Mad libs are a word game that creates a new story by changing a few selected words. Students will be laughing, as they learn a few concepts at the same time
Teach students adjectives, nouns, and verbs with mad libs. Students make a list of a predetermined number of nouns, adjectives, and verbs. The teacher has the students number the words and place them into a story with missing blanks. Students share their stories.
Students are given a short passage and must identify nouns, adjectives and verbs. Students must replace the nouns, adjectives, and verbs with their own choice. Students will create their list of nouns, adjectives, and verbs before the teacher supplies them with the short story.
Teacher instructs students to name adjectives based on specific attributes. Scent, color, size are just a few ideas to prompt students on naming an adjective.
Extension: After students fill in the blanks for the short story, with a different coloured pencil, students must find a synonym for the word. Too often students use the same words repeatedly, it is best to introduce students to new vocabulary.
Fairy-tales
Students have a difficult time in the primary and even later grades creating unique stories. Use an outline of a famous fairytale and have students change a predetermined number of words to change the story.
Students will draw pictures that are aligned with the new story. Students may create the words on a separate piece of paper before replacing the words in the story or fill in the blanks as they read the story.
Biography
Students write short biographies of a historical figure, such as Christopher Columbus. Students remove certain words and trade their work with fellow classmates to fill in the blanks. After the blanks are filled in, the student reads the truth about their character. Students will learn about their historical figure as they create the mad lib and fun is a part of the learning.
Social Studies
Teacher pre-selects a variety of vocabulary related and unrelated to the new topic. Students fill in the blanks with a word from the word bank. Each blank will indicate if it is a noun, adjective, or verb.
Students will read their story and see if it makes sense. At the end of the unit students will fill in the blanks with the same word bank.
Holiday Fun
Students use vocabulary based on one holiday and transfers them to another holiday season.
Sample: Students use the poem of Twas the Night before Christmas and replace adjectives and nouns with Halloween words. (Twas the Night before Halloween and all through the cemetery, not a creature was stirring not even a bat.) Have students use familiar poems or songs to change the meaning behind the story line.
