Virtual learning can be fun. Read that again. We’re serious… it can be fun. It is definitely weird (see post here), but with the right resources, interacting with your students on Teams, or Zoom, or Google Meet, or whatever platform with the intention of having fun can be done.
Here are 7 ways we’ve had fun with our students.
Scavenger Hunts - these are SO fun. Our kids fly out of the screen and zoom (no pun intended) back as fast as they can and always have the biggest smiles on their faces. We’ve done rhyming scavenger hunts, themed ones, and just random off-the-cuff scavenger hunts. They are all loved equally. Our favorite part? Seeing the kids’ pride in whatever item they’ve collected. Think of it as show and tell speed dating. It’s the best.
Here's an example of one of the things we've asked our kiddos to find.
Click the picture to see more scavenger hunt ideas!
Would You Rather - this game will help you get to know your students AND have fun with them. It is so fun to see how your kids reason through their choices. Again, we’ve played themed versions and just random questions; both are full of laughter and critical thinking (and some strong opinions). If you want to turn this into more of an academic activity, you could totally use the options as writing prompts. Boom!
Beat the Teacher - kids can be super competitive, and that can be a lot of fun when it’s directed at YOU. So, what we’ve done is create random trivia questions for our kids to answer. If they answer a question correctly, they get a point. If we stump them or they answer incorrectly WE get a point. During virtual learning, if you need to spice it up even more, put small - or BIG stickers (see picture below) on your face when your students answer correctly - in our experience, this makes the whole family laugh, so expect to see siblings and grown ups; it is totally worth it.
Read My Lips - a virtual lip reading game. Ugh… we’ve said “You’re muted,” a million times this year. So we thought… Let’s make it a game. With this game you intentionally mute yourself and say a silly phrase. Then, your students have to guess what you’re saying. Oh my lanta - the laughter is contagious!
Directed Drawings - we do these a lot during Fun Friday time. The kids are always very focused and attentive to their artwork and LOVE sharing their final product at the end of the meeting. We’ve started sharing photos on our Class Dojo story, too, which is just another way to let our kids shine.
Categories (Scattergories) - This game is timeless and FUN for everyone. Your kids will beg you to keep playing. Added bonus with this game - it can help develop vocabulary and critical thinking skills. They won’t even realize they are learning with this fun game where students try to compete with other students (and maybe even the teacher) to come up with words that are different than everyone else!
Random Silly Questions for Kids - This is a good discussion starter. It is hard to get to know your students while teaching virtually, but asking them random questions is a great way to get to know them. This allows students to use critical thinking skills and start making claims. With silly questions like, “If the sky could rain food, what kind of food would you want it to be?”, everyone is going to have so much fun.
What are some ways YOU are making virtual learning fun and engaging? Let us know!
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