If you want to get your entire class working together and actively engaged in practicing your content, you need to learn how to play I Have Who Has games! I Have Who Has games are perfect for when you have no time to plan an engaging activity for your class to review key concepts. Whether you have never heard of I Have Who Has games before or have already used them in your class, you will benefit from these tips and tricks. These games are one of my favorite go-tos year after year. Read on to see how to play I Have Who Has games, why you should be using them, and my favorite ways to implement them in the classroom!
What Are I Have Who Has Games?
I first stumbled upon I Have Who Has games during one of my teaching observations in college. They are commonly used to practice vocabulary terms like these 6th Grade Math Vocabulary I Have Who Has Game Cards, but can also be used for other skills and content areas. Each card has two parts: an answer on the top half of the card and a question on the bottom. The answer and the question on each card do not go together, but instead create a chain with the questions and answers from other cards. Students must figure out if the question last read aloud by another student matches the answer on their card. Their goal is to read all of the questions and corresponding answers in the correct order. It’s like a puzzle that the whole class has to work together to solve!
How to Play I Have Who Has Games
Every student gets at least one I Have Who Has game card. If you have more cards than students, give some students additional cards. I either ask for volunteers or give the extras to students I know can handle it. Either way, all of the cards need to be passed out for the game to work.
The game always starts with the student who has the first card. They will read “I have the first card. Who has (insert whatever the first question is)?” The answer to that question will be on someone else’s card. That student must then read their entire card. They will say, “I have (answer to the first question). Who has (the next question on their card)?” It is the class’s job to decide what the correct answers are and only read their card if it is the answer to the last question. The game has finished when a student’s question is “Who has the first card?”
If your class has never played this before, it is usually a good idea to do a practice round with them first. They will catch on quickly!
Tips and Tricks
Calling Out
You are inevitably going to have one or more students who figure out the answer to a card before everyone else and shout it out. It is up to you on how to handle this. I tell my students that shouting out an answer robs everyone else of the ability to think it through on their own and to strengthen that neural pathway (yay brain science!). Everyone’s brain doesn’t work at the same speed, and that’s okay. I personally don’t let other students say the answer if it’s not on their card, unless the class is really struggling. Which leads to my next point…
When Kids Get Stuck
While I don’t let other students shout out during this game, I do find it helpful to correct someone who is reading their card at the wrong time before the whole class gets messed up. Sometimes the class can recognize that an answer is incorrect and get back on track themselves, but a lot of the time, the class falls into mass chaos. If you are following along with the answer key as students play the game, you can easily get them back on track. Plus, following along with the answer key is a great way to get an informal assessment of students’ mastery of terms. There will also be times when the class is unsure of the answer, and no one reads their card. I use this opportunity to scaffold and progressively give more hints and reminders until someone realizes their card has the answer.
Interuptions
It never fails. Just when you are in the groove of an activity, a student has to go to the office/nurse/restroom/insert location. When a student must leave the room during the game, I will simply have another student “adopt” the card until they get back, or take it myself to read in case it needs to be read while they are out.
Differentiate
You can easily make this game work for a class of diverse needs by giving students terms based on skill level. You can subtly choose specific cards from the stack as you are passing them out, and no one usually notices. Remember – This is practice. You don’t want to embarrass kids or call them out publicly for not knowing an answer. For my students who are far below grade level and struggle to read out loud, I will discreetly help them pronounce the words on their card or maybe even discuss the definition with them before the game starts. Base it on your students’ abilities.
Why You Should Use I Have Who Has Games
Everyone Is Involved and Engaged
I have who has games are a great way to encourage whole class engagement because the game does not work unless everyone does their part. Middle school students are more motivated when they know the rest of the class is counting on them. Students also get to practice listening comprehension, sustained attention, and reading out loud in a fun low-stakes way.
They Are a Low Prep Classroom Activity
I Have Who Has games are a true low prep activity. You only need to print the pages and cut apart the cards (just a few straight cuts required). Once they are prepared, you can use them year after year. You can laminate your favorite sets to make them stronger, although I’ve found this is not normally necessary. I have used certain sets year after year with no damage. Students are only reading from the cards, so the wear and tear is minimal. Plus, if wear and tear does occur, it is pretty quick to reprint and cut them out again.
They Are Versatile
I Have Who Has games are so versatile! While they are often used to practice vocabulary terms, you can find or create them for just about any grade level, content area, or skill. I have used them in both middle school English and math classes and have seen them used for primary ELL students, high school history classrooms, and more! They don’t just have to be limited to vocabulary. You can use them for math problems and answers, historical events and dates, or virtually anything that has a question and an answer. You can also stretch the time it takes to play the game to fit your needs (see competition strategy below). They are great to keep on hand as a time filler.
Ways to Use I Have Who Has Games in the Classroom
Competition
One of the best ways to engage middle schoolers is through competition. Even my least involved students will participate in this game when they know the class is counting on them. Most middle schoolers don’t even need a prize for winning. The pride of winning is usually enough to bring out their competitive spirit.
My favorite way to get buy-in with this game is to time how long it takes the class to get through the entire set of cards. I will start a timer before the first student reads their card and end it when the last student has read “Who has the first card?”. I then do more rounds with the same set of cards to see if the class can beat their time. The more you play, the more students get exposed to and practice the terms. It’s even better if you shuffle the cards each round so students aren’t just listening for the card that comes before theirs. The first round’s time is usually pretty rough, but the class can usually increase its speed each round. I will usually do 2- 3 rounds, but students often beg me to do more! You can also keep a record of your class’s best time and pull the cards out again from time to time to spiral skills and see if they have maintained their speed.
If you teach multiple sections of the same class, this is a great opportunity to have classes compete against each other. When I did this, I kept the class times up on the whiteboard. Students would stop by multiple times throughout the day to see if another class beat their high score.
After State Testing Activity
As a core subject middle school teacher, I am always looking for low-stakes, high-engagement activities for students to do on the afternoons after state testing. We practice so much leading up to the test that the last thing I want students to do after a morning of testing (and the last thing I feel like doing) is boring daily lessons. Plus, we have most likely covered all of our required content by this point in the school year. On the other hand, I am not the “just throw on a movie” kind of teacher. I still want students to do something related to our content and preferably review some skills. Here is where I Have Who Has games really shine. They feel like a game and shake up the structure of class while reviewing key vocabulary from throughout the year. This is a great time to use full-year review sets like this Full-Year 6th Grade Math Vocabulary Game.
End of Year Activity
It’s May. State testing is over. You have already covered your required curriculum units. There is not enough time left in the year to complete a full unit, and the school has a field day, two assemblies, and a field trip scheduled in the next two weeks. What do you do? This is a great time to look for I have who has games!
Whole Class Review
Use I Have Who Has games throughout the year to review for a test or unit. This is a great time to use specific unit or skill-based sets like this 6th Grade Expressions & Equations Vocabulary “I Have… Who Has?” Game. You can also sprinkle them throughout the year as a form of spiral review!
Sub Plan Activity
My first time using I Have Who Has games was as a substitute teacher in a 7th-grade classroom. Because they are so student-driven, I Have Who Has games are a great activity to leave for a sub! Simply leave the cards and instructions, and the substitute just has to proctor/administer the game. The answer keys are easy to follow along with, even with no content experience.
Individual Practice
Use game sets individually or as a group as a part of centers or stations, or as an early finisher activity. Students can take the shuffled set of game cards and create a chain with the questions and the following answers. If you have enough space, they can lay them out across the floor or a table in a line. If students are at their desk, they can simply put the cards in a stack in the correct order. The best part is that this can be self-checking – if they get back to the beginning without skipping any cards, they will know they’ve done it correctly.
You can make your own I Have Who Has games, but if you are interested in saving time and mental effort, check out these pre-made sets for math vocabulary here. Now that you know how to play I Have Who Has games, give them a try in your classroom!
More ideas for I Have Who Has Games:
The Ultimate Guide on I Have Who Has Games
I Have, Who Has? (directions for a student-created option)
How to Play I Have Who Has Game (Resources) (video tutorial included)