Classroom games do more than fill time! They boost engagement, reinforce learning, and build classroom community. In my last blog post, I discussed the importance of incorporating play into the classroom routine. In today’s post, we will take it a step further and discuss how to make that happen without taking away from academic progress.
Educational games can be engaging, cost-effective, and easy to manage. They are fun ways to practice a new skill, collaborate with peers, and learn from each other. The trick is knowing how and when to fit them into your schedule. Cue this post! I will share with you the why, the when, and the how. We will then explore different game ideas that will engage your students without breaking the bank.
The Why
We as teachers love to talk about “our why”. In this case, I think it is important to review the justification for incorporating play into our schedules.
- Games are fun. Our students are kids, and kids love to play. As teachers, it is easy to forget that although we have a billion things to accomplish every week, we are still dealing with children. Children need to play! Using games and play-based activities are beneficial to our students.
- Games help improve student engagement and participation. Active learning is hard to achieve. Games help us make progress towards that goal. Learning is and should be fun, after all. Quite simply put…when students are motivated to work on an activity, their engagement and progress improve.
- Games reinforce academic skills. Phonics, math fluency, escape rooms…you name it, I probably have a game for it. That is how much I stand by the idea of including play into our everyday. It has transformed my classroom…truly.
- Games encourage teamwork and communication. In previous posts, I have discussed ways to include SEL (social-emotional learning) into the classroom through community circles and read alouds. After those skills have been taught, playing games is a great way to practice! I like to have an SEL skill for the month, and that skill is included in almost every aspect of the day: community circle, read alouds, recess, and yes, even during game time. I often remind students of the SEL skill right before recess or game time and reward groups with group points if they demonstrate that skill.
The When
Time is something we as teachers always need more of…more time to prep, more instructional time, more time with our groups, more time to grade… Although this blog post cannot address every part of the day where we need more time, we can talk about how to fit games seamlessly into the day without disrupting core instructional minutes. Here are my favorite times of day to add in a bit of play:
- Morning Work Games: This is my new favorite thing…play right at the start of the day. Students walk in and immediately play the game on their desks. Now, this does take some training. My students know that once they enter the classroom, they check-in at the attendance board, look at the voice level, and start playing with either their team or partner at their tables. They know that when the voice level is at a 1 (whisper), they are playing in pairs. When the voice level is at a 2 (group talk), they play the game as a group. My next blog post will cover the ins and outs of Morning Work Game Time. Stay tuned!!!
- Odd In-Between Times: Schedules are a beast. We have all had those years when we had an awkward 15-minutes between two different activities. For example, one year I had library 15 minutes after recess. What am I supposed to do while we wait for library?! We play a game!!! Did a lesson go faster than anticipated? Play a game! Need an activity for early finishers? Play a game!
- Warm-Ups: I use games as warm-ups when I need to teach a new game to the whole class. First, I model the game and then, I give the class a chance to play for 10-15 minutes. I especially use this model when I want the students to be able to play the new game independently either during morning work or centers. It is a great way to introduce a new activity!
- Small Group Learning or Centers: Although I typically include games as a station where students work on their own, you can also use small group time as a way to teach a new game. I would especially use model for younger learners. Kinder and 1st grade teachers, this is for you! Instead of teaching a new game to the entire class, I would teach a new game as the lesson with the teacher during small group rotations. You could even have a parent volunteer or instructional assistant do this if you prefer.
The How
Now, let’s get into the nitty gritty of planning and setup. Here are some key tips and tricks when planning your game time:
- Match the game to your learning objective. Don’t just play to play. Have an objective. Choose a game that does one of the following: reinforces a skill previously introduced, acts as a spiral review, reviews foundational skills for an upcoming lesson, or addresses fluency (literacy or math).
- Decide between whole group, small group, or partner games. I recommend using whole group games as a way to teach students a new game. Teach the class and then have them practice that game as a warm-up to a lesson. That game can later be used during centers, rotations, as an extra time activity, or as morning work. Small group and partner games are perfect for centers or morning work and are a great way to practice those SEL skills.
- Ensure all students can participate. This is where your creativity comes into play. You can easily differentiate your games by switching the type of dice (i.e. 6-sided vs 20-sided) or by removing certain cards (only including 1-5 as opposed to the entire deck). In a future post, I will break down exactly how to differentiate math games without having to prep additional games or buy additional supplies.
- Keep materials and preparation simple. This is key. I usually start with the following supplies: dice, playing cards, and dominoes. Now, once you get started, you can always add specialty dice (i.e. fraction dice, dice within dice, and so on). But, it’s important to find supplies that can be used for a variety of games, especially when first starting out.
The What
And now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for…a cliffhanger! I know I promised you some game ideas, but this post is going to be more of an overview or brain dump if you will. In my next post, we will explore specific types of games you can use for morning work.
For now, I wanted to list a few games that I use regularly in my classroom. Wanna know the best part?! I have premade resources for many of them! If you need a game and do not see it listed, email me! I can always add it to the to-do list. 😊
- Math Game Ideas: Practicing math skills and building number fluency does not have to be mundane or solely rely on memorization. Whether you are using cards, dice, or dominoes, you can use math games to help students quickly practice their math facts in an engaging way. The best part? You can easily make these games progressively more challenging simply by changing the supplies. For examlple, if your class is practicing their math facts by rolling two dice and multiplying them, start with 6-sided dice and progress to 10-sided dice or even 20-sided dice!
- Literacy Game Ideas: There are so many ways to practice literacy skills using games. As far as materials go, literacy games often require a bit more prep than math games. (Don’t worry…I am currently working on some literacy games for you.) Having said that, if you were to purchase ONE type of supply I recommend getting large dry erase dice that you can write on. Whether you are practicing phonics skills, verb tenses, or parts of speech, these dice are game-changing (pun intended).
So, now they we are well versed in game setup and prep, next time we will dive into specifics about how to start your day off with games as Morning Work! I have a brand new resource that will save you time and money, AND plans to go with it. I will walk you through exactly how to incorporate a weekly goal for these games. Help your students build their literacy and math fluency all while having fun. How’s that for the start of the day! Until then, join our email list for the latest tips and tricks, and make sure to always keep learning!