Oh, I do make them complete assignments and tests that I end up throwing away all the time, that's mainly b/c I'm lazy and don't feel like grading everything.
This wasn't the funniest joke but it fooled some of them. I told my kids that I eloped with my boyfriend, wore my mother's wedding ring, and told them they would have to call me a new name. They flipped out, some of them. The rest didn't care, as I thought, but it worked on a few of them.
A side note, there is a movie from the early 80's called April Fool's Day. If you like campy horror movies, it's great! Biff(Thomas F. Wilson) from Back to the Future is in it and has a freak out. Also, there is a great scene when this guy gets his penis cut off. GREAT!!!! Rent it if you want a laugh.
"CHAZ!!!"
"Look at that lip. Gonna bite it."