Mystery phrases

Similar to 'hangman', this word game will help children build their language skills by having them guess and fill letters that are missing from common phrases.

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

What you'll need:

  • Blackboard
  • Chalk
  • Watch or clock with second hand

Players:
Game leader
Letter person
3 players

What to do:

  1. The players sit facing the blackboard. The game leader and letter person stand in front of the board.

  2. The game leader and letter person choose a phrase to be used in the first round. (See the phrase list.) The letter person draws lines on the board to indicate the letters in each word of the phrase. For example, 'odd man out' would be indicated by
    '_ _ _  _ _ _  _ _ _'.

  3. The game leader then calls on the first player to guess one of the letters used in the phrase. If the guess is correct, the letter person fills in any of the blanks where the letter appears in the phrase. For example, if the player guesses 'd', the blanks on the board would look like this:
    '_dd   _ _ _   _ _ _'.

  4. The player is then given ten seconds to guess the phrase. If the player can't guess the phrase, the next player takes a turn. If the player picks a letter that isn't in the phrase, the letter person writes it next to the blanks, and the next player takes a turn.

  5. The player who guesses the phrase correctly wins for that round and earns five points for each letter in the phrase. After three rounds, the scores are added and the winner may choose to become the game leader or the letter person for the next round.

Phrase list:
Hit the jackpot
Odd one out
A happy medium
Out of this world
Hold your horses
Making ends meet
Shoot for the stars
Better safe than sorry
Get the picture
Make a beeline
Don't jump to conclusions
If the shoe fits wear it
No end in sight
When the going gets tough the tough get going
One good turn deserves another

 

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