By the end of the year, you know practically everything about your students: their hidden talents, their favorite books, their friends, frenemies, and classroom crushes… but on that first day of school, walking into a classroom full of awkward silence can be intimidating to the most seasoned teachers. Most of my back to school nightmares involve being unprepared on the first day, and/or my new students sneaking out of the classroom door when I’m not looking.
Investing plenty of time into getting to know your students and building classroom community during the first weeks of school pays off in a major way. It’s only when you’ve got a solid relationship with your students and they trust each other that they’re willing to push themselves, take academic risks, and respect the norms of the classroom.
Looking for some easy icebreaker ideas? Look no-further.
1. Five Finger Introduction
First, students trace their hand on a piece of paper. Then, have them write the following things inside each finger:
Thumb: Something you’re good at
Pointer: Somewhere you’re going/goal for the future
Middle: Something that makes you mad (They LOVE this!)
Ring: Something you love
Pinky: Little known fact
Students can then use this as a prop to introduce themselves to a partner or the whole class. You could ask them to share all five fingers, or choose one or two if that feels more comfortable!
2. The Name Game
For me, the biggest struggle at the beginning of the year is learning ALL. THE. NAMES. This is Brittany’s superpower; she has most of them down by the end of the first day! But it’s just not my forte. So, I rely on this tried and true game which uses repetition and word association to help us learn each other’s name. Fun fact: Some of my students from years ago still call each other by the nicknames they earned during this icebreaker!
Starting with you, and then moving from one end of the classroom to the other, each student will finish the sentence, “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing First Name, Food Beginning with First Letter of Name (“Jayden Jellybeans,” for example.) I do my last name since that’s what students will need to learn. The catch is that each student has to repeat all the names of the people before them first. “I’m going on a picnic and I’m bringing Haley Hot Dog, Paul Pepperoni, and Lizzie Lemon.” By the time you get through every student, their names will have been repeated many times, and you and your students will have a surprising number memorized!
3. Bumpitty Bump Bump
This fast paced, hilarious game is perfect for a small class, or any class once students have heard each other’s names. Stand in a circle. One person in the middle points to someone in the circle and says either, “Bumpitty Bump Bump,” “Left Bumpitty Bump Bump,” or “Right Bumpitty Bump Bump.” The person has until the last “Bump” to say either his/her own name, or that of the person to the left or right, depending on what the center person said. If they fail, they trade places with the person in the center and the game continues. More people in the middle makes this even more fun!
4. Puzzle Race
(Materials required: a dollar-store puzzle for each group. Before class, take one piece of each puzzle out of the box and put it in another group’s box!)
This icebreaker is perfect for developing your new students’ cooperation and problem-solving skills. Groups (of about 4 or 5) each get a puzzle to put together. They are told it is a race and the first to put their puzzle together will be rewarded. However, they do not know that one of their pieces is in another group’s box. Therefore, each group must decide how to get its piece back (trade, steal, ask nicely, make a deal, etc.) You can make this more complicated by asking each group to choose a captain and then telling them the captain cannot talk. Afterward, discuss what made this challenging/what methods of communication were used.
5. Would You Rather?
This fun low-stakes icebreaker is perfect for partners, small groups, and even the whole class! Simply print out these FREE “Would You Rather?” questions (I’d also suggest laminating them so you can re-use!) and cut them apart. Students can draw a question randomly for a quick ice-breaker before partner or group work, or you can debate as a large group. I use these throughout the year before each book club meeting!
New school year? We've got this! : )
~Jamie