The critical thinking skills of children are challenged when they are asked to describe beautiful things or experiences in negative terms. They must also draw on language skills to convey their ideas adequately through descriptive language. This makes a great travel game.

What this activity will develop:
Listening, language and thinking skills

What you'll need:

• Index cards
• Marker pen

What to do:
Print words that describe beautiful things on the cards.For example: holiday, new baby, aeroplane, park, rose, new penny, puppy, flowers, pizza, sunset, ocean, mountains, ice cream, swan, swimming pool.

Players:
Game leader
5 to 20 players

Rules of play:

1. The game leader shuffles the cards and places the deck face down.

2. The first player draws the top card and looks at it. The player then must describe the object in a way that makes it sound ugly, unappealing or unpleasant. For example, to describe a holiday the player might say, 'It is too long, it is expensive and you always get lost.' To describe an ice cream cone, the player might say, 'It's very messy, it runs down your hand, and it comes in strange flavours.'

3. After the player has described the object, the group may ask five questions to try to guess what it is.

4. If no one guesses after the five questions, the game leader names the object and gives the player who described it 5 points.

5. The game continues. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.

Select more skills:
• Listening Skills
• Math Skills
• Motor Skills Help
• Science Fun
• Reading Skills
• Vocabulary Builder

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