Gist: Students rotate with a question or answer until they find their perfect match.

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Why Do It?  This gets students talking about the assignment, analyzing answer choices, and moving.  Applicable to ANY content.

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Materials:

-questions from an assignment/worksheet (printed and cut apart)

-Answers from the assignment (printed and cut apart)

 

Set Up:

1.  Arrange desks in concentric circles facing each other.

2.  Prepare the assignment as detailed above.

 

To Play:

1.  Number students off 1 and 2.  One group gets a question and sits in one circle.  The other gets an answer and sits in the other circle.

2.  Set a time limit.  Keep it tight, JUST long enough to think through the question and talk about the answer.  Your first "date" will be a bit longer than the others to give the student time to figure out the answer to his or her question.  You can even use a bell (DING!) the way many speed-dating organizations do to signal time to rotate.

3.  The "couple" compares the question and answer to decide if they are a match.  If couples are not a match, they work together to figure out what the correct answer should be.  If students are rotating with a copy of the worksheet (see variations below), they can also try to figure out which question matches the other student's answer.

4.  One ring (outer or inner--not both!) rotate, then repeat step 3.  See variations below for ways to continue and end the activity.  The most basic is that students continue rotating, even after they've found their match, to get needed information from other partners to complete their worksheet.  Remember to keep "date" times tight.

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Caution and Tips:

-Some students are very comfortable with the dating idea of this activity, and you can play it up.  "Single and looking." "Hot date." etc.  HOWEVER, some students might be very embarrassed or uncomfortable.  Respect their dignity by being sensitive with how much you play up the dating scenario.

-If you have uneven numbers, you serve as the missing player and use that rotation to interview the student about how they're doing so far.

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Variations:

-Give each student a copy of the worksheet (or have them number a piece of paper) for them to complete as they rotate. 

-Optionally, when a student finds their "perfect match," they exit the game and complete the rest of the worksheet with their new partner.

-Play continues till each student has found their match or you've reached the end of your designated play time.