Menu Screen

This is how your students see a Mix & Gap resource when they open it in TaskMagicPlay.

Each screen thumbnail opens a different game or activity.

Students can preview the text before doing any of the activities. They can click on the + button to hide the activity thumbnails and view more of the text.

You decide which exercises will be available when the student opens your file. If you make all exercises available, the students will have access to up to 23 separate games and exercises in Mix & Gap.

16 activities are generated automatically based on your text. The remaining 7 activities - Gap-fill, Find it!, Multi Gaps, Write Gaps, Prompt Gaps, Long Gaps, Comprehension - need to be created by the teacher when they create their resource.

You can also create individual exercise files which open directly at the specified activity, by-passing this menu screen.

Edit Screen

This is where you create your own Mix & Gap resources or edit existing ones.

Simply type or paste your text into the text box. The sorts of text you can use include: a single block of text, separate paragraphs, a letter, an email message, a poem, a song, a rhyme, a recipe, etc.

The word limit for Mix & Gap files is 500 words.

16 activities are generated automatically based on your text. The remaining 7 activities - Gap-fill, Find it!, Multi Gaps, Write Gaps, Prompt Gaps, Long Gaps, Comprehension - require additional input from you when you create the resource.

A sound file can be included to support your exercise.

Use the "Include these activities..." tab to choose which activities will be available to your students when they open your file.

Use the "Create individual game files..." tab to create individual files which open directly at a particular activity.

Worksheet Screen

Choose from a selection of printed activities based on the content of your interactive TaskMagic resource.

Tile 3x3: cut out and re-order the 8 squares of text (or simply number them).

Tile 4x4: cut out and re-order the 15 squares of text (or simply number them).

Tile 5x5: cut out and re-order the 24 squares of text (or simply number them).

Gap-fill: fill the gaps in the text.

1 in 3: re-build the text by selecting each time from the 3 options.

Space: re-write the text, inserting the spaces and punctuation.

Anagrams: re-write the text by putting the letters of each word into the correct order.

Find it!: read the text and find the matching information / answers to the questions.

Multi Gaps: multiple choice gap-fill.

Write Gaps: write the missing word or phrase for each gap using context clues.

Prompt Gaps: write the missing word or phrase for each gap based on the prompt provided.

Long Gaps: choose the word or phrase for each gap from the list below.

Comprehension: multiple choice reading comprehension.

Worksheets automatically resize to fit your printer settings.

Tile 3x3

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

All of the text is displayed as 8 separate tiles in a 3x3 grid. (The text is divided automatically into 8 roughly equal chunks).

The student has to put the text back into the correct order by dragging tiles into the correct position. (Any tile can be dragged into the empty space.)

When a student clicks the "Check" button, correct tiles are highlighted in yellow.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators.

If a student answers incorrectly, they can keep trying until they get the correct answer. Incorrect answers do not affect the score.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text for a particular square.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and drag tiles into the correct place.
• The IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise on mini-whiteboards or in exercise books, with students writing the numbers of the tiles representing the correct sequence.
• With mini-whiteboards, the above can also be done one tile at a time, with the student writing the number of the next tile of text to fit in the next blank space.
• Discuss why particular tiles cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc.
• A Tile 3x3 worksheet can also be printed out. This contains the whole text separated into 8 roughly equal chunks and requires the student to number the chunks of text in the correct order, or the squares of text can be cut out for a kinaesthetic sequencing activity.

Tile 4x4

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

All of the text is displayed as 15 separate tiles in a 4x4 grid. (The text is divided automatically into 15 roughly equal chunks).

The student has to put the text back into the correct order by dragging tiles into the correct position. (Any tile can be dragged into the empty space.)

When a student clicks the "Check" button, correct tiles are highlighted in yellow.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators.

If a student answers incorrectly, they can keep trying until they get the correct answer. Incorrect answers do not affect the score.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text for a particular square.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and drag tiles into the correct place.
• The IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise on mini-whiteboards or in exercise books, with students writing the numbers of the tiles representing the correct sequence.
• With mini-whiteboards, the above can also be done one tile at a time, with the student writing the number of the next tile of text to fit in the next blank space.
• Discuss why particular tiles cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc.
• A Tile 4x4 worksheet can also be printed out. This contains the whole text separated into 15 roughly equal chunks and requires the student to number the chunks of text in the correct order, or the squares of text can be cut out for a kinaesthetic sequencing activity.

Tile 5x5

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

All of the text is displayed as 24 separate tiles in a 5x5 grid. (The text is divided automatically into 24 roughly equal chunks).

The student has to put the text back into the correct order by dragging tiles into the correct position. (Any tile can be dragged into the empty space.)

When a student clicks the "Check" button, correct tiles are highlighted in yellow.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators.

If a student answers incorrectly, they can keep trying until they get the correct answer. Incorrect answers do not affect the score.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text for a particular square.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and drag tiles into the correct place.
• The IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise on mini-whiteboards or in exercise books, with students writing the numbers of the tiles representing the correct sequence.
• With mini-whiteboards, the above can also be done one tile at a time, with the student writing the number of the next tile of text to fit in the next blank space.
• Discuss why particular tiles cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc.
• A Tile 5x5 worksheet can also be printed out. This contains the whole text separated into 24 roughly equal chunks and requires the student to number the chunks of text in the correct order, or the squares of text can be cut out for a kinaesthetic sequencing activity.

1 in 3

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

The original text is split (automatically) into at least 10 chunks (the number of chunks of text depends on the length of text).

3 pieces of text are displayed at a time, and the student has to choose the correct piece in order to rebuild the original text.

If the student chooses correctly, the text segment is added to the main text and the exercise proceeds. If they answer incorrectly, they must keep trying until they get the correct answer.

Incorrect answers affect the score, which represents the percentage of correct clicks.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text or simply the correct letter: a, b or c,
• Invite / select students to come to the board and click on the correct answer.
• For each part of the text, students can be asked to write the correct letter of the next part on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next part.
• Discuss why particular chunks of text cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc.
• A 1 in 3 worksheet can also be printed out. This displays the whole text as a series of multiple choice questions, requiring the student to choose the correct part: a, b or c.

Gap-fill

One of the five gap-fill activities in Mix & Gap.

This exercise is NOT automatically generated. The words to be gapped are selected by the teacher when they create the exercise.

See this video tutorial on creating a Gap-Fill exercise.

The teacher also decides whether or not gapped words are included along with the exercise. It can be a good idea to omit the word list when there is a sound file attached to the exercise, in order to make it more challenging.

Students type (or drag, if the word list is available) the missing words into the gaps.

If a student answers incorrectly, they must keep trying until they get the correct answer.

Incorrect answers affect the score, which represents the percentage of correct attempts.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and type / drag in the correct answer.
• For each gap in the text, students can be asked to write the correct answer on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next gap.
• The IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the missing words in the correct order.
• A Gap-fill worksheet can also be printed out. This displays the whole text with gaps of equal length, with or without the word list (depending on how the on-screen exercise was saved).
• Discuss why particular words cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc.

Mix Single

Available for texts of up to 80 words only.

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

The whole text is displayed jumbled up at the bottom of the screen.

Students drag the words from the bottom of the screen into the correct position in the box at the top of the screen.

If a student answers incorrectly, they must keep trying until they get the correct answer.

Incorrect answers do not affect the score, which represents the number of words correctly placed.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the next word.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and drag the next word into position.
• For each word in the text, students can be asked to write the next correct word on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next word.
• The IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the words of the text in the correct order. This is a very challenging exercise, but it is made easier to achieve if a sound file is included, making it into a kind of dictation exercise.
• Discuss why particular words cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc.

Text Mix

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

The whole text is displayed jumbled up at the bottom of the screen.

Students type the words of the text into the box at the top of the screen, in the correct order. (They can also drag the words from the bottom of the screen).

When the "Check" button is pressed, any words which are correct are kept in place (and the corresponding words are removed from the box below). If a word is incorrectly placed, that word and any word which follows it will be removed from the text box.

Incorrect answers do not affect the score, which represents the number of words correctly placed.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the next word.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and type or drag the next word into position.
• For each word in the text, students can be asked to write the next correct word on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next word.
• Provided the text fits onto the text box at the bottom of the screen (without scrolling), the IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the words of the text in the correct order. This is a very challenging exercise, but it is made easier to achieve if a sound file is included, making it into a kind of dictation exercise.
• Discuss why particular words cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc.

Next Letter 1

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

The whole text is displayed but with each letter replaced by a square or symbol.

Students type the words of the text starting from the beginning. Accented characters, spaces and punctuation are already in the text.

If a student types (or clicks on) the correct letter, that letter will appear in the text. If an incorrect letter is pressed, the student must keep trying until they choose the next correct letter.

Incorrect answers affect the score, which represents the percentage of correct attempts.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators. Also tests spellng.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link, and makes the exercise into a dictation exercise.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the next word.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and type the next word (which tests their spelling, unlike the first suggestion above).
• For each word in the text, students can be asked to write the next correct word on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next word.
• Depending on the length of the text, the IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the words of the text in the correct order. This is a very challenging exercise, but it is made easier to achieve if a sound file is included, making it into a kind of dictation exercise.

Next Letter 2

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

The whole text is displayed but with each vowel replaced by a square.

Students type the missing letters of the text starting from the beginning. Accented characters, spaces and punctuation are already in the text.

If a student types (or clicks on) the correct letter, that letter will appear in the text. If an incorrect letter is pressed, the student must keep trying until they choose the next correct letter.

Incorrect answers affect the score, which represents the percentage of correct attempts.

Tests word recognition and spelling.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by saying the next letter.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and complete the next word or two.
• Students can be asked to write the next correct word on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next word.
• Depending on the length of the text, the IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the words of the text in the correct order.

Tower Block

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

The original text is split (automatically) into 16 roughly equal chunks, with the first chunk of text displayed in the text box at the top.

4 pieces of text are displayed at a time, and the student has to choose the next correct piece in order to rebuild the original text.

If the student clicks on the correct piece of text, it is added to the main text, and the exercise proceeds. A storey is added to the tower block for each correct answer. The aim is to build a 15 storey tower block.

If a student answers incorrectly, the tower collapses and the game is over.

4 "play safes" are available, which allow the student to make an incorrect guess without being penalised.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators.

There is no time pressure.

Sound is never available in a Tower Block exercise.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text or simply the correct letter: a, b, c or d,
• Invite / select students to come to the board and click on the correct answer.
• For each part of the text, students can be asked to write the correct letter of the next part on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next part
• Play the game as if it were "Who wants to be a millionaire?", with the teacher offering a "50/50", students showing hands or using mini-whiteboards for "ask the audience", or choosing a class mate for "phone a friend"
• Discuss why particular chunks cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc.

Space

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

All of the text is displayed with all spaces and punctuation removed.

When a student clicks at the dividing point between words, the missing space and or punctuation is automatically inserted.

Tests the student's ability to recognise where words begin and end.

If a student answers incorrectly, they can keep trying until they get the correct answer.

An incorrect answer affects the score, which represents the percentage of correct clicks.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out a sentence or group of words.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and click to separate the words.
• Provided the whole text fits into the text box (and doesn't scroll), the IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students rewriting the text with spaces and punctuation included.
• A Space worksheet can also be printed out. This contains the whole text run together without gaps or punctuation, with alternate lines left blank for students to write in the correct version. (Alternatively students can draw lines separating the words in the continuous text).

Next Word

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

The aim is to rebuild the original text word by word, choosing each time from a list of 10 possible words.

The correct word and 9 randomly selected wrong words appear at the bottom of the screen.

Students click the correct next word to add it to the text box above.

If a student answers incorrectly, they must keep trying until they get the correct answer.

Incorrect answers affect the score, which represents the percentage of correct clicks.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link. It also makes it into a kind of multi-choice dictation.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the next word or the number of the next word.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and click the next correct word.
• For each word in the text, students can be asked to write the next correct word on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next word.
• Where a sound file is used, this can be used as an extra help if students are unable to agree on the next correct word.
• Ask students to try to predict the next sentence or group of words.
• Discuss why particular words cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc.

Word Guess

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

The whole text is displayed but with each letter replaced by a square or symbol.

Students guess / predict the words which appear in the text by typing a word and pressing Enter or clicking on the OK button.

If the word is correct, all instances of that word will appear in the text.

Incorrect answers affect the score, which represents the percentage of correct attempts.

There is the option to buy a letter, to reveal all instances of a particular letter. This affects the score.

A 50:50 button allows you to reveal 50% of the remaining letters in the text.

By pressing one of the three clock buttons, the student can reveal the whole text for 15 seconds.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators. Also tests spellng and memory.

There is no time pressure to complete the exercise.

A sound file is never available for the Word Guess exercise.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Without showing the text previously, tell the class what the text is about in general, and ask them to predict 10 words that they think will appear in the text. They can make notes in exercise books or on mini-whiteboards.
• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the next word, or any word that they think will be in the text.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and type the next word, or any word that they think will be in the text (which tests their spelling, unlike the first suggestion above).
• Use the 50:50 function to make it easier for students to decipher words in the text (and then repeat some of the above).
• Use the timer button to show the text for 15 seconds, telling students not to write anything down. Once the timer is finished they can write down as many words as they can that have yet to be guessed.
• Use the 50:50 function as a prompt for students to attempt to read out the text. You can provide a few key words, if you like, to make it easier.
• Depending on the length of the text, use the 50:50 function and use the IWB screen as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the words of the text in the correct order.

Anagrams

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

The whole text is displayed but with each letter replaced by a square or symbol. Words of 2 letters or less are displayed in the text.

Students click on any of the word shapes to reveal an anagram of the chosen word at the bottom of the screen. They then click on the letters of the word in the correct order.

If a student reorders the letters of the word correctly, the word will appear in the text.

Incorrect clicks affect the score, which represents the percentage of correct clicks.

Tests the student's understanding of the text, grammatical understanding, word recognition, spelling and memory.

There is no time pressure to complete the exercise.

A sound file can make the exercise easier.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Click on a word shape to reveal an anagram, then invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the word or spelling it out correctly.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and choose their own word, reveal the anagram and reorder the letters.
• Reveal a word and give students a short time to write the unscrambled word on mini-whiteboards.
• Once you have completed more than half of the text, and provided that the text fits into the text box without scrolling, the IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the text out with missing words included. You can tell them that you are prepared to show them x number of anagrams or allow x number of students to come to the board to reveal the anagram of a word (without putting the letters into the correct order). Use the IWB to check the exercise after a given time.
• An Anagrams worksheet is also available. It shows the whole text as a series of anagrams, with alternate lines left blank for students to write the correct version.

Click & Fill

This exercise is automatically generated. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

The whole text is displayed but with each letter replaced by a square or symbol.

Students can click anywhere in the text and type in the missing words. Unlike Next Letter, accented characters are not already in the text.

If a student types (or clicks on) the correct letter, that letter will appear in the text. If an incorrect letter is pressed, the student must keep trying until they choose the next correct letter.

Incorrect answers affect the score, which represents the percentage of correct attempts.

There is the option to buy a letter, to reveal all instances of a particular letter. This affects the score.

A 50:50 button allows you to reveal 50% of the remaining letters in the text.

A "Next Letter" button allows the student to reveal the next letter after the cursor. This affects the overall score.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators. Also tests spelling and memory.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link, and makes the exercise into a dictation exercise.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the next word.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and type the next word (which tests their spelling, unlike the first suggestion above).
• For each word in the text, students can be asked to write the next correct word on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next word.
• Use the 50:50 function to make it easier for students to decipher words in the text (and then repeat some of the above).
• Use the 50:50 function as a prompt for students to attempt to read out the text. You can provide a few key words, if you like, to make it easier.
• Depending on the length of the text, the IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the words of the text in the correct order. This is a very challenging exercise, but it is made easier to achieve if a sound file is included, making it into a kind of dictation exercise. You can also make it easier by completing part of the text beforehand, or by using the 50:50 function.

Invaders II

This exercise is automatically generated for texts with 30 or more words. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

A randomly selected part of the text is displayed but with 10 letters replaced by squares.

The missing letters are displayed underneath the game box in random order, and students have to click them in the correct order.

Time pressure - the student must click all of the letters before the blocks fall to the bottom.

5 incorrect letter attempts results in all the blocks falling.

As more correct answers are given, the blocks begin to fall faster and faster. When blocks reach the bottom, they begin to stack up. The game is over when the pile of blocks reaches the top of the game area.

The score represents the number of correct clicks.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators. Also tests spelling and memory.

A sound file is not available for Invaders II in Mix & Gap.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard. When used in an IT room, it is a good idea for you to keep a record on the board of the the highest scores for a particular file, to introduce an element of competition.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers.
• Invite / select students to come to the board - best to have the next student ready to ensure a swift changeover.
• Use the game as a random gap generator and ask students to write the missing information in exercise books or on mini-whiteboards. After checking the answer, press Restart to generate the next gap.

Snake

This exercise is automatically generated for texts with 30 or more words. See this video tutorial on the 16 automatically generated exercises in Mix & Gap.

A randomly selected part of the text is displayed but with 15 letters replaced by squares.

The missing letters are hidden in snake form in the letter grid.

The student clicks on the first missing letter and drags across the remaining missing letters in the correct order to reveal the snake.

Time pressure - 40 seconds are available. After 10 seconds the first letter is displayed. After 20 seconds the shape of the word snake is shown. After 40 seconds the answer is given. The score depends on how quickly the correct answer is found.

No penalty for incorrect answers.

The whole game is timed and lasts for a maximum of 3 minutes.

Tests the student's understanding of the text and their ability to put items of text into the correct sequence using context, vocabulary and grammatical indicators. Also tests spellng and memory.

A sound file is not available for Snake in Mix & Gap.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard. When used in an IT room, it is a good idea for you to keep a record on the board of the the highest scores for a particular file, to introduce an element of competition.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers / read out the sentence with the missing letters included.
• Invite / select students to come to the board - best to have the next student ready to ensure a swift changeover.
• Use the game as a random gap generator and ask students to write the missing information in exercise books or on mini-whiteboards. After checking the answer, press Restart to generate the next gap.

Find it!

This exercise is NOT automatically generated but is created by the teacher when they create the TaskMagic file. To make the Find it! exercise available, the teacher selects (highlights) a word or group of words from the text and writes a prompt for each word or group of words. See this video tutorial on creating Find it! exercises.

The whole text is displayed in a scrollable text box at the top of the screen.

To complete the exercise, students click on one of the prompts, then highlight the piece of text in the text box which relates to this prompt. eg. if the prompt is "I go to school" the piece of text to be highlighted could be "Je vais au collège".

If a student answers incorrectly, they must keep trying until they get the correct answer.

Incorrect answers affect the score, which represents the percentage of correct attempts.

Tests the student's understanding of specific parts of the text, its meaning etc.

When creating the exercise the teacher decides whether prompts are to appear in random order or in their original sequence. An easy way to create a discovery exercise which teaches students the meaning of the whole text is to include prompts for all of the text, and include the prompts in their original sequence.

There is no time pressure.

Sound is not used in Find it!.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and select the correct answer from the text.
• For each prompt, students can be asked to write the correct answer on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next prompt.
• A Find it! worksheet can also be printed out. This displays the whole text at the top with the prompts listed below, either randomly or in the original sequence (depending on how the on-screen exercise was saved).
• Find it! can be a good way of teaching vocabulary in context, by including prompts with a mixture of known and new vocabulary.

Multi Gaps

One of the five gap-fill activities in Mix & Gap, Multi Gaps is a multiple choice gap-fill activity with between 2 and 4 options for each gap.

This exercise is NOT automatically generated. The words to be gapped are selected by the teacher when they create the exercise.

The teacher must also specify the multiple choice options for each gap (ie. wrong answers or additional correct answers).

See this video tutorial on creating Multi Gaps exercises.

Students click on the correct answer for each gap.

If a student answers incorrectly, they must keep trying until they get the correct answer.

Incorrect answers affect the score. 2 scores are given: (1) the percentage of correct clicks; (2) the number of questions answered correctly at the first attempt.

Can be used to test students' lexical and grammatical knowledge.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link. Where a sound file is attached to the file, the teacher can decide whether or not the audio is made available for this exercise.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text or the letter of the correct answer.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and click the correct answer.
• For each gap in the text, students can be asked to write the correct answer on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next gap.
• The IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the correct answer for each gap.
• A Multi Gaps worksheet can also be printed out. This displays the whole text with the multiple choice gaps listed below the text.
• Discuss why particular words cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc.

Write Gaps

One of the five gap-fill activities in Mix & Gap, Write Gaps is a write-in-the-answer gap-fill activity where students use context only to help them fill in the gaps.

This exercise is NOT automatically generated. The words to be gapped are selected by the teacher when they create the exercise.

The teacher can also specify up to 3 additional correct answers for each gap.

See this video tutorial on how to create a Write Gaps exercise.

Students type in the correct answer for each gap.

Students have 3 attempts at each gap. After the 3rd attempt, the answer is given.

Incorrect answers affect the score. 2 scores are given: (1) the percentage of correct clicks; (2) the number of questions answered correctly at the first attempt.

Can be used to test students' lexical and grammatical knowledge. More challenging than other gap-fill types because no clues or prompts are provided, and there is no word list to choose from.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link. Where a sound file is attached to the file, the teacher can decide whether or not the audio is made available for this exercise.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text for each gap.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and write in the correct answer (using the IWB keyboard).
• For each gap in the text, students can be asked to write the correct answer on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next gap.
• The IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the correct answer for each gap.
• A Write Gaps worksheet can also be printed out. This displays the whole text with a numbered list below the text for students to write their answers.
• Discuss why particular words cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc, and what type of word is required for each gap.

Prompt Gaps

One of the five gap-fill activities in Mix & Gap, Prompt Gaps is a write-in-the-answer gap-fill activity where students are given a clue or prompt to help them fill in each gap.

This exercise is NOT automatically generated. The words to be gapped are selected by the teacher when they create the exercise.

The teacher specifies a prompt for each gap. (e.g. a verb in the infinitive requiring a conjugated answer; a translation; a verb requiring a noun based on it, etc.)

The teacher can also specify up to 3 additional correct answers for each gap.

See this video tutorial on creating a Prompt Gaps exercise.

Students type in the correct answer for each gap.

Students have 3 attempts at each gap. After the 3rd attempt, the answer is given.

Incorrect answers affect the score. 2 scores are given: (1) the percentage of correct clicks; (2) the number of questions answered correctly at the first attempt.

Can be used to test students' lexical and grammatical knowledge.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link. Where a sound file is attached to the file, the teacher can decide whether or not the audio is made available for this exercise.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text for each gap.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and write in the correct answer (using the IWB keyboard).
• For each gap in the text, students can be asked to write the correct answer on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next gap.
• The IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the correct answer for each gap.
• A Prompt Gaps worksheet can also be printed out. This displays the whole text with a numbered list below the text for students to write their answers.
• Discuss why particular words cannot be correct given the context / grammar etc, and what type of word is required for each gap.

Long Gaps

One of the five gap-fill activities in Mix & Gap, Long Gaps requires students to select from a list of words or phrases to fill the gaps in the text.

This exercise is NOT automatically generated. The words or phrases to be gapped are selected by the teacher when they create the exercise.

See this video tutorial on how to create a Long Gaps exercise.

Students click on the correct answer for each gap.

If a student answers incorrectly, they must keep trying until they get the correct answer.

Incorrect answers affect the score. 2 scores are given: (1) the percentage of correct clicks; (2) the number of questions answered correctly at the first attempt.

Can be used to test students' lexical and grammatical knowledge.

This exercise is similar in a way to other sequencing exercises available in Mix & Gap (e.g. Tower Block, 1 in 3, Tiles), but the big difference is that the teacher specifies where the text is broken up - it isn't done automatically. This means that entire sentences can be used as gaps, and the focus is much more on meaning than on the mechanical sequencing of items based on sentence level grammar.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file makes the exercise easier but helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link. Where a sound file is attached to the file, the teacher can decide whether or not the audio is made available for this exercise.

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers, eg. by reading out the appropriate piece of text or the letter of the correct answer.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and click the correct answer.
• For each gap in the text, students can be asked to write the correct answer on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next gap.
• The IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the correct answer for each gap.
• A Long Gaps worksheet can also be printed out. This displays the whole text with the gaps listed below the text.
• Discuss why particular answers cannot be correct given the context etc.

Comprehension

A multi-choice reading comprehension with between 2 and 4 options for each question.

This exercise is NOT automatically generated. The questions and multiple choice answers are chosen by the teacher when they create the exercise. Each question can have 2, 3 or 4 multiple choice answers, so it can also be used for True or False questions.

See this video tutorial on how to make a Comprehension exercise.

Students click on the correct answer for each question.

If a student answers incorrectly, they must keep trying until they get the correct answer.

Incorrect answers affect the score. 2 scores are given: (1) the percentage of correct clicks; (2) the number of questions answered correctly at the first attempt.

Can be used to test students' understanding of the text.

There is no time pressure.

The use of a sound file helps to reinforce the sound-spelling link. Where a sound file is attached to the file, the teacher can decide whether or not the audio is made available for this exercise. (Or cover up the text and use it as a multiple choice listening exercise).

Can be used on individual PCs or on interactive whiteboard.

IWB options:

• Invite / select students to give answers.
• Invite / select students to come to the board and click the correct answer.
• For each question, students can be asked to write the correct answer on mini-whiteboards, before checking the answer and moving on to the next question.
• The IWB screen can be used as the basis for a written exercise in exercise books, with students writing the correct answer for each question.
• A Comprehension worksheet can also be printed out. This displays the whole text with the multiple choice questions listed below the text.