DEWEY GAME

A combination of Twister and Bingo this little game is a beginning lesson for second semester second-graders and first-semester third graders.  They can put their whole bodies into this.

MATERIALS (for half a class / 15 students)

• 1.      Dewey Bookmarks from Demco listing the 10 Dewey   categories and their basic contents.

• 2.      10 old CDs, such as those that come in the mail. 

• 3.      15 squares of colored vinyl, each about 26" on a side.  Vinyl can be purchased by the yard from fabric stores such as JoAnn Fabrics.

• 4.       Numbers, 0-9 and 7" high, created on the computer  and glued onto medium weight cardboard, then cut out with scissors or an Exacto knife as templates for the numbers on the vinyl.

• 4.       Vinyl by the yard, computer and paper, medium-weight cardboard, permanent marking pen, yard stick, t-square, ball point pen, Exacto knife, scissors.

CONSTRUCTION

• 1.       On one CD using the permanent marker, write the numbers for the first Dewey division (000) in large print.  If you need prompting yourself, write the contents of the division in small print.  Repeat with the next nine CDs, giving each one a different Dewey division.  These are your "bingo" calling chips.

• 2.        Using a straight edge, perhaps even a t-square, mark the vinyl with ball-point pen into 26" squares.  Cut the squares with scissors.

• Using a straight edge and the permanent marker, mark each vinyl square diagonally from corner to corner.  This will produce four isosceles triangles that meet in the middle.  Let the mats dry.

• Using the cardboard numbers as templates, write one Dewey division number in each of the four sections of a vinyl mat with the permanent marker.  Let the mats dry.  If you can think of something to use to paint over the marker that will seal it, so much the better.  Otherwise, you may wish to store them flat rather than rolled up, with paper towel between them to keep them from bleeding on to the touching vinyl mats. 

• Here are the numbers I have on my mats.  Or you may prefer to do your own arithmetic.  Whichever way, be sure that there are no duplicate mats.

  • 000, 400, 600, 800

  • 000, 300, 400, 600

  • 100, 200, 300, 700

  • 200, 300, 500, 700

  • 100, 300, 500, 900

  • 400, 600, 800, 900

  • 100, 200, 500, 600

  • 200, 600, 800, 900

  • 200, 300, 400, 500

  • 000, 400, 500, 600

  • 000, 400, 500, 900

  • 000, 300, 500, 700

  • 100, 500, 800, 900

  • 100, 200, 400, 700

  • 300, 500, 700, 900

PLAYING THE GAME

1.  Give each child a mat and tell him to place it on the floor in front of him/her, so that he or she is standing with one mat in front of him/her and facing you. 

2.  Pass out the Dewey Bookmarks, one to each child.

3.  Shuffle the CDs.  Select one of the CDs and  call out its category title, not the numbers.  Students must look on their bookmarks, find the title, find the number that goes with it (Social Science -- 300) and look on their mats to see if they have 300.  If so, they put one foot on the mat in the 300 triangle.  Call out another category.  Students repeat their process and if they have the second number, put the second foot on that triangle.  Third is for one hand; fourth is the other hand.  At this time the student calls out, "DEWEY!" 

4.  He or she has won the first round.  Give student an inexpensive prize, such as a plastic spider ring, and you go again.  About 3 or 4 rounds is plenty in one session.  Students keep bookmarks and prizes.

5.  In another session, play without the bookmarks and let the students cooperate to figure out the number for the category.