Important Piece of the Puzzle

August is quickly approaching and that means school is right around the corner!  Eek, where did July go?  Starting to think about school and lesson planning.  For the past few years, I have my students participate in a Classroom Scavenger Hunt.  (You know the sheet with a bunch of questions that start off "Find someone who ....".  I'm not sure what the actual name of the activity is.)  This works great in the morning, but by afternoon, many students come in and say "Oh, man!  We just did this activity last hour."  As I was helping my daughter put together a puzzle, an idea popped into my head!  It's perfect.

Each student will receive a puzzle piece.  They should fill in their puzzle piece with words, phrases, drawings, photos, and/or magazine clippings.  It should represent who they are.  I'm going to have students stand up, introduce themselves and briefly talk about their puzzle piece.  Once everyone has had a chance to speak, we are going to glue the pieces together on a big sheet of paper.  (I did not create corner or edge pieces so new students can be added easily to our classroom puzzle.)  There are so many talking points regarding this activity.

• Create a discussion on how we are all different and yet are connected in some way.  (Physically connecting the pieces.)
• Let students know there is always room for a new friend.  (Adding pieces when new students arrive.)
• As part of a connected team (giant puzzle) we can still be individuals (small pieces) 

I can't wait to try this in my classroom!  How are you going to use the puzzle piece in your classroom?  I'd love to hear your ideas.

You can download this activity and a blank puzzle piece for FREE here or visit my TPT store here.

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