Searching for Dad

Materials
Instruct each student to bring a color photograph of his or her father to class. You might enlist the parents of smaller kids to do this.

Activity
During the first five minutes, students must write a description of their fathers as seen in the photograph. For example, “My father is tall and handsome. He is wearing blue jeans and a white shirt.” The teacher should then collect all photographs. Photographs are then shuffled and distributed to various students. No student should have his or her own photograph. After photographs have been exchanged, the first student chooses another student and says, “Excuse me, but have you seen my father?” The student he or she asks responds, “I don’t know. What does he look like?” The first student then reads the first sentence of his or her description. The student being questioned responds with, “No, I’m sorry. I haven’t seen him,” “Yes, as a matter of fact, he’s right here [returning the photograph],” or “I’m not sure. Describe him further.” If called upon to describe him further, the student reads more of his description. A small prize may be given to each student upon his or her successfully locating his or her father.