Word Up FAQ

General Questions

How does the game work?
Before play begins, each player takes a question sheet and clips it to a question sheet holder. Each sheet contains a set of 28 questions plus answers. The questions are in four colour-coded categories: Missing Word (Orange), Crossword Clues (Green), Multiple Choice (Blue) and Spelling (Yellow). During the game, players throw the dice and move their pieces around the board. If they land on a square bordered by one of these colours, they are asked a question from the corresponding category by the player to their right. If they answer correctly, they earn a scoring token of the appropriate colour and another throw of the dice. If they answer incorrectly, their turn is over and the next player to the left throws the dice to begin his or her turn, and so on. The first player to collect two scoring tokens of each colour is the winner. The game also involves strategy and luck through the 'Word Up' cards plus option, penalty and bonus squares.

How many can play?
With 'Word Up - Classroom Pack', up to 12 players or teams can play in two games.

Can students of various abilities play Word Up together?
Yes. The questions are arranged into five levels of difficulty, with level 1 being the easiest and level 5 the most difficult. Each player answers questions from the level best suiting his or her ability.

How many times can someone play before having been asked all the questions?
A player may play Word Up 160 times before having been asked all the questions.

What age groups can play?
Word Up is suitable for players of any age. While questions from the lower levels of difficulty may often be more suitable for younger players with less-developed English language skills, none of the questions have been written specifically for children and all may be used with players from any age group.

Can Word Up be played by native speakers of English?
Yes. While Word Up was designed for learners of English as a second or foreign language, it may also be used as an educational game for native speakers wishing to improve their language skills. Many of the questions in the higher levels will still be found challenging, and students will especially enjoy having their vocabulary, general knowledge and spelling abilities tested. The game can also be made more challenging for native speakers by limiting the amount of time they have in which to answer the questions to 5 or 10 seconds.

Who created the game?
Word Up was created by Matthew Errey, an Australian ESL teacher with over fifteen year's experience teaching students of all ages from Thailand, Japan, Korea and France. Additional input was provided by a number of his ELT colleagues who helped in checking and grading the questions, in testing the game in their own classes, and in improving the general design and 'playability'. Word Up has also been assessed and refined by Games and Names of New York, a company specialising in board game development. To find out more about Matt and how he developed Word Up, read the EnglishClub.com interview.

 
For EFL/ESL Teachers

Why use games in teaching English?
There has been quite a lot of research done on the use of educational games in general, and on using games to teach English in particular.   What has emerged from this is that games are now being seen not merely as 'filler' activities in ELT, but as an important part of any language teaching program. They motivate students and help to create a relaxed atmosphere which in itself has been found to facilitate learning. They provide meaningful contexts in which the various language skills can be practised and developed and, with games such as Word Up, they can also play a role in language acquisition. They are also useful in developing class cohesion and in encouraging enthusiasm for the essentially difficult and often frustrating task of learning a foreign language. And, put simply, they help to make learning and teaching fun, which in itself may be a good enough reason to use them.

What language skills does Word Up test and develop?
The game tests and develops a wide range of English language skills. Reading and pronunciation are practised and developed throughout the game as players ask each other the questions. Aural comprehension is practised not only when players listen to their own questions, but also as they listen to other players' questions and answers. They will be motivated to do this as the outcome will directly affect their own standing in the game, and also because they will simply enjoy the suspense of waiting to find out whether the answers they themselves have in mind are correct.

Many aspects of grammar and usage are tested and developed, especially in the Missing Word and Multiple Choice categories. These include tense forms, parts of speech, structural awareness, the use of idioms and phrasal verbs, etc. Vocabulary is tested and developed to some degree in all the categories, but especially in the Crossword Clues category, while Spelling is tested in its own category (both British and American spellings are included). A broad range of general knowledge covering geography, history, science and the arts, etc., is also tested. In addition, as all informal communication during the game should be in English, spontaneous communicative skills are also constantly practised.

Is the game an effective teaching tool?
Yes. As a result of the high level of interest stimulated by the friendly competition involved, each player will concentrate not only on their own questions and answers, but also on those of other players. This will lead to a relatively high level of retention of many of the language elements covered during a particular game. The wide range of these elements will allow a player's English to develop on many fronts, including reading, speaking and listening skills, grammatical awareness, vocabulary, spelling, use of idioms, etc. The game will also help to make learning English enjoyable and help to create a positive attitude towards the study of the language in general. (Read some reviews and testimonials).

How will I know how to use the game in a classroom?
Each set comes with a 4-page Guidelines for Teachers insert covering many topics, including 'Getting Started', 'Introducing the Game to a Small Class', 'Introducing the Game to a Large Class', 'Levels of Difficulty', 'Pre-teaching', 'After the Game', 'If Time is Running Out', 'When to Use Word Up', 'Skills Practised and Developed', as well as a section for 'Frequently Asked Questions'. (This insert is provided in addition to the Rules of Play.)

At what stages of a course should I use the game?
Word Up may be used at various stages during a course. Towards the beginning of a course it may be used to provide an informal, non-threatening context in which students can get to know one another and begin to feel comfortable in the class. Also, by observing your new students playing at this stage, you will learn much about their respective strengths and weaknesses. Later in the course you may wish to use the game as an occasional break from the regular teaching program. This will not only provide a fun activity, but also quite likely test and reinforce at least some of the material already covered in the course. The game may also be used as an enjoyable 'break-up' activity at the end of term or at the completion of an entire course. In addition, the game may be used whenever many students are absent and you feel it best not to proceed with the regular course of study, or when you are filling in for another teacher and haven't had the chance to prepare a lesson.

What is my role as the teacher?
If the game is being played for the first time, you'll need to demonstrate how it works and set appropriate levels of difficulty for your students. During the game, you can help out with pronunciation where necessary or briefly explain why a particular answer is correct or incorrect. If several groups are playing simultaneously, you may wish to move from group to group, helping out as necessary. If a small class is playing, you may even like to join in. There is plenty of scope here for fun as you make 'mistakes' with your answers, slap your forehead in dismay, and generally amuse the group with your 'below-standard' English.

How do I know if the game is suitable for my students?
The game should be suitable for all learners of English as a second or foreign language except for absolute beginners or possibly those whose English is approaching fluency, though in this case many of the questions in level 5 will still be found challenging. The minimum requirements for beginners are the ability to read simple English and to understand simple spoken English.

How long does it take to play the game?
A game involving two to six individual players usually lasts between 30 and 45 minutes. Team games sometimes take a little longer. Games lasting up to an hour may be played by increasing the target number of scoring tokens to three of each colour. There should be enough questions in each set and enough scoring tokens to make this variation quite workable. Quicker games may be played by either limiting the amount of time allowed for a player to answer a question, or by reducing the target number of tokens to one of each colour. Games lasting for a fixed period of time may also be played, with the player having collected the most tokens after twenty minutes, for example, being the winner.

How many games will I need?
This depends on both the size of your classes and on the number of students you would like to have participating in each game. Up to six students may play individually, or, if teams are formed, up to twelve (or even more) may participate in a single game. Having several smaller groups playing simultaneously will, however, provide greater scope for each student to practise and develop their English. Ideally, there should be enough games available to allow two to six students to play individually in each of several concurrent games. With this in mind, we have recently released 'Word Up - Classroom Pack' which contains enough components for two games.

Should I encourage my students to play Word Up in their free time?
Yes. As all the answers are provided, it is quite possible for students to play Word Up outside a classroom. Once students are familiar with the game, they may be encouraged to play with their classmates, friends or family members at any time. While the added input from a teacher will obviously be lacking, playing the game will still be an enjoyable and beneficial experience.

 
For EFL/ESL Students

How can playing Word Up improve my English?
Playing Word Up can improve your English in many ways. When you play, sometimes you will listen to and answer questions and sometimes you will read questions to another player. This means you will practise reading, speaking and listening. Also, the questions you are asked will test your vocabulary, spelling, grammar, general knowledge, etc. When you can't answer a question correctly, you will learn something new when you hear the answer. And when you listen to other players answer their questions you may learn something new; maybe a word you didn't know, maybe how to use a word correctly in a sentence, or maybe an idiom such as 'Keep it under your hat', and so on. You won't remember everything, of course, but because you will be interested to hear the answers, you will remember many of the new things you learn, and this will definitely help you to improve your English.

Can I play with my friends if our English abilities are different?
Yes. The questions are in 5 levels of difficulty, with each player answering questions from their own level. If you and your friends' abilities are different, you can still play together with some of you answering easy questions from the lower levels and some of you answering more difficult questions from the higher levels.

How do I know which level I should answer questions from?
If you are not sure which level you should answer questions from, look at some question sets from the different levels until you find one in which you can answer around half the questions correctly. The level this question set comes from is the best level for you.

As your English improves, you will move up through the levels. When you are able to answer nearly all of the questions on a level correctly, it is time to move up to the next level.

How good does my English need to be?
You need to be able to read simple English and to understand simple spoken English to play Word Up. If you can understand most of what you are reading here, your English is good enough to play the game.

Can I play with my friends and family at home?
Yes. All the answers are included, so you don't need a teacher to tell you if an answer is correct or not. When you answer a question, the player who asked the question will then check your answer. If it is not correct, he or she will tell you the correct answer.