In the Adverbs Of Frequency Bingo ESL activity students have to ask their classmates how often they do activities, in search of specific answers.
6+
10-20 mins
Setup
Draw/project a 3×3 table on the board (or a piece of paper if you don’t have one), with nine adverbs of frequency in the nine squares, for example; always, usually, normally/generally, often/frequently, sometimes, occasionally, rarely/seldom, hardly ever, never.
Model the activity by asking one student a question of the form ‘How often do you…?’ or ‘Do you ever…?’. Elicit a sentence using one of the short adverbs of frequency, and cross off that adverb of frequency on the board. Write the name of the student and the activity in question within the box too.
Then, model an example with the same adverb of frequency as an answer to show that repeat adverbs are no use to you. Explain that the students have to cross off all the adverbs then shout ‘Bingo!’.
Activity
- Students stand up and mingle, asking each other the questions, trying to elicit the adverbs of frequency that they require.
- Listen and check for their correct use of target language, and that they are noting down the names/activities. Stop the activity when one of the students gets ‘bingo’.
- The students then sit down and discuss with their partner or students around them what they found out, using the information they wrote down (e.g. Patricia sometimes plays tennis). Model and check the use of ‘s’ for the third-person singular.
As an extension (or another in another class), you could repeat the activity using long adverbs of frequency (twice a week, everyday, a few times a year etc.). Now the students know how it works, they could create the 3×3 grid themselves, choosing what they think are the best adverbs.
Target Language
The Adverbs Of Frequency Bingo ESL activity is especially good for practising adverbs of frequency with beginner students, as it requires them to repeat the grammar structure multiple times. It could also be useful as a review for lower intermediate students.
For a similar game to practise the present perfect with ‘How long…’ questions, see How Long Bingo.
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