First Day Jitters (The Jitters Series)

First Day (and All Year Round) Icebreakers!

1. Put students in pairs. Each student must tell their partner about a time they were nervous. Once students are finished discussing, go around the room and ask students to describe their partner’s experience.

2. Trace every student in the class on roll paper using a black marker. On one side of the body, have students write some of their favorite things. On the other side, have students write their goals for the year. Students can also color and decorate the outline of their body. Then hang up the projects and discuss.

3. Play team charades with scary situations! Write down a bunch of nerve-wracking moments (flying in a plane, meeting someone new, giving a speech, etc.) on notecards and shake them up in a hat. Divide the class into two teams; each team will take turns to send two actors to the front. The first team to guess the situation wins a point. After each charade, brainstorm coping mechanisms with the class.