Today was our first full day of school. We have been reviewing a lot and learning about our classroom and our procedures. Since I will be teaching Science and we do a lot of group work, I like to start out the year with a cooperative activity called "Save Fred". You can find more information about this activity on line by googling "Save Fred" activity. The kids always love this! It challenges them to think outside the box, work together to get the job done, and be creative and positive with each other. Once the students "Save" Fred, they get to try to save him in a different way, like only using 2 paper clips or with only 2 people in their group, or with no poking the gummy worm etc... This also leads into a discussion about how to treat others and work together in small groups. Here's a picture of a "Saved" Fred.