Mamie Smith

March 12, 2017

Education 331 Before Game Day Assignment

Part I: Name and Description

Name of the Game: The Helping Verb Game

Description: In this game, young students identify helping verbs to progress across the board.
The first one to the end of the road wins the game! For two to five players.

Directions for Playing the Game:

Object of the Game: Be the first to the end of the board by correctly identifying which word is
the helping verb in the sentence.
Preparation: Place the board on a flat surface and place the Helping Verb cards, facedown, in the
center of the board. Each player chooses one character to represent them while playing the game.
They will place these characters at the start marker before beginning the game.

The Play: Have each player roll the dice and the highest total goes first and the lowest total goes
last. If anyone ties, have them re-roll the dice. Each player will begin their turn by picking up a
Helping Verb card and reading the sentence out-loud. Then the player must identify the helping
verb, if they answer correctly they can roll the dice. The player moves their character that many
spaces forward, and if they land on a BONUS square they can go an extra turn. However, there
are squares with Secret Pathways, that can move a character forward or backward. The player
only uses the Secret Pathways if their character lands on the square, not if they are passing by it.
First one to the end wins the game.

Part II: Who is the game for and why it might work with them

The game is for students who do not know, or struggle with, helping verbs. It could be for young
children, students with specific learning disabilities, or students struggling with fluency. It will
help SLD and fluency students because it gives them practice time, but in an entertaining way.

Part III: Objective and Link to Standards

The Learning Objective: The student will identify helping verbs and which verb they are
connected to.

The 21st Century Content Objectives:

RLA.O.3.2.08: produce appropriate grammar in written composition

RLA.O.4.2.03: identify and produce a sentence with proper word choice to include: (e.g. verb
tense, verb usage, subject/verb agreement, pronoun usage, adjectives and adverbs)

The above 21st Century Content Objectives include standards for 3rd and 4th grade students that
apply to the game. After playing the game, students will develop a better understanding of
helping verbs. They can now create their own sentences using helping verbs, and they can
identify whether a sentence uses helping verbs. However, students who are at a lower
reading/writing level can benefit from the game as well.
Part IV: Explanation of Feedback Procedures

This game needs to be played with an adult or person who can become the score keeper. The
score keeper will keep a sheet with answers from the Helping Verb cards. Each card will have a
number, and the same number on the sheet will have the answer for that card. The score keeper
will also watch player behavior/interaction with one another.
 Answer Sheet
1) Nick will eat spaghetti for dinner tonight.
2) Mallory is walking to the park.
3) The dogs are sleeping on the bed.
4) I am going away for the weekend.
5) Miranda can swim in the pool after dinner.
6) The car is making an awful noise.
7) Your little brother is growing fast.
8) She will play a classical song on the piano.
9) Brandon was holding a flashlight.
10) The game will cost a lot of money.
11) They may dance in a recital this evening.
12) Jessica is studying for her science test right now.
13) Alex will be studying French next year.
14) Steven can go to the movies tonight.
15) Pauls red kayak was filled to the top.
16) The flowers were covering the field with their smell.
17) The little boy had hoped to swim five laps.
18) Twenty-five children will sing at the concert.
19) Our big gray van is running well.
20) My mother had wanted to go shopping.
21) The young students were working at their desks.
22) The ceiling fans had run throughout the hot day.
23) The wild horses will be here soon.
24) My dog will jump through the hoop for you.
25) The little white poodle can come to the lake.
26) The silver rocket will be launched soon.
27) The birthday party was cancelled for Friday.
28) My son has played the drums in the Marching Band.
29) My friends must work hard to do the assignment.
30) The best students will work to improve their grades.
31) The happy children would like to eat ice cream.
32) My little sister would like to ride the bus.
33) The janitor has been cleaning the floors all day.
34) Juans group project will be finished by the weekend.
35) My great grandfather has run in several marathons.