Nuevas ideas para enseñar vocabulario (para profesores)

TEACHING VOCABULARY

1) ANAGRAMS:
An anagram is a word or phrase that forms a different word or phrase when the letters are rearranged. For example, percussion is an anagram of supersonic. Other one-word anagrams are:
solemn - melonsdespair - praisednameless - salesmencarthorse - orchestraintoxicate - excitationlegislators - allegoristsconversation - conservationcontainerised - inconsiderateinterrogatives - tergiversation
Here are some anagrams to form phrases.
point - on tiptwinges - we stingenormity - more tinyfuneral - real fununiformity - I form unityastronomer - moon-starerrevolution - love to ruinlegislation - is it legal? Nomilitarism - I limit armsconsiderate - care is notedmesaurements - man uses meterschoolmaster - the classroompresbyterian - best in prayeralphabetically - I play all the ABCa telehone girl - repeating 'hello'French revolution - violence run forthpolice protection - let cop cope in riotthe man who laughs - he's glum, won't ha-haRoma was not built in a day - any labour I do wants time

2)PUN:

A pun is a play on words that sound similar but have different meanings. They are often found in the playground, in the pub, in everyday conversation or at parties.
Read the following puns and try to understand where is the joke. Some of them may take longer to be understood by non-native speakers.

What did the grape say when the elephant stepped on it?Nothing. It just gave a little whine.
What do you call a deer with no eyes?No idea.
Why is the desert a good place for a picnic?Because of the sand which is there.
My wife's gone to the West Indies.Jamaica?No, she went of her own accord.
Knock, knock!Who's there?Dave.Dave who?Dave locked me out again.
Knock, knock!Who's there?Sarah.Sarah who?Sarah doctor in the house?
Knock, knock!Who's there?Fred.Fred who?Fred I can't tell you.
Knock, knock!Who's there?Sheila.Sheila who?Sheila peer in a minute.


3) PALINDROME

A palindrome is a word, phrase or sentence that reads the same backwards as forwards. For example, the word level is a palindrome. The shortest palindromic words in English are nun, ewe and pip, among others. The longest is redivider. Other palindromes are:

God! A dog!
Dennis sinned.
Dennis and Edna sinned.
Dennis, Nell, Edna, Leon, Noel and Ellen sinned.
Don't nod.
Sad? I'm Midas.
Step on no pets.
Live not on evil.
Do geese see God?
Madam, I'm Adam.
Never odd or even.
Pull up if I pull up.
No, it is opposition.
Too bad, I hid a boot.
Rats live on no evil star.
Was it Elliot's toilet I saw?
Able was I ere I saw Elba. (said by Napoleon)
Was it a car or a cat I saw?
May a moody baby doom a yam.
A man, a plan, a canal - Panama.
Some men interpret nine memos.
Go hang a salami, I'm a lasagna hog!
A Toyota! Race fast. Safe car: a Toyota.
Marge lets Norah see Sharon's telegram.
Doc, note. I dissent. A fast never prevents a fatness. I diet on cod.


4) RIDDLES:

Riddles are very useful to learn a language. Many of them are the same in other languages but others are specially British or American. Many of them play with words, meanings and similar sounds. Try to guess the answer to these riddles without translating them!

Why was Cinderella taken off the basketball team?She always ran away from the ball.

What is the difference between a jeweller and a jailer?One sells watches and the other one watches cells.

What do you call a deer with no eyes?No idea. (No-eye deer).

What goes dot-dash-squeak-dash-dot-squeak-squeak?Mouse code.

Why do bees always have sticky hair?Because they have honeycombs.

What is at the end of everything?The letter G.

What starts with "t", ends with "t" and is full of "t"?A teapot.

What starts with "e", ends with "e" but only has one letter?An envelope.

If you drop a white hat into the Red Sea, what does it become?Wet.

Why are pianos difficult to open?Because the keys are inside.

How do you stop a cock from crowing on Sundaymorning and waking you up?Have it for dinner on Saturday night.

Why are Saturdays and Sundays strong days?Because the other five are weak days.

When is a door not a door?When it's ajar. ("ajar" significa entornada)

What kind of animal can jump higher than a house?All animals can jump. House cannot.

5) PANGRAM

A pangram is a sentence that includes all the letters of the alphabet and is still meaningful. Several 26-letter pangrams have been created, but all of them contain obscure words, abbreviations, initials or Roman numerals. The exclusion of those words led to the shortest panagram of 30 letters.

How quickly daft jumping zebras vex.
Other pangrams are:
Jackdaws love my big sphinx of quartz. (31 letters)
Pack my box with five dozen liquor jugs. (33 letters)
A quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. (33 letters)
Xylophone wizard begets quick jive form. (34 letters)
Lazy movers quit hard packing of jewelry boxes. (39 letters)
By Jove, my quick study of lexicography won a prize. (41 letters)
Sexy zebras just prowl and vie for quick hot matings. (43 letters)
Six plump boys guzzled cheap raw vodka quite joyfully. (45 letters)
Sixty zippers were quickly picked from the woven jute bag. (48 letters)
Crazy Fredericka bought many very exquisite opal jewels. (48 letters)
Freight to me sixty dozen quart jars and twelve black pans. (48 letters)
How razorback-jumping frogs can level six piqued gymnasts! (49 letters)