Getting to know you activities
I am looking for sugguestion on first day activities for college students in order to make them comfortable working with eachother in groups. Are there any suggestions that anyone may have?
I've used a treasure hunt of sorts. Students find as many classmates with the same interests, eye color, favorite food, vacation destination, etc. I share some of my answers and then students share theirs as we all find common ground...though I do like the two truths and a lie activity idea and will give that a try too.
Kathy,
With this two way interest you are laying the foundation for respect and rapport to be developed throughout the course.
Gary
Dr. Gary Meers
I appreciate their interest in me as much as I hope they appreciate my interest in them.
Kathy,
Students are very curious about instructors. By learning that instructors are "humans" as well as teachers they can see that their instructors are there to help them acquire the course content. This creates the foundation for respect and rapport.
Gary
Dr. Gary Meers
This is what I do also... My students love it and it seems to allow them to share as little or as much about themselves as they would like. I introduce my self that way as well. They seem to enjoy figuring "me" out.
My favorite get-to-know-you is Two Truths and a Lie. The instructions are: each person come up with three statements about themselves, two of which are true and one of which is a lie. The class then tries to figure out which of the statements is the lie. I instruct my students that the more outrageous the better (when it comes to the truth). Many students share personal things about themselves, like that they have children or have worked as an accountant for 10 years, but it is done in a casual way so that they are always making the choice about how much to reveal. They can choose to reveal not-so-personal things like places they've travelled or famous people they've met. It usually ends up being a good conversation starter.
