Brain Breaks Part 14: Face-off!
I love Brain Breaks that give me an excuse to review our TPR for high frequency words…. Some teachers, like Paul Kirschling, and Mary Overton choose to use ASL gestures for their TPR, while others (like me) make our gestures up. Here is a blog on what gestures I use with lots of videos. 🙂
For face-off, I get students up into two lines. They’re used to this from Brain Breaks like “body parts” or when I have them paired up to play rock paper scissors. I like the two line set up because I can say “CAMBIA” and the child on the end of ONE line, runs to the opposite end and everyone scoots down and therefore has a new partner! It keeps things interesting, novel, and fun. It also continues to build our classroom community and culture where everyone plays with everyone… <3
Once they are in two lines, I quickly pair them by moving down the line, touching their heads and saying uno (1) dos (2) so they know who they’re partnered with to start. I am STILL doing this with third grade and fourth grade. My fifth graders are to a point now where I don’t have to do it much any more because they realize we can get to playing faster if they pair themselves. Either way it doesn’t take more than 10 seconds and we jump into the Brain Break. I call out FACE-OFF! and then immediately after I call out high frequency words (va, vive, le gusta, quiere, tiene, prefiere, hace, etc.) These are any verbs that we have gestures for. I call CAMBIA (change) randomly in between so they’re facing another partner. Is it really a competition of who can do it faster? NO! It is movement, it’s silly, its fast, it is a Brain Break… After 30-40 seconds I have everyone sit back down again…and we are back into the input! Simple as that!
I hope you had an awesome week! I know lots of you have been in and out of school because of severe weather and cold…I am sorry! 🙁 You should move to New Orleans! I would love to have you here, and you can wear flip flops in December and January!!! Sending y’all my love and positive energy!
Until next time,
HAPPY TEACHING!
Love,
La Maestra Loca
