{"id":7573,"date":"2020-09-30T10:00:02","date_gmt":"2020-09-30T10:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/?p=7573"},"modified":"2023-11-27T12:25:18","modified_gmt":"2023-11-27T12:25:18","slug":"games-arent-just-for-kids-they-help-us-learn-languages","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/games-arent-just-for-kids-they-help-us-learn-languages\/","title":{"rendered":"Games Aren’t Just For Kids \u2013 They Help Us Learn Languages!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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When you think of how to learn a new language, playing\ngames might not be the first method that comes to mind. It\u2019s a shame; as\nuTalk\u2019s Language Guru, Brian, points out in this post, games are a great way to\nencourage learning and \u2013 spoiler alert \u2013 it\u2019s not just because they\u2019re fun!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Games are a lot of fun \u2013 not only are winners rewarded with prizes, bragging rights and the satisfaction of knowing that they\u2019ve done a good job, they can also help us learn a new language. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Think about it, games give us context: we get rewarded for our efforts when we win; in the case of classroom games – we get to communicate and interact with our opponents (or rather, our fellow classmates); a little adrenaline and anxiety (but hopefully, not too much!) helps make the challenge of learning a lot more fun; and finally, games offer us a break from the usual learning routine. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When our brains associate learning with fun experiences, we actually maximise the retention of new information. The less stressed we are, the more we remember! And what better way to reduce stress than to have an impromptu session of fun and games after an intense language lesson? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of the potentials of classroom games are: <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Motivation \u2013 games promote the spontaneous use of language as well as encouraging communication<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Games reinforce learning \u2013 we learn to apply what we have learned. If you\u2019ve just learned how to order a vin rouge in French, wouldn\u2019t it be fun to have little make-believe game involving say, an imaginary trip to a fancy bistrot in Paris for a classic French d\u00e9jeuner? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Healthy competition \u2013 humans thrive on competition and what better way to remember new vocabulary than to have a fun memory game? Or perhaps a facilitated classroom role-playing game to help remember those complicated grammar rules? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Stress-free learning \u2013 games are so much fun that we become less self-conscious about making mistakes. Learning becomes less threatening and students who are not as confident actually become less concerned about saying or spelling new words wrongly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Practice \u2013 games encourage students to practice the language without even knowing it! In the heat of the moment, we don\u2019t worry about such things as \u201cDid I conjugate that Spanish verb properly?\u201d or \u201cGoodness! Which Russian case do I use?\u201d or \u201cWhich is the correct tone for that word in Mandarin?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2022 Active versus passive learning \u2013 games encourage students to learn actively, often requiring the use of different senses (sound, hearing, kinaesthetic movement etc.) which are great for those who prefer learning in combination with other forms of stimulus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Playing language games of all kinds is certainly not a waste of time! With so many benefits, the question is not \u201cwhy?\u201d but rather, \u201cwhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The uTalk app incorporates games into language learning to encourage everyone to have fun as they learn! If you’re a teacher or parent\/guardian and have pupils or children who like to learn languages, then make sure to check out the uTalk Language Games<\/a>. The Games run from September – July every year and all participants have the chance to learn up to three languages, culminating in a competition that takes place in June. Want to take part? Registrations are open for 2022\/23!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When you think of how to learn a new language, playing games might not be the first method that comes to mind. It\u2019s a shame; as uTalk\u2019s Language Guru, Brian, points out in this post, games are a great way to encourage learning and \u2013 spoiler alert \u2013 it\u2019s not just because they\u2019re fun! Games … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":9585,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[24],"tags":[199,1681,333],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7573"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7573"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7573\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9586,"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7573\/revisions\/9586"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9585"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7573"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7573"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/utalk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7573"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}