Peek-a-Who: My Tried and True Teaching Tip

Happy Thursday!!!
I'm sorry for not blogging yesterday...now that we're safely in Michigan, I'm going to try to unplug a bit to spend more time with family, but I will be on here from time to time still. :)
I am excited to write about one of my tried and true teaching tips today with The Teaching Tribune.

So..with back to school only a few months away (kinda scary!  wahhhhhhhh) I wanted to share one of my FAVORITE back-to-school ice breaker activities.  When I worked at a summer camp for 3 summers in a row we always played this, and it was so fun (even for adults!!!), but I LOVE playing it with my students.  I'm not sure how it will work with 6th graders, and I may need to find something else.  However if anyone reading this is a middle school teacher, I'm open to your suggestion on if you think that it will work. :)

Here is how you play:

• You split your class into two teams.
• You stand in the middle with another student and hold up a sheet so both sides CANNOT see each other.  
• Then you motion for one student to come up to the sheet on both sides.
• You count to three and then drop the sheet.
• The first person to say the other persons name captures them to the other team.
• If the students do not know the other students' name, then they introduce each other and stay on the same team.

It's a GREAT get to know you activity, and my students have always loved it!!! :)  They even ask to play when it's NOT the first day of school.  I hope that you like this activity, too!!