At the start of the school year, teachers need to consider how to build classroom community. When you have a community of learners in your classroom, students are eager to come to class, want to learn and share and enjoy interacting with their peers.
We often view icebreakers as the starting point for building classroom community. However, in reality, icebreakers might alienate rather than help form a basis for collaboration. For some students, the idea of putting themself out there and engaging in a social situation they are uncomfortable with can be anxiety-inducing. Teachers can still use icebreakers, but there needs to be other classroom community-building activities throughout the year as well.
To build classroom community, focus on five key ideas that can be started at the beginning of the year and continued throughout the year. These five strategies work to build a community of learners, which in turn boosts student engagement.
This blog post will discuss different ways teachers can grow a sustainable community of learners and build classroom community from the first day in the classroom.
Strategies to Build Classroom Community and a Community of Learners
Team Building
Consider some team-building activities rather than just icebreakers to start the year. These activities build on collaboration, creativity, and cooperation – the three Cs that go a long way toward establishing a strong foundation for community.
One way is to start with a fun challenge with some competition. Have students build a tower with unexpected parts such as spaghetti noodles, paper, marshmallows, or whatever other options you have available. This STEM activity gets students working on various skills, including collaboration, creativity, problem-solving, and more. Find more STEM activity ideas here.
Another option that can be used at any time of year is an escape room. Start the year with this fun back-to-school digital escape room where students solve 10 retro technology-focused challenges or this back-to-school digital escape room where students solve 10 school-related challenges.
Then, keep going with other options, including those for different holidays and occasions throughout the school year. Save time and money with these bundles of digital escape rooms that are perfect to use the entire school year:
Other fun digital escape room options are:
Forensic Science Digital Escape Room
This Forensic Science Digital Escape Room allows students to work independently or with their peers to solve 11 forensic science-themed challenges “locks.” Students must solve the required challenges to solve the crime of their principal’s missing car. Participants will use their reading and listening comprehension skills and general knowledge about forensic science (working dogs, fingerprints, footprints, etc.) to solve each Forensic Science Digital Escape Room challenge.
This digital escape room is not scary and does not involve real crimes except for a cat who steals. You can find the Forensic Science Digital Escape Room on Shopify CAD or Teachers Pay Teachers USD.
This Fake News Digital Escape Room allows students to work independently or with their peers to solve 11 challenges related to fake news and digital citizenship. Students must solve the required challenges to “escape” the school storage room they accidentally locked themselves in. Participants will use their reading and listening comprehension skills, as well as their knowledge of fake news, digital citizenship, and reliable sources, to solve each challenge. You can find the Fake News Digital Escape Room on Shopify CAD or Teachers Pay Teachers USD.
Movie Night Digital Escape Room
This Movie Night Digital Escape Room allows students to work independently or with their peers to solve 12 movie-related challenges. Students must solve these required challenges to “escape” from the basement storage room that they have accidentally locked themselves into. You can find the Movie Night Digital Escape Room on Shopify CAD or Teachers Pay Teachers USD.
Team building activities go beyond the typical icebreaker; they help you start the year by building a community of learners where every student feels valued and involved. This lets you start to build a classroom community, promoting engagement and cooperation and can result in a love of learning in your students.
Class Agreements
A good step in creating a positive community in any classroom is to co-create and outline the class’s expected behaviours and values. Start with a think-pair-share activity for students to brainstorm ideas for what they need or want in and from class. Ask questions such as:
- What makes a classroom successful?
- What makes a good teacher and student?
- What do you need to support your learning?
You can do the activity with stations and have students circulate in small groups to add their thoughts on what each element might look or sound like in class. For example, with an agreement to respect personal space, what does that look like and sound like in a classroom environment?
Some common examples of class agreements might include respecting personal space, using technology responsibly, staying organized, following directions, and participating actively. Each classroom should have time and space to consider what works for them.
This means revisiting the initial agreements after a few weeks to see what might need to be changed or tweaked. It’s also wise to revisit the agreements after a longer break so that students are not just reminded of the expectations—they can also weigh in on any changes that might be necessary as the community has grown.
Student Voice
When students know they can provide input, it’s not the same as knowing their input is heard and valued. To build classroom community, consider your students’ interests and what can be done within the curriculum’s parameters.
There are some easy ways to incorporate more student voice, including:
- Classroom meetings to discuss issues, concerns, options or opportunities
- Assignment choices
- Options for student-led lessons
- Suggestion box available (This helps those who are more introverted but still want to share their opinions.)
- Feedback Frames
A mix-and-mingle approach to student voice with these options (and others) is ideal. While we want our classrooms to focus on student-led learning, there are times when the teacher’s voice is necessary. Striking a balance can be challenging, but often, the school year starts with more teacher focus, and then the responsibility is slowly released to ensure more student-led learning.
Another important aspect of student voice is ensuring students listen to each other. Classmates want to know that their voices are heard and valued, too. Make sure students aren’t always paired up with the same classmates and have a system in place for speaking in the classroom so that everyone has a chance to share.
It’s ideal to practise listening skills in a way that is tied to the curriculum. Podcast lessons, such as Mars Patel or Six Minutes, two narrative-based podcasts sure to have students listening intently, can help.
Peer Support
This one can be tricky, depending on the dynamic in your classroom. Peer support is possible in nearly any classroom, but the frequency may differ. As with all things, peer support is a learned skill.
Scaffolding this from the start of the year is ideal. Start with short pairings and directed checklists to ensure the task is focused. A caveat here is that any peer support should be mutually beneficial rather than simply having the ‘strong’ students help others who are still progressing each time. A “weak-strong” set-up for peer support can lead to disconnects and resentment in class.
Reflect and Celebrate
Meta-cognition is important in all facets of learning, and this is true for community building as well. It’s important to reflect on progress and challenges. Incorporating some check-ins at various points in the year will ensure forward motion. As indicated in the class agreements, there are key times of the year when revisiting those are necessary. However, beyond that, it’s important to take time as individuals and as a group to see what is or is not working in class.
And finally, take time to celebrate progress, and to acknowledge acts of kindness and support/teamwork in the classroom and beyond. This can be a simple acknowledgement of a direct comment to a student or group of students, or it can be a community celebration after a great stretch of collaboration. Positive reinforcement goes a long way in all facets of learning!
Use these Classroom Management Reward Coupons & Reward Passes as an additional incentive for positive student behaviour. Learn more here: The Benefits of Using Student Reward Coupons for Classroom Management.
A Final Word on Classroom Community
As is the case with all communities, not everyone will get along. This is to be expected.
In that light, it’s important to include ways to be a community, even if things are not always wonderful. Use these as a guide in developing the class agreements and when you reflect and celebrate.
Making this part of the discussion means that it’s clear to you and the students that creating a classroom community is work and that the class goals are realistic rather than fake or unrealistic. I think it’s beneficial for students to understand the true meaning and value of community.
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