Juego de speaking 9 · The Showdown B1 (adultos)

Concurso de speaking para clase. Nivel B1, para adultos. Dos equipos, un tablero con seis categorías y cuatro casillas en cada una. Eligen casilla, alguien del equipo tiene que hablar, y se suman puntos. Con comodines, robos y una ronda final a todo o nada.

En B1 ya hay que defender una opinión, resolver una situación con el profe haciendo de camarero o de jefe, y corregir los errores típicos del hispanohablante (since, condicionales, explain me). Cada casilla dice exactamente qué hace falta para ganarla. Es el mismo concurso que en A2, B2 y C1, con otro tablero. Gratis.

The Showdown — Opinions and Situations

Two teams. Six categories. Twenty-four squares. Every square is a speaking task, and every task is worth points. The team with more points at the end wins.

The rules

RULE	WHAT IT MEANS
Two teams	The class makes two teams. Each team chooses a name.
The board	Six categories, four squares in each: 100, 200, 300 and 400. The higher the number, the harder the task.
Choosing	Teams take turns. The team says the category and the points: “Would You Rather for 300, please.”
One speaker	Each turn, a different person plays for the team, in order. Nobody plays twice until everybody has played.
Help	Once per turn, the speaker can ask the team for help. If they win, the square is worth half.
Steal	If your team fails, the other team can try the same task. If they win, they get half the points.
English only	A word in Spanish during your turn: minus 50 points. Asking “How do you say…?” in English is OK — once per turn.
The judge	The teacher decides. You can complain — in English.

Jokers — one of each per team

JOKER	WHAT IT DOES
DOUBLE	This square is worth double. Say it before the teacher reads the task. If you fail, you lose nothing — but the joker is gone.
SWAP	You don’t like the task? Give it to the other team. If they fail, your team wins half the points.

The board

Copy it on the whiteboard or project it. Cross out each square when it has been played.

DESCRIBE IT	NON-STOP	FIX IT	WOULD YOU RATHER	ODD ONE OUT	ROLE-PLAY
100	100	100	100	100	100
200	200	200	200	200	200
300	300	300	300	300	300
400	400	400	400	400	400

The tasks — for the teacher only

Read the task aloud when a team chooses a square. The last column says what the team needs to do to win the points. If you hesitate, it’s half the points.

Describe It

The speaker describes the word or expression. The team guesses. 45 seconds. Don’t say the word or part of it. No gestures!

POINTS	TASK	TO WIN
100	ALARM CLOCK	The team says it in 45 seconds.
200	TRAFFIC JAM	The team says it in 45 seconds.
300	HOMESICK	The team says it in 45 seconds.
400	SECOND-HAND	The team says it in 45 seconds.

Non-Stop

The speaker talks about the topic without stopping. The teacher counts the time.

POINTS	TASK	TO WIN
100	30 seconds: Your job or your studies.	No stop longer than 3 seconds. No Spanish. Don’t repeat the same sentence.
200	40 seconds: A place you’d like to visit, and why.	No stop longer than 3 seconds. At least one reason.
300	50 seconds: Something you learned to do as an adult.	No stop longer than 3 seconds. Verbs in the past.
400	60 seconds: The best present you’ve ever received.	No stop longer than 3 seconds. Present perfect and past simple, both correct.

Fix It

The teacher reads the sentence twice. It has one mistake. The speaker says the correct sentence.

POINTS	TASK	TO WIN
100	I’m living here since 2019.	I’ve lived here since 2019. (Also OK: I’ve been living here…)
200	If I will see him, I’ll tell him.	If I see him, I’ll tell him.
300	She explained me the problem.	She explained the problem to me.
400	I’m used to get up early.	I’m used to getting up early. (I used to get up early is correct too, but only if the speaker explains that the meaning changes.)

Would You Rather

The speaker chooses and defends the choice for 30 seconds, with two reasons. Then the other team asks one difficult question, and the speaker answers it.

POINTS	TASK	TO WIN
100	…live in a big city or in a small village?	Two clear reasons and a real answer to the question.
200	…work from home or in an office?	Two clear reasons and a real answer to the question.
300	…speak every language in the world or play every musical instrument?	Two clear reasons and a real answer to the question.
400	…never use your phone again or never watch a series again?	Two clear reasons and a real answer to the question.

Odd One Out

Which word is different? There is more than one good answer. Say which one and why, in a complete sentence.

POINTS	TASK	TO WIN
100	nephew · cousin · niece · colleague	A true reason in a complete sentence. (e.g. Colleague, because the others are family.)
200	borrow · lend · rent · buy	A true reason. (e.g. Buy, because it’s the only one where you keep the thing.)
300	furious · delighted · annoyed · upset	A true reason. (e.g. Delighted, because it’s the only positive feeling.)
400	must · should · ought to · might	A true reason. (e.g. Might, because it’s about possibility, not obligation or advice.)

Role-Play

The speaker and the teacher act out the situation for about one minute. The teacher makes it a little difficult.

POINTS	TASK	TO WIN
100	You order a coffee with milk in a café. The waiter (teacher) says there is no milk.	The speaker solves the problem and stays polite.
200	You want to return a jumper that’s too small. You don’t have the receipt.	The speaker explains the problem and asks for a solution.
300	You call your boss (teacher): you’re going to be an hour late.	The speaker explains why and offers a solution.
400	It’s 2 a.m. You knock on your neighbour’s door: the music is too loud.	The speaker complains, stays polite, and gets a promise.

Final round — all or nothing

When the board is empty, both teams play the last task at the same time.

STEP	WHAT HAPPENS
1. Bet	Each team writes a number on a piece of paper: from 0 to all its points. Nobody sees it.
2. Play	Word chain. The teacher says a word: apple. The teams take turns, and each word must start with the last letter of the word before: apple – egg – grape… Any person in the team can answer, but only 5 seconds per turn. Stop, repeat a word or say it in Spanish: you lose.
3. Count	The winner adds its bet. The loser subtracts its bet. The team with more points wins the Showdown.

Scoreboard

TEAM	POINTS (write them as you go)	DOUBLE used	SWAP used	FINAL BET	TOTAL
Team A:		☐	☐
Team B:		☐	☐

Joker cards — cut them out

DOUBLE This square is worth double. Practive English · The Showdown	SWAP Give this task to the other team. Practive English · The Showdown
DOUBLE This square is worth double. Practive English · The Showdown	SWAP Give this task to the other team. Practive English · The Showdown

B1 language support

FUNCTION	USEFUL LANGUAGE
Choosing	Can we have Role-Play for 200, please? · We’re going to use our SWAP.
Describing	It’s something you use when… · It’s similar to… but… · It’s the opposite of… · It’s how you feel when…
Giving reasons	Personally, I’d rather… because… · The main reason is that… · Another thing is that…
Answering a difficult question	That’s a good question. · I hadn’t thought about that, but… · Well, it depends.
Being polite in a problem	I’m afraid… · Would it be possible to…? · I’m sorry to bother you, but… · Could you…?
Buying time	Let me think for a second. · How can I put this…? · What’s the word…?
Disagreeing with the judge	I’m not sure that’s right, actually. · But I said… · Can we have half the points?

Para el profe

Cómo montarlo

Dos equipos, mezclando a los que más hablan con los que menos, para que no gane siempre el mismo. Copia el tablero en la pizarra (o proyéctalo) y tacha cada casilla cuando se juegue. Las tareas solo las tienes tú: los alumnos no las ven hasta que eligen. Cada equipo recibe sus dos comodines recortados y cada alumno su language support.

El tablero entero son 24 casillas: entre 50 y 60 minutos con la ronda final. Si tienes media hora, juega solo las filas de 100 y 200 y la final.

Cómo puntuar sin discusiones

La columna To win dice qué hace falta para ganar cada casilla. Si dudas, la mitad de los puntos: es la regla que más discusiones ahorra. La regla del español, léela en voz alta antes de empezar y aplícala desde la primera vez; si la perdonas una vez, ya no hay manera de recuperarla.

Con un solo alumno

Juega contra «la casa». Si acierta, se lleva los puntos; si falla, se los lleva la casa. No hay robo: en su lugar, las casillas falladas se pueden repetir al final por la mitad. Tiene los mismos dos comodines (el SWAP le pasa la tarea a la casa, y la haces tú). Gana si al acabar tiene más puntos que la casa. En las tareas de describir y adivinar, adivinas tú.

Con dos alumnos

Uno contra uno. Todas las tareas de su equipo son suyas, así que cada uno habla el doble que en grupo. La ayuda del equipo no existe: en su lugar, una vez por partida pueden pedirte una pista a ti.

Variantes

Que lo escriban ellos. En la segunda partida, cada equipo inventa una casilla nueva por categoría para el otro equipo, y tú decides si vale. Escribir una buena tarea cuesta tanto como hacerla.

Casillas de oro. Antes de empezar, marca en secreto dos casillas en tu hoja. Valen el triple, pero nadie lo sabe hasta que las eligen.

Para volver a jugar. Cambia las palabras de las categorías de describir y las frases de corregir por los errores reales de tus alumnos. El formato aguanta muchas partidas; lo que se gasta son las respuestas.

Qué evaluar

Durante el juego no corrijas: apunta. Al final, saca los cinco errores que más se han repetido y conviértelos en las casillas de corregir de la próxima partida. En B1, mira sobre todo que justifiquen (las casillas de Would You Rather y Odd One Out no se ganan sin un because) y que en el role-play resuelvan el problema sin salirse del inglés aunque les pongas pegas.

El mismo concurso en otros niveles: A2, B2 y C1, en Practive Prime (próximamente).

← Volver a los juegos de speaking