The Name
Game
The first
child says his or her name, then the next child says his
or her
name and repeats the first child's name. Play
continues until the
last child or the teacher has repeated
everyone's name.
Variation:
Have children sit in a circle on the floor. Hold up a beanbag and say,
"My name is _______, and I like __________." Pass the beanbag
to the child
beside you and have him/her repeat the sentence,
inserting his
or her name and the thing he/she likes. Continue
around the circle until everyone has had a
turn. Then go around the
circle again and have student volunteers try to
retell each
child's name and the specific thing he/she likes.
Name Game II
With ball (pass to a friend and
say I’m glad you're here _____.
Nimble Names
Help your children learn one
another's names with an activity that
will have them jumping for joy! Put an unlit candle in a candlestick
on the floor in your
group area. Invite each child, in turn, to jump over
the candle as the class recites the nursery
rhyme "Jack Be Nimble."
Of course, you'll replace the name "Jack" with the
name of the jumping
student. If desired, post a copy of the rhyme where everyone
can see it and use
sticky notes with the children's names to change the verse each time
you recite it.
Teacher Game
Have
children take turns being the teacher, who has the
children play classroom games such as "Simon
Says."
Friendship Walk
Have
all the children sit in a circle. Choose a
child. Turn on the children's
favorite music. The child should then begin to walk around the outside
of
the circle as the music plays. When you stop the
music, the child
should stop and hold hands with the child
closest to him. Begin the music.
Now the two
children walk around the circle. Each time you stop the music,
the children select the child they are standing
closest to. That child joins
their friendship
walk. The game continues until all of the children
are walking.
Something's Missing Memory Game
Collect a
book bag, a pack of crayons, a bottle of glue, a pair of
scissors,
and a pencil (and/or other school supply objects from your
classroom).
Show the supplies to the children; then ask them to cover
their eyes while
you remove one item from the group. Ask a volunteer to
guess which item
is missing; then return that item to the group.
Continue until each child
has a turn to guess or until interest wanes.
Store the supplies in the book
bag; then put the bag in your games center
for small groups to play during center time.
Bean Bag Name Game
Say
the poem as follows:
Bean
bag, Bean bag goes to you (Toss
bean bag to child)
This is what you need to do.
Say your name, so we can hear.
(Child
says his or her name)
(Child's name)
Everybody give a cheer!!!
Yeah!!!! (Child's name)!!!
Now your turn has come to an end,
So toss the bean bag to a friend.
When
every child has had a turn....on the last child say the
following ending...
Now
your turn has come to an end,
Say good-bye to our bean bag friend.
Another Bean Bag
Game
You
can have the class sit in a circle. When you are thrown
the bean
bag you catch it and say one thing that you like
to do in school!
Getting To Know You Game
This
works great with an edible snack like fruit gummies,
mini ritz bitz crackers,
pretzels, etc. Each child
takes a handful, while sitting in a circle. For each piece
they
have they have to tell something about themselves, a
delicious way to break the ice!
ABC Scavenger Hunt
This
is a nice game to play the first day. Divide your class
into small groups
and assign them certain letters of the
alphabet. They need to search
around the classroom for
things that begin with that letter.
School Lotto
Materials Needed:
9" square white poster board,
marker,
bingo chips
school photos
Directions:
Divide the poster board into 9 even squares. Put a photo in each square that
represents
school (bus, teacher, easel, etc.) Give each child bingo chips to cover
the picture.
Hot Cow Name Game
Have the students sit in a
circle. Pass around a stuffed cow
(or any other stuffed animal) to music, when the music stops
the student holding the cow has to say his/her name.
Continue until everyone has had a chance to tell his/her name.
The students love this and ask to do this again and again!
Brown Bag It
As a way of introducing
yourself on the first day of school, bring a brown bag
full of items that tell about yourself. Share these with your students.
They
could be things that tell about your family, an embarrassing moment, a
hobby,
etc. Then as a homework assignment for the first night, give each child
a brown lunch bag, with the poem attached. (See poem below)
Have children bring their bags full of 5 items to share with their classmates
the next day.
This is a fun way to get to know one another and find common interests!
Poem:
In this brown bag you will find,
Things that show I'm one of a kind,
5 items of stuff I like,
My family, friends, a hobby, or bike.
So when I share these things with you,
You'll find out things you never knew
Who Am I?
Give each child an index
card with the following sentence starters:
I am __________________.
I have _________________.
I like __________________.
The most interesting thing about me is _______________.
Who Am I? ____(name)_____.
Students fill in the blanks with
facts such as age or favorite things.
(Younger children will need help filling out their cards.) When there is
a few extra minutes in your day, pull a card from your stack. Have every
child stand in the room. Without reading the child's name, say 1 line at a
time.
If the sentence applies to them, they remain standing. If it doesn't, then
that child
sits down. The children standing will decrease as each line is read, until
1 child
remains. Students will not only learn more about their fellow friends,
but will also see how much they really do have in common.
Back To School
Night Scavenger Hunt
At back-to-school night,
send your students on a small scavenger hunt
to help them and their parents get more acquainted with your classroom.
Some places you might want to draw their attention to might be their
individual
desks, the reading area, the writing center, the class pet, and so on.
School Bus Game
Materials
Needed:
1/2 as many chairs as there are players
table and a pencil
a slip of paper for each player
Directions:
Play this game at home or daycare and or school. To set up the
game, put the chairs
in rows, like on bus. Write the names of all the players on the slips of
paper, and put them
on a table across the room from the chairs. One player is the school bus
driver. She or he
says: "the school bus is here. Let's all be on time. Pick up your tickets
over there, so we
can be in school by nine." After this is said, the other players run
to the table to find the
ticket with their name on it. If they find it, they run to the bus
and get a seat. Whoever is
left cannot ride the bus. Play the game over and over, and keep
score for perfect school
bus attendance. Whoever reaches a perfect score of 5 (for the 5 school
days of the week)
first gets to be the bus driver for the next round. Now this can be played
by preschoolers with
a little help it is fun, most of mine just laughed and laughed and the
just filled the air!
Name Games
I use this with
kindergarteners during the first week of school. I write the child's name
on an index card. I cut the letters apart and put them in an envelope
that has their name on the outside. They have to spell their name. They
can look at the envelope for an example, if needed. I also do this again
and cut their name into a puzzle. I start off with 3 pieces and when they
can conquer this easily, I cut it into 6 pieces. The key to this is to use
different colors, so that the kids at the same table don't mix their
pieces.
Here Are My
Classmates
Give
children an opportunity to learn more about each other with this fun
first-day activity.
Take a photo of each child on the first day of school. Then, if desired,
send a note home
asking parents to send a few pictures of the child the next day. As each
child arrives,
mount his photo(s) on a large sheet of construction paper; then label the
paper with his
name. During circle time, hold up one page at a time and invite the
pictured child to tell
about his photos and himself. Once everyone has a turn, bind the pages
together between
two construction-paper covers. Title the book " My Classmates";
then put the book in the reading center for the children to enjoy.
All Join Hands!
Seat your children in a circle. Call out a direction such as one of those
suggested below.
When the specified children stand, ask them to move to
the middle of the circle and join
hands. Then have them sit down where
they are. Repeat this process many times, having
children move from group
to group. Make your last direction one that will include everyone
such as
"Stand if you are a student in [teacher's name]'s class." Have all the
children join
hands and form a circle like the one they were in at the
beginning of the activity. Guide children
to summarize that they are all
alike and different in many ways, but they are all part of the same class!
Stand and hold hands if
you are wearing [sneakers]
you have [blue] eyes
you like [chocolate] ice cream
you have a [brother]
you have a [dog]