5 Easy Community Building Activities for Virtual Learning
As teachers, we know that community building is the cornerstone of any classroom.
Many teachers are teaching online now and their main concern is:
“How do I build relationships and a community with my online students?”
It’s definitely a concern worth addressing. The good news is that it can be done and you’ll soon be connecting with your students in all sorts of ways you never dreamed possible!
My first piece of advice is to STOP OVERTHINKING IT.
Your mind is running full speed and you are doubting yourself.
Stop right now and take a deep breath. Say this out loud:
“I am a GREAT teacher. I am capable of amazing things.”
It’s true! Stop doubting yourself and get ready for an amazing school year full of challenges that are only going to make you stronger.
Just as Rome wasn’t built in a day, neither are your classroom relationships. This is true in person or online. It’s going to take time and nurturing.
5 Ways to Create Relationships Virtually
1. Student of the Week
Just like in person learning, highlighting a student each week is not only going to build community, but it will allow each student to feel like they are special and have the spotlight. In addition to having them share pictures and their favorite things, I would also have them be your teacher helper. Some ideas for teacher helper virtually include: picking the brain break, choosing the song every dances to, having them call on classmates to give the answer, the list could go on and on.
2. Lunch with the Teacher
Even though the kids will be stepping away from the computer, you could invite a small group of kids to eat lunch with you one day each week. Keep a list of who you ate with and rotate them. This is an easy way to have lighthearted conversations and build community with your students! Don’t overthink eating in front of the computer. If you’d do it in person, make your best attempt to do similar things virtually.
3. Kahoot Quiz
Kahoot quizzes are a fun way to poll your students for learning or just to gather information. Using Kahoot as a community building activity could include questions about their favorite things! Ask them a question a day for the first week or two and see how excited they are to answer. Kids and adults alike love to answer questions about themselves and see what they have in common with their friends.
4. Have Themed/Spirit Weeks
Kids love days at school where they can dress up as their favorite story book characters or wear a hat. The great part about offering a themed day or spirit week online is that kids are at home so learning distractions of their peers are minimized. Plan a week each month or a day that is themed and promote it to the students and parents ahead of time. This builds community by allowing kids to share their uniqueness and individuality!
5. Read a Bedtime Story Once a Week
Choose a night of the week to read your students a bedtime story. Set the time early enough for your class but not too early that they are still eating dinner. This is a great way to connect with them outside of school hours and kids of all ages loving hearing a story before bedtime. If you have upper elementary students, read a chapter book. If you have kids of your own, you could have them sitting by you so your students are seeing a part of your life. If you don’t have kids of your own, you could have a pet by you!
So there you have it. 5 easy ways to start building community the first month of school. Remember to stop overthinking it and trust yourself.
You are a great teacher and your students will LOVE you this year!
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What’s one thing you feel confident about? Tell me in the comments!
