Back-to-school is an exciting time for students – and their teachers. It’s a natural opportunity for you and your class to make connections with each other.
Building those positive inter-student relationships early can improve everyone’s school year. That includes positive relationships between students and teachers, researchers have found.
Here are some fun icebreaker activities, games, and printables to make the first days of school fun. Use them to help your class get to know each other and discover things they have in common.
‘Getting to Know You’ Back-to-School Activities
1. Beach Ball Game: If you’re looking for a getting-to-know-you activity that gets students moving, try this one! Write a question on each side of a beach ball in permanent marker and have fun tossing it around while learning all about your students.
2. Classroom Scavenger Hunt: This activity helps students become comfortable in the classroom. This fun scavenger hunt turns classroom learning into a game.
3. Back-to-School Bingo: Get your students moving! Try this getting-to-know-you twist on bingo!
4. Meet the Teacher: Here’s an editable template for a ‘meet the teacher’ letter. Help your students and their families get to know you a little better to kick off the school year.
Back-to-School Activities for Teaching Mindset, Team-Building and Social Skills
5. Class Helpers: Grab a fellow teacher or helper to act or read aloud from this play script with students. It helps set expectations for how to share and be considerate of others.
6. What Makes a Good Friend?: Use these pictures as a back-to-school activity about the attributes of a good friend and how students can make new friends this school year. How are the children collaborating? Does that make an activity more fun?
7. Random Acts of Kindness Ideas: This craft encourages students to treat their new classmates with kindness and gives them actionable suggestions on where to start.
8. Helpful Words: Teach students how to have a growth mindset as they encounter new challenges with this worksheet.
9. I Wish My Teacher Knew: This activity allows students to share things they want you to know about them as they start the school year.
Back-to-School Reading and Math Activities
10. Goal Setting: With this first day of school worksheet as their guide, students can set new goals for the upcoming year while practicing writing skills.
11. Can You Guess? A Story in Two Voices: Pair your students into groups of two and have them read this guessing game picture book aloud. It’s a fun back-to-school reading activity.
12. STEM Marshmallow Challenge: This sweet STEM activity is perfect for back-to-school! It’s a group challenge that teaches math and science skills using toothpicks and marshmallows. Bonus if the building blocks aren’t eaten!
Back-to-School Arts, Crafts, and Brain Breaks
13. Back to School Coloring Page: Share a “Welcome back to school” message with your students! This coloring page can make for a quick and relaxing brain break during those busy first days. Search your Waterford.org resources for more coloring sheets.
14. Charades Relay Race: This twist on a classic game of charades is a high-energy way to help students practice working in groups while also getting out their wiggles.
15. Group Project Coloring Sheet: Share out this coloring page when your students need some quiet time to encourage an atmosphere of working together in class.
Use These First Days to Connect With Families
Bonus: The first days of school aren’t just about connecting with students; they’re also a golden opportunity to build family engagement. Family involvement is proven to increase positive outcomes.
Check out this post for some family engagement tips during those first few weeks of school: