Encouraging creativity, teamwork and memory skills, this fun game is great for concentration. It can be played at any time, but just before the Summer Holiday is perfect – and Mums and Dads might thank you for getting the children thinking about packing too!
How it Works:
Sit your class in a circle, either in the classroom or in the hall. Seat yourself with them. Explain that you are going to pass an imaginary suitcase around the circle and each of them is going to place inside it an item that they would take on holiday, telling everyone what they are placing inside. You will start with something beginning with A, the next person’s item must start with B, the next C and so on.
For example, ‘In my suitcase I have an atlas’, ‘In my suitcase I have a bikini’, ‘In my suitcase I have a compass’ etc.
Top tip:
Encourage the children to mime putting the object into the suitcase in an appropriate manner, for example the atlas might be heavy so mime hefting it in, the compass might be hung around your neck so mime taking it off your neck before putting it in.
Take it further:
Once you have gone once round the circle and the ‘suitcase’ is back with you, explain that now it’s going to get challenging and the children are going to need to use their memories! This time you are going to place the same items into the suitcase again but this time you will have to remember the items that have gone before and list them all! E.g. ‘In my suitcase I have an atlas, a bikini, a compass…’
Encourage the children to really listen to each other so that they can remember all the items and help each other if needed.
