147 Practical Tips For Using Icebreakers With College Students

Building a sense of community in the classroom is key to fostering a safe and supportive environment for learning. Icebreakers are designed specifically for this purpose -- to create that sense of a community of learners, working together.

If you are considering using icebreakers for the first time, these tips offer convincing reasons for using them and suggest specific icebreakers for specific situations.

If you already use icebreakers, these tips will expand your repertoire and provide thought-provoking insights into other situations in which you could include community-building activities.

You’ll find tips and icebreakers that will:

♦ Help your students feel more comfortable
♦ Introduce yourself
♦ Get a sense of your students in general
♦ Make it easier for your students to know each other
♦ Encourage your students to share and explore differences
♦ Generate interest in your course
♦ Encourage your students to be interested in each other
♦ Bring out students' feelings about the subject and the course
♦ Foster confidence and comfort in a virtual community

Bob Magnan came to the field of higher education writing and publishing after many years of teaching. He holds a BA in English and an MA in French from Michigan State University and a PhD in French from Indiana University. He taught for 13 years while involved in editing journals, translating, research, and language textbook development. He was the long-time Managing Editor of "The Teaching Professor" newsletter and is currently involved in publishing and editing.