This strong animal loves to eat leaves. It also has a trunk.
Answer: it is an elephant.
26
The writer points out that guessing game can be played individually or pair and the subject of guessing game is related to the material of the student
’s handbook. Guessing game can be used to teach description about people, animal,
profession, and so forth. As Penny Ur explains “guessing game can be used to
teach about objects, people, profession, animals, places, events, more abstract noun, adjectives and verbs can be used as the subject of this exercise.
”
27
Guessing game indirectly training students to remember the information before finding out the answer and training students become active learners by
practicing two ways listening directly in communication process. This game not only practicing listening but also practicing memorizing, pronunciation, speaking,
and vocabulary too.
4. Reinforcing Students’ Listening Skill through Guessing Game
Listening as one of four language skills holds an important role in teaching and learning English which most of the communication success depends on a
good listening skill. In class students are spending their time by chatting and discussion with other students also listening to the
teacher’s explanation and instruction. In this process, listening takes up most communication time. As
Morley states that “we can expect to listen twice as much we speak, four times
more than we read, and five times more than we write. ”
28
In line with Morley’s statement, I.S.P. Nation and J. Newton cites David Nunan’s statement which “it
has been claimed that over 50 percent of the time that students spend functioning
26
What’s the
Animal Guessing
Game, http:wxxi.orgeducationsummeractivitiesWK_Prtns_WhatsTheAnimal.pdf,
Accessed on
February 9
th
, 2016.
27
Penny Ur, op. cit., p. 90.
28
Marianne Celce-Murcia and Elite Olshtain, Discourse and Context in Language Teaching, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000, p. 102.
in a foreign language will be devoted to listening. ”
29
It shows that listening is a crucial skill which cannot be underestimated and reinforcing listening is a must.
In class, the way to reinforce students listening skill has problems not only the technique but also students itself. The meaning of reinforce itself is
“to make something stronger.
”
30
It means reinforcing makes students strengthen their skill, especially in listening skill. The problem of teaching listening has founded, the
technique in listening class is conventional teaching technique. The students only listen carefully to the teacher, then answer the questions. This activity does
repeatedly and makes the learning process become boring and not interesting. For overcoming the problem, the teacher should be creative in developing the varied
techniques to catch students attention and to make them desire to learn. Guessing game can be one of attractive ways for reinforcing students
listening skill. Vicki L. Cohen and John Edwin Cowen mention that “listening
games can provide a fun way for students to focus on their listening skills and learn a number of strategies.
”
31
While Patria A and Richard Amato state “Guessing games can be a painless way to reinforce any number of concepts.”
32
Guessing game can be used to reinforce listening because offers much of fun in the attractive way. This game not only helps students to learn the subject of
material happily but also to boost their motivation thus they can learn more. In this study, the writer teaches the subject material, vocabularies, and
structure which relating to the game to make the game runs well. For making the game lively, the writer uses media such as audio recording, video, picture, and
power point to support the game. The technique of playing guessing game is effective because guessing game has a magnet for young learner to make them
directly active to use their target language and helps sharpen the memory with identifying something. The result based on the students’ performances in the
classroom and their much motivate to learn English.
29
I. S. P. Nation and J. Newton, loc. cit..
30
Cambridge Advance Lea rner’s Dictionary Third Edition, Singapore: Cambridge
University Press, 2008, p. 1198.
31
Vicki L. Cohen and John Edwin Cowen, Literacy for Children in an Information Age: Teaching Reading, Writing, and Thinking Second Edition, California: Wadsworth, 2011, p. 367.
32
Patricia A and Richard Amato, op. cit., p. 299.
