Jumping into the New School Year: Movement-Rich Getting-to-Know-You Activities
As the new school year kicks off, the first few days are all about building community and setting the tone. Integrating movement into your getting-to-know-you activities does more than just break the ice—it helps shake off first-day jitters, improves focus, and builds an immediate sense of team spirit. Here are four movement-based activities to get your students up and out of their seats!
NAME MOVEMENT INTRODUCTIONS
This isn’t your average introduction activity. By adding a physical element, you help everyone remember names through muscle memory.
- Setup: Have the class stand in a large circle in the classroom or outside.
- Action: Model the activity first. Say your name clearly to help everyone learn the correct pronunciation and/or what you would like to be called. Then, perform a specific movement twice.
- Variation: For older students, challenge them to make the movement match the first letter or first sound in their name. For example, James could jump or Hayley could pretend to hike.
- Echo: After each student’s introduction, the group repeats the name and the movement twice.
- Recap: After everyone has finished, do a lightning round where each student says their name and performs their movement one time in quick succession.
HAVE YOU EVER? CIRCLE
This activity helps students find common ground through shared experiences.
- Setup: Everyone stands in a circle.
- Action: Call out a “Have You Ever?” question. Tell students that if their answer is “Yes,” they should move into the center of the circle. If it’s “No,” they stay on the perimeter of the circle.
- Pro Tip: To deepen the connection, ask a student who moved to the center of the circle to share a 10-second mini-story about their experience.
- Reset: Students in the center rejoin the circle before the next question is asked.
Try these “Have You Ever?” prompts (or your own):
| Played a sport | Visited a museum |
| Performed on stage | Had a pet |
| Played an instrument | Seen a sunrise or a sunset |
| Gone to a different school | Gone swimming |
| Ridden a horse | Visited another state or another country |
| Gone camping | Seen an eclipse |
| Entered a contest | Lived in another state |
| Lost a tooth | Seen a constellation in the night sky |
LET’S LINE UP
This activity is a great way to build communication skills and spatial awareness.
- Action: Ask students to work together to form a single-file line based on a specific category.
- Pro Tip: The activity can be completed as a whole class or in small groups.
- Variation: For older students, challenge them to complete the line-up without talking, using only hand signals and gestures.
Try these categories (or your own):
| Shortest to tallest | Date of birthday within the month (1st to 31st) |
| Youngest to oldest | Alphabetical order by first or last name |
| January to December birthdays | Rainbow (ROYGBIV) order of clothing (shirt/top) |
BACK-TO-SCHOOL BINGO
BINGO is mobile in this activity! Shhh! Don’t tell your students, but the goal isn’t to win the game; it’s to move around the room and spark conversations and connections.
- Teacher Prep: Prior to the activity, create BINGO cards with the topics listed below (or your own). Use a BINGO card with the correct number of spaces for your class. List summer activities that are appropriate for students in your class or school.
- Setup: Hand out BINGO cards and pencils to students. Clipboards are optional.
- Action: Tell students to circulate and find a classmate who participated in one of the activities on the card. The classmate writes their initials in the appropriate square.
- Pro Tip: Tell students to ask you to sign a square, too!
- Reminder: Encourage students to fill in as many spaces on their cards as they can in the time provided.
- Rule: A student can only sign someone else’s card once.
Try these activities (or your own):
| Went swimming | Went to a cookout |
| Visited a library | Went on a trip |
| Played a sport | Helped with chores at home |
| Went to summer camp | Put together a puzzle |
| Read a book | Went to a concert |
| Rode a bike or scooter | Colored outside with sidewalk chalk |
| Went on a hike | Visited a museum |
| Volunteered | Flew a kite |
| Helped to plant a vegetable garden or flowers | Watched a movie |
| Rode on a boat | Played on a playground |
| Visited friends or family | Tried a new food |
| Visited a park | Learned to do something new |
MOVING FORWARD
When teachers get students moving, they unlock their potential to focus, connect, and retain information. These get-to-know-you activities are one step toward creating a classroom environment where learning is an active adventure.
The Walkabouts Platform, a web-based kinesthetic learning solution for pre-K to 5th grade students, boosts engagement and retention through short, movement-rich lessons that activate the elementary curriculum. More than brain breaks, the lessons are correlated to state and national standards and help educators seamlessly integrate physical activity and mental fitness into academic lessons, helping students learn better and feel better.
