Aim of the Game
The aim of the game is to answer questions put by the teacher in order to return the ball to the other team. When teams answer incorrectly, the other team wins a point. Points are scored as in volleyball and the first team to win a set of a nominated number of points is the winner.
Procedure
Explain to the class that they are going to play a game of volleyball, in order to practise the target language.
Put the volleyball court up on the whiteboard or somewhere where it is easily visible to all learners.
Split the class into two teams and assign a name to each team.
Decide the order of play between teams.
Stick the volleyball on one of the back line players (i.e. the ih logos) of the team that will serve first.
Explain to learners that they will take it in turns to answer questions. The first team have to answer one question correctly in order to serve successfully. You then move the ball from their side of the court to the side of the other team. This team then have to answer three questions in a row correctly to successfully return the ball (reflecting the custom in volleyball of taking three touches to return the ball) and the rally continues. If they answer a question incorrectly the rally is finished and the other team wins the point. Do an example or two to make sure everyone knows how the game works.
Points are scored as in volleyball (one point per rally won). Nominate how many points a team needs to win a set before beginning play (if you have ten questions, first to 5 will suffice). Remember that to win the set a team has to win by at least two points.
Variations
To make sure everyone participates, nominate different members of each team to take turns answering the questions, either with or without consulting their team, depending on your needs.
Allocate members of each team to different players on the court (1 - 6) and nominate who answers the next question by moving the ball to their logo on the court.
To create a higher scoring game, award a point for each correct answer given and two points for a rally won. After they have answered each question, give each team the possibility to set (i.e. keep the ball on their half of the court and answer another question up to a maximum of three) or smash (return the ball to the other team who has to answer the next question). Setting gives a team the opportunity to score more points, whilst smashing gives the team more chance to win the rally. If a team answers incorrectly having set, they lose all the points gained since the ball last crossed the net.