Hobbies And Interests
Bingo Games
You can create a game of bingo to help with introductions in a second grade class. Print blank bingo cards and give one to each student. The children must go around the room asking other students their first or last name. They must write one name in each square. After they fill in the cards, start calling out names and have children mark their card. The first child with a bingo wins the game. Alternatively, play the game with birthdays instead of names. The introduction game helps the students learn the names of their classmates.
Ball Games
Toss a beach ball to one student. She must announce a favorite hobby, her name or an interesting fact about herself to the class. She will then toss the ball to another classmate who must do the same thing. Keep playing until everyone has a chance to speak at least twice. You can also write questions directly on the ball. Sample questions include "Who is your hero and why" and "What is your favorite sport?" When the student catches the ball, she must answer one of the questions under her thumb.
Drawing Contests
Children can explain a lot about themselves by drawing a picture. Have each child draw a picture of himself on a large sheet of construction paper. Around the picture, tell him to write interesting facts about himself and his hobbies. Tell the children not to write their names on the sheets. Collect all the sheets and show each picture to the class one at a time. Have the students guess each classmate's picture. Award a prize to the player who guesses the most pictures correctly. You can also award prizes for the most creative and best pictures.
Sorting Games
Divide your class into groups of five or six. The children must get in order according to a criteria you yell out when the game starts. If you say, "birthdays," the children must get in order by birthdays. The first group to get in the correct order wins the game. Other criteria ideas include height, hair length and the letter of their first names.