Literacy Games for Learning

Literacy is a subject that many children find difficult to engage in, however, it is one that has a large impact on cognitive development. In general, literacy games brings many benefits to a young learner’s skill set, including increased concentration, boosting imagination and creativity as well as helping your child develop a lifelong love of reading. 

There are a range of different ways that teachers can promote literacy in the classroom and help increase engagement from students. One of the most notable ways of doing this is incorporating literacy games into the student’s workload. You may ask how games in the classroom could possibly be beneficial to children of this day and age – however Generation Z is one of the most tech-savvy generations to date, which has had a large effect on the way they learn. Many teachers have embraced the advanced technology we now have readily available in the classroom, and turn it into a fun new way of learning. 

Game based learning is about more than just giving students educational games. It is about motivating students to engage in learning and enjoy the process of discovering and understanding new things. Game based learning doesn’t necessarily have to involve technology, in-fact teachers have been incorporating different types of games into their classrooms for decades. For example, the simple literacy game of scrabble was originally designed many years ago to expand students’ vocabulary and improve memory. 

Motivation to Learn 

Students spend an average of 20 hours per week learning in the classroom which can often 

challenge a teachers’ ability to keep them engaged and motivated. By including play-based learning, students become more enthused and the taught content becomes better retained as class positivity is increased. Highly motivated students are more likely to participate in classroom activity as well as take responsibility for their own learning. 

It is proven that children are often more motivated by hands-on and active learning which is one of the many positives of incorporating ‘play’ into the classroom. As literacy is a subject that often requires full and undivided attention, it is important for teachers to make sure students can concentrate on the task in front of them. Engaging students with game-based learning helps them to have fun with literacy, maintain focus throughout the session and learn new spelling and vocabulary all at the same time. 

Class Participation  

By including literacy games into a students’ learning, there is often a boost in class cooperation, and increased participation in activities when compared to structured typical learning styles. It is a great way to increase team bonding, and gives students the ability to work as a team as well as individually. Students learn how to listen to each other which not only builds respect for others, but it also helps to expose students to a wider range of vocabulary.

Consolidate New Knowledge 

Literacy games are a great tool to be able to consolidate new knowledge. After teaching new content to the students, incorporating a game can help reinforce their understanding, improve memory, and widen their vocabulary. Asking students to create their own literacy-based games, and then taking turns to play each one in the classroom is not only fun but also helps boost their confidence. This is also a great way for teachers to assess students’ abilities.  

Games can be highly challenging and are extremely productive, whilst having the power to stimulate learning and cognitive memory. Children will be more likely to learn through play as it increases their engagement in the learning process and helps them to enjoy what they are doing. Students will be so busy participating in all of the fun activities that they won’t even realise they are searching for solutions, problem solving and learning new vocabulary which will help them in both school and adult life.

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