1. Student Visual Resume from Building Book Love
This does cost $3 on TPT, but it is a great way to get to know your students while practicing a life skill!
2. Google Slides Get to Know You: Template Here (be sure to make a copy)
Student Participation Ideas:
- Once students have all filled in their slides, have students look through the slideshow and choose two people that they share something in common with based on their slide.
- Call randomly on students to share who they selected and why they related to that person
3. Show and Tell
This can be done live on Teams or through Flipgrid. Each student spends about 30 seconds sharing a personal photo from a mobile device or personal item from around their home. They explain why the photo or item is important to them.
You could also ask students to share specific things on Teams. For example: Show the class your favorite toy.
You could also ask students to share specific things on Teams. For example: Show the class your favorite toy.
4. Spirit Animal Quiz
Make sure the website is unblocked on student Chromebooks!
https://www.spiritanimal.info/spirit-animal-quiz/
Have students take the quiz and share what spirit animal they are and why.
https://www.spiritanimal.info/spirit-animal-quiz/
Have students take the quiz and share what spirit animal they are and why.
5. Ten Things in Common
As a group, you need to come up with a list of 10 things that everyone has in common — we are all wearing shoes, own a Chromebook, etc.
Another variation is to find 10 items that everyone has in their immediate area — we all sitting on a chair, we all have a notepad, etc.
**You could put students in breakout rooms to do this activity.
Another variation is to find 10 items that everyone has in their immediate area — we all sitting on a chair, we all have a notepad, etc.
**You could put students in breakout rooms to do this activity.
6. Take or find a Picture of...
1. Create a Padlet or Google Slides presentation with different categories.
Examples: Your room/workplace; something on your desk; your socks or shoes; or a view outside your window; your pet; your favorite book; favorite celeb; favorite TikToker; favorite food...
2. Ask participants to snap a photo and add it to the Slides/Padlet to share.
3. Make sure to give everyone enough time to take some pictures before they have to share with the group.
4. Check out everyone's pictures!
Examples: Your room/workplace; something on your desk; your socks or shoes; or a view outside your window; your pet; your favorite book; favorite celeb; favorite TikToker; favorite food...
2. Ask participants to snap a photo and add it to the Slides/Padlet to share.
3. Make sure to give everyone enough time to take some pictures before they have to share with the group.
4. Check out everyone's pictures!
7. Would you rather? (use NearPod, Pear Deck, Poll Everywhere or Kahoot)
8. Big Lottery Winner
1. Explain to students that they just won $25 million! Give them 5 minutes to write down all the things they would do with the money.
2. After 5 minutes is over, have students discuss. Maybe if one student shares something that other students have, all the other students that have it could all put a :-) in the chat.
2. After 5 minutes is over, have students discuss. Maybe if one student shares something that other students have, all the other students that have it could all put a :-) in the chat.
9. One Random Object
- Ask a student to pick one random object that is in their room and not tell anyone what it is.
- Explain that the other participants will have to guess what it is, by asking questions that require a yes or no answer.
10. Digital Vision Board
Have students use Google Drawings to create a digital vision board for the year. They can draw or paste in photos from the Internet. Sections of their vision board could include: personal goals, school goals, self care/health/fitness goals, relationship goals...
11. How much can you remember about your teacher?
1. Create a Google Slides presentation with 20-25 photos from your life and no words.
2. Create a quiz with questions about your life based on the photos. Try to add some inference questions to make it even trickier. Examples: How many pets does Mrs. McKinney have? What color hair does Mrs. McKinney's husband have?
3. Show students the presentation, but they will only get a short amount of time to look at each photo. They will have to remember as much as they can from the photos. You are not allowed to answer any questions about the photos or give any commentary about the photos.
4. Give students the quiz. Whoever gets the highest score is the winner!
2. Create a quiz with questions about your life based on the photos. Try to add some inference questions to make it even trickier. Examples: How many pets does Mrs. McKinney have? What color hair does Mrs. McKinney's husband have?
3. Show students the presentation, but they will only get a short amount of time to look at each photo. They will have to remember as much as they can from the photos. You are not allowed to answer any questions about the photos or give any commentary about the photos.
4. Give students the quiz. Whoever gets the highest score is the winner!
12. Family Portrait
This will be a challenge! Work together to create a cool "gallery view" screenshot of your class. See example below.
To spice things up, take a different one each time — make funny faces, bring in your pets, do a crazy gesture, you name it.
To spice things up, take a different one each time — make funny faces, bring in your pets, do a crazy gesture, you name it.
13. Community Word Cloud Get to Know You
Create a free account at slido.com Students will be able to join your Slido Event without creating an account (make sure slido.com is unblocked for students!). They will answer questions, which will generate word clouds. The more times a student says an answer, the bigger the word will show up on the class word cloud. See examples below.
***You could also use the website Poll Everywhere to create class word clouds!
Question Ideas:
***You could also use the website Poll Everywhere to create class word clouds!
Question Ideas:
- Which time period would you go to if you had a time machine?
- Which sport would you like to be an Olympic champion in?
- What’s the first thing that you do after you wake up?
- Who was your childhood celebrity crush?
- If you had to eat only one food for the rest of your life, which one would it be?
- If you were a vegetable/fruit/color/animal, which one would you be?
- Which superpower would you like to have?
- What’s your favorite animal/food/flower/ice cream flavor?
14. Have students create their own GIFs using Brush Ninja.
Watch a quick 5 minute tutorial here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmuHLuiy0wQ
They can create a GIF of themselves doing their favorite activity.
They can create a GIF of a class procedure.
They can create a GIF of themselves doing their favorite activity.
They can create a GIF of a class procedure.
15. Open Mic
1. Tell students the day before, so they have time to prepare if they want to share. Students will have an open mic on the virtual Microsoft Teams stage for about one minute if they want to share something.
2. Ask them to find or write a joke, read a poem, share some art they have created, sing a song, play the mandolin—anything they want!
HINT: Make sure to set group expectations about supporting peers in a positive way.
2. Ask them to find or write a joke, read a poem, share some art they have created, sing a song, play the mandolin—anything they want!
HINT: Make sure to set group expectations about supporting peers in a positive way.
16. Find it fast!
This is more of a fun energizer. Call out a color or other trait (e.g. something round, something made of wood), and students must find an object in their homes that fits the trait and get to it quickly. Hold it up to their camera ASAP. You could put kids on teams and assign points for who is the fastest.
17. I Have But You Haven't
1. Create a discussion question in Schoology.
2. Have students post a fact about themselves. It could be something they think they have done that no one else has or something that they haven't done that they think everyone else has.
3. Students should read their peers' posts and respond if they have also done what the original student says they have done or if they also haven't done what the original student says that they haven't done.
Source: https://sites.google.com/site/onlineteachingstrategies/virtualicebreakers/rockwood-1
2. Have students post a fact about themselves. It could be something they think they have done that no one else has or something that they haven't done that they think everyone else has.
3. Students should read their peers' posts and respond if they have also done what the original student says they have done or if they also haven't done what the original student says that they haven't done.
Source: https://sites.google.com/site/onlineteachingstrategies/virtualicebreakers/rockwood-1
18. What I Treasure
The teacher would begin a threaded discussion in Schoology by having students guess what he/she treasures based on three items that would be found in his/her "treasure box:" one item that represents the teacher; one item that represents what the teacher likes; and the third represents what the teacher likes to do.
Each student responds with a guess for each of the teacher's items, followed by listing their own treasure box items. As each student makes their initial post, other students guess at the meaning of each symbol. In the end, after all students guess what each of the other students' items represent, all students and the teacher post a final list of each item and what the item represents to them.
Sample posts:
Teacher (initial post): In my treasure box I have:
--a lion
--a baseball
--a car
Student 1 (initial post-new thread):
You have a lion because you are ferocious, a baseball because you like baseball, and a car because you like to drive places.
In my treasure box I have:
--a pencil
--a plate
--a soccer ball
Student 2 (response to first student):
You have a pencil because you are a writer, a plate because you like to eat, and a soccer ball because you like to play soccer.
Source: https://sites.google.com/site/onlineteachingstrategies/virtualicebreakers/what-i-treasure-1
Each student responds with a guess for each of the teacher's items, followed by listing their own treasure box items. As each student makes their initial post, other students guess at the meaning of each symbol. In the end, after all students guess what each of the other students' items represent, all students and the teacher post a final list of each item and what the item represents to them.
Sample posts:
Teacher (initial post): In my treasure box I have:
--a lion
--a baseball
--a car
Student 1 (initial post-new thread):
You have a lion because you are ferocious, a baseball because you like baseball, and a car because you like to drive places.
In my treasure box I have:
--a pencil
--a plate
--a soccer ball
Student 2 (response to first student):
You have a pencil because you are a writer, a plate because you like to eat, and a soccer ball because you like to play soccer.
Source: https://sites.google.com/site/onlineteachingstrategies/virtualicebreakers/what-i-treasure-1
19. Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down
For this icebreaker, students should choose a view that allows the entire class to be seen at once. They can also use a voting function if one is available in the virtual tool. Students take turns stating something they like/dislike or something they've done. For example, "I like shrimp." or "I've visited Washington, DC." Classmates indicate their similarity or difference with the person by showing a thumbs-up or a thumbs-down (or by using the voting function).
To personalize the activity even more, challenge students to offer an activity or accomplishment that they think is rare or unique about themselves, and see if anyone shares it. For example, "I cleaned out my refrigerator last night." or "I was born on February 29."
Source: https://esllibrary.com/blog/virtual-icebreakers
To personalize the activity even more, challenge students to offer an activity or accomplishment that they think is rare or unique about themselves, and see if anyone shares it. For example, "I cleaned out my refrigerator last night." or "I was born on February 29."
Source: https://esllibrary.com/blog/virtual-icebreakers
20. Guess it!
HINT: Use this to teach expectations for appropriate chat comments.
Show the video or photos, and have students guess in the chat. There are many options for this game. You can find a lot of these just by searching YouTube or the Internet. Play a short song clip or sound clip, and students have to guess the song/sound in the chat.
Guess that sound YouTube clip
Guess that Disney Voice Clip
Show two pictures that have tiny differences. See if students can identify the differences.
Spot the difference
Show the video or photos, and have students guess in the chat. There are many options for this game. You can find a lot of these just by searching YouTube or the Internet. Play a short song clip or sound clip, and students have to guess the song/sound in the chat.
Guess that sound YouTube clip
Guess that Disney Voice Clip
Show two pictures that have tiny differences. See if students can identify the differences.
Spot the difference