Get to Know You Games
Get to know you games are a great way to break the ice and melt away
any first day of school anxiety - for you and your students!
After you’ve gone through the classroom rules and routines, positive
discipline in the classroom rewards, and classroom discipline plans,
have a little fun getting to know each other. Most middle schoolers
will moan and groan and act as though they are “too cool” for these get
to know you activities but secretly, they’ll enjoy the fun!
My Favorite of the
Get to Know You Games
Ready to have a little fun with your students? Yes, you are ALLOWED and
ENCOURAGED to play a game every now and then. It let’s your students
see that while you are serious about your subject, you also know how to
relax. That’s an important adult skill they need to learn.
Toilet “Paper Me”
This is one of the great middle school activities but will ONLY work on
the first day. 
Supplies:
Rolls of Toilet Paper. Say 1 roll for every 20 students.
How to Play:
You start. Tell each student to take as many individual squares as they
wish when the roll is passed to them. I generally start by taking three
squares.
Toss the toilet paper around the room. Each student
takes the amount they wish. (This works best on the first day because
most students will gently toss the roll instead of chucking it. Once
they’re more comfortable they tend to throw with all their might).
Once everyone has squares, you tell them the game is to
go around the room and for every square of toilet paper they have
pulled, they must give one fact about themselves! For the ones who were
ambitious or “class clown” and took 15 squares - they have to start
thinking fast!
Teacher always starts and is sure to make one positive
and specific comment after each student’s turn.
Get to Know You Questions
Many variations of these get to know you games. Here is an example of a
fun one. You can create one with items tailored to where you live, what
grade you teach, and what you want to know about your students.
Supplies:
Get to Know You Questions sheet
A Timer or Good Watch
How To Play:
Hand out the sheets. Have students put their names at the top. Teacher
also completes one. Students have 5 minutes (less or more depending on
what you think is best for your class) to go around and collect names
of other students who fit each square. You cannot repeat a name and the
person must sign their own name in the box AFTER being asked the
question. Person with the most completed correctly when time is up
wins.
Student Survival Kit
Really neat idea but most time consuming of the get to know you games.
Supplies:
Everything 1 per student
Brown Paper Lunch Bags
Sticker
Penny
Eraser
Gold Star
Life Saver
Band-Aid
A Piece of Chocolate
Copies of Survival Kit Items Note
Survival Kit
Note:
Some things you need for our classroom this year.
A sticker - to remind you that we all stick together.
A Penny - to remind you that you are a valuable part of this class.
An Eraser - to let you know that it’s okay to make mistakes because we
can learn from them.
A Gold Star - to ask you to always strive to do your very best.
A Life Saver - to show you that I’m always here if you need someone to
count on.
A Band-Aid - because together we can work through anything and fix
everything.
A Chocolate - so we remember that life is sweet!
How to Play:
Put a survival kit on each student’s desk before class starts. Put up
the question “go through your items and choose the one you like the
best. On the back of your paper bag write which item you’ve chosen and
why.”
Allow several minutes for students to go through their
bags and also have some think time. Then share. Survival Kits are
theirs to keep. I also make a poster with the note and the items and
put it behind my desk all year long to remind them of our classroom
values.
An essential part
of the first
day of school activities.
There are many more get to know you games out there so be creative and
think about your own teaching style. Tailor these ideas or combine a
few to make something unique up for your classes!
Return
from Get to Know You Games to Homepage.
