Begin+the+Year

What are your most successful beginning of the year activities, projects, lessons?

Sheri Edwards --- To build community and collaborative mindset:
 * Crayon Capers
 *  Give each pair of students a crayon and a blank piece of paper. Both students hold onto the crayon and must draw a picture // without talking. // Great debrief on what happened — what happened? what picture? leader? follower? decisions?
 * Balloon Bop
 * Group students (5 or less).
 * Give students a stack of balloons, roll of tape, one tack.
 * Directions: Students stay in area, except for one “gopher” who can move around the room. Be safe. The goal: Attach as many inflated balloons as possible to desks.
 * Note to teacher: Eventually a “gopher” will take a tack to pop others’ balloons. After “time” (your decision), review the goal. The goal is to “Attach as many inflated balloons as possible to desks.” Did they attach as many as possible, or did some get popped? Students assume it is a “team” competition, but that’s not what the goals said. Great debrief.


 * Lego Leaders
 * In an area students can’t see (I usually use the hallway), place a lego structure already completed.
 * In ziplock bags, place the exact legos that were in the pre-made structure; one bag per group.
 * Group students (5 or less). One student is leader — leader cannot used hands and must put hands behind back; only leader can see the pre-made structure, and may return to it as often as needed. Leader tells the other members how to build the structure.
 * Debrief: communication skills — how did you describe, direct, convey what was needed to build the structure? What worked? What didn’t?


 *  Splinters Read my hack . (from Michael Buist's Splinters )
 *  It’s a game that could be just a game, or could be used in debriefing to teach about collaboration and cooperation. I try to use several of these types of ideas at the beginning of each year. Directions: Read my hack.