English with Kirsty – episode 318
Board game localisation and how games can help us to learn languages 2/2
You can listen to episode 318 here:
This two-part content came out of a discussion at one of my meetings, when one of the participants shared about her work as a board games translator. I thought this was interesting,both to learn more about this work and to see how people are using board games for language learning – in terms of adults improving their skills, parents with multilingual children, and teachers in the language classroom.
It’s not a topic that I know a lot about. As someone with a visual impairment, it’s hard to find accessible games for me in English, my first language. It’s even harder in my additional ones. So I put up a poll on LinkedIn to see what others thought about the topic and then asked if some of them would like to come on the podcast for a group discussion. In the end, we had 6 people who wanted to take part, so I made two groups. This is the second one, with Sónia, Gwen, and Helene.
You can listen to group 1’s episode here.
In this session, we talked about:
- “Different ways in which my guests use board games – with friends, to meet new people, and in the language classroom
- How games can be a useful tool to reinforce what children have already learned
- How the goal of playing a game takes some of the pressure off useing the additional language
- Games that may not work so well if you know the language and not the culture
- Word games that can be played in other languages
- Board game cafes and meet-up groups for playing games and meeting new people – including speakers of other languages
- Game localisation – the balance between educating people about an existing culture and adapting the experience so that everyone can participate
In terms of games that you might like to play, this is what group 2 came up with:
- Sónia – Party & Co
- Helene – Codenames
- Gwen – Undercover.
Who are my guests?
Sónia Rio is an English teacher, private tutor, and freelance translator and interpreter from Portugal. She’s always had a strong passion for languages and the way they bring people and cultures together. In her free time, she enjoys travelling, running and going to the gym, as it helps her clear her mind and stay balanced. In this episode, we hear how Sónia uses board games in the language classroom.
Helene R. Gudmann is a board game enthusiast and language expert, She has spent more than a decade helping people communicate across languages and cultures. Her interests range from creative learning methods and terminology management to AI applications, technical documentation, and finding practical ways to bridge communication gaps. Helene talks about her experience of using board games as a way to meet new people and make new connections in her additional languages.
Gwendoline Clavé is an English to French translator from France. Her story with languages started when she was 8 or 9 years old and she’s been curious about them ever since. Gwen shares how English became the language of communication on a recent holiday with an international group and how board games in English were a way for the group to have fun together in this shared language.
How about you? Have you used games for learning, ventured into a board game cafe in a new city, or played games in a language that wasn’t your first language with an international group of friends?
How you can get in touch with me
I love to hear from my listeners! If you have any comments or questions, you can contact me using my contact form.
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