Jen O’Connor, Teacher

“Oh no, my goose is cooked!”

Today, I taught my students this American expression by way of the game Duck, Duck, Goose. We took the children outside onto the basketball court and attempted to keep as many as possible in the shaded part of the court. Most girls wear dresses, and so sitting on the grounds was not appealing. First, I had them hold hands and make a circle. This sounds like a relatively easy task, until you add in the cultural differences. I discovered that boys and girls are not supposed to touch and hold hands. They do not even stand in the same lines. Boys stand in one and girls in another.

After some creative thinking, the students were in a circle and seated. Then came the task of explaining the game. I told them that the game that we were going to play was called Duck, Duck, Goose. I started the game by touching each child’s head and calling, “Duck, duck, duck …”

You get the picture. I had the assistance of Laurie Harris. She sat, and when I got to her, I said, “Goose!” and began to run. The students really liked this part and were cheering. I ran all around the circle and sat in the spot that she was sitting, and she began to call, “Duck, duck, duck...”

I told her to pick someone that would catch her, so that they could see what would happen if the goose catches the duck. When the student caught her, she went to the “pot” in the middle of the circle, and I said, “Her goose is cooked.” Before the next student continued, I explain that, in America the expression, “My goose is cooked.” means that you are in trouble and were caught doing something that you should not have been doing. An example is if you were eating a snack before dinner and your parents caught you, you could say, ”
As the game continued and as the students (geese) were caught, I said, “Your goose is cooked.” It didn’t take long before all the students were saying the expression with me. They understood that the geese in the middle were being cooked because they were caught. Although the heat of the day did get the better of us and we had to get back inside into the classrooms, it was a great way for them to learn the American expression and have some fun at the same time. After all, this is summer camp.