Today, loteria is often played using beans as markers and can be utilized as an informal educational language tool. The Traditional Instrument Loteria, created by the Arizona State Museum, is an example of how this fun game can be a way to learn Spanish and Yaqui words, as well as an excellent introduction to Yaqui and Mexican culture. These are high paying bonus rounds that can really boost the balance well. It’s a game we can recommend lassoing and trying out. Bingo Lottery. If a game has existed as long and has been as popular as the real Mexican Loteria, then this game has to be worth taking a shot at.
Learning Spanish doesn’t have to be a chore—and neither does teaching it.
Instead, have your students rally together to play games and make learning a blast!
There are lots of games that will help students exercise their Spanish knowledge, broaden their vocabulary and work together. Research has even shown that concentrating on other activities (like awesome games) while practicing a foreign language helps you memorize new words.
No matter who wins or loses the games, every student will be a winner—they’re all learning, practicing and achieving something in the process of playing. In the end, the whole goal is to increase their exposure to the language. Here are a few favorites for getting the job done.
Win, Lose or Draw: 6 Fun Spanish Games Your Students Will Love
1. Lotería
You can buy an inexpensive, authentic lotería (lottery) game on a trip to Latin America or in a teaching materials store, or you can simply print out your own cards from the Internet. You can get tablas (cards, literally “boards”) with the word for the picture next to it, or you can get ones that are pictures only. Beginning students find the ones with words useful, but intermediate students will be pleasantly challenged with just the pictures alone.
Here are some resources for setting up a winning game of lotería:
Warning: Some of the pictures in the first resource (and some others) are classified as folk art but are somewhat racy. The sirena (mermaid) is topless, there is a borracho (drunk), and the corazon (heart) looks ready for a transplant—it’s not a valentine. The sirena can be fixed with a felt-tip marker. The borracho may respond to Alcohólicos Anónimos (Alcoholics Anonymous) but all that’s up to your discretion. Even so, you can see that this is some useful vocabulary—and a game that might work as-is for adult students.
This game is like Bingo but with pictures instead of numbers. It’s even great for the first day of beginning Spanish class because you can get the students speaking and learning right away.
You can be the announcer (the person who calls out the card content) or have students take turns with this role. When a card is called, the whole class should repeat the word(s) together and then hunt for that picture on their tabla. You can use dried beans to mark the pictures that are called so you can reuse the tablas. When a student fills up the card, he shouts “lotería!” and wins. Have the winner read the words from their tabla aloud so you can ensure they really did win.
More advanced Spanish speakers use a rhyme to make a riddle about the word and players guess at the word. This is more challenging. This game is so much fun that it is played all over Mexico by adult native speakers. Learn more about lotería history here!
2. Cuenta atrás (Countdown)
Have students stand in a circle. If you have more than a dozen students, make two groups. Announce the highest number that will start the countdown and throw a ball to one of the students. He should say the next number down and throw the ball to another student. For example, you say “cien” and throw the ball. The next student says “noventa y nueve!” and throws the ball.
A soft, sponge ball works well for this game. If you want to slow down the game for beginners, use a balloon. The throws are random, so students must pay attention—the next turn could be theirs!
3. Listas (Lists)
Divide students into groups of three or four. The groups do not have to be even. Give them all the same topic, for example, school things, fruits, sports or colors. Have each group write down as many Spanish words that relate to the topic as they can think of. Give them between ten and fifteen minutes to do this.
Have teams state the total numbers of words on their lists. Then have one team read their list and have the other teams cross out words that the first team has listed. The next team to read their words aloud will have a shorter list, as they read only words not listed by the first team. Continue until all teams have read their lists. Write the words unique to each list on the board.
4.En el ático de mi abuela (In my grandmother’s attic)
This is a repetition game. Each player repeats what was said by the previous player and adds something. This can be alphabetical or not. Make it more productive by having everyone repeat the entire sentence together before the next player adds an object. Things can be funny, outlandish or even impossible. This is good practice for matching articles with nouns and using “hay.”
En el ático de mi abuela hay una licuadora. (In my grandmother’s attic there is a blender.)
En el ático de mi abuela hay una licuadora y un fútbol. (In my grandmother’s attic there is a blender and a football.)
If players want they can make notes but remember that exercising your memory makes it stronger, just like exercising your muscles. And a stronger memory can certainly help you learn Spanish.
5. Voy a Sevilla (I’m going to Seville)
Another repetition game with a twist. You will need to break students into groups if your class is large. Each group (or the whole class) will have a student appointed as the game leader. The leader chooses a category of items and names one. Here are some examples of categories:
- things that grow in the ground
- words that begin with the letter L
- animals
- vegetables
- clothing
- things in the water
So the leader says that they’re going to Seville and names one item from the chosen category that they’re taking with them. For example, if the student leader thought of textiles (textiles) as a category, they might then say “voy a Sevilla y llevo un kilo de algodón.”(I’m going to Seville and taking a kilo of cotton.)
The goal for the other players is to get the leader’s permission to accompany them to Seville. They can only go if they have an item in the leader’s category of items. One player might say, “tengo un pez, ¿puedo ir también?” (I have a fish, can I go too?). The leader answers “no” in this case.
If a player names an item in the same category, then the leader says “sí!” and that student wins the round.
6. Carrera de Relevos (Relay Race)
Younger students love this game that gets them moving and using their hands.
Collect several unbreakable items that relate to your lesson, or at least represent words they have learned. Examples might be plastic fruits and vegetables, toy cars in two or three different colors, plastic tableware—spoon, fork, knife, plate, cup, glass.
Divide them into two teams and line the teams up at the far end of the teaching space. Put the items in a large box at the other end of the space. The leader stands between the two teams and calls out an item in Spanish. The first person on each team must run to the box, find the correct item and bring it back to the leader.
Instruct the students that there is to be no fighting and, if necessary, match girls against girls and boys against boys. If there are some extra items in the box it makes it more difficult. The leader keeps score, giving one point to the team that brings back the correct item each time. Announce the score from time to time. It really gets interesting when the equipos están empatados (the teams are tied). Continue playing until every student has had a chance to bring back an item. All the kids will be laughing and ready to sit still after this game.
You’ve got some great Spanish games to start with.Don’t forget old favorites like Veinte preguntas (Twenty questions) and Bingo. The kids already know how to play but doing it in Spanish can be a challenge.
With all these game possibilities, I bet you’re ready to get started playing right now!
Remember that some extra incentive can always be provided in the form of a candy or sticker for the winners, if your school permits it. Writing the names of the winning team on the blackboard for the day, labeled as ganadores (winners) is another good reward.
Ahora a jugar! (now let’s play!)
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| Other name(s) | Mexican bingo[1] |
|---|---|
| Language(s) | Spanish |
| Random chance | High |
Lotería is a traditional game of chance, similar to bingo, but using images on a deck of cards instead of numbered ping pong balls. Every image has a name and an assigned number, but the number is usually ignored. Each player has at least one tabla, a board with a randomly created 4 × 4 grid of pictures with their corresponding name and number. Players choose a tabla to play with, from a variety of previously created tablas, each with a different selection of images.
Lotería is the Spanish word for lottery. The deck is composed with a set of 54 different cards with a picture on it. To start, the caller (cantor, or singer) shuffles the deck. One by one, the caller picks a card from the deck and announces it to the players by its name, sometimes using a verse before reading the card name. Each player locates the matching pictogram of the card just announced on their board and marks it off with a chip or other kind of marker. In Mexico, it is traditional to use small rocks, crown corks or pinto beans as markers. The winner is the first player that shouts '¡Lotería!' right after completing a tabla or a previous agreed pattern: row, column, diagonal or a pozo.
Lotería de Pozo is a variant version of the traditional Mexican Lotería, where the basic rules apply. For this version, before the game begins, players agree on how many pozos are to be completed in a row, column or diagonal pattern. A Pozo is a group of images in a square. The square may contain 2x2 (4) or 3x3 (9) images[2] for a traditional tabla.
Loteria de Pozo[3] is a game to allow computer users to play an online a version of the Lotería Mexicana. It was created back in 1996.[3]
History[edit]
The origin of lotería can be traced far back in history. The game originated in Italy in the 15th century and was brought to New Spain (modern Mexico) in 1769. In the beginning, lotería was a hobby of the upper classes,[1] but eventually it became a tradition at Mexican fairs.
Don Clemente Jacques began publishing the game in 1887 [1] The current images have become iconic in Mexican culture, as well as gaining popularity in the US and some European countries. Other popular Lotería sets are Lotería Leo, Gacela and Lotería de mi tierra.
During the 1930s, the Catholic church came up with their own version of la Lotería. It consisted of Catholic images instead of the traditional images used in the original game. The Catholic church did this to promote their beliefs by making their very own game board similar to the Lotería.[1]
Cards and associated verses[edit]
Loteria Game For Children
The following is a list of the original 54 lotería cards, traditionally and broadly recognized in Mexico. Below each card name and number, are the verses (in Spanish) sometimes used to tell the players which card was drawn. However, there are several less traditional sets of cards, depicting different objects or animals.
1 El gallo ('the rooster')
2 El diablito ('the little Devil')
3 La dama ('the lady')
4 El catrín ('the dandy')
5 El paraguas ('the umbrella')
6 La sirena ('the mermaid')
7 La escalera ('the ladder')
8 La botella ('the bottle')
9 El barril ('the barrel')
10 El árbol ('the tree')
11 El melón ('the melon') Retrieved 2013-01-14. Department of Motor Vehicles. Retrieved 2012-12-29. Retrieved 2012-12-29. Retrieved 2012-12-29. Driving abroad with us license.
12 El valiente ('the brave man')
13 El gorrito ('the little bonnet')
14 La muerte ('Death')
15 La pera ('the pear')
16 La bandera ('the flag')
17 El bandolón ('the mandolin')
18 El violoncello ('the cello')
19 La garza ('the heron')
20 El pájaro ('the bird')
21 La mano ('the hand')
22 La bota ('the boot')
23 La luna ('the moon')
24 El cotorro ('the parrot')
25 El borracho ('the drunkard')
26 El negrito ('the little black man')
27 El corazón ('the heart')
| 28 La sandía ('the watermelon')
29 El tambor ('the drum')
30 El camarón ('the shrimp')
31 Las jaras ('the arrows')
32 El músico ('the musician')
33 La araña ('the spider')
34 El soldado ('the soldier')
35 La estrella ('the star') Florida drivers license high programmer.
36 El cazo ('the saucepan')
37 El mundo ('the world')
38 El Apache ('the Apache')
39 El nopal ('the prickly pear cactus')
40 El alacrán ('the scorpion')
41 La rosa ('the rose')
42 La calavera ('the skull')
43 La campana ('the bell')
44 El cantarito ('the little water pitcher')
45 El venado ('the deer')
46 El Sol ('the sun')
47 La corona ('the crown')
48 La chalupa ('the canoe')
49 El pino ('the pine tree')
50 El pescado ('the fish')
51 La palma ('the palm tree')
52 La maceta ('the flowerpot')
53 El arpa ('the harp')
54 La rana ('the frog')
|
References[edit]
- ^ abcdVillegas, Teresa. 'History of La Lotería', www.teresavillegas.com
- ^'Lotería de Pozo'. www.maravillasoftware.com. Retrieved 2018-10-20.
- ^ ab'How the Loteria Mexicana / Mexican Bingo became an online game?'. Maravilla Software. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
Further reading[edit]
- Lotería: A Novel, by Mario Alberto Zambrano
- Playing Lotería: El Juego de La Lotería, by René Colato Laínez
- El Arte de la Suerte, by Artes de Mexico Número 13, Otoño 1991, Nueva Época
External links[edit]
How To Play Loteria Game
Media related to Lotería (board game) at Wikimedia Commons
Play Prodigy Math Game For Kids
- Software to print Lotería: Loteria Workshop
- Lotería de pozo : Another way to play lotería