Back To School
Here are our top activities for back to school. Plus, a handy checklist for getting ready.
Back to school. There is so much to get ready. Take a look at our checklist of things a teacher should review and have in place at the start of classes.
Download our New Teacher’s Checklist »> Or this handy shortchecklist Or our Checklist for online teachers »>
But after your preparation, readiness, planning - there is the need to plan some really useful, engaging “getting to know each other” activities.
So, here are some we suggest - see our full post on these activities but here are my personal top 5. They work to help build classroom atmosphere and community.
2 Truths, 1 Lie. A classic. Students write 3 statements, one is a lie. Read them out, can everyone guess which is the lie? Model the activity on the board/screen by putting up statements about yourself and having students guess about the teacher. Download the free template.
** Snowball is a nice variation of this - crumple up the papers, no names on them. Have a 1 minute snowball fight (ritualized violence really brings a group together - anthropologists say). Then, pick up one “snowball” and read it out. Try to guess who in the class it is. Then after, guess again about the lie. Download the free template.Stand Up. Sit Down. Read statements to students. Those who answer YES, stand up. Those who answer No, remain seated. Or alternatively, Yes goes to one side of the classroom. No, to the opposite. Ex. Do you watch Netflix every week? See our prepared game and cards. This game can also be a good needs analysis for a teacher - a way of getting to know students better. Ex. “Who lives in an apartment?” “Who has someone at home that speaks English ok?” See our online generator of this game or our full activity book.
What I want the teacher to know about me. Students write privately to the teacher, telling them things vital about their family situation, learning preferences and more … View our templates.
Guess About The Teacher. A classic, always works. Then have students guess about classmates. See our nice This or That presentation for this.
Surveys. Students can survey the class about a question and then report back to the class about classmates. Here is an example. Find Someone Who is a form of this that also is a classic. Of course, a good needs survey is also a must for teachers, the first weeks of classes.
Even if your students know each other already - these activities can be tweaked to work well. But it is essential to have some kind of “go to” warmer or icebreaker for the first days of class. See all our Lesson Library “back to school” lesson resources!
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