Who Goes First?

What do I love? Partner work!

What do I hate? When I say, "Okay, begin," and hear students talking to each other about anything other than the topic, or, worse, when I hear nothing. No participation, no attempt, just an awkward silence.

The problem of focus in a middle school or high school class is age-old, and perhaps insurmountable. However, I have found that with a little more direction, I can get students to perform their tasks in a timely manner when working with a partner. 

I tell them who has to go first and I try to make it a little fun by basing who goes first on an arbitrary factor. 

I felt like I was using the same old factors to decide which partner or small-group-member went first, so I listed all my ideas out to cycle through with a little more variety.  

Who Goes First? 

1. Whoever is older/younger.

2. Whoever's hair is longer/shorter. 

3. Whoever's feet are bigger/smaller.

4. Whoever ate pizza most recently.

5. Whoever's name comes first/last alphabetically.

6. Whoever has the most letters in their name.

7. Whoever has the most pockets today.

8. Whoever's birthday comes next/ whoever's had their birthday most recently. 

9. Rock-paper-scissors for it.

10. Have each pair pick heads or tails then flip a coin for everyone. 

11. Pick a number 1-100 and have each student tell their partner their number. Then announce the number you picked and whoever was closer goes first. 

12. Whoever's wearing the most __________ <-- insert color here. 

13. Whoever has the most/least siblings.

14. Interest based: Whoever built the bigger structure in Minecraft; Whoever was the Imposter more recently; 

15. Whoever visited _____________ more recently (common locations here include places like East Landing, the store, Paradise, the dunes).

16. Whoever's cell battery has more charge left by percent (only if I'm in a class where everyone has their own phone).

Get Gross-- Cards Against Humanity says the person who goes first is the person who pooped most recently. 

17. Whoever pooped more recently. 

18. If kids have had a cold or the flu, whoever blew their nose or threw up more recently. 

19. Whoever needs to clip their toenails more. 

20. Let kids give you a criteria. Steer clear of anything that would make someone feel badly: no "who's richer" or "who's B.O. is the worse" or "who has fewer Instagram followers". 

I wanted a list of 20 because I have a 20-sided die. I have a list next to my materials and when it's time I can roll the die to tell students who goes first. 

Why I Think This Works

Knowing who needs to start the task eliminates that moment to feel awkward and not start, or that moment of freedom where friends will fill the space with whatever they've been dying to tell each other. 

Figuring out who goes first offers a little brain break. How many times have you said "begin" in class and had it met with a loud huff or sigh? Student brains get overwhelmed and asking them to move from instruction to practice can be overwhelming, leading some students to a little shut down or a bad attitude. Letting them focus on something else for a second gives them the pause they need to transition and bring their best efforts. I think it also makes their task feel more low-stakes: if I go first because I had pizza for dinner, I'm way less stressed about my performance than I would be if I had to go first because I'm feeling smarter/dumber/more prepared/less prepared, etc. 

The Danger

Figuring out who goes first can lead to a breakdown in concentration. When I say "whoever has bigger feet goes first" inevitably some pair has to take their shoes off to compare feet. Then they're talking about whose feet stink, whose shoes are cool/not cool, who has those same socks, and then those conversations lead to some other topic and further and further away from the task. 

I recommend buying in first and foremost. If you pair based on foot size, you've got to let them compare! It is okay at this point to step in with a little classroom management and remind them to get back on track. If you know you're trying to move things along more quickly or avoid any big/distracting break in concentration, use a factor that requires less interaction, like Whoever is older. 

How Do I Pair Students?

Sometimes we need people to work together because one partner can help the other partner. Sometimes we need people to work together because they're next to each other and we do not want to invite chaos. Sometimes it does not matter that much who works with whom-- and here we have an opportunity for movement and engagement. 

This NEA article makes some interesting points:

- Students get fewer than 5,000 steps on a non-P.E. day.

- Physical activity improves academics

- Physical activity improves mental health

- There are lots of strategies for incorporating movement into the class day

In a middle school and high school classroom, lots of the movement break ideas aren't effective: If the purpose is to move for the sake of moving, someone is going to take it too far and someone isn't going to want to participate at all. I like to incorporate movement that has a low-stakes task. 

One movement opportunity I like to use is the four-corners strategy to get kids thinking and moving. I put an option in each corner of the room and students pick a corner. This works with multiple choice review: Label each corner A, B, C, D and ask questions. Kids will rush to the right corner, or go with the crowd. I use four corners as a check in: Who's feeling Great, So-So, Not-So-Hot, I need a Personal Check-In Today. I use four corners as a warm up: Whose favorite food is Pizza, Fish Pie, Tacos, Spaghetti. This is so adaptable. This strategy is also social-distance friendly. We get a reminder every time we do it to keep our bodies to ourselves and to stay at least 3 feet apart. 

I also like to move students to pair them, especially if they are allowed to work anywhere in the room (another table, on the floor, etc.). They get the stay-distanced reminder and the chance to move with a purpose. 

Pair Off

Have students line up based on an arbitrary factor, then pair them up with whomever they're next to, or every other student is a pair. 

1. Students line up by height.

2. Students line up by age.

3. Students line up by birth order (all the oldest/only children at the front, second-borns next, youngests last)

4. Students line up by birthday order. 

5. Students line up alphabetically.  

Pair Up

Students find a partner based on an arbitrary factor. There can be parameters like "your partner can't be sitting next to you already" or "your partner can't be the same one as last time" to keep things spicy. 

1. Find someone wearing the same color as you/ a complementary color/ an opposite color. 

2. Find someone who was born in your same month/season.

3. Find someone who lives in your same neighborhood/outside your neighborhood. 

4. Write your favorite ____________ on a sticky note, find someone with the same favorite (food, color, show, musical artist, season, YouTuber, part of speech, mathematical principal, etc. <-- get nerdy with it).

Any way we can incorporate little successes (like celebrating your name starting with "A" so you get to go first, or being shorter so you get to go second), safe interactions among classmates who do not always engage with one another, and get students moving with a purpose in a classroom, we are making all of our content stick that much more and making students' days that much better! 

If you've got ideas for more ways to pair students or determine who goes first, let me know! I'm always down to try new ideas. 

  

The Absolutely True Blog Posts of an English Teacher

Every year since I started teaching middle school and high school on St. Paul Island I've taught Sherman Alexie's YA novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (2007), which is illustrated by Ellen Forney. A friend of my recommended it to me thinking it might be a good book to teach, so I put it on my crazy-long list of books to get to some day. Then I got stuck for a week on St. George Island when I went over to visit the school and my one St. George student, whom I usually taught from St. Paul via VTC. 

I found a copy of Alexie's book in the library and thought I might as well read a bit of it while I waited for a plane to make it in. Well, after reading the very first chapter I could not put it down. I ate with one hand and even brought it to the bathroom with me. 

Photo Credit

The novel is about a 14 year old freshman, named Junior, who decides he needs to leave his Spokane Indian Reservation school and go to an all-white school 22 miles away in order to get a better education. An enthusiastic student and sickly boy his whole life, he's picked on first by his tribe, and then by the White community. In a lot of ways it's your basic coming-of-age-by-accepting-pieces-of-yourself-and-being-accepted-by-a-community-around-you type novel. But it is executed brilliantly-- just look through the first few pages of the paperback, which is filled with accolades, if you want a second, third, or thirtieth opinion. Through its 230 pages I laughed, I cried, I lesson planned. 

Like Alexie's other writings (poems, short stories, novels) True Diary deals with heavy themes, such as alcohol abuse, domestic violence, racism, and the negative effects of social inequality-- all from the perspective of a Native American minority in the U.S. Each of these topics is relatable to members in my community in some way, and it is important to read literature that deals openly with what kids are actually experiencing. 

I like to supplement the novel with Meghan Cox Gurdon's review, Darkness Too Visible (WSJ, 2011) and Sherman Alexie's rebuttal, Why the Best Kids Books are Written in Blood (WSJ, 2011) both to prepare students for the type of content they're in for (there's always a lot of uncomfortable, yet giddy laughter when we read the chapter in which the protagonist waxes philosophical about masturbating), and to get them thinking about what it means to read a book that brings topics like friendship, bullying, poverty, dealing with being an outsider, and abuse out in the open and deals with them honestly and on their level. 

True Diary is a quasi-graphic novel. There are upwards of 60 illustrations by Ellen Forney (and the 2009 paperback edition includes a great interview with the artist) which sometimes compliment and sometimes supplement the text. A few major plot points, such as when Junior (our protagonist) throws an outdated text book at his reservation school teacher, are only represented in graphic form in place of any explanation in the text. The cartoons bring a different depth to the reader reaction; they are funny, touching, and often poignant representations of a teenage boy's thoughts and moods. They are also helpful for keeping the attention of students whose minds wander when they're overwhelmed by text, and for just plain visual learners who want content represented pictorially. In addition to this book being great for discussions about genre (What is a young adult book? What is a graphic novel? How does this book fit that definition?), it is ripe for all kinds of sketching activities!

Some Differentiation by Product

Our reading standard in Craft and Structure says that students need to be able to "analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g., through comparisons, analogies, or categories)." And we have a school-wide initiative focusing on compare/contrast skills. Each time I teach the book we do a compare/contrast of Junior's life before he switches schools and after he gets established at the all-White school. This year, to avoid having them write what feels like another essay after days of discussion and Venn diagrams, the product after our compare/contrast lesson was a modification of one of Forney's cartoons. 

Forney's cartoon (top left, Alexie, Sherman, and Ellen Forney. "How to Fight Monsters." The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian. New York: Little, Brown, 2009. 57. Print.) compares an Indian kid from Junior's reservation to a White kid from his new school. I modified the drawing to be all Junior, but half of him at Wellpinit-- his reservation school, and the other half at Reardan-- the White school. Students had to choose from aspects of our comparison lesson (how peers treat Junior, how teachers treat Junior, how other adults treat Junior, how his best friend treats Junior, the social rules, the resources and facilities available, how Junior feels about himself, etc.) and create 12 labels for the picture-- 6 for each side. They were thrilled they didn't even have to write their labels using complete sentences; I was thrilled that they had such deep insight into how Junior's life is affected by the change in schools. 

Some Descriptive Writing

Our writing standards in Text Types and Purposes dictate that students should be able to "use precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to convey a vivid picture of the experiences, events, setting, and/or characters." 

We generally don't revisit Descriptive Writing for the sake of description very often-- instead Descriptive Writing gets swallowed up by Narrative, Expository, and Persuasive Writing. At the beginning of 3rd quarter we reviewed the types of writing and did work with sensory details in a narrative. We always emphasize that sight is our most important sense, so usually in writing the majority of sensory details are concerned with what we see. In True Diary some of the plot points are illustrated, and some descriptive detail is sketched out for us to see. 

As a bit of a break in the book, which allows students who were absent time to catch up so we don't surge ahead without them, we did a descriptive writing activity. 

Brief overview: Students are given an image, they write descriptive details about the image, a classmate has to draw the image based solely on the description. If the description is good, the image is recreated! Students get to compare their drawings to the initial image at the end. 

To begin, each student is given a sticky note with a monster sticker, or a dragon sticker-- basically anything with a form that isn't standardized. So you wouldn't want to use a rabbit which everyone knows has long ears and a cotton tail, or a cat, which everyone knows has whiskers and a long tail. You want something with features that are less recognizable. 

These prize stickers are from Carson-Dellosa publishing and can be found on their website or teacher stores across the country! 

So, students get a monster/dragon sticky note and paper to write their description. As a class we usually warm up by describe some image together. This year I gave everyone a scratch'n'sniff (chocolate) sticker with a toucan holding chocolate chip cookies. We described the toucan with as much detail as possible and came up with a list of important traits to include: 

Your Description Should Include:

          The Shape, The Color/Pattern, The Size, The Position, and The Number of

Heads

Eyes

Noses

Mouths

Teeth

Ears

Horns

Wings

Bodies

Arms

Hands

Legs

Feet

Claws

Tails

I always participate in this activity with the students so I have an extra description just in case a student's description is unfinished or sub-par. Also, I participate because I love this activity!

I insist that students write using complete sentences during this activity to try to make the descriptions as clear as possible for their peers. I realized this go-round that the descriptions are good source material for a 6-Trait: Organization analysis. I recommend not only making a list of the features to include, but also pre-teaching and practicing (better than I did) keeping all related details together in one sentence group. 

After students are finished describing, it's time for some drawing! I gather all the descriptions and then distribute them at random, but make sure that no one gets their own description. I bust out the art supplies, and they're off! 

While students read their descriptions, there's always some confusion: "What shape is a peanut?" "What does a raccoon's tail look like?" "What's an upside-down banana?" "What color is the tail supposed to be? It doesn't say." I use the ensuing chaos that comes with any art supplies to my advantage and point out nitpicky  things like why we're supposed to follow directions, why we're supposed to double check our work to make sure we included everything. But I also start and develop casual discussions about audience-- if your audience doesn't come from a place that has raccoons, how do you deal with describing one-- do you leave it up to them to figure it out or do you take on that burden as the author? While we're drawing we discuss/review the point of descriptive writing in the first place-- does the author want to be in charge of what you're imagining? How can an author paint a picture in a reader's head? I also bring their attention to devices like similes-- why was it more effective to describe the toucan's beak like a banana than to try and describe the color/shape/size/position any other way?

When the drawings are done and I hand out the original sticky notes with the stickers that go with them, great fun is had by all. 

Some turn out pretty good:

Some end up lacking detail:

Some end up reminding me of a gremlin and haunt my dreams:

Don't get this screen wet.

When the drawings don't match the sticker, inevitably someone gets defensive and someone goes on offense. Students often try to blame their (or their peer's) drawing skills. But I point out that essentially we are just drawing shapes based on the written description, and we all know our shapes (except peanuts) and colors. So if the description is good enough, the drawing will be, too! (So long as everyone focuses and does their best, of course.)

After our descriptive writing and drawing, we return to the graphic novel genre discussion and re-evaluate what it is that the cartoons are doing for us as readers in this novel. 

Some (Tony Toni) Tone

For me, tone and mood are the hardest things to teach. I feel like I barely understand them myself . Even if I make some great statement or analysis about a passage's tone, I always second guess myself afterward. Was I really talking about the right thing?

But I can't ignore tone and mood just because I don't know quite how to talk about them. The reading standards in Craft and Structure require that students be able to "determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in various genres, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language of a court opinion differs from that of a newspaper)."

I love using Ellen Forney's drawings to teach students about tone because I think the visual representation leads to a clearer definition and clearer understanding of what a different "tone" suggests to the reader. 

In her interview in the back of the book, Forney says, "I use different [drawing] styles for different purposes...Arnold's artwork needed to span different situations and moods, so his drawing style needed to change as well." When Junior's cartoons are casual or funny or random, she uses a style of drawing that looks like she just jotted it down. When the drawings are dealing with more serious content, her drawing style is more realistic. When the cartoon is something that Junior concentrates on or thinks a lot about, then her style is a life-like pencil sketch. So how Forney/Junior draws something expresses his attitude toward the subject. That's the same idea as using the words and sentence structure to show a character's attitude! ...Wait, it is,isn't it?

I use a varied collection of Forney's cartoons, like the one above from page 31 to help students think about tone being the tools (diction, syntax, point of view, style) a writer uses to show attitude. (Here's a link to a pdf of my assignment: Sketch to Stretch and Introduction to Tone)

For each cartoon I pick, I ask them to think about the tone and purpose of each cartoon. What is Junior trying to accomplish with each drawing? Is he trying to be funny or serious (or both)? Is he trying to capture someone else's character in his art? What are we getting from these cartoons that we wouldn't get from just the text alone?

From here, we're ready for a more in-depth look at tone. There are two scenes that are similar-- one from True Diary and one from Alexie's adult novel, Indian Killer. They are similar in action-- both characters are dealing with loneliness in school. But they are very different in tone. Indian Killer's tone is desperate and depressed, and True Diary's tone is light-hearted, conciliatory, and humorous. A writing project I've done from this point is based on analyzing the difference in tone in these two passages (focusing on word choice and sentence structure), and then using that knowledge to rewrite a scene from True Diary with a different tone. We storyboard the action in the scene that we will re-write so the setting and plot are the same, just the character's attitude is different in the re-write. Here's a link to a rudimentary version of this assignment with my teacher notes: Tone: ATDOAPTI and Indian Killer

I think it's a good assignment. But my final words on the subject: tone is difficult and confusing for me to teach. Hopefully with practice and Pinterest I'll improve.


Some Sketch to Stretch

We talk a lot about a writer using details to paint a picture in the reader's mind and that it's important to a) be able to imagine and understand that picture as readers, and b) be able to write in a way that stimulates your reader's imagination. I love using the Sketch to Stretch instructional strategy because its the perfect way to help students understand that each person who reads a story will interpret it in their own way, connecting the content to their own experiences. Sketch to Stretch can also help visual learners make different connections to the text, and it is a nice change of pace for my artistic students whose papers are always filled with more doodles than writing assignment.

To have students complete this activity, I have them choose a scene from chapters we have read so far that they think is important. It can't already have been illustrated by Forney. They have to give me a basic 5W1H summary of the scene and tell me the page number. I ask students to pick one of Forney's three drawing styles which she details in her interview (jotted sketch, more realistic, life-like pencil sketch) and why they think their scene needs this style of drawing. Once they've given a lot of thought to their scene, they sketch it out. Based on the level of artistic enthusiasm in the student group we may do rough and then final drafts of our sketches.

I can't believe I don't have (or just can't find) student samples of previous years' sketch to stretch activity with True Diary to share. Each year I am pleasantly surprised by which passages jump out at my readers. And I like to point out to them how their sketches enhance the text just like Forney's cartoons enhance the text.

I can't recommend Alexie's novel enough. It's a great read for all ages. Even if you know your school board would never approve it as part of the curriculum, read it yourself and recommend it far and wide. If you do get to teach it, I hope you're similarly inspired to differentiate and incorporate basic artwork into your lesson planning. Even if you do fun activities like our monster drawing, you'll still have kids warming your teacher heart by whining about how they just wanted to read today. This book is just that good.

Pictionary, Boggle, Bananagrams, Can You Name 5?, Scattergories-- Why Board Games in the Classroom Shouldn't be...wait for it...Taboo!

As an avid game player in and out of the classroom, I got all geared up to research and write about the benefits of using board games in the classroom for my blog. But when I started my search I found a few resources that have already made my point for me. The most cohesive discussion was Laura A. Sharp's article, "Stealth Learning: Unexpected Learning Opportunities Through Games". Here are some take away points:

• Educators can use stealth learning, or "clever, disguised ways to introduce learning objectives through non-traditional tools, such as games, to encourage students to have fun and learn," to engage and motivate students in the classroom.
• Historically games were used as teaching tools.
• Games can be used to support state standards and learning outcomes.
• Research shows that people from the Net Generation (Net Gen) expect more interactive learning opportunities, as opposed to linear instruction.
• Playing games gives students a safe environment in which to take risks and learn from mistakes.
• Playing games appeals to students' different learning styles.
• This article presents adequate research to support her conclusion that, "Games engage students in healthy activities that challenge the mind, teach social skills, and promote active learning while having fun."

Sharp also gives a list of games that can be used and some of the strategies/standards that they can support. However, this list is more aimed at elementary students. 

If you need convincing that using board games in the classroom is a good idea, or some hard core research to justify your use of board games in the classroom, her article and bibliography is legit. 

I just have two further thoughts/comments on the ideas that Sharp and some of the other resources I read (such as this handout from a TESOL conference presentation by Shelley Chang and Jenny Cogswell in 2008)  presented. First, "stealth learning" is not necessary; students should be aware that they're learning and that different types of learning can be fun. Second, games do not necessarily need to be adapted in order to be used in the classroom. 

Stealth Learning 

My first year teaching I unknowingly subscribed to this "Stealth Learning" idea. I was still getting to know my students (and I know that "knowing our learners" is important no matter where we're teaching, but it was particularly important for me in this small community to have genuine relationships with them) and playing games provided a more low-stakes and more engaging environment in which to get to know them. After a rousing game of Taboo or Scattergories I'd feel so tricky and sneaky, having gotten students to draw upon all different contexts and use circumlocution and descriptions successfully, which are all skills we'd struggle to develop during direct instruction, small group work, and any other more traditional activity. Now, with more experience in the classroom and more experience with these students, I am adamantly opposed to the idea of stealth learning-- we need to make everything as transparent as possible.

Sharp says, "it is only natural to use them [games] to teach students new information when students are unaware or uninterested in learning, thus stealth learning." Reading this statement makes me think that it should be made obvious to the students that while they're playing a fun game they are learning. Our students should be aware of the fact that, whatever they are doing in life, they are constantly taking in information, processing it, and readjusting their beliefs, understandings, and actions accordingly-- they are always learning. Students are definitely learning when they're helping to cook in the kitchen, when they're on the playground, when they're playing video games. They should be aware that they're learning when we read a new short story, and aware that they're learning when we play Bananagrams. The more we can make them aware of the fact that every interaction and every experience they ever have becomes part of their context, the easier I hope it will be to make those jumps to meta-cognition and better, more informed decision making for our life-long learners. 

Adapting Games

Some of the games-in-the-classroom articles and posts I found on blogs and Pinterest had great ideas for how to adapt Taboo to the classroom, or to adapt Pictionary so that it would be suitable for students to play. Granted, some of these posts were for elementary or for ESL, so the simplifications or changing the game's content to reflect the area of study did make sense. But some people were adapting the games for junior high and high school use, too. I'm all for using a PowerPoint version of Jeopardy as review, and if someone handed me a set of Taboo cards that were made to review our vocabulary and concepts for Harry Potter, or some other book, I'd gladly take them. But who has the time to create all of that? Especially when the games have so much value just as they are. 

Caveat: Okay, I do adapt the game rules in my classroom, just not the content. I make sure that the competition is not cutthroat (e.g., if students need help in Bananagrams, we can pitch in!); I try to maximize participation (e.g., we almost always do All Play in Pictionary for each card so that no one is sitting out); I allow more "passes" in games like Taboo or Can You Name Five? so that students don't get frustrated if they just don't know what something is. 

So which games do we play, and why?

Boggle: 

In Boggle, players look at a 4x4 grid of letters on dice and find words by connecting adjacent dice. Each player makes their own list of words within a three minute time period. Points are awarded based on word length and originality (i.e., you only get a point for a word no one else found).  

Boggle is probably my students' least favorite classroom game. They dislike it because they don't usually find long lists of words, which frustrates them and makes them feel unsuccessful. If we are having "game time," I never pick Boggle. But I do use a round of it occasionally as a warm-up or energizer because it is a good tool to get their brains concentrating. One of the rules in Boggle is that you are not allowed to use proper nouns, so it gets them to review/think about that grammatical category, as well as basic spelling. 

Taboo: 

In Taboo, two teams take turns trying to get their teammates to guess the word at the top of their card without using any of the "taboo" words listed below it. To play you all sit around in a circle and team members alternate (Team A member has to sit between two Team B members) so that players from the opposing team can keep an eye on the player's card and make sure they don't use any of the taboo words in their description.

Taboo may be my favorite game to play in the classroom because it serves so many purposes. First, everyone is participates in this game at once. Even if it is the other team's turn, you're still on edge listening and trying to figure out the word for yourself. 

Next, Taboo is a fantastic exercise for activating prior knowledge. We all know that students learn better when they can connect new information to the context they've already developed. That's why we create anticipatory sets and introductory activities aimed at activating specific prior knowledge to prep their brains for the new information. Taboo isn't activating specific prior knowledge-- it activates a veritable smorgasbord of prior knowledge. Why is this context chaos a good thing? For my students here, Taboo is a great exercise in broadening the horizons. We live out in an isolated, more or less homogenous place with very little deviation from the daily routine. We live the same day over and over again and think about the same things over and over again. Playing Taboo makes us step outside of our day-to-day routines and think about and draw on all the experiences we've had and things we've been exposed to. For the teacher it is great to see what students do and don't understand, do and don't know-- it is one more way to get to know your learners. Quick funny Taboo story: One student gave a description along the lines of, "It's like that thing that has the letters and you sit around and dead people try to spell stuff." I shouted out, "Ouija board!" and the student said, "Nevermind, pass." After the round was over I asked him what that card was, and he said, "squeegee." This was just a cute mix-up, but looking at a collection of anecdotes like these, I can see patterns in how my students construct meaning and where holes in their knowledge exist.

When we play Taboo, I try to draw our attention to good descriptions, analogies, similes, etc. that my students use to elicit the correct word from their peers. Taboo shows us how we use language to communicate ideas to one another, and, more specifically, how we use context clues to construct the meaning of a word. 

The people who rock Taboo are ones with shared experiences to draw upon. If two good friends are on a team, they use inside jokes and shared memories to get their team to guess the right word. If these two good friends are on opposite teams, they know that they can't rely on the inside joke to get them the right answer. Taboo is a good way to make your students aware of/consider audience. They have to think of a way to explain something in a way that their fellow players will understand. Playing Taboo and bringing students attention to this action can then transfer over to understanding audience better when they are writing. 

Taboo also challenges students to improve their powers of concentration and processing speed. Each round only lasts a minute, and during that friendly competition students have to try to accumulate as many points for their team as possible. Some students were uncomfortable the first few times we played Taboo, and some students are still nervous the first few rounds that we play. Usually, however, we maintain a positive environment and enjoy it. I remind the ones who get nervous that they need to try it, and if it doesn't go well it's okay-- it only lasts one minute.  It pushes some of the students a little out of their comfort zone and, in general, fosters students' social skills. 

Can You Name 5?

Can You Name 5? is a newer board game. To play you split into teams, roll dice, and advance along the board. The board spaces are different colors which correspond to a category on one of the Can You Name 5? cards. On your turn your team has 30 seconds to name 5 things in the category. For example, a category might be NFL Teams with an Animal Mascot, and the players have 30 seconds to name 5 of them. 

Can You Name 5? also exercises students' processing speed. In addition to the 30 second time limit, some options on the board require flip-flopping between teams or racing a team. 

Like Taboo, Can You Name 5? activates prior knowledge and gives the teacher some insight into the students' context. One of my favorite anecdotes about a round of Can You Name 5? happened when a group of 7th and 8th graders had the category Hair Bands of the 80s. One student said, "Scrunchie!" paused, then said, "and that's all I can think of." Both Taboo and Can You Name 5? show students that there is so much out there that they still haven't been exposed to and still don't know. I like making students aware of their ignorance in an attempt to motivate and inspire them. 

Bananagrams

Bananagrams, meant to be an individualized type of Scrabble, is often a team effort in my classroom. We will all start out trying to construct our own crosswords with the letters we draw, but usually end up helping our classmates. I like that it makes students practice revision. You can rarely win a game of Bananagrams without moving and rearranging to make room for the other letters. Bananagrams fosters persistence and patience, and we help each other so no one gets frustrated or feels unsuccessful. 

Pictionary

Pictionary is one of the favorites in my classroom because we use the white boards to play instead of paper. This means that we're all moving around a lot and getting loud and raucous. It is another good game for activating prior knowledge, as well as problem solving. Students have to consider audience and strategize, figuring out a way to get their classmates (and teacher) to guess the word or phrase on the card. 

Students and I also like it because it uses different communication skills and appeals to visual/spatial learners, and it gives students a creative outlet. We've recently played a new version of Pictionary that includes action cards, too, which has been a hit! 

Scattergories

Scattergories has been around for several decades. Everyone works from the same list of 12 categories, one player rolls a die with the letters of the alphabet on it. Then all players have three minutes to think of something in each category that starts with the letter that was rolled. Points are only awarded for unique answers that no one else in class thought of. 

Scattergories is another game that activates prior knowledge, increases powers of concentration, and promotes friendly competition. It makes students, in a short period of time, think about things both in and outside of their daily lives, and also shows them where there are gaps in their knowledge. 

Student Input

As I was working on this post, it occurred to me that I was talking a big talk about the learning process being transparent and the benefit of board games in the classroom being obvious, but do my students really know why we play games in the classroom? So, as a warm-up before game time on Friday, I handed out sticky notes and asked them to tell me all the reasons they could think of that we play games in class, and to pick a favorite game and tell me why it's their favorite. 

I did get quite a few responses like, we play games in class "because we need a break from school work" and "to just have fun and relax." But there were several responses, such as, "it makes your brain fire up...it wakes the brain up," that were more on target:

"One reason why we play board games is to jump start our brain. It is like an ice breaker. It makes us think and after we're done playing, our brain is ready to go."

"Pictionary shows and tells us how talented we are and makes us laugh at ourselves."

"We play games in class to be expressive...My favorite game is Can You Name 5?. I like it because at times it could be hard; I like the challenge. Also because it reminds me of how much I don't know."

"I think the reason why we play games in class is because the games we play in class are educational and get our brains ready to start doing work, and so that we can have fun while we are in school. ...I like Can You Name 5? because ...the game gets you ready to start working because you are using your brain and concentrating."

I highly recommend incorporating game time into your schedule and making students aware of all the benefits of playing together!