Start the School Year with this Ice Breaker

A new school year means another opportunity to get to know a new group of students.

Start the school year off right by creating meaningful connections through this ice breaker activity that your students (and you) will love!

Want a walkthrough of Activities before creating your own? Watch the video below.

Icebreaker activity: Show & Tell

Get to know your students and help create meaningful connections between students by having them share an object of significance and explaining what it represents.

Show & Tell is designed to:

• Foster a sense of community through creating an environment of sharing
• Give you insight into the things that matter to your students
• Build deeper connections by asking students to share something of significance

Begin by creating the activity in your SpacesEDU account using the copy-and-paste instructions below.

Note: we recommend adding a video or photo and audio recording of you sharing your own show and tell example. This provides students with an idea of what to expect while also breaking the ice and making them feel more comfortable sharing their own objects.

Once you’ve assigned the activity to your students, it’s time for them to complete it!

Review student submissions, adding any feedback you like, and then release the completed submissions by marking the activity as complete. Now students will be able to see each other’s show and tell examples, ask questions, and begin building those connections.

Activity instructions to copy and paste

Title: Show & Tell

Space: Class

Instructions:

Part of creating a community of learning is getting to know each other and building meaningful connections with your learning partners. We'll be doing this through our very own show and tell!

1. Listen to my example and learn what object is significant to me.

2. Find an item that has meaning to you (this could be something related to a hobby, your family/friends, a special memory or vacation - the sky is the limit!)

3. Explain why this object is significant to you. (Record a video of you showing the object and explaining its significance, or take a photo and upload it along with an audio recording or written explanation)

4. Once I've released everyone's show and tell submissions, comment on your classmates' posts to share:

• What you enjoyed about their show and tell
• Any questions you have
• If you have something in common

Media Attachments: a video or photo + audio recording of you sharing your object and what it means to you

Did you like this ready-to-use activity?

We’ve got six more icebreakers to help you get to know your students and begin creating your class community. Check them out here and here!

Do you have a go-to icebreaker activity that you use with your students? Tweet us @spaces_edu to share!