Hobby Preferences Survey (Answer-Key Based)

Overview

This Hobby Survey Activity is a great way for English beginners to build basic speaking and listening skills.

This set of instructions are for the Answer-Key Based version of this activity, which is suitable for younger students (aged 5-7) who are capable of less independence in a classroom. For the Character Cards Based version of this activity, view these instructions instead.

Students can be introduced to this game after memorizing as few as 10 vocabulary words and 3 sentence patterns.

Each Survey Form is designed to record 60 data-points, as each form includes 6 (of 18 possible) randomly chosen characters (Ben, Jan, Sim, etc) x 10 career characteristics (use of creativity, law, tools, etc).

Survey-taking activities like these are a classic example of an information gap activity. 

In addition to providing an opportunity for vocabulary recognition practice, this activity is also VERY useful for phonics encoding practice (see notes below).

Printing

Simply print the needed amount of Survey Forms and one or more copies of the Answer-Key on normal white printer paper.

Preparation (One-Time Use)

After printing, you will only need to cut each printed page in half to separate the two Survey Forms on each page. The forms can then used as is. However, this means that each one will only be able to be used for a single round of the activity.

Preparation (Re-Usable)

To make the Survey Forms re-usable, cut the printed pages in half, remove any unwanted additional white border areas, and then laminate the forms. Activity participants can then use erasable whiteboard markers to add character preference information to the forms.

After each round of play, the added markings can be erased and the forms re-used.

It is highly recommended all copies of the Answer-Key be laminated, as this is a color document ideal for long-term use.

How To Play

Roles: Participants will either be survey-collectors or information-sharers.

The information-sharers will answer questions about the career characteristic preferences of the 18 characters on the Answer-Key(s) for this activity.

The survey-collectors will use verbal questions to ask the information-sharers about the 18 characters career characteristic preferences and then record that information onto their individual Survey Forms.

Materials:

• Survey Forms (1 for each survey-collector) - there are 26 different Survey Form versions available, however, each one could be given to more than one participant
• Pens/pens/whiteboard markers
• Clipboards (or anything else that will allow participants to add information to their Forms while in a standing position)
• One or more Answer Keys (1 for each information-sharer)

Time / Game Round: 15-30 minutes

• Provide a Survey Form to each survey-collector participant. They will need a pen or pencil too (or a whiteboard marker, if the Survey Forms are laminated).
  
  
• Provide an Answer Key to each information-sharer participant. The classroom instructor/facilitator can decided how many information-sharers there should be.
  
  For a smaller group of learners, having just one information-sharer may be appropriate. Either the instructor/facilitator or a student can play this role.
  
  For classrooms with a larger number of students, it may be most efficient to have 2 to 5 information-sharers. In this case, the instructor/facilitator should probably take a non-active role monitoring the activity to ensure that it runs smoothly.
  
• Survey-collectors participants should be advised that the information on their Survey Forms is secret should not be shared with other participants. They are not allowed to show their forms to each other (as this would defeat the purpose of this speaking activity).
  
  
• Additionally, information-sharer participants should be advised that the information on their Answer-Keys must only be shared with other participants verbally. They are not allowed to show their Answer-Keys to survey-collectors (as this would also defeat the purpose of this speaking activity).
  
  
• Once the activity begins, each survey-collector should take turns asking the information-sharer(s) questions one of the five following questions types (with a character name of their choice inserted into the blank):
  
  "Do you know which career characteristics _________________ is very interested in?"
  
  "Do you know which career characteristics _________________ is interested in?"
  
  "Do you know which career characteristics _________________ is OK with?"
  
  "Do you know which career characteristics _________________ is not interested in?"
  
  "Do you know which career characteristics _________________ is definitely not interested in?"
  
  
• (As a second option, survey-collectors could simply ask the information-sharer(s) "What are _________________'s career preferences?")
  
  
• The Answer Key(s) use emojis to show the level of interest each character has in each career characteristic.
  

• When asked a question, information-sharers should use on of the following sentence patterns to reply:
  
  "_________________ is very interested in a career involving _________________."
  
  "_________________ is interested in a career involving _________________ and _________________ ."
  
  "_________________ is OK with a career involving _________________ and _________________ ."
  
  "_________________ is not interested in a career involving _________________ and _________________ ."
  
  "_________________ is definitely not interested in a career involving _________________ ."

• To add the missing information to their own Survey Forms, survey-collectors will need to draw a comparable version of the emojis shown above.
  
  It is recommended that the teacher introducing this activity to student participants encourage them to first practice drawing each of the 5 included emoji symbols (possibly on the blank backs of their Survey Forms) before beginning the activity.
  
  For efficiency, it would be best to communicate to participants that for the "very interested in" emoji, only 2-3 hearts need to be drawn, rather than the 9 on the printed icon. Additionally, while the printed "definitely not interested in" emoji is filled in with gray to make it easier for learners to visually differentiate from the other emojis, they don't need to color it in when drawing it.
  
  
• It is up the classroom instructor/facilitator to decide when to end this activity. The activity could continue for a specific number of minutes (such as 20 - 30 minutes, even if none of the Survey Forms are fully completed)
  
  or
  
  the instructor/facilitator could decide to end the activity when a certain number of participants have filled in all the data-points on their forms.
  
  
• After completing the activity, it may be productive to have the students check their answers against each other's forms or against the available Answer Key(s).