Sunday, September 14, 2008

Don't do this Icebreaker

I went to a workshop today on Classroom Management. It was sponsored by the local board of Jewish education and was run by a well-known educator in town who also teaches graduate level courses in education at one of the local universities.

She introduced the session and asked us each to go around and introduce ourselves. And then she added, "And I'd like you to also tell the group what kind of fruit you're most like and why". NOT what fruit we like, but what fruit we are like. Seriously? This is like Barbara Walters asking Katherine Hepburn what kind of tree she would be.

It's one thing to do this in a group of people who know each other, and even then, it's a dumb ice breaker.

Two people said apples and two others said pomegranates. Someone said blueberries and then spent too much time telling us that they are good for you and that teaching is about passing along things to the students that are good for them. I really didn't need to know her that well. One person said persimmon, and there was a pear, and an orange. Just to be ornery, someone chose a tomato. The teacher described herself as a pineapple. Lovely. No one said a fruit with a pit, maybe because they were afraid others might interpret their choice to mean they really have a heart of stone. I was disappointed that no one chose coconuts or a durian. At least that would have been interesting.

As for me, I said a banana for no particular reason other than there was one in my bag.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

For a few seconds, I was afraid you were not going to share which kind of fruit you said you are like - whew! A sleepless night averted!
(Surely you explained the reason you're most like a banana is because you're so appealing/a-peeling!)

Andrea said...

I would hate to be the cause for anyone's insomnia.

I think what I really want to say that I was thought is a Buddha's hand (google it or look it up in Wikipedia). They are just cool and crazy all at the same time.

Anonymous said...

I wouldn't exactly call it "insomnia" but you certainly were responsible for my loss of sleep 43 years ago last night....and then....when you FINALLY made your appearance the next morning, YOU HAD BIG, BEAUTIFUL, BLUE EYES! Still do! What a surprise :-}

Anonymous said...

I wouldn't exactly call it "insomnia" but you certainly were responsible for my loss of sleep 43 years ago last night....and then....when you FINALLY made your appearance the next morning, YOU HAD BIG, BEAUTIFUL, BLUE EYES! Still do! What a surprise :-}

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