Getting to Know You - A Back to School Activity

School will soon be beginning for most of us.  I teach on the college level, but I still feel the most important thing I can do is to make the students feel connected to one another so that they at least know one other person in the class.  I always start each new class by playing a true/false game.  I start off the first class by listing four items about myself, three that are true and one that is false.  The students try to discover the false one.  On a 3” × 5” card, I then have the students write four things about themselves, three true and one false from which we, as a class, try to find the false one.  I then collect and save the cards.

 

At the next class meeting, I will choose 3-4 cards from which to read the true statements. As a class, we try to match the student to the card.  It really helps the students to relax and have fun at the same time plus they get to know each other. I usually do this activity for a couple of weeks until I sense that the students are comfortable being in the group.

 

By the way, here are my four statements.  Can you choose the false one?

1. I have 12 grandchildren, six of whom are adopted.
2. My husband asked me to marry me on our first date.
3. I am a big Jayhawk (Kansas University) fan.  (We live in Kansas.)
4. I have been teaching for over 40 years.

Give up?  You can find the answer on the page entitled Answers to Questions. 

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You might be interested in this back to school item, a glyph entitled Back to School Glyph for grades K-3. The students color or put different items in a school yard based on information about themselves. This glyph is an excellent activity for reading and following directions, and requires problem solving, communication, and data organization.