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Icebreaker questionsStudents

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Icebreaker questions for students.

50 icebreaker questions for secondary school and university students: first-day openers, study habits, group work and a few just for fun. Written for students aged 13 and over.

Sample

Word cloudTop word cloud pick

Describe how you feel about this course in one word.

Ask this live as a word cloud or poll – free for 100 people.

All 50 questions

First day

  1. Describe how you feel about this course in one word.Word cloudTop word cloud pick
  2. What’s one thing you hope to learn this term?Word cloudTop word cloud pick
  3. Name a subject you could talk about for an hour.Word cloud
  4. Where’s the best place to study around here?Word cloud
  5. What hobby keeps you busy outside class?Word cloudTop word cloud pick
  6. Pick a superpower to help with homework.PollAnswers: Speed reading · Perfect memory · Pausing time · Typing at lightning speed
  7. In a new classroom, where do you sit?PollAnswers: Front row · Middle · Back · Near the door
  8. What’s a skill you taught yourself?Talk it throughAs a word cloud: A skill you taught yourself.
  9. What’s the best advice an older student ever gave you?Talk it through
  10. What’s one fun fact about you that nobody here knows yet?Talk it through
  11. Which fictional school would you most like to go to?Word cloud
  12. What’s your go-to snack for a long study session?Word cloud

How I learn

  1. When do you study best?PollAnswers: Early morning · Afternoon · Evening · Late at night
  2. How do you take notes?PollAnswers: On paper · On a laptop · On a tablet · I try to remember it all
  3. How do you learn best?PollAnswers: Reading · Watching · Doing · Explaining it to someone
  4. Do you study with music or in silence?PollAnswers: Music · Silence · Background noise · Depends on the subject
  5. What’s one study trick that works for you?Talk it throughAs a word cloud: Your best study trick, in a word or two.
  6. When do you start an assignment?PollAnswers: The day it’s set · A week before · The night before · An hour before
  7. Which subject surprised you the most?Word cloud
  8. What’s a question you’ve always wanted to ask a teacher?Talk it through
  9. Your favorite way to revise:PollAnswers: Flashcards · Mind maps · Practice tests · Teaching a friend
  10. What’s the best explanation of something hard you’ve ever heard?Talk it through
  11. How should class updates reach you?PollAnswers: Group chat · Email · The course page · Told in class
  12. Name a website or app that helps you learn.Word cloud

Group work

  1. What role do you usually take in a group project?PollAnswers: The planner · The researcher · The presenter · The one who brings snacks
  2. What makes a group project go well?Word cloudTop word cloud pick
  3. What’s one rule every study group should have?Talk it throughAs a word cloud: One rule for every study group, in a few words.
  4. With deadlines, you are:PollAnswers: Done early · Right on time · Saved at the last minute
  5. How should a group split the work?PollAnswers: By strengths · Evenly · Everyone does a bit of everything · Whoever volunteers
  6. What’s the best way to settle a disagreement in a group?Talk it through
  7. What strength do you bring to a team?Word cloud
  8. Presenting to the class:PollAnswers: Love it · Fine with it · Nervous, but I do it · I’d rather write the report
  9. If our group had a name, what should it be?Word cloud
  10. In a group project, you’d rather:PollAnswers: Do the research · Design the slides · Write it up · Present it
  11. What would make this class feel like a team?Talk it through
  12. What’s one thing that makes you a good person to work with?Talk it through

Just for fun

  1. Which historical figure would you invite to class for a day?Word cloudTop word cloud pick
  2. If you could add one subject to the timetable, what would it be?Word cloud
  3. Would you rather have a four-day week or shorter days?PollAnswers: Four-day week · Shorter days
  4. What’s the best movie made from a book you’ve read?Word cloud
  5. Which animal would make the best class mascot?Word cloud
  6. Would you rather explore a museum after hours or a library with secret rooms?PollAnswers: Museum after hours · Library with secret rooms
  7. Name a game you could play for hours.Word cloud
  8. Which instrument would you master overnight if you could?Word cloud
  9. Which invention would you uninvent?Talk it throughAs a word cloud: The invention you’d uninvent.
  10. Which planet would you pick for a class trip?PollAnswers: Mars · Jupiter · Saturn · Neptune
  11. What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned outside school?Talk it through
  12. Would you rather write a novel or make a video game?PollAnswers: Write a novel · Make a video game
  13. What job do you think will exist in 20 years that doesn’t exist now?Talk it throughAs a word cloud: A job of the future, in a few words.
  14. What’s a word in another language you love?Word cloud

Icebreakers for secondary school and university

These questions are for students aged 13 and over, from secondary school classes to university seminars. They leave out health, money, religion, politics, appearance and family, so nobody has to share something they would rather keep private.

On the first day, a word cloud such as “Describe how you feel about this course in one word” lets every student answer at once from a phone, without raising a hand. Read the biggest words out and say what you will do about them.

Before a group project, mix the class with the random group generator, then give each group one question from the Group work list.