On my husband’s first day of school, he played an introduction game using Kahoot! with his students. It had typical questions like,  How long have I been teaching? Where did I go to college? How many kids do I have? Who is my awesome wife? 

However, there was one simple question on the Kahoot! that helped him form a bond with a student that is still as strong as ever even though the student moved schools. The question, What did I drive to school today? 

When the boy in his class saw the correct answer was an all black Dodge Ram, he perked up and became interested in what the dude with the beard had to say. After class, the student told my husband, Kyle, how he noticed the truck in the parking lot that morning and how much he liked it. He asked Kyle if he could show him a picture of his dad’s truck and the kind of truck he wants one day. 

From that small seemingly unimportant connection, a positive relationship was forged. Even though he has moved on to a different school, this student still sends emails to my husband to check-in. Of course, when he got his truck, he drove it to our school to show it off to Kyle. When I saw them do the bro hug thing in the parking lot because they were genuinely excited to see each other, I could not believe this all started with a simple Get to Know You game. 

There have been many research studies that have shown that academic success depends on positive relationships between teachers and students.

I think one of the first steps we can take to build those positive relationships is with Getting to Know You activities.

And not just ones that focus on the students.

It’s important that students get to know some of our interests outside of the classroom, so I’m here with three engaging and interactive teacher introduction activities.

Host a live quiz game!

My favorites are Quizziz, Blooket, GimKit, and Kahoot! This is my husband’s go-to activity every year and the students really seem to enjoy it. It’s super simple. Just think of some questions about yourself, three possible incorrect answers, and one correct answer. Play it on the first day of school as an introduction. Here are some of his questions and answers-

Play Guess My Teacher’s Texts!

For this activity, you will come up with prompts that someone could text you like, What do you want for dinner? Then you type three possible responses, and the students have to guess which text you would most likely send. This is a fun activity that can highlight your personality!

Here is an example-

Create a Bitmoji Interactive Room

If you have a lot of pictures and are a visual person, this would be the activity for you! You simply create a digital room that matches your style and pop in your Bitmoji. Students can click on the different objects in the room to learn more about you.

If this is something you’re interested in, I have an instructional video on YouTube that explains how to set everything up!

Here is an example of my Bitmoji room-

Know that whatever method you decide to use to introduce yourself to your students will pay off! Students love to see that we have a life outside of the classroom and are shocked to find we sometimes share the same interests! 

Let me know if you have any questions! I’m here to help.

Resources to Help You

Guess your Teacher’s Texts

This fun and engaging Getting to Know You activity is available and ready to use with minimal prep!

Bitmoji Room Template

This Google Slides room template is ready for your Meet the Teacher time. All you have to do is add your Bitmoji and images .

ELA Unlimited

ELA Unlimited is the resource hub for middle school language arts teachers.

You have unlimited access to creative and engaging resources that will help you plan great standards-based lessons!