The first and biggest challenge of language learning is the acquisition of vocabulary. It's much easier to do this if we learn new words spontaneously, through games. Lingopoly cards are created in pairs—each picture card has its corresponding word card. Using them, we can play Pairs or other card matching and memory games.
Another idea is to place the picture cards face down and draw them one by one, naming the pictures as you go. If you remember the word quickly, you can put the card back in the box, but if it took you some time, put it back at the bottom of the pile you’re drawing cards from.
The cards can also be used around the house—use sticky tape to stick them to the objects they represent, or if you're a visual learning type, make a mind map on the wall (body and health is a great topic to make a mind map, and you can include illnesses and remedies, too).
At an intermediate level, you already know how to describe yourself and others, and talk about past experiences and plans for the future. Choose a topic you're interested in and put all the relevant cards in a pile, then draw any number of cards you want.
Then decide the number of sentences you want to put together. Look at the cards, one by one, and create a story—real or imaginary: you can talk about something that happened to someone in the past, someone's plan for the future, or make up a funny children's story. If you're playing with a friend, then one of you should ask the other questions about how the story continues.
At an advanced level, you're already very good at chatting. You're able to express your opinion on many topics very precisely, you can carry a conversation for longer, and you can write complex pieces. Similarly to an intermediate level, you can use the cards to carry a conversation. Choose a number of cards to draw (the most difficult option is to draw only one card), then use the word(s) to talk for a set amount of time.
If you drew more than one card (for the easier version), you can place all the cards face up and decide the order in which you're going to talk about them. Or you can draw them one at a time from the pile. Only once you've successfully used one card in your story or discussion, can you draw the next card and then work the new word into your conversation, too.
At this level it isn't enough to simply describe a past event or future plan. You have to include a critical aspect—why is you opinion such as it is, how did something make you feel, how could someone else possibly feel different about the topic . . . Similarly, if you want to practise your writing skills, repeat the exercise, but write down your thoughts.
I hope you find these ideas for using Lingopoly cards interesting and that you'll try them out in the classroom or at home. Do you want to find out what makes Lingopoly the best tool to learn a foreign language? Read this article.
Barbara Mikolič
