Students often spend an entire school year learning together. The stronger their relationships, the easier it will be for them to collaborate and share ideas. That’s why building community in the classroom is so important.
Thinking back on my time in the classroom, I remember bonding with classmates during activities that went beyond the curriculum. These moments gave us a chance to learn about each other’s lives, interests, and perspectives. We built trust and learned to communicate more openly. This same spirit of connection is at the heart of the fun classroom team-building activities that follow.
Team-building activities for the classroom
Whether students do these activities on the first day to get to know one another or throughout the year to improve rapport, they’ll be working together to build collaboration skills and a trusting classroom culture. Note that we’ve categorized the activities by grade level, but they all can be adapted to suit various age groups or student needs.
Classroom team-building activities for elementary students
There are many ways to approach community building activities for elementary students. One way is to focus on team-building, an important developmental skill. Elementary students are new at working together, and activities and games are a great way to get them to interact. Here are some activities you can do with elementary students.
1. Compliment chain
Tell students they’re going to participate in a compliment chain. One student starts by giving a classmate a compliment (e.g., “I like that you always share your crayons”). Next, the student who received a compliment gives one to another classmate. The compliments keep flowing in this way until everyone in the class gets one. Provide conversation starters:
- I like the way you ___________.
- You worked hard at ___________.
- It was nice of you to ___________.
- Thanks for helping me with ___________.
2. Order by age
In this classroom team-building activity, students sort themselves in a line by age order, without them being able to speak to each other. They will need to work together to find other ways to sort themselves out, like using their fingers to show their age or which month they were born in.
3. Icebreaker games
Icebreaker activities for students can be a great way to help young people get to know one another, especially on the first day of school. Some good options include getting-to-know-you bingo or a classroom scavenger hunt. These activities can help students learn teamwork and foster friendships.
4. Captain’s Coming
In the game “Captain’s Coming,” students will have to follow instructions from the “captain,” which can be you or a student you select. Players will be prompted to do an activity of the captain’s choice. Some examples include:
- Spyglass: Look through an imaginary telescope.
- Rowboat: Pretend to row a boat.
- Parrot: Repeat what the captain says in a silly voice.
- Anchor's away: Pretend to raise a heavy anchor.
- Treasure: Open a pretend treasure chest and look amazed.
- Octopus: Form a circle of eight students, stick out a leg, and pretend to be an octopus.
Classroom team-building activities for middle school students
Middle school is a time of rapid growth. Students at this age are learning to work together while managing group dynamics. The following team-building activities for middle school students are designed to encourage cooperation, build trust, and strengthen classroom community in fun ways.
5. Silent sketch
Tell students they are going to work together to sketch a picture without speaking. Separate them into groups of four. One student starts a simple drawing on a piece of paper, then passes it to a group member who adds to it. This continues for several rounds. At the end, students share and discuss the final collaborative artwork. Reflection questions may include:
- Did the final sketch turn out how you expected? Why or why not?
- What was it like to collaborate without talking?
- What did this activity teach you about working with others?
6. Fashion challenge
Break students up into teams and have them use paper and objects in the classroom to make an outfit. Afterwards, let them put on a fashion show. Students can have designated roles, such as the sketch designer, the model, the tailor, or other positions. This lets students be creative as a team and collaborate to create something.
7. Group scavenger hunt
Create a scavenger hunt with hints that are math problems or trivia questions. Split students up into teams and have them search for a treasure of the teacher’s choice. Here’s an example of a clue using a math problem.
Clue: 12 ÷ 3 = ?
“Go to the place where you see this number.”
(Students might look for a desk or other classroom item labeled 4.)
8. Vocabulary charades
Charades is a classic game where one person acts out a word or phrase, while the others try to guess what it is. Encourage students to convey the words through gestures or facial expressions rather than spoken clues or sound effects. This game can be played any time for any occasion. For example, charades can be used to introduce new vocabulary words when starting a new unit.
9. Hot and Cold
Hot and Cold is a game where one student closes their eyes while other students hide objects. Next, the seeker student will look for the object, while the other students yell “hot” if they are getting closer or “cold” if they are getting further away. The class will need to work together to help the “seeker” find the objects!
Classroom team-building activities for high school students
High school students benefit from team-building activities that promote leadership, problem-solving, and mutual respect. As they prepare for life beyond school, these experiences help them develop essential interpersonal skills and build stronger connections with their peers. The activities below are ideal for encouraging collaboration and a sense of belonging among high school students.
10. Class music playlist
Create a classroom playlist on a video platform app. You can have small groups of students work together to choose school-appropriate songs for a class playlist. The songs can be customized to fit any occasion, such as popular songs for school events, calm music for classwork and reading time, or even pre-class songs that can be played while students are changing classrooms or subjects. Incorporate leadership opportunities by assigning responsibilities that give students ownership and decision-making power. These include a rotating DJ who can select songs to play from the approved list or theme curators who can choose themes for the week like “Motivation Monday” or “Throwback Thursday.”
11. Common ground cards
Prepare cards with prompts like “I enjoy reading,” “I’ve traveled to another state,” “I like sports,” or “I speak more than one language.” Students take turns picking a card, reading it aloud, and raising their hand if it applies to them. This can be done anonymously with a digital polling tool. Afterwards, hold a class discussion about shared experiences. You might ask:
- Did any of the shared experiences surprise you? Why or why not?
- Why do you think it’s important to recognize what we have in common?
- How can shared experiences help us build stronger relationships?
12. Ready, set, build!
Challenge students to work in teams to build the strongest structure using wooden sticks or other items. This activity aligns with Next Generation Science Standards for engineering.
Objective:
Your goal is to create a building that can hold the most weight without collapsing!
Supplies you'll need:
- Wooden sticks (e.g., craft sticks)
- Glue, tape, string, or rubber bands
- Scissors
- Weights (e.g., blocks or small books)
Instructions:
- Form teams: Divide students into small teams of 3–5 students each.
- Design the structure: Instruct teams to plan how they want their building to look and how it will stay strong. Tell them to think about shapes that are strong, like triangles.
- Build the structure: Provide a time limit, like 25 minutes, for students to complete their designs using the materials provided.
- Test for strength: After building is complete, test each team’s structure by placing weights on top, one at a time, until the structure collapses.
- Celebrate: Give the winning team some recognition, even if it’s just a round of applause, a special shout-out, or a certificate that says “Master Builders.” Discuss with the class what made their structure strong and how math and science helped.
Extensions:
- Math Connection: Note the maximum weight each structure held. Have students compare their results and look for ways to graph the class data.
- Science Connection: Students could investigate how a building’s weight, dimensions, materials, or shape affected how much weight it could support.
- Reflection: Ask students what they would change next time and why.
13. Operation Beautify
Separate students into teams and challenge them to come up with one way to beautify the school. They might suggest planting flowers, painting a mural, cleaning up inside or outside of the school, or decorating the hallways. Next, have students vote on their favorite way to beautify the school. Before tackling the project, get buy-in from the principal and fellow teachers.
Beyond team-building classroom activities
These team-building activities for the classroom create an atmosphere where every student can thrive. Dedicating time to collaborative activities allows students to build bonds with peers and become more active members of their classroom community.
But teamwork isn’t just for students. Teachers and staff also benefit from team-building experiences that play a key role in fostering supportive classroom and school cultures. Try these team-building activities for teachers and see how stronger relationships can lead to a stronger school overall.
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