HT Games
'Big Chief'
With students sitting in a circle, a chosen "It" kid steps outside the room while another kid̵2;the "Big Chief"̵2;acts out short movements, such as clapping hands or stomping feet. All players duplicate the chief's actions. When "It" returns to the room, he watches and tries guessing the "Big Chief's" identity. If he guesses correctly within three tries, he becomes the "Big Chief," while another student takes a turn as 'It." If he fails to guess correctly, he continues as "It."
'Different Voices, Different Occasions'
Students practice adapting their voice to particular locations and scenarios when playing "Different Voices, Different Occasions." A teacher writes a location and a person on index cards and puts them in a container. Students pick an index card and speak to a stuffed animal or toy in the circle as if it were the person listed on the card. Students also use appropriate tones of voice given the location on their index card. For instance, if a student's card lists "library" and "friend," the student would speak quietly about something she would talk to a friend about, or about items related to a library. Once a student concludes speaking, players guess the location and person that the student attempted to represent. Students raise their hands to guess, with the student guessing correctly speaking next. If no student guesses correctly, the teacher chooses the next speaker.
'Pass The Chicken'
Putting a classroom twist on "Hot Potato," one student plays the "It" kid and holds a rubber chicken. The teacher tells "It" to name five items in a category̵2;either topics tied to class curriculum or general topics̵2;and to pass the chicken to their right. For instance, the teacher may instruct her students to name five presidents of the United States. As students pass the chicken around the circle, "It" tries naming five presidents. Should the chicken return to him before he names five presidents, he remains "It." If he succeeds in naming five presidents, the student holding the chicken when he concludes naming five presidents becomes the new "It."
'Shoe Hustle'
"Shoe Hustle" begins with students removing their shoes and shoestrings, and placing the shoestrings in their shoes' toes. Students put their shoes in the middle of the floor and form a circle around the shoes, while the teacher mixes up the shoe pile. At the teacher's command, students race to locate their shoes, lace them up and put them back on their feet. The first player to lace her shoes, put the shoes back on and stand up wins the game.
'Word Associations'
Failing to contribute to a link of words sends students out of the circle in "Word Associations." After the teacher says a word, the next player says another word that they associate with the word that precedes it. For instance, if the teacher says, "Dog," the first student may say "Bone," with the next person saying, "Bury," and so forth. If an association's validity comes into question, students justify the association, with the teacher and other students determining whether to accept it or not. If students cannot think of a valid word in 30 seconds, they leave the circle. The game continues until one player remains.