WS: "Don't Pick the Flower!" JHS 1st G

About midway through the year (chapter 4 in New Crown), you'll be teaching first graders commands: "Don't use my camera" etc

Here's a fun activity I came up with today.

• First, play Simon Says, incorporating the "Don't" point. Start with basic gestures and icnrease the difficulty in stages:
• Run, walk, swim, jump, fly
• Touch... simple body parts, desk, textbook, friend etc.
• Pick the flower, tree etc.
• Play tennis, soccer, TV games etc.
• Be happy, hungry etc.
  
  
• Then you can move on to part two. Use a soft object/ball and have the kids move their desks to the edge of class and stand in a circle. 
• Throw the ball to one kid and shout "Catch the ball" or "Don't catch", until the kids get it. 
• After that, start using the vocab from Simon Says...
• Student gestures (or does the opposite gesture) and then throws the ball to someone else.
• In some classes, this can be very slow. If so, elect a good kid (or you) to stand in the middle and be "it", telling other kids what to do and then getting the ball back each time.
  
  
• Keep doing that until they're bored.
  

If you need to fill more time, Laura made a quick sheet covering some "Don't..." signs. Students work out what they mean as a class and then design their own. They can then show them to each other and get them to guess what they are, and write out a "Don't..." sentence.