Twitter Introductions
Overview
At the start of the year, there is a lot about your new students that you will want to know. What are their likes? What are their dislikes? What are their strengths and hobbies and fears for the new school year? At the same time, we know it's overwhelming (both for teachers and students) to start off by sharing everything. This activity helps you to get to know your students in small bits, while introducing the idea of sharing and "group talk" in a structured way.
Time Required: Approx. 30 minutes.
Time Required: Approx. 30 minutes.
Lesson Plan
Minds On:
Tell your students that you will all be getting to know each other gradually over the next few weeks as you build your classroom community. To start off , everyone will be sharing two interesting things about themselves (and in 140 characters or less!).
Model filling out a Twitter introduction sheet for yourself (attached). You may want to create a larger version on the board in your room, or use a document camera if one is available. Let students know that there are different prompts on the Twitter sheets, so they will all be sharing different things about themselves.
Action:
Have your students fill out one Twitter introduction sheet. Have students share their introduction through a Milling to Music activity. When the music is playing, students will move around the room. Make sure that your music choice reflects your learners, and remind them that they can choose to move around the classroom in a way that is comfortable to them (I'm not one for dancing, so I can understand learners being wary of this). Each time the music stops, students find a group of 2-3 and share their Twitter introductions until the music starts up again.
You may want to establish a safe space in the room where learners who can't find a group and go stand. Set the precedent that groups of learners who have already formed are encouraged to add these learners into their groups. Make sure to mill around yourself!
Consolidation:
Ask for volunteers to share a fun or interesting response that they had or that they heard from a peer. Put the Twitter introductions up on a bulleting board or outside your classroom so that students can see them and continue to learn about their new peers.
Tell your students that you will all be getting to know each other gradually over the next few weeks as you build your classroom community. To start off , everyone will be sharing two interesting things about themselves (and in 140 characters or less!).
Model filling out a Twitter introduction sheet for yourself (attached). You may want to create a larger version on the board in your room, or use a document camera if one is available. Let students know that there are different prompts on the Twitter sheets, so they will all be sharing different things about themselves.
Action:
Have your students fill out one Twitter introduction sheet. Have students share their introduction through a Milling to Music activity. When the music is playing, students will move around the room. Make sure that your music choice reflects your learners, and remind them that they can choose to move around the classroom in a way that is comfortable to them (I'm not one for dancing, so I can understand learners being wary of this). Each time the music stops, students find a group of 2-3 and share their Twitter introductions until the music starts up again.
You may want to establish a safe space in the room where learners who can't find a group and go stand. Set the precedent that groups of learners who have already formed are encouraged to add these learners into their groups. Make sure to mill around yourself!
Consolidation:
Ask for volunteers to share a fun or interesting response that they had or that they heard from a peer. Put the Twitter introductions up on a bulleting board or outside your classroom so that students can see them and continue to learn about their new peers.
Resources
twitter_introductions.pdf | |
File Size: | 109 kb |
File Type: |