At the beginning of the school year, building classroom community is usually top of mind. We plan the icebreakers, get-to-know-you games, and team-building activities, and start creating a classroom where students feel comfortable and connected. But classroom community isn’t something you build during the first few weeks and then check off your list. It’s something that grows throughout the entire year.
Of course, once lessons are in full swing and there’s a whole curriculum to get through, it’s easy for community building to take a back seat. The good news is that it doesn’t have to mean squeezing in elaborate activities or giving up valuable class time. Small, intentional opportunities for students to collaborate, share, laugh, and learn about each other can go a long way toward creating a classroom where students feel connected, supported, and ready to learn.
Here are five simple ways you can build that sense of community at the beginning of the year and keep it going all year long.
Throughout the year, teams can earn points for completing ELA activities and challenges, working well together, or even showing some team spirit. Keep a simple class leaderboard so students can follow their progress and add in occasional bonus challenges to keep things interesting. You might be surprised by how quickly students get invested when a few points are on the line. 😂
If you like this idea but don’t want to organize it all yourself, this is exactly how my ELA Games Program works. It includes the team structure, standards-based ELA challenges, bonus and spirit challenges, individual and team points, a class leaderboard, and everything you need to run the competition throughout the year.
The competition is fun, but the real community building happens along the way. Students are strategizing, problem-solving, celebrating wins, and working with the same group over time. Those repeated little interactions give them a chance to build connections that a one-day team-building activity just can’t. Find it here: The ELA Games Program
Want something you can try on a smaller scale?
How it works: The teacher sets up a "Classroom Challenge" bulletin board display that includes 20 hidden activity prompts. Once a challenge is revealed, the teacher finds the corresponding activity, passes it out to the class, and they are ready to go!
Here are a few of the prompts I include in my challenge to give you an idea of the types of activities can help build community:
- Write a thank you card for someone you appreciate.
- Talk for one minute to a partner about the topic you receive from your teacher.
- Write a top 10 list on the topic of your choice.
- Imagine you are stuck on a deserted island. Pick one book, one movie, and one other item to bring.
- Play a game of 20 questions with a partner.
You know that nostalgic feeling you get when you are reminiscing with your friends about times past? Bring that into your room with “Classroom Throwbacks.” Students use small cards to write down funny, interesting, and memorable moments that happen within the classroom and put it in the “Classroom Thowbacks” jar/box.
You can have students fill out the cards randomly, or you can pass them out from time to time, put students in small groups, and have them fill the cards out with a couple memories. Once the throwback jar starts to accumulate some cards, you can begin sharing them in class. You might consider sharing one a week for a “Throwback Thursday” activity. Grab this free resource by clicking here.
I once had a principal who left notes of appreciation (and a small treat) in teachers’ mailboxes for little things she had noticed them doing (staying late at school working, helping out at an after-school event, giving extra help at lunch etc.). It was such a small gesture, but it had a dramatic impact on the morale of the staff. Build this same kind of morale in your classroom by finding ways to celebrate your students for the things you see them doing that deserve some praise and appreciation. There are lots of ways you can do this. You can post student work in your classroom, call or email parents to brag up those students who don’t often get a pat on the back, or even have a student of the month/week display for those who deserve special recognition! I also like to keep funny cards tucked away in my desk for those occasions where a student surprises or impresses me.
Ask for volunteers for “student paparazzi”. Their job is to take pictures of students in the classroom and send them to you via email to print and post. Of course, students should only take pictures when you deem it appropriate. They could take some before and after the bell rings or during a class activity (when appropriate and with permission) or at the end of the period if class finishes up a couple minutes early. When you post the pictures in your classroom, consider framing them! I pick up low-cost frames at the dollar store and put them in different locations in my classroom (on the wall, on my desk, on the desk at the front of my room, on a bookshelf). No need to go use expensive photo paper. Simply print the pictures on regular letter paper to fit the frame's size (pictures below from the classrooms of @CamilaCdipietro and @Tarafarah7)
Framed photos create a home-like, family atmosphere where students feel welcomed and accepted. If you have a classroom website or social media account, you could also post the pictures there as long as you have parent media release permission forms.
Providing students with an opportunity to reflect on the positive moments of the week and look forward to the next week is another way to help foster classroom community. One way you can do this is by starting a weekly tradition called “Friday 5-4-3-2-1”.
Classroom Community Bell-Ringers from The Daring English Teacher
The Kindness Project from Room 213
