What has he been doing?

This game helps to practice the meaning of present perfect continuous as "an activity which was in progress until very recently - we can still see the results"). You need to have explained this aspect of the present perfect continuous before you do this activity.

1. Divide the class into two groups.
2. A student from one group picks a card (see examples below) and tries to get his/her group to guess what's in the card by speaking and/or acting it out. They need to answer the question "What has he/she been doing?" For example, if the card says "You've been holding a cat", the student can say, "Oh! Look at all these hairs on my shirt!" and pretend to wipe them off. NOTE: The student must make clear what HAS JUST BEEN HAPPENING, not what IS happening, i.e., the CONSEQUENCE/RESULT of the action on the card. So, even if the group guesses what's on the card, don't give points if the student does not represent the result, because the meaning is not being conveyed properly.
3. Give a time limit to each card (no more than one minute). For each card, the team has up to three tries to get it right: if they get it right the first time, they win 10 points. If they get it right with a second try, it's 5 points. A third try is only 1 point.
4. After SS have guessed (or not) their card, a SS from the other team comes up and does the same.
5. Game ends when there are no more cards. The team with the most points wins.

SAMPLE CARDS:

• You've been talking to your boyfriend/girlfriend.
• You've been travelling for many hours.
• You've been watching videos/TV.
• You've been practicing in the language lab.
• You've been working under the hot sun.
• You've been playing video games.
• You've been carrying something heavy.
• You've been holding a cat.
• You've been travelling on a bad road.
• You've been playing with a small child.
• You've been washing dishes.
• You've been having a nightmare.
• You've been laughing.
• You've been swimming.
• You've been reading.
• You've been cooking.
• You've been hearing a dog barking for two hours.
• You've been singing.
• You've been running.
• You've been eating very spicy food.
• You've been crying.
• You've been painting your house.
• You've been doing exercise.
• You've been cleaning your room.
• You've been shopping.
• You've been working on the computer for many hours.
• You've been listening to very funny jokes.
• You've been standing in line for a long time.
• You've been studying grammar for three hours.

Created by Marlise, 2009