Team-building exercise. Three words. One hyphen. Plenty of trepidation.
I’m not a fan of team building. I should be, but whenever I hear someone at the front of a room I’m in use the words “team-building exercise,” I look for the nearest exit. If you’ve got a few hours, maybe we can trace the origins of this reticence back to my childhood or something.
Nevertheless, team building in your classroom is another story. I’ve known teachers who only referred to their classes as teams or who kept their students organized in small teams throughout the school year.
For those of you who are looking for good team-building exercises, here are a few from The Mailbox you can use for free:
And, of course, if you want to really encourage finding connections with your students, you can always try these suggestions.
If you have your own ideas for building bridges in your classroom, please tell us in the comments. Your idea might even end up in The Mailbox magazine—and you’d be paid for it!
Our biggest selling tune and lesson plan for the grades you cover is called “Got Your Back”. Our youtube video with the most hits is also the video to “Got Your Back”. We have discovered starting classroom discussions around lyrics is a fun and potent way to have students re-think stale attitudes that may keep them from being as loyal as they might be with friends. Just discovered your website. Love it!