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Game night gives students, families better grasp of English

ANDREW WIND andrew.wind@wcfcourier.com Dec 10, 2014

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COURTNEY COLLINS / Courier Sta Photographer

Deockki Hong, left, plays a game with his son, Minjun Hong, at Southdale Elementary School's ELL family game night.

CEDAR FALLS | The four boys sat in the Southdale Elementary School cafeteria taking
turns rolling the 12-sided die, moving their game pieces around the board and choosing
a card with a word on it.

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Gamenightgivesstudents,familiesbettergraspofEnglish|EducationNews|wcfcourier.com

Their roll, or where they landed on the board, determined which stack they picked their
card from -- adjectives, nouns, verbs or articles. The boys placed their cards in the proper
spot on a panel to create a sentence in English.
When one was complete, it often elicited a giggle from the boys. For example, one of the
sentences created during Tuesdays family game night was The fast duck cooks a clock.
The game is trying to make them laugh, said Eyad Alsibiani, a Cedar Falls High School
sophomore who was teaching the boys how to play The Silly Sentence. But it is also
reinforcing skills the English language learners are being taught in class.
The game night and pizza dinner was focused on ELL students and their families, with
about 70 people participating. The rst-time event was paid for with an Iowa Department
of Education grant awarded by Area Education Agency 267. It drew families from
Southdale and other Cedar Falls elementary schools.
We have over 20 languages in our district, said Jill White, coordinator of student
services. The games help those students learning English to build their skills and, if
played with their families, reinforce that parents-as-teachers piece.
ELL students from Peet Junior High and the high school taught the younger children how
to play a number of games. Starting this week, the children will be able to take a game or
audio book home for the weekend.
Cathy Howland, an ELL teacher at Southdale and Cedar Heights elementaries, said some
games are used in their classrooms. The students are having fun as they play the games
and dont realize theyre studying, she noted.
With The Silly Sentence, Alsibiani said, Its basic stu they learn like the nouns and the
verbs. When they take a card, I make them read. Its a practice for everyone.
Fourth-grader Hamza Bazaraa, who said he enjoyed the game, won after being the rst
to complete two sentences. They were predictably goofy: The scared ower kisses a
dinosaur and A spotted leaf breaks the carrot.
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At another table, Southdale rst-graders Ariana Morera and Melissa Meza matched cards
with cartoon pictures of monsters and words describing what they were wearing. One
girl looked at her card, read the words and described it to the other. Working together,
they found the matches.
It helps us, said Morera, as they looked at the words and pictures.
Nearby, a family was playing Guess Who? The game includes two sets of identical tiles
with faces and names on them. Asking one question per turn, participants try to guess
which tile their competitor has chosen.
So far, hes winning, said Sophia Qureshi, pointing to her husband, Shahid Aslam. Their
son, Suhaib Aslam, a kindergartner at Cedar Heights Elementary School, also played.
Shahid Aslam said they were amazingly surprised by the game night and that the
district found a way to involve parents. We appreciate the Cedar Falls Schools
community, that they give us a chance for such activities.
Its a good family time together, added Qureshi.

Andrew Wind
Education reporter for the Courier

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