Stop and Go, a Punctuation Game

Last year, my students really struggled with using punctuation in their writing.   I came up with a game to help them learn about the difference between a period, question mark, and exclamation point.  It was fun, used kinestetic motions, and gave students a much needed brain break throughout our long afternoon.  The directions are below.  Please click on the punctuation cards (at the bottom) to download the entire file from my TPT store for free. -->

Stop and Go

This game is played similarly to Red Light, Green Light.

Directions:

Gather the students in your central meeting place. Discuss how periods, question marks, and exclamation points tell the reader what emotion to use when reading and help them know when to stop a sentence. Hold up the punctuation cards and demonstrate the motion to go with it.  Have the students mimic you and do a few practice rounds with the cards before playing the game.

Once they have practiced, have the students line up on one side of the classroom.  This game is played similarly to Red Light, Green Light.  If you don’t want the kids running across the room, talk about your expectations. J  I tell my students that they may walk once I have started reading the sentence (Green Light) and they have to stop immediately (Red Light) and do the motion once I hold up the punctuation sign. When they are ready, start by reading the first sentence.  End the sentence by holding up the correct punctuation card.  The students then have to stop and do the correct motion.  This helps the students begin to recognize the meaning behind each punctuation mark in a fun, kinesthetic way.  It can also serve as a quick, educational brain break in your classroom.

The ‘winner’ is the first one to get to the other side of the classroom.  The game can start over, the ‘winner’ can help with the sentences, the brain break can be over, etc. Do what works best for your schedule and purpose for the game.

Motions:

·      Period: Have the students stop and freeze in place.

·      Exclamation Point: Have the students stop and jump up and down in place as if they were excited.

·      Question Mark: Have the students stop and shrug their shoulders in a questioning pose.