How to Use the Jeopardy Game to Teach

By Jennifer Zimmerman, eHow Contributor

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Jeopardy participants respond with questions.

Jeopardy, the television show that has contestants answer in the form of a question, has many
versions. There are online Jeopardy games, Jeopardy for electronic gaming systems and even an
expensive Jeopardy system for the classroom. The key to all of them is the idea that players
choose categories and answer in the form of a question. One category for young students might
be "Odd Numbers" and one choice might be, "It comes after 12 and right before 18." The player
would answer, "What is 17?" This system can help students in many ways.

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Things You'll Need

 Index cards
 Markers
 Dry erase boards, 3 small, 1 large

Show (2) More

Instructions
1.
o 1

Choose your overall objectives. Look through your curricular standards to choose
the information you want students to learn and review. You could choose math
facts or vocabulary, historical figures, spelling, works of fiction the class has read,
scientific theories, vowel sounds; the combinations are really endless. You might
want to focus on just one subject (such as different aspects of math--addition
facts, subtraction facts, math vocabulary) or you can choose several subjects.

o 2
 Determine your categories. The actual game uses six categories in each of the two
rounds, as well as a final Jeopardy category. So you can come up with 13
different categories, or you can choose to modify the game to suit your needs. For
students reviewing a foreign language, you might choose basic categories like
"Nouns," "Verbs," "Adjectives" and "Adverbs" to use in each round.

o
o 3

Create your answers. Use index cards and write one answer per card, such as "The
first president of the United States." If you want to move students beyond simply
reviewing the material, you can have them create their own answers to use. This
can be helpful when students have been rotating through material in small groups.
Make sure everyone writes neatly and that you have five answers per category per
round.

o 4

Assign values. On the back of each index card, you should write the point value
(or pretend cash value if you want to be more like the actual game). First round
points range from $100 to $500 (most difficult), second round points range from
$200 to $1,000 (most difficult), so make sure that you determine point values
carefully.

o 5

Record the questions. Create a master list of all the questions (such as "Who is
George Washington?" for the answer mentioned in Step 3) sorted by category and
point value. You can use this list to play Alex Trebek during the game, or you can
allow a student to do so.

o 6

Play the game. Use your large dry-erase board to be the game board by writing
the categories across the top and placing the appropriate (with point value facing
out) index cards underneath (you can use magnets, or if the board isn't
magnetized, use tape). When a student chooses an answer, the card can be flipped
around and the answer read aloud. Students (or teams) can then try to ring their
bell or buzzer first to say their question. They can use the small dry-erase boards
to write their "Final Jeopardy" questions.

o 7

Develop the game. As students grow more comfortable with the game, encourage
them to make their own versions. Students studying Shakespeare, for example,
could develop their own version of Jeopardy in which the categories are the
author's plays. Then they could challenge students from another class, for
example. Creating the game start to finish will make them not only review the
material, but reflect upon it as they assign values and determine categories.

Tips & Warnings

 Use the game to make the classroom more fun. Have "Jeopardy" day and dress up like
Alex Trebek instead of just simply playing the game.
 Make sure to reward the winners with something fun and tangible, like candy bars or an
extra bathroom pass.
How to Create a Jeopardy Game for the
Classroom
By Corrine Lee, eHow Contributor

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How to Create a Jeopardy Game for the

Classroom

A handmade version of the Jeopardy game can be used again and again for different subject
matters and academic abilities. Flexible and easy to use, the game is a fun way to review basics,
reinforce recently learned material and see just what students are capable of by throwing in a few
challenging items. Contestants rotate to the front of the room, but the student with the correct
answer gets to stay for the next round. Play for points, classroom bucks or just for fun.

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Things You'll Need

 55 pieces colored paper or card stock

 30 clear page protectors

Instructions
1.
o 1

Write or print “100” in large numerals on one side of five, 8 1/2- by 11-inch
pieces of colored paper or card stock. Repeat for “200,” “300,” “400” and “500”
for a total of 25 pieces of paper.

o 2
 Select five subject matters to review, such as geography, literature, mathematics,
grammar and science. Write the names in large letters on a piece of paper, one
category per paper.

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o 3

Place each of the 30 pieces of paper into it's own clear page protector.

o 4

Sort into piles, with each category grouped with one each of the numbers 100
through 500 and set aside.

o 5

For each category, create five “answers” of varying degrees of difficulty. Write
the answers on one side of a piece of paper, one answer per paper. Write all
“answers” and “questions” on a master sheet for teacher reference during game
play, one master sheet per category.

o 6

Insert answers into the corresponding page protector, but facing the other way.
When the 100 page protector for geography is flipped over, the 100 geography
answer should be showing.

o 7

Lay out the completed game on the desired surface, arranging the papers to look
like a Jeopardy board. Use magnetic clips for whiteboards, or create a permanent
board with small hooks to match the holes in the page protectors.
Jeopardy-style Media Vocabulary Game
This game will help students learn and review a variety of media terms in a non-threatening and
fun way.

A lesson plan for grades 3–5 Information Skills

By Myrna Price

Learn more
Help
Please read our disclaimer for lesson plans.

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Learning outcomes
Students will demonstrate knowledge of a variety of media terms.

Teacher planning
Time required for lesson

10-20 Minutes

Materials/resources

index cards

pens or markers in two different colors

Technology resources
None

Pre-activities
Teach the meaning of media terms.
Examples:

 fiction
 non-fiction
 Caldecott Award
 Newbery Award
 dictionary
 atlas
 thesaurus
 synonyms
 antonyms
 guide words
 idioms
 audiovisual
 multimedia, etc.

There should be at least one word for each student. Teaching these terms is not a stand alone
activity, but an integral part of our media lessons about stories, authors, and research materials
that occur throughout the years the students are in elementary school. This game will review and
reinforce those lessons.

Activities
1. Preparation of Materials:

The teacher will create question and answer cards in the following manner:

 Draw a line to divide the cards in half.

 Using a red pen (or any color), write the word “Start” on the top half of one card.
 Using a blue pen (or any different color) write on the bottom half of that card a
definition to one of the vocabulary terms.
 On the top half of the next card, write in red the term being defined in the form of
a question. For example, the bottom half of one card would read “words that have
the same or similar meanings” and the top half of the next card would read “What
are synonyms?” -On the bottom half of the second card, write the next definition.
 On the top half of the third card write the vocabulary word being described.

All definitions will be blue and all vocabulary words will be red. Remember to write your
answers in the form of a question. Continue in this manner until all terms and definitions
have been used. The last card will have a term on the top half, write “Stop” on the bottom
half.

2. Activity:
 Shuffle the cards and give one to each student.
 The person who has the Start card stands up and reads the definition.
 The person who has the correct term on his card stands up and states the Jeopardy
question. If the answer is correct, the first person sits down and the second person
reads the definition on the bottom half of his card. (If the answer given is
incorrect, that student sits back down and another person who thinks he/she has
the correct answer stands up. There is no penalty for incorrect answers.)
 Play continues with each person giving a correct answer to someone else’s
question, then reading the definition on the bottom of their card for another
student to answer. (You can’t give the answer just because you know it. You have
to be the one with the correct card!)
  The game is over when you reach the Stop card. I have found that students
generally want to play more than one game, so shuffle and start again.

Assessment
When the class can go all the way through the deck with no incorrect answers, you will know
they have learned their media vocabulary.