For the Name Chain game, have the first student on the front row give his name. Have the next student in the row give his own name along with the name of the first student. Continue down the rows of the class, allowing the students to help each other if someone forgets a name. This game is beneficial for establishing a communicative environment and encouraging students to help their classmates.
For the Me Too game, separate the class into small groups of four to six students, sitting around one table. Alternatively, have each row be its own group. Give each student in the group 10 small objects, such as scraps of paper, paper clips or pennies. Have the first student in the group state an activity he has done, such as riding a horse, rock climbing or water skiing. Each person in the group that has done the same activity must place one of his small items on the table. Continue around the table until one of the students runs out of items.
For the Character Descriptions game, pass out a blank index card to each student. Instruct each student to write three adjectives describing himself on the card. Using the descriptions on the cards, have the students find other students with similar or opposing descriptions and talk for five minutes either in pairs or in small groups.
For the Blackboard Introduction game, the teacher can start the game by writing his name on the blackboard and telling the class an interesting fact about himself. Then have each student do the same. Depending on what the teacher and students are comfortable sharing, the information might include a hobby, interest, dislike or college major. After each student introduces himself, hold a class contest to see who remembers the most information about the other students.