participate as though in a mini play. This works well if the mask covers the face; the students aren't so self conscious. Don't forget to cut eye holes.

v) Make up your own activity using these pictures or others you prefer. Be inventive, outrageous, and try to have lots of fun.

The illustrations have been appropriated from the book Basic Communication Games by Jill Hadfield. She lists them as depicting; sad, happy, tired, angry, worried, surprised, sick, bored, puzzled, scared, hot, and cold.

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