S ive F tories Card
Five-Card Stories is a card game designed for learners at A2-B1 levels on the CEFR. The 40 stories are based on the type of situations encountered in everyday life and can be understood and told by adolescent and adult learners (describing people, things, places, experiences, feelings).
Language objectives
Expand vocabulary.
Improve listening comprehension and active listening skills. Develop oral production skills. Develop strategic and communication skills.
Contents
The game consists of: 2 decks of 100 cards 1 dice instruction booklet
Object of the game
Each story consists of 5 illustrated cards. The players must find the 5 cards, put them in the correct order and then tell the story.
Preparing the deck
The game leader chooses the stories which are most appropriate for the language level of the learners. For up to 3 players, it is advisable to include at least 3 complete stories in the deck for each player. If there are more than 3 players, two complete stories should be included for each player. 1.
How to play
The game leader shuffles the deck and gives 5 cards to each player. The rest of the deck is placed face down on the table. The game leader then takes the top 5 cards from the deck and places them face up on the table. The cards in this group are known as “face-up cards”.
The youngest player starts, and the game is played clockwise. All the players can do one of the following when it is their turn:
a Take a card from the deck and discard one of their own, by placing it with the face-up cards.
b Take one of the face-up cards and discard one of their own, by placing it with the face-up cards.
At the end of each round, all the players should still have 5 cards each. If at any point there are 5 face-up cards which form a complete story, they should be removed and put aside.
The first player with a complete five-card story should show it to the rest of the players and put the cards on the table in the correct order. The player is then awarded two points.
Once a complete story has been found, what happens next?
The player who has the complete story, throws the dice and based on the result, the story is told as follows:
1 The player on your right: the player on the right of the person who threw the dice tells the story and wins a point.
2 The player on your left: person who threw the dice tells the story and wins a point.
3 Choose a player: the player who threw the dice chooses another player to tell the story, the chosen player wins a point.
4 All together: all the players must contribute to telling the story. The players take it in turns to add an element or a detail to the story. At the end of the story all the players win a point.
5 The lowest score: the player with the lowest score must tell the story. This gives the player with the lowest score a chance to win another point. NB:Ifthereismorethanone playerwiththesamescoreorthisisonlythefirstround,the playerwhothrewthedicechoosestheplayerwhomusttell thestory.
6 You tell the story: the player who completed the story also tells the story and wins another point.
Important: the game leader chooses the tense which must be used to tell the story. It can be either present or past.
Be careful: if there are only two players, one player may decide to tell the story and there is no need to throw the dice.
End of the game
The game ends when the time established by the game leader is up. The player with the highest score is the winner.
Alternative ways of using the cards
1 Each student is given a complete 5-card story. The student then puts them in order and all the students take it in turns to tell the story, either in the present or past tense. They can also write the story.
2 The student is given the first three cards of a story, invents a possible ending and tells it to the other students.
3 The student is given the last three cards of a story, invents a beginning and tells it to the other students.
4 The game leader shows the students one card at a time and asks them to invent the next part of the story and to tell it to the other students.
5 The student is given all 5 cards of a story: without showing them to the others, the student puts them in order and then tells the story to the others. The other students never see the cards.
6 The student receives a complete 5-card story and then invents a way to continue it.
7 The student must find a title for the story.
8 The student is shown a complete story and then tells the others about a similar story that happened to them personally or to someone else they know.
9 Five story cards are on the table in the correct order, but one of them is face down. The student must try to describe the illustration on the card which is face down.
The student writes a dialogue based on the story. 10
These are only some suggestions for games and activities using FiveCard Stories. The game can be used in different ways depending on the language level of the players and their language objectives. It can be used as the basis for many other activities and is an effective teaching aid which stimulates English language learning.
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What is it?
A card game in which players learn the words for everyday objects and describe what they are made of. It enriches vocabulary and develops players’ descriptive skills.
CEFR: Common European Framework of Reference for Languages
A1 Beginner
A2 Elementary
B1 Intermediate
B2 Upper Intermediate
C1 Advanced
C2 Proficiency
Five-Card Stories by Joy Olivier
©2025 ELi s.r.l.
P.O. Box 6 - 62019 Recanati - Italy
Tel. +39 071 750701
www.elionline.com – www.elilanguagegames.com
English Version: Karen Mackie
Art Director: Letizia Pigini
Editorial Dept.: Francesca Bugiolacchi - Gigliola Capodaglio
Illustrations: Silvia De Ventura
Production Manager: Francesco Capitano
Graphic Design and Layout: Gianni Caputo
Printed in Italy by Tecnostampa
Pigini Group Printing Division - Loreto - Trevi
ISBN: 978-88-536-4511-1
Five-Card Stories81852V77270
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