Flash Cards, an entirely funny way to teach vocabulary

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Pablo Mejía Maldonado. Esp, MSc

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An Effective Resource in the
Classroom !
“one picture is worth a thousand words”

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1. There are many types of learners within any one class. Gardener's
research indicates that teachers should aim to appeal to all the different
learner types at some point during the course.
2.- It is particularly important to appeal to visual learners, since a very high
proportion of learners have this type of intelligence. Flashcards can be
bright and colorful and make a real impact on visual learners.

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INTELLIGENCE TYPES AND
APPROPRIATE EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES
Intelligence
Type
Educational Activities
Linguistic lectures, worksheets, word games, journals, debates
Logical puzzles, estimations, problem solving
Spatial / Visual charts, diagrams, graphic organizers, drawings, films, flash cards
Bodily hands-on, mime, craft, demonstrations
Musical singing, poetry, Jazz Chants, mood music
Interpersonal group work, peer tutoring, class projects
Intrapersonal reflection, interest centers, personal-values tasks
Naturalist field trips, show and tell, plant and animal projects

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3.- For children at reading age, FLASH CARDS can be used in conjunction
with word cards. These are simply cards that display the written word.
Word cards should be introduced well after the pictorial cards so as not
to interfere with correct pronunciation.
4.- Flashcards are a really handy resource to have and can be useful at every
stage of the class. They are a great way to warm up, present, practice,
recycle, assess, reinforce and consolidate vocabulary / structural patterns /
phonics and when students become familiar with the activities used in
class, they can be given out to early-finishers to use in small groups.

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Word cards should be introduced well after the pictorial cards so as not to
interfere with correct pronunciation.
laugh

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A drawing, painting, or photograph on a piece of cardboard

8. ‹#›

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 to drill vocabulary by sitting in front of the class so that the whole class can
see them easily and go through the drill.
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 to flash the cards for a second and the students have to tell you what the
card is. That's why they're called flashcards.
 As Ss become more familiar with them you can shorten the time of the
flash.
 You can liven this process up by learning how to throw the cards up into
the air so that they spin around and then catching them again.
 An added bonus of doing this is that when you mess it up and the cards
end up all over the floor the kids get a good laugh.

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Activities might be classified into the following categories: Memory,
drilling, identification and TPR activities.
Memory Activities
Memory Tester
• Place a selection of flash cards on the floor in a circle.
• Students have one minute to memorize the cards.
• In groups, they have two minutes to write as many of the names
as they can remember.

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Drilling Activities
Invisible Flashcards
• Stick 9 flash cards on the board and draw a grid around them.
• Use a pen or a pointer to drill the 9 words. Always point to the flash
card you are drilling.
• Gradually remove the flash cards but continue to drill and point to the
grid where the flash card was.
• When the first card is removed and you point to the blank space, nod
your head to encourage children to say the word of the removed flash
card.
• Students should remember and continue as if the flash cards were still
there. This activity highlights the impact of visual aids. It really proves
that the images 'stick' in students' minds.

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Drilling Activities

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Identification Activities
Reveal the Word.
• Cover the flash card or word card with a piece of card and slowly reveal it.
Students guess which one it is.
• Once the card is shown, chorally drill the word with the group using
different intonation and silly voices to keep it fun. Vary the volume too,
whisper and shout the words. Children will automatically copy your voice.
• Alternatively, flip the card over very quickly so the children just get a quick
glimpse.
• Repeat until they have guessed the word.

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TPR Activities
Point or Race to the Flash Card.
 Stick flash cards around the class.
 Say one of them and students point or race to it.
 Students can then give the instructions to classmates.
 You can extend this by saying "hop to the dog" or even "if you have blonde
hair, run to the bear" etc.
 You can also incorporate flash cards into a game of Simon Says. "Simon
says, jump to the T-shirt" etc.

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Give Ss the Cards!
Show the children the flash cards one by one. The first student to say the
word is given the flash cards. When you have given out all the flash
cards the student with the most cards is the winner. Call out the name of
a flash card and the student with that card returns it to you.

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Fetch !
Place the flash cards in strategic locations around the room. Call out the
name of a flash card. The student who can retrieve the flash card and
return it to you gets a point.

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“ YES or NO “
 Put the children in two lines. Team elephant and team lion. Write "Yes: on
one side of the board and "No" on the other side of the board. Depending on
the level of the class you could use "Yes, it is" and "No, it isn't".
 Show the children a flash card and say a word. If you say the correct word
the first pair of children (one from each team) should run and touch "Yes" if
you say the wrong word they should run and touch "No". The two teams are
racing against each other. When the first pair has run and touched the board
they go to the back of their line and it is the next pairs go.
YES NO

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“ Same Initial Sound “
 Spread the Cards into rows.
 Look at the first picture in each row.
 Say the word aloud and listen to the sound it begins with.
 Now take turns to find another card with a word / picture which begins with
the same sound.

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• Another good reinforcing activity is to pull a card out from the middle of the
pack so that only part of it is showing. The students then have to guess what
it is.
• A variation on this theme for reviewing already introduced material is to give a
short drill and then hold the cards so that they are facing you. The students
have to guess which card it is you are looking at.
FLASH CARDS

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FLASH CARDS

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If you are teaching actions (eg, running, jumping, go to the door,
give me a pencil) have a student come to the front of the class and
hold the card so that only that student can see it.
This first student has to tell a second student what the card is and the
second student has to do it.
Then it's the second students turn to come to the front of the class.
This activity can very easily be turned into a game with teams, points,
etc.

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• When you're drilling the cards and you think the students know it well enough
to move on to the next phase casually throw the cards face down on the floor.
• The immediate reaction of the students nearest the card is to pick it up. Don't
let them. Don't even let them touch it with their foot.
• When all the cards are on the floor point to a student and say the name of one
of the cards.
• The student then has ten seconds to find the card hand it to you and repeat the
name of the card. This is another activity that can be turned into a game.

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There are a couple of caveats to remember when using flashcards, though.
One is that after you have been through the stack of cards a couple of times
the students start to remember the order of the cards. They remember that
this sound follows that sound and not what the card is. So after you have
been through the cards two or three times shuffle the cards so that they can't
do this.
Another is that many cards come with the words of what the card is written
across the top of the card. The more able students soon work out that it's
easier to read the word rather than know the picture. As we want the student
to concentrate on the picture we should cover up the word for the picture with
the fingers when drilling the card. The reading can come later.

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An Effective Resource in the
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FLASH CARDS: An effective
Resource in the Classroom !
Pablo Mejía Maldonado. Esp, MSc
Quito-Ecuador