First day communication activities

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First day communication activities
By Brenda

Laura,
I am a big believer that communication is a big key to a classroom that runs smoothly. I do two activities on the first day that stress the need for clear communication. The first one is a birthday line-up.
I break the kids into two groups and then ask them to line up in order of their birthdays. There is a catch though- they cannot talk or write to communicate. They end up using hand signals. This is a fun way also to see who your classroom leaders will be. They will be the kids trying to organize the line. The second activity I do is kind of like a blind 20 questions. I have animal

picture cards, and I tape a card to each child's back. They must then walk around the classroom and ask yes/no questions to find out what their animal is. They cannot ask, Am I a tiger? I teach 5th grade, and every year, the kids seem to love these two activities. Hope it helps.
Brenda