Break the Back-to-School Ice! 10 Fun Icebreakers for the Beginning of the Year. 4 Classroom Icebreaker Activities for Teachers. Updated August 18, 2016.
Although icebreakers can seem frivolous, they are an important first step to getting student buy-in. Unless a student is emotionally connected to school, they will lack the motivation to learn. Fostering feelings of trust and acceptance is difficult, if not impossible, when students don't know each others' names. Here are some great icebreakers that you can use in your classroom. Crossword Connection This activity includes visual symbols of connection and self-introductions. The teacher prints her own name on the board, leaving some space between each letter. Volunteers copy the completed puzzle as a poster. This activity can be extended by asking each student to write their name and a statement about themselves on a sheet of paper. TP Surprise Students will know you are full of fun with this one. The teacher welcomes students at the door while holding a roll of toilet paper.
When students are finished, they introduce themselves by reading their TP. First Day Ice Breakers. · Snowball Fight: Everyone in the class gets a blank piece of paper and writes down facts about themselves.
They next have to wad them up in a ball and the whole class has a snowball fight. At the end each student picks up a snowball and has to figure out whose snowball they have. · Tangled web: the class gets in a circle and one person starts by holding a ball of yarn and saying their name and one fact about them, then they throw it to another person in the class and the cycle continues until everyone is done and the yarn makes a web figure.· Two Truths and a Lie: You tell the class two things that are true about yourself and one thing that is a lie and they have to figure out which one is the lie. · Nickname Game: Each person gets an index card and writes down their nickname.
Identity Circles - Icebreakers, Ice Breakers, Ice Breaker Games. Identity Circles / Value Circles Identity Circles (also known as Identity Cards or Value Circles) is a deeper get-to-know-you game, during which you will have an opportunity to discuss with many friends the values that make up your identity and how you prioritize them in your life.
For this activity, you will be paired up with several different people, the number depending on how many people are in your group. The activity works best in even numbers, as pairing requires. To begin, divide your group in half and create two concentric circles (one inner circle and one outer circle). The people in the outer circle should face inside, and the people in the inner circle should face outside.
Getting to Know You Activities. Are you all set for the first day of school? Or are you still searching for the perfect activities for that day? Included: More than a dozen new icebreakers plus links to 150 more! Students in some communities are back in school already. In many other locales, excited conversations fill school hallways as teachers prepare their classrooms for the big day. One of teacher Heather Migdon's favorite activities is to have her students at Dogwood Elementary School in Fairfax County, Virginia, write a letter of introduction to her.
Another of Migdon's favorite first-day activities is to have students write a "Who Am I? Later, Migdon compiles those riddles into a book that the students can revisit and enjoy all year long. Migdon usually tries to share at least one read-aloud book during the opening days of school. Learning Styles and Baseball Cards Pamela Tempest, a teacher at Hudson (Ohio) Middle School was another contributor to the Middle Web listserv discussion.
Getting to Know You Activities. Every teacher has his or her favorite getting to know you activities.
Following are a few of EdWorld's picks. Why not explore a few you may not have tried before? Let's jump right into our first circle activity. My name is _____, and if I were an animal I'd be a _____ because.... I demonstrate for my students: "My name is Mr. Then I give the students a little time to think about what animals they might like to be -- and why.
Next, I ask the kids to draw themselves as their animals, leaving space at the bottom of the drawing for their first writing assignment. As I call on students during the day, I always repeat their names -- and their animals! We are all unique! Then I use the word in several statements, the last of which is "Each of us is unique. " Next step: Out comes the roll of white mural paper. I start out by writing "Mr. Let's play detective. "My favorite hobby is ________. " "I want to see whether you're good detectives," I tell the students. Get the School Year Off to a Good Start. Every teacher has a different approach to the first few days of school.
Whatever your approach, Education World has an activity for you! Included: Thirteen activities to help teachers get to know student strengths, set the classroom tone, observe student interaction, or just provide a little fun! What are your goals for the first days of school? Some teachers use the time for informal activities designed to help students get to know one another. Other teachers introduce class rules or establish new routines. Whatever your goals for the first days of school, the 13 activities in today's Education World article will help get the year off to a great start!
The 13 activities are divided into four categories: Getting to Know Student Strengths and Skills Setting the Tone Discovering How They Work Together Having Fun! Following directions. Learning styles survey. A world of change. Time capsule. A video keepsake. Sticks and stones ... Illustrated student reflections. Surveys and graphs.