Simon says (Simon sagt)
Overview
Purpose
Vocabulary acquisition
Learning outcome
Students will be able to understand and respond appropriately to simple words and phrases.
Skills used
- Listening
Related units in Ja! kit
- Unit 17 Beschreibungen
Type
Class or group activity
Instructions
The game is played in the same way as 'Simon says...' but with German instructions. The difficulty of the game increases with the speed of the instructions.
- Students stand facing the leader (initially the teacher), and follow instructions to touch specific parts of their body, mimicking the leader. If a player touches the wrong part of the body, they are 'out'.
- When the instruction from the leader is given differently (without the usual initial Simon sagt), the students are not meant to move. If they do, they are 'out'.
- The game continues until there is only one player left, who is the winner.
In the German version of the game, the key instruction that players should listen for and follow is:
Simon sagt 'Tippt euch an...'.
Simon says 'Touch...'.
For example:
Simon sagt 'Tippt euch an die Nase'.
Simon says 'Touch your nose'.
The variation on the instruction that players should not respond to is:
Tippt euch an die Nase.
Touch your nose.
All students who have touched the body part given in this instruction are 'out'.
It is important that the leader changes all the der articles (before the body part nouns) to den. For example:
Simon sagt 'Tippt euch an den Fuß'.
Simon says 'Touch your foot'.
Materials
To revise the names of the parts of the body, hand out the diagram of the body with main parts labelled in German. To download this diagram, select from the following Word or PDF formats:
- Der Körper (The Body) diagram for 'Simon says' activity (Word, 31KB)
- Der Körper (The Body) diagram for 'Simon says' activity (PDF, 16KB).
Tips
- Review the German names of parts of the body before starting the game.
- Have a practice round to familiarise students with the two types of instruction.
- When first playing this game, give instructions slowly and repeat same body part names often until students are familiar with them. Then speed up to make the game more challenging.
- If you want to make the game easier to start with, use these simplified versions of the two instructions:
Simon sagt: 'die Nase'.
Simon says: 'the nose'.
Die Nase.
The nose.
Variations
- Begin with the whole class playing in one game with you as leader, then as students gain confidence, form the class into smaller groups with a student playing the leader.
- Simon sagt can be a fun activity for senior students to teach to junior classes, using the simpler version of the instructions and only a few body parts – perhaps a game for a wet lunchtime?
Further learning
A homework sheet template for naming parts of the body is provided, which could be used as preparation before starting to play, or as revision between games. To download this template, select from the following Word or PDF formats:
- Der Körper (The Body) homework sheet for 'Simon says' activity (Word, 28KB)
- Der Körper (The Body) homework sheet for 'Simon says' activity (PDF, 15KB).
Language to use
- Simon sagt 'Tippt euch an...!'.
Simon says 'Touch...!'. - Tippt euch an...!
Touch...! - Bewegt den Kopf!
Move your head! - Aus!
You're out! - Setzt euch!
Sit down! - Steht auf!
Stand up!