Most people think of the workplace when they hear the term virtual team building. But as all teachers knowvirtual team buildingit's not just for adults in the workplace! It is an essential part of learning as a student. Team building for students of all ages and grades is extremely important to the learning process. Virtual team building activities teach students skills such as effective communication, focused listening and creative thinking.
However, with so many classrooms transitioning to distance education, it is difficult to bring them togetherTeam building activitiesa little more difficult. Teachers and leaders need to think creatively about how to build this cultureteam buildingvirtual.
Table of Contents:
- Primary school
- High school
- high school and college
- Advantages of virtual team building
When planning a team building experience for your classroom, the options are endless. For older students, you may want to try challenging activities to really motivate them and keep their attention. With younger students, you may want to choose team-building activities that don't take long, since their attention spans aren't very long.
Check out and take advantage of these virtual team building activities for students that might be the perfect choice for your classroomBenefits of creating a team!
Virtual team building games for elementary school students
Teachers know the value of teaching students how to work together and build friendships from an early age. When planning these team building activities for elementary school students, you may need to change a few details to make them work for your age group!
1. Smithsonian Virtual Tour
One of the most exciting parts of school is field trips! Even if you have a remote classroom, you can offer your students the joy of field trips. TheVirtual tour of the Smithsonian National Museum of Historyallows groups to take tours of various exhibits on either a computer or mobile device. Your students will love seeing the 11 ton elephant in the Rotunda, Fossil Hall and Sant Ocean Hall which has over 600 specimens!
2. Stand up and sit down
Prepare a series of yes or no questions with only two possible answers. For example: "Do you like apples?" Students stand up if the answer is yes or sit down if the answer is no.
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3. Once upon a time
A student begins the story with something like, “Once upon a time there was a man walking down the street. As he turned the corner, he saw...”
That student can then choose the next person to share with and so on. The story will end once everyone has a turn! Who knows where the story will lead with your students creative minds!
4. Sixty-second sketch
Choose a subject and let the students draw it for a minute. Or take a break during reading and have them draw something that happens in the book!
5. Break the ice
Make a listQuestions about the icebreakerfor students to answer and number each question. Students use oneOnline dice rollerto roll the die and answer the question it lands on. It's a great opportunity for students to learn a little more about each other and put their minds to think.
6. Virtual Scavenger Hunt
It is a good idea to contact the parents to prepare for this. Make a list ofvirtual scavenger huntItems that parents can place in easy-to-find places around the house. Announce the first item and have the children run to get it. Give each student the next item as they return. Whoever finds all the objects first wins!
Virtual team building games for high school students
In normal times, high school is hard enough. Add in a pandemic and teachers face an extra hurdle when trying to help their students with emotional and relational growth. Here are some team building activities for students to help them come out of their shells and work together!
7. Bingo
Share one onlineBingo-Brettwith your students and choose topics that fit a topic your class is learning.
Don't forget to win a prize for the winners! Maybe they don't get work or can't choose the next group activity.
8. Detective
Choose a student to be your detective. This person closes his eyes and counts to thirty. In this case, select a student as the spy.
The spy starts with an action (such as waving his hand or picking his nose) and all the other students follow him. Now the detective opens her eyes and watches her classmates.
The spy continues to change his actions as the other students follow him. The detective's job is to find out who the spy is!
9. Two truths and a lie
Ask each student to write two true things about themselves and one lie. Each student reads their contribution to the class and you can ask the whole class to vote on what they think is a lie. This is a fun game to unleash creativity as they have to come up with a believable yet entertaining lie. It is also a great way for students to get to know each other better, as they may not have known the other truths about each other.
10. Waffles or pancakes
This is a great game to motivate all students, even those who struggle to express themselves in class. There are no right or wrong answers! Start with one student and ask, "Which do you like better—waffles or pancakes?"
The student answers and explains why. Then add a new option based on their answer and ask another student. For example: "Which do you prefer, waffles or hot dogs?" The game continues like this!
Virtual team building activities for high school and university students
One of the best parts of teaching high school and college students is being able to give them unique, challenging projects and watch them rise to the challenge! Check out some of these options that are sure to please your classroom!
11. Virtual escape room
In theTeambuilding-Hub, we put a lot of thought into how to create an epic online team building activity for high school and college studentsvirtual escape roomit's a fantastic choice. Your students can play a real escape room using a live camera feed. Each room has a play guide who acts as eyes, ears, hands and feet. Along with the game guide, students navigate the room using digital dashboards, 360-degree room scans and an inventory system. Find a list ofVirtual escape room optionsHere.
12. Online-Mystery-Spiel
If you have a larger class, aOnline-Mystery-Spielis also a great choice. Your students are divided into teams of 5 to 7 secret agents who fight to solve a crime before the other teams. Here you can raise the stakes and offer extra credits to the winning team. Or maybe offer some homework!
13. Things you should know
It's easy and there are so many ways to do itvirtual trivia games. You can use tools likeKahoot!to make the game exciting! Maybe pick a topic that fits your class, or instead of hosting a quiz on a specific topic, host a quiz game! Your students will have a lot of fun getting out of the everyday! Whatever you choose, trivia is a simple and easy thing to add to your schedule.
14. Card Challenges
Using a world map of your choice, divide students into groups and give them a specific amount of time to name as many states, cities, countries, etc. as possible. on this map. If you are a geography teacher, this would be a particularly awesome team building activity for your class!
15. Storytelling
Give students four or five different pictures. Students arrange them however they want and invent a story that connects them. It's fun to see what direction the students will take! Some will find funny stories while others will go for the drama. Whenever we can encourage students to use their creative, collaborative sides, we set them up for success!
16. Typing speed test
Do you have any competitive students? There are so many online writing test options that you can challenge your students. See who has the fastest fingers in class!
17. Shark tank
Chances are you are familiar with the Shark Tank series. In this activity, you will divide your class into groups where they have to develop a product or service to present to the sharks. This could be a fun opportunity to include some guests in the course, acting as a shark panel.
You need to work together to create a logo, a product, a marketing strategy, etc. This activity will also help them improve their public speaking skills! After everyone has presented, your sharks can vote for the best presentation.
Benefits of Group Development Activities for Students
This has been an interesting year for teachers, parents and students as they all grapple with the complexities of virtual and hybrid learning. Teachers had to create innovative ways to socialize in their online classrooms. But educators know that the time they spend on online group building activities for students allows them to acquire the following skills!
1. Creativity
According to Psychology Today, "Creativity is the thinking that drives innovation" and "Creativity is or is related to nine of the top ten skills that global leaders see as essential for 2020 and beyond."
In the academic years it is important to show students that there are many different ways to be creative!
Online team building activities provide an opportunity to create space for creative thinking and equip students for success.
2. Cooperation
While students study with their peers, they often work alone with schoolwork. While independence and individual learning are important, students must also learn to work collaboratively and manage group situations.
Choosing a virtual team building activity that requires teams to come up with solutions together is a great way to develop collaboration skills.
3. Communication
Because of distance education, students do not have the socializing opportunities that are usually part of school. Getting kids to form relationships online is a challenge. Team building activities are a great way to spend time learning communication skills and making friends!
4. entertainment
Distance education is often not considered 'fun'. But taking a break from the daily routine and participating in virtual team building activities is a great way to have fun and engage your class! Students will be more likely to want to participate in the work if they don't feel burned out from constant computer work.
Anecia Ascalon
Anecia is a Nashville-based writer who believes in the power of team building. He writes a variety of content that focuses on creative team building ideas to help teams become more dynamic, unified and successful.