I think icebreakers are underutilized in higher education. You don’t start playing a sport without stretching so why do we expect students to jump straight into learning and without a warm-up? Maybe it’s because the term “icebreaker” has become cliche from all of the obligatory professional development retreats where unenthusiastic professionals are forced to engage with their colleagues. Maybe the activities are forced or maybe they’re just not done right but I think we should reclaim icebreakers or maybe rename them to “connection-formers.” Whatever you call them, they’re important.
I recently conducted a research study of my own teaching and the inclusion of fun and play in learning and one approach I used was connection-forming activities. Students who participated in my research study reported that fun and play at the start of each class helped build a sense of community and it allowed them to decompress from their stressful days which opened them up for learning. Once students were able to relax and ease into class and feel a sense of comradery, they were more engaged and active during class. These activities don’t have to take up substantial class time, but I find they have a huge impact on the learning community and the level of active engagement of students. Here are a few ideas for virtual learning that I have tried:
- Polleverywhere Check-ins – Polleverywhere sets up surveys where students text in their answers and the group can instantly see a visual of everyone’s responses in real-time. You can make your prompt anything but I usually ask a single prompt where students text in their current mood with only using an emoji. Students said it felt normalizing to see that they weren’t the only ones overwhelmed or stressed from the day. An added bonus is that some of the emojis students submit are silly and also provide some laughter at the start of class.
- Virtual Handshakes or “Selfies” – I split the class into separate Zoom breakout rooms and instruct each group to design their own secret virtual group handshake or instead you could have them take a virtual group “selfie” screenshot. After they create their handshake or screenshot selfies, I have them return to the main Zoom room where each group performs their handshake or shows their selfie. The group with the best example wins a prize. I also have been doing end-of-class virtual group selfies. For my last class, on the last synchronous session, we took a group selfie where everyone wore a hat (the students decided this theme) but the term “hat” was a loose one because some students wore cups, books, and other random objects on their heads. Then after the class I emailed the screen shot selfie to everyone. It’s a fun way to wrap up a course!
- Flappy Bird Competitions – Flappy Bird is a free computer-based video game that’s completely absurd – you have to get this little bird to fly through openings in pipes to see who can get to the highest level. I hold these competitions with all students in the main Zoom room, I give them two minutes to play individually and at the end of the two minutes, the student who achieved the highest level wins a prize. Hint: be sure to unmute everyone because hearing their laughter and competitive nature will just make your day. Or with the same idea and set up you can try Can You Draw a Perfect Circle which is also a free computer-based game where you have to try and draw a perfect circle with your mouse and with each try the game gives you a “perfect” percentage – as far as I know, no one’s ever gotten 100%.
- Scrolly Questions – For this game, I divide students in groups in breakout rooms and provide them this webpage that contains like, a bagillion random questions. In their groups, one person shares their screen showing the scrolly question website and they start scrolling down the page of random questions. Students take turns and randomly tell the scroller to “STOP!” and whatever question the mouse arrow is pointing to must be answered by the “stopper.” It’s fun and it produces a rich and in-depth discussion that cuts through superficial ways of knowing each other – it creates an instant human connection. The questions on this webpage are just random but you could create your own document with tons of questions that are related to your discipline to make it have more educational value.
- Virtual Escape Room – At the start of one of my classes, I randomly assigned the students to different breakout rooms and provided them a link to a virtual escape room I had designed. In their groups they have to use clues to unlock and escape the breakout room which is their ticket back to the main Zoom room to start class. The way I know they actually escaped each lock instead of just leaving the breakout room is once they finally escape, I set a message containing a false promise of virtual cake and a secret password (“bananas”) to get back into the main room. Keep popping in and out of students’ escape rooms in case they need an extra hint and also because it’s so fun to see students struggle through the clues and work as a team to break free!
- Cell Phone Photo Fun! – This game can really go in many different directions based on the prompt. I teach mental health counseling so I might give the students a “feeling” as a prompt and they have to scroll through their phone photos and find the first picture that reminds them of that feeling or is the facial expression of that feeling. If they don’t have a phone, you can provide an alternative option of finding anything in their house. Then they share the photo with their small group. You could even connect it to the reading for that class where you have them search for a photo that represents a metaphor for the main concept of the reading for that class period. For example, if my students read about the power of the therapeutic relationship and empathy, they might find a photo in their phone that represents something foundational to a process. Really though, the prompt could be anything…
These are just a few ideas for virtual classes. As I’m exploring the world of fun and play in higher education, I’m discovering that it’s really a lot about creativity, so just think outside of the box and I’m sure you can come up with a lot of other connection-formers! I’d love to hear what you have tried or come up with!
