It’s the beginning of the school year. You scan through the mental rolodex of ideas for getting to know your students (because, let’s face it, you’re getting older and you have three Sophia C’s who all look alike and chances are you won’t know all 115 names until October). Ice breaker questions. Blobs and lines. This or that. Table topics. Two truths and a lie(ish). Classroom games of yore.
Now, fast forward to mid-September / October. The curriculum has hit the fan. Students are learning in spite of whatever district and curriculum team initiatives and new curriculum mandates they’ve piled onto your plate. It feels like you have less time than ever to hit the pause button and continue building that all-important classroom culture and those essential student relationships. Maybe you’ve continued to spice things up with attendance questions and whatnot, but if you’re like me things get routinized and you get bored. It’s time for classroom games and novelty.
I added to my arsenal of classroom games this year and am really enjoying the levity they bring. The collaboration they bring. The engagement they bring.
Plus, I’m not really into making students do things like turning on music and dancing to Popsico for nostalgia’s sake. (Yes, my son was actually asked to do this today in his high school class.) If there’s ONE rule I adhere to as a teacher, it’s this: don’t make students do things YOU wouldn’t do yourself! I mean, c’mon. That’s the plot of many a dreaded school improvement day, is it not?
That’s why when I’m choosing classroom games to use as team building activities or mind and movement breaks, I choose games that I actually enjoy.
Classroom Games that Take 5 Minutes or Less
Incohearent Family is a classroom game for teens that is a quick one to whip out if you have a few minutes at the end of class or need an energizer. The idea here is to say what is written on the card out loud until you figure out what the actual phrase or word is supposed to be. You can divide the cards between table groups or project one up for the whole class to see who gets the answer first.
Linkee Original & Nick Jonas Edition are all-time favorite bell ringers. If your students are like mine, they will ask for their daily Linkee if you forget. This game for your classroom has been described as the “thinking man’s hungry hippos.” I’m not quite sure this is accurate, but the name of the game is finding the “link” between answers for four separate trivia questions.
So, students have to get all of the trivia questions right. Then, they must figure out how those answers are connected. There are a few trivia questions here and there that refer to alcohol or other things that may be inappropriate. I usually just skip these and give three clues for those cards instead of four.
Get the Picture Card Game asks students to combine what is represented in four different pictures. The goal is to figure out the name of a famous person. For example, there might be a picture of a fin, a cent, a van, and a stoplight which, combined, would create the name “Vincent Van Gough.”
Classroom Games that Take 10-15 Minutes
I Should Have Known That – A Trivia Game & Red Box Edition are a fun lil’ addition to my set of classroom games. I thought I would use these like Linkee cards at the beginning of class (which you totally could!). But I stumbled upon something else that’s pretty fun.
We spend 10-15 minutes at the beginning of the week playing this classroom trivia game. This game promotes conversation and team-building within table groups. To begin, I give each table group a small white board, marker, and eraser. The first student with the board numbers from 1-4 and writes down the group’s best answers for the four questions on the card. This is one round.
As I reveal the correct answers, table groups give themselves 5 points for correct answers and -5 for incorrect answers (no response counts as incorrect). Negative scores are allowed.
We usually play three rounds of I Should Have Known That. To continue, I ask students to choose a new writer for each round. (Pass the white board to a new person at the table group.) Sometimes I award bonus points for correctly spelling difficult words.
This tip is clutch: to keep student scorekeepers honest, I usually write a random number on my secret white board and reveal it at the end of the game. The table with the score closest to my random number is the “winner” for the day. They get to choose a piece of candy or Chromebook sticker. Gotta keep students on their toes!
Reverse Charades Game
This one is a classroom game middle school and high school students will have fun playing as an energizer. I use a charades generator like this one (usually the medium or hard level). To begin, I ask each table group to send a rep to the front of the room. Everyone has to go to the front once.
The fun in this group game is that the students at the front of the room get to guess. The students at their table groups collaborate to act out the word(s). Traditional charades rules apply which means no spelling or speaking. And no pointing to words or letters in the room. I usually play five rounds of this game because there are five students at each table group. You can award honor and glory or “best acting” awards as prizes if you wish.
Blank Slate – A Classroom Game Where Great Minds Think Alike
Extend this fun game into your classroom by having students write on notebook paper, sticky notes, or their own white boards (if you have a classroom set). This is a game where students try to predict what their tablemates are thinking.
Cue cards contain phrases with a word missing. Players write the word that they think best completes the phrase. To be successful, students should try to match and predict what at least one other person in the group writes down. The MOST points are scored for matching only ONE other player, so some creative thought is required.
Unnecessary Inventions – Invent Things to Solve Problems that Don’t Really Matter
The name of this classroom game says it all. The invention cards pose a problem to solve, but not something huge like world hunger. Instead, they pose a small problem like being stuck in traffic. First world problems.
Students must think and talk on their feet with two minutes to create the best invention to solve the given problem. Then, they must pitch it to the group. This is perfect for practicing speaking and persuasion skills as well as creative thinking skills!
Catch the Chameleon
Everyone knows the secret word. Except for the chameleon. This student must blend in as players describe the secret in just one word. Play this game in small groups or as a whole class. If you’re playing as a whole class, have 4-5 students play and the rest of the class try to guess the chameleon.
Gullible – The Game of Creativity, Bluffing, and Astonishing Facts
Students will have a lot of fun in small groups with this game. Two opposing teams invent fake facts to try and fool each other. Creative thinking? Yes. Show vs. tell? Yes. Speaking opportunities? Yes.
The benefits of classroom games that build community and culture are too good to let these ideas pass you by. Whether you try reverse charades or buy your favorite game above, I hope that you find a few minutes to build purposeful moments of fun into your classroom agenda. It’s never wasted time, and you’ll gain dividends in increased student engagement and collaboration!
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