Getting+to+Know+Your+Students

Getting to Know Your Students - Ideas from Your Peers

**__Sidney Materi - Getting To Know Your Students__** 1.) This is an activity that I found last semester when doing research for the get-to-know-you lab in SEED 420. I really liked this once I used it in class so I am going to share it for this as well. One of the best parts about this activity is all you need is paper and writing utensils. Students will each have a piece of paper and will number each side from one to fifteen (or however many students are in the classroom). On the front side they will write fifteen interesting/unique things about themselves. These could be anything from where they were born to what they did over the summer, etc. When they have completed that, the students will then pair up with another person in the classroom. They will write that students name next to the number one and write down one of the interesting facts that person shares with them and in turn will share one of this interesting facts with that person. The students will then cross off the interesting facts they already shared with someone else. This is repeated between the students with each other until they have one interesting fact about each person in the classroom and have crossed off all their interesting facts. After everyone has shared all their interesting facts, each student will stand at the front of the class as their classmates each read off the interesting facts that they learned about that student. Then the whole class will be able to hear all the facts about that person, and each person will have to contribute one of them. This can be kind of hard if you have bigger classes but you could always just do a number that is half the size of the class.

2.) Another one I like is called “The Artist Game.” In this game everyone has a piece of paper and writing utensils and you give each person 5 minutes to draw a picture that shows who they are and what they believe in without using words or numbers. After the five minutes you collect all the paper and show each of the photos to the whole group one at a time and then everyone has to try and guess whose picture it is. After they figure out who it is then you allow the person who drew the picture to explain what it means and how it shows who they are. I found this on www.training-games.com

I particularly liked two ideas and would combine them. They are “pass the spool” and “2 truths and 1 lie”. As the students would pass the spool, each person would tell share 2 truths about him- or herself and a lie, which the class would need to determine which idea was the lie. In addition, I would then have the student share for what reason they chose to take my class, and “for a blow-off class” isn’t acceptable. Building on the web created by tossing the spool of thread, I would end the session by talking about how we all rely on one another to be successful in our class and classroom, and achievement is attained by everyone working together toward a common goal: lifting one another up to each person’s full potential. Both of these ideas were found at http://www.superteacherworksheets.com/beginning-of-year.html.
 * Amy Burns, Get To Know You Activities Assignment**

Another idea, especially for middle schoolers, is the ‘find your match’ game where names of couples or related person and their occupation are written on two notecards. The object is to walk around the room looking for your match. Once the pairs find one another, each student interviews the other using a short sheet of questions. Each student then introduces their pair-partner to the rest of the class using the information on their interview sheet. This idea was found at http://www.ehow.com/way_5456218_first-day-high-school-activities.html.


 * From Dr. DeBates**

Sit in a circle. Pass around a bowl of M and Ms and tell each student to pick out five. Tell the students that for each color of M and M they have, they are to tell something about themselves OR it could relate to the class being taught. Red – something personal about themselves that they are willing to share (what they did over the summer, what grade they're in, etc.); Yellow - something about their family (number of siblings, what mom or dad does for a living); Orange – favorite TV show; Green – something about school (favorite subject, awards and accomplishments); and Tan – something about their hobbies or activities. Variation - you could divide class into groups for the activity and then have each group report back to the class the most interesting thing they learned from one of their classmates. **Audience:** I would use this with both middle and high school students; It is important to limit the number of M and Ms or the activity will take too long.
 * Title of Activity: M & M Reality **
 * Description of Activity:**

From Catheryn Kunz I feel the first day of school can be very stressful and nerve-racking for students and teachers. It is important to have activities planned to allow students and teachers to get to know each other and to create that safe and welcoming environment. You could use any of these ideas for middle and high school.

1. Icebreaker: Find Your Match Game (great for a Career Exploration class) Each student will receive one index card. On the cards there will be a famous person name or an object. For example, one student might have Bill Gates the matching student would have the card Microsoft, or another student might have Julia Child and the matching student might have the cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Once all the students have their own index card the entire class will stand, hold up their cards for everyone to see, and walk around the room looking for their match. The catch is students are not allowed to speak until they have found their match. Once students have found their match they will then sit and interview each other. Questions can be: What was the last school you attended? What are some of your interests or hobbies? Name one thing you feel you can work on being better at and one thing you have mastered? How old are you? <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Etc. <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">After the interviews are complete, each pair will introduce their match to the entire class presenting the information gathered during the interviews.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Materials Needed: Index Cards, Interview Sheet with questions, Pens and Pencils

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">I received this activity from: <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">[]

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">2. Icebreaker: Who Am I? <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">When students come into the classroom you are to place a name tag on their backs without them seeing what is written on them. On the name tags there are the names of famous people in history or present day. The students are then required to go around the room only asking questions that can be answered with a yes or a no. The students’ goal is to try to be the first one to guess who is on their back.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Materials Needed: Name Tags

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">I received this idea from the on campus ministry at SDSU NAVS (Navigators)

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;"> 3. Game/Activity: Murder <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">This game is a variation of the criminal card game. Have a deck of cards for your students, once they arrived asked them to draw one card from the deck and not to show any of the other students. Be certain that you have just the right number of cards for students (no more or less) and to have the Queen of Spades as well. Whoever draws the Queen of Spades is the murderer. You can then give a tour of your classroom to the other students pointing out different areas of the classroom and what that area is used for. While that is happening the murderer can “kill” the victims or classmates by winking at them. The fun part is students can die anyway they like when they see the wink. The object of all other players is to not get killed and to try to identify the murderer. <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">A neat thing to do after the game is have the students then write about it in their journals or write a short paragraph to you. They can write about the experience or about the emotions that went with it (fear, anticipation, relaxed, alert etc.)

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Materials Needed: Deck of cards

<span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">I received this activity from: <span style="font-family: 'Verdana','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">[|http://www.kimskorner4teachertalk.com/classmanagement/icebreakers.html#Murder]