The first weeks back to school can be a LOT for both teachers and students. Helping everyone get to know each other during this time can help make sure you’re all set up for a year full of valuable connections and proactive teaching and learning.
Our amazing education team has created lots of ready-made lessons to help with your first few weeks back in class. Here are 5 activities you can do in class to help get to know your students and enable them to get to know each other:
1. Stand Up If…
This activity is great if you have shyer students that may not be ready to share their voices yet. Students are invited to stand up if the (safe, inclusive) prompt applies to them. Classmates can scan the classroom and learn more about their classmates. This Lumio lesson is ready to use OR can be customized with some of your favorite prompts.
2. Making Friends
What better way to encourage student friendships but with a fun, engaging lesson in Lumio? Students can open this activity on their personal devices and jot down some of their favorite things. Then, students can travel around the classroom, connecting with their classmates and asking questions to each other. Students develop their confidence and communication skills by asking and answering questions, plus students build friendships at the same time!
3. Would You Rather
This Would You Rather activity encourages students to exercise their voice and choice. Students are given two prompts and they can drag an object overtop of their choice. Students not only develop their digital literacy but also their decision-making skills.
Customize this activity to relate the content to a topic your class is covering this year to get students excited about learning.
4. Kindness Bingo
We can all use reminders about the importance of kindness sometimes This activity encourages students to complete acts of kindness for their classmates. Tasks can be completed individually, in pairs or as a classroom challenge. Adding a layer of gamification boosts student engagement by encouraging students to complete tasks efficiently and tactfully. Use this ready-made lesson immediately or customize this lesson to meet the unique needs of your classroom.
5. Interviews
If your students are ready to dive deep into their classroom connections, try the Back to School Interview activity. Students can practice asking others questions, answering questions and documenting answers digitally with these interview prompts. Cap off this community-building activity with a 3-2-1 exercise to connect their learnings to comprehension.
One of the best way to get your students engaged is through fostering a welcoming environment all year long. Students are more likely to exercise their voice and open up to learning when they feel safe, comfortable and respected in class. These activities are fun and engaging for their first few weeks back to class but can set the stage for deeper learning and connections throughout the year.
Haven’t tried Lumio yet? Back to school time is the perfect opportunity to try it for FREE! Explore hundreds of ready-made lessons for your classroom and create your own lessons to engage your students in their learning on their own devices.