I help lead a group for international students on campus every Thursday, and next week we are going to further learn about American culture through the playing of board games. I think it'll be a lot of fun, as internationals are intrinsically drawn to the customs and mannerisms of Americans, and board games are certainly one of the places where we let our hair down and show our lighter side. And every cutlure has games, no matter how poor, so on some level everyone can instantly relate, even if they have trouble understanding the rules. They know it's okay to be fun and a little bit competitive, so they'll bring that attitude to the table and we'll enjoy ourselves.
We want games that are easy to understand and that internationals will want to play. Here are some we've suggested so far:
Yahtzee
Uno
Jenga
Chess
Pictionary
Guesstures
I think the game Balderdash would be hilarious, mainly because they'd have no clue what was going on, but their handwriting/grammer skills would give them away every time.
Question: If you were going to teach an international an American game (board/card game or otherwise) what would it be?
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5 comments:
definitely candyland.
i just don't think chess is easy. How about "memory" and you can discuss the word for the pictures in various languages.
Oh, I think a Monopoly marathon is in order. How else can you learn about good old American capitalism?
Yeah, I don't think chess is necessarily "easy," but many internationals know how to play better than Americans. It's part of their culture.
Kinda the same way with football. I try to explain that to internationals every now and then, and it's always hard because there are so many rules/strategies, even though most Americans would say they understand the game.
pit, othello, chutes and ladders, risk, checkers, clue!, life, backgammon, connect four, charades....
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