<p>We are hosting a summer welcome event for area freshmen going to our daughter's college. What kind of things would have helped you if you had been able to attend one of these things? I am thinking about the usual what to bring, but also plan on supplying info on the area (stores, restuarants, etc.). Any other suggestions?</p>
<p>I am planning on doing the same, and have a ton of questions...we only have three attending from Memphis to a NYS college - so I was going to include current area students and alums...what are you planning to serve? Include parents since there will be alums there anyway? thanks - hope you don't think I hi-jacked this</p>
<p>A very generous local alumni from my d's school hosted the "Send Off " party for our area. He actually flew in some of his favorite foods from the college town. ( That was pretty cool! )
He included some students from the area who had just completed their freshman year and they were able to answer a lot of questions for the new kids.
The alumni association also gave all of the parents water bottles with the college name on them and t-shirts for the students. The host is a huge supporter of the university and had a lot of college memorabilia decorating his home - it really made the students feel great to see such pride in their school.
Good luck with your party - it's a nice thing for you to do !</p>
<p>If your college is a long way from home, then you might be a regional representative. In addition to those who come from close-by, there could be families too far to attend the event. If you just welcome them by email, that will be appreciated.
For example, our S is going to California and only east coast gathering is in a suburb of New York City. That's truly understandable and appropriate, as most live there. I wasn't even expecting anything east of the Mississippi, given the distances involved to the college, and yet there is a gathering, but too far for us to go. If we weren't a 14-hour roundtrip by car, or several hundred dollar RT plane trip away from that party, I'd be there in a heartbeat! </p>
<p>Instead, I'd just like somehow to be on the radar screen of the families who do attend. Even circulate a list of people from the larger region at the party, or greet out by email. It won't mean much to the kids, but perhaps to the parents it will.</p>
<p>In answer to what to present at the party, the most useful thing I wish I'd known (for our older 2 who attended just 4 hour drives away) is a home-address contact list for sharing rides to-and-from the campus for future holidays. Even if a parent goes and brings back another kid to a nearby pick-up point, this can help a lot at holidays.
I found when I asked my kids on campus, "Who else lives near or beyond Buffalo.." they shrugged and said, "we don't know much about hometowns, we just know which dorm we live in now." Sigh.</p>
<p>I am not sure what we are serving.<br>
the party will be from 2 - 5pm. My wife never will run short of food and will have a hard time not serving something substatial. Thinking small appetizers and some kind of desert, but I may be overruled. </p>
<p>We are about 4 - 5 hours from the school, but our list has 63 kids, so I am hoping some can't come. I know this may sound bad, but our house can't hold that many kids and parents. We are planning to get a list of people who come and email it to everyone so they will have addresses and phone numbers.</p>
<p>I can tell you what not to have- an alum that talks for 45 minutes about the school; stuff you already know if you have looked on the website or taken a tour!</p>
<p>The kids at our summer send off were a bit shy, but each student was introduced and shared where they went to high school and what dorm they were going to be living in. This was a springboard for the kids to chat later in the evening with those that were sharing a dorm.</p>
<p>I know this is the cheapskate and former Girl Scout coming out in me but I'm thinking that if you could put together a little "welcome wagon" type goodie bag...for each student that includes some coupons from area hotspots as well as little stuff they may need for their dorm rooms: a little vase, some pencils from the college they are attending, other small bookstore goodies, air freshener :-) you could also put in an inexpensively framed postcard from home. I've done a back to school party for my kids since DDs were in elementary. We serve rootbeer floats....childish maybe and messy but fun and/or an ice cream sundae bar. I always sent the kids home w/ a school orriented goody bag. Crayons and stuff when they were little...lead for mechanical pencils, batteries, little mirrors for their lockers as they got older</p>
<p>Also, and check w/ your CS re this because it may be over the top dorky...an icebreaking game is a great way to get kids over their shyness w/ one another and to help insure they have a good time. It gives them some common ground from which to jump off. One of my girls would be all over this idea especially if it involved competition (like splitting them into teams and asking trivia about the school they will be atttending) The other one would rather I just put out the food and leave the mixing to the kids. One thing I do know though...Kids like to play and though they may think it's uncool and they may pretend that they are too sophiticated for silly party games, they are often conflicted about leaving home and long for a last quick dabble in childish things like games. </p>
<p>I would try to get someone else, like the older students going back to college for their 2nd or 3rd year to structure and run any games if you do decide to play them. It decreases the "dork factor" if mom and dad are in the background.</p>
<p>One icebreaker that sounds incredibly mortifying but is actually kind of fun (even for game-hating me) is icebreaker bingo. </p>
<p>You have three or four different sets of questions like "Speaks a foreign language", Plays piano, lived in a foreign country, born in another state, etc...you can probably get these questions by googling icebreaker bingo..anyway you make grids of three columns/three rows and each card has nine questions. Players have to go around and find people who have done the things noted on the cards and fill in the names. the first person to fill their card yells bingo and gets a prize--which in your case could be a trinket from the college bookstore. </p>
<p>The nice thing about this game is that they learn a little about each other, and oddly enough when they see each other later they have something to talk about..."hey..weren't you the one who lived in Costa Rica? What was that like?"</p>
<p>mombot I do that one at the beginning of each school year w/ my 11th graders. They have a blast and I get to know each of them a little bit the very 1st day. They love it and all eventually...w/ enough prompting get in the swing of things and have a good time. We end it by having each kid introduce someone on their Bingo card. You actually can play Bingo w/ the completed cards by pulling students names out of a hat and allowing the kids to cross off that name. Something I have done in my classroom is to withold the prize if the winning student can't go back and identify the kids whose names gave them the BINGO.</p>
<p>I am a dork and quite proud of it :-)</p>
<p>I bet you could even supply the questions to us other dorks! ;)</p>
<p>I could and I would!</p>
<p>I like the sound of ice breaker bingo - especially for a big group. If fewer come another good icebreaker is the game where each person has to say two or three true things about themselves and one lie. The others have to guess which is the lie. You really have to sit around in a circle to play it however. I love the idea of a potential carpool list. I don't need goodie bags, but lists of local restaurants and wear to shop if you've forgotten something might be nice. The colleges may even already have these brochures made up - I got the info from CMU at accepted students weekend.</p>
<p>I head my paper witht the direction: Find Someone Who: </p>
<p>Some of the squares I have on the one I use:</p>
<p>Can ask for and understand directions in at least two languages</p>
<p>Can change a tire</p>
<p>Rides motorcycles</p>
<p>Rides horses</p>
<p>Left the country over the summer</p>
<p>Likes to cook</p>
<p>Plays a musical insturment</p>
<p>Paticipates in two sports</p>
<p>Has performed in front of an audience</p>
<p>Has at least four pets</p>
<p>Was a girl/boy scout at one time</p>
<p>Remembers their great-grandparents</p>
<p>Has a birthday that conflicts with a holiday</p>
<p>Has never had stiches or broken a bone</p>
<p>There really is not limit on the number of squares you use and the sorts of things you write in them. I try to make sure that everyone can answer at least one thing so that everyone is comfortable participating</p>
<p>rhy: Did the college supply you with the names and addresses? Who did you talk to for that? Thanks.</p>
<p>At our gathering, some of the current students played a trivia game about the college (mascot, president's name, coach's name, etc. ) winners got tshirts, lanyard, mug etc. from the college. It was fast paced and fun.</p>
<p>The college did supply use with names and addresses as well as invitations. These parties have been going on for a few years now and they are really organized (there are 32 this summer in different areas of the country). Some of the parties will only have a few kids while the biggest is ove 150. My biggest concern is what to serve and keeping everyone busy (the ice breaker bingo sounds like a great idea)</p>
<p>I'd ask my CS. Or, go with a regional theme related to where the college is. Is that region is known for anything special?</p>
<p>I have to say though that I wouldn't worry too much about it. This is a party for 18 year olds to get to know eachother. I'd serve some old standby finger foods that everyone likes and then I'd probably barbeque. Hot Dogs, Hamburgers, maybe some Kebobs that people can eat standing up easier. IMO food at a function like this needs to be good and plentiful but not gourmet. </p>
<p>Another "get acquainted" game I like is to give each participant a 3 X 5 card and have them write things about themselves on it: Name in the center. maybe intended major in one corner, three fave movies in another, three best books of all time in another and three favorite activities in another. Then kids compare cards and look for people with whom they have at least three things in common. In my class room I have them introduce one another based on what they learned from the cards and/or the converstaion that invariably follows. This takes up a lot of time and I really think that if you did nothing else from that point on you would have given the kids a starting point for mingling.</p>