five Icebreakers for the offset twenty-four hour period of course is a mini collection of activities to be done with a new group of students. Icebreakers are a dandy way for the teacher to get to know the students and for the students to get to know each other. It is of import to go along things light on the first 24-hour interval and focus on communication. On pinnacle of that, icebreakers permit the teacher to initially appraise their students' strengths and weaknesses and do a trivial bit oflanguage analysis, something which is very of import to tailor the form to students' needs.

Below, you tin find 5 icebreakers to exist washed on the first day of class with adult or teenage classes, levels pre-intermediate and above. Here, yous can take a look at how to tweak some of these activities to make them truly communicative and student-centered.

#1 Icebreaker: Concentric circles conversations

This icebreaker works a little bit like a speed-dating session, requires very petty preparation from the teacher and ensures a lot of one-to-one talking time for each student. It might be adapted for each level and group size, although information technology commonly works best with bigger groups (at least half-dozen students). The teacher might also play although information technology is better to stay on the outside, moderate the game, and step in, in instance in that location is a pupil left without a partner.

Procedure:

Arrange students in 2 circles, an inside and outside, the inside facing out. Each pupil should have a partner. Pairs talk about their answers to questions which you a) put on the board and erase later on each has been discussed b) are printed on handouts for each student. Students accept 3 minutes to talk over each answer. In one case the time is up, you inquire the students from the outside circle to motility to their right, meet their new talking partner and answer the next question from the list. You should have as many questions as students. The almost important thing is to make the questions open-ended to give your students something to work with. Yep/NO questions will impale the game later a minute.

Hither are some examples I came up with for my intermediate group of eight:

  1. Describe your perfect holidays.
  2. What is the last film you saw? Would yous recommend it?
  3. What exercise you usually practise in your free time?
  4. What is your all-time childhood memory?
  5. Are yous more sociable or shy?
  6. Is there annihilation new y'all would like to endeavour?
  7. Have you visited any nice restaurants or bars lately?
  8. Would yous be interested in traveling into space?

Alternatively, at the beginning of the grade, you could ask your students to write one question they would like to ask a stranger use those instead of your own ideas. Although information technology is more motivating for students, you run the take chances of not everybody coming up with suitable questions (and in the case of teenage groups you well-nigh E'er end up with at to the lowest degree one dingy question 🙂 ).

#2 Icebreaker: Matching pictures

This icebreaker requires a little chip of preparation (run into below). It allows students to talk about their preferences and get to know each other'due south tastes and opinions what leads to exchanging views and finding out more about each other. It is too swell in terms of educatee talking fourth dimension and making students more comfortable speaking in front of their peers. I accept seen this game in activeness many times and it is incredible how quickly students strike up conversations when they have a visual prop to give them something to work with. It works best with bigger groups, levels intermediate and above.

Procedure:

I accept 2 sets of pictures I usually piece of work with: different holiday destinations and different houses. Each set contains 12 dissimilar pictures, each movie has a number from one to six on the back (you demand to gum pictures and number and cutting them up before form). Numbers double, so there are two different pictures of holiday destinations/houses with the aforementioned number on the dorsum. In instance y'all have toner issues at piece of work, you might ever utilise pictures cut out from newspapers and magazines, just remember to put numbers on the other side of each.

Ask students to randomly option a menu from a box/ a sack and take a expect at the picture show.

Do they like this vacation destination /house? Would they like to travel/alive there? Why/ why not? What are advantages and disadvantages of each vacation destination/house?

Requite them a minute to think about it so inquire them to walk effectually the class and discover the person who has the same number at the back of their picture.

Once they notice their partner, they should innovate themselves briefly, and talk virtually their pictures answering the questions y'all have asked before.

What might seem similar a monologue, usually naturally transforms into a conversation: students agree or disagree, ask about more details (Person A: I'd similar to travel there because it seems peaceful and I'chiliad very stressed at piece of work. Person B: Really? What practice yous exercise?), and exchange personal experiences. The topics are neutral enough in nature not to cause whatsoever controversy or firsthand clashes of opinions.

Give your students 5 minutes to talk in pairs and then ask numbers 1 and 2 to assemble (you should get a grouping of 4). Same goes for iii and 4, 5 and half-dozen. Now, let students introduce their partners to new students:

This is Maria, she would like to travel to this destination because she has a stressful job and would similar to relax, She works as a customer service assistant.

Materials

MATCHING PICTURES HOLIDAY DESTINATIONS

MATCHING PICTURES HOUSES

#3 Icebreaker: The Cloud Game (add a twist)

I learned this game during my TEFL course and instantly regretted not knowing it before. Information technology is dandy in its simplicity, requires no grooming as such, allows students to learn something about each other and the teacher, and offers a lot or speaking exercise. It has been especially useful with my Spanish-speaking students, who often struggle with question word order in English language. It works with groups and private students. The reason why I like this game is that information technology does non put anybody on the spot during this first twenty-four hours. As a educatee, I used to detest it when the teachers asked me to tell the group something about myself. This game allows students to acquire some facts well-nigh each other without making anybody feel uncomfortable. I accept also noticed how this game makes people more eager to share fun facts about themselves, and not just the basics (family, task, pets).

Procedure:

Draw a graph on the board. It should look something like this:

CLOUD GAME (1)

Put your name in the middle. In each of the smaller clouds (the best number is 4-6) write a word that somehow describes yous: your favourite food, colour, the place where you are from etc. Don't make it as well easy for the students to effigy out what each give-and-take stand for.

Now, information technology is fourth dimension for your students to ask you questions in order to find out what each of the clouds ways to you. All you can say is Yes or NO.

Example:

Is blue your favourite colour? YES!

Are you from Brazil? NO!

Accept you ever been to Brazil? NO!

Would you similar to travel to Brazil? YES!

In my case here is what each cloud stands for:

BLUE = my favourite colour

Author= I wanted to be a writer in the future when I was a kid

BLOG = I have a blog (in the past it used to stand for "I'd similar to start a weblog")

BIKE = I honey riding a wheel

PEAS = I hate peas

BRAZIL = I'd beloved to travel in that location i day

Let students inquire 3 questions virtually each cloud, if they tin't guess, move on to the adjacent one. One time they have finished, ask them to tell y'all something they remember about you at this point.

Now, requite your students a couple of minutes to draw like graphs about themselves in their notebooks. They should work in pairs asking and answering questions about each other'southward clouds. Inquire them to endeavour to remember as much about their partner as possible. After they had finished, elicit at least one piece of data about each educatee.

#4 Icebreaker: Find Someone Who (add together a twist)

This game is an absolute ESL classic and I discover it particularly useful as an icebreaker. It creates a reason for students to enquire their classmates questions they probably would not have under different circumstances, it helps them learn each other'south names and maximizes educatee talking time. As every mingling activeness, information technology is all-time for bigger groups (half-dozen+ students). I e'er play this game together with my students but at the same time I attempt to keep an ear out for grammer; once again question give-and-take gild is crucial here. You might adapt the grammar to your students' (expected) level. The game beneath has been prepared with intermediate students in heed.

Procedure:

Distribute one worksheet per pupil. They will need pens or pencils. Tell them they need to find other students who tin reply YES to the questions. You might  make questions together with your students or at to the lowest degree demonstrate how to brand them using first two examples:

Find someone who was born in June = Were you lot born in June?

Find someone who has a pet = Do you have a pet? Have yous got a pet?

Subsequently request YES / NO questions, your students should try eliciting more information from those partners who answered YES, and write it downwardly in the other cavalcade together with the person'south name:

Were y'all born in June? YES.

What day were you built-in on? June 12th.

At the end of the activity, ask students to provide information nigh each other:

So, who was born in June? When exactly?

Who has a pet? What pet is it?

Materials

FIND SOMEONE WHO

#5 Icebreaker: 2 truths and a lie (add together a twist)

All this icebreaker requires is some imagination, a pen, and some paper. As a teacher, you go kickoff. On the board, write three sentences about yourself. Two of them should be true, 1 should be a prevarication. Once over again, don't make it as well obvious.

Hither is what my sentences usually look like:

  1. I won several swimming competitions when I was a kid.
  2. I don't know how to drive.
  3. I accept lived in 6 different countries.

They all look pretty plausible, don't they? Information technology is my students' job to discover which i is non true. They should ask me questions trying to catch me lying.I usually make it a competition, with pairs or groups of students writing downward ii questions for each judgement and grilling me. It is then up to them to decide in which case I was lying. I usually endeavor to maintain my poker face and give reasonable answers. After the quizzing, I requite my students a minute to decide among themselves which judgement they call back was a lie, and the winner gets some candy (yeah, my developed students are absolutely over the moon with some candy on the first 24-hour interval, teenagers slightly harder to delight when it comes to the choice of treats…)

FYI, #one is A LIE, I sadly don't know how to swim.

Hither are some examples of questions students could ask me in guild to detect the truth:

  1. How many competitions did you win? How former were you? What style did you use to swim? What distance did you use to swim? Where did you learn to swim?
  2. Why don't yous know how to drive? Have you ever taken a driver'southward grade? Have you ever failed a driving examination? How do you lot travel to piece of work? How practise you travel on holidays? Practice y'all accept a machine?
  3. Where have you lot lived? Where did yous piece of work in Ten? Why did you go to Z? How long did you stay in Y? Which land did you lot like best? Why?

Once the students betrayal your prevarication, it is time for them to play the aforementioned game amongst themselves. They might play in the same pairs/groups, just a better idea is for them to modify partners to get to know some other classmates.

For more ideas for ice-breakers encounter here:

–>A betting game icebreaker

–>A depression-prep ice-billow: time travel

–>Adding new twists to onetime ice-breakers

–>More back to schoolhouse water ice-breakers

I hope you lot have found something here for your upcoming get-go course. Enjoy breaking the ice with your new students!