Vocabulary Hot Seat

From FreeReading

What to Do

Prepare

Write a list of vocabulary words that students have been studying on chart paper. Then post a list of the questions for the game.

Place a chair in front of the board, facing the class. This will be the hot seat.

Choose one student to sit in the hot seat.

Model/Instruct

1. Review the vocabulary words you have chosen for this lesson.

Today, we will become more familiar with our vocabulary words by playing Vocabulary Hot Seat.

2. Choose a student to help you model the activity.

I will write a word on the board. [Student’s Name], who is sitting in the hot seat, will not be able to see the word. S/he will ask some questions to try to figure out the word. The rest of the class has to answer “yes” or “no.”

The questions you can use are: (refer to posted questions)

• Is ___________ an example of this word?
• Does it look like this? (For this question you can either draw a picture or act it out.)
• Does it mean _______________?

Let’s give it a try. [Student’s name] will show us how it’s done.

Have the student in the hot seat ask questions to try to guess the word.

Practice

3. Have students play Vocabulary Hot Seat.

Now, it is your turn to play Vocabulary Hot Seat. Remember to answer the questions by saying “yes” or “no” so that the person in the hot seat can guess the word.

4. Monitor students’ performance as they play the game.

Adjust

For Advanced Students:

Once these students have discovered the right word, ask them to use it in a sentence.

For Struggling Students:

You may allow these students to be in the hot seat in pairs, so they can help each other ask questions.

For ELL Students:

You may allow these students to keep a list of the words with their definitions with them as they play.

Related activities

• All Vocabulary Activities