One of the most critical components of building a positive school culture is fostering relationships among the teachers. Doing this will lead to increased collaboration, more trust, better communication, and much more success. To assist you with building an effective team and developing a more positive school culture, we’ve curated a list of 41 team-building activities. Get ready to learn new skills, get to know each other better, build trust, and have fun!
1. Human Skis
For this activity, you’ll place two strips of duct tape on the floor with the sticky side up for each team. Each team will then stand on the duct tape and, moving together, relocate to a new spot. This fun team-building activity seeks to teach everyone that they’re all on the same team and trying to accomplish the same goal.
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2. Make Your Bed
The only item you’ll need for this hilarious team-building activity is a sheet of tarp or a bed sheet. Simply place the sheet on the floor and have all your teachers stand on it. Then, challenge the group to use their critical thinking skills to flip over the sheet without stepping off of it!
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3. Hula Hoop Pass
All you need for this epic game is a hula hoop. Teachers will all stand in a circle and hold hands. Then, they’ll need to pass the hula hoop around the circle without letting go of one another’s hands. Complete this activity several times whilst trying to up the pace with each round.
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4. Time Prioritization Game Activity and Team-Building Ice-Breaker
Both new and experienced educators will enjoy this team-building activity that focuses on prioritizing time. Divide your teachers into groups and give everyone a list of tasks to complete each one with a noted amount of points for completion. Then, set a countdown clock for the game. Explain that each team can do whatever activities they like, and the team with the most points at the end will win. Watch as your teachers have to work together to prioritize their time to try and earn the most points!
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5. Common Bond Exercise
This is a great way to challenge your teachers to find commonalities among themselves. One teacher will begin this activity by sharing a detail from their professional life. When another teacher hears something they have in common with the teacher speaking, they will go and link arms with that person. The objective of the game is to continue until all teachers are standing and have linked arms.
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6. Virtual Escape Room: Jewel Heist
Your teachers are sure to enjoy this escape room activity! Divide your staff into teams to locate precious jewels that have been stolen. They must work collaboratively using their critical thinking skills, to solve the challenges before the time runs out.
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7. Perfect Square
This activity is harder than it sounds! In teams, your teachers will have to use their communication skills to see which group can take a rope and form the best square. To top things off- they’ll have to do this while they’re all blindfolded!
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8. M & M Get to Know You Game
Even a snack can become a bonding activity! Before you begin, put together a list of conversation prompts, with each one linked to an M&M color. Then, give each teacher a small pack or bowl of M&Ms. One teacher will begin the game by taking an M&M out of their pack and then responding to a conversation prompt that coordinates with their M&M color.
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9. The Barter Puzzle
Promote unity with this fun activity. Divide everyone into groups and give each group a different puzzle to put together. Here’s the twist—before distributing the pieces, mix them up a bit so that every team is missing a few pieces of their puzzle and has pieces of another tea’m’ puzzles. Challenge your staff to locate their own puzzle pieces by bartering with the other groups to get them.
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10. Human Bingo
Your teachers will enjoy learning more about one another with this fun icebreaker. Distribute bingo sheets to everyone in the room—but instead of numbers, these sheets should display character traits or personal descriptions. Each teacher will have to find people in the room that fit the descriptions in boxes. Follow the rules of the traditional game of bingo.
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11. Circle of Appreciation
This is a great way to get to know each other and build appreciation for others. Have all your teachers stand or sit in a circle. Each person must share something that they appreciate about the person to their right. Once everyone has had a turn, go the other way; with everyone taking turns sharing something that they appreciate about the person to the left of them.
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12. Little Known Facts
To start this simple get-to-know-you activity, all your teachers will each need to write a little-known fact about themself on a sticky note or index card. Collect the facts and redistribute them, making sure that no one receives their own. Next, have everyone search for the person who wrote the fact that they received, and then share the statements aloud with the rest of the group.
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13. Survival
With this activity, your teachers will have to use their imaginations and develop a sense of team unity. Explain to the group that they have been in a plane crash in the middle of the ocean. They’ve managed to save 12 items from the plane, which you can then list for them. They must work together to place the items in order of importance for survival.
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14. Stacking Cup Challenge
Many teachers are already acquainted with this activity because they have likely used this addictive game with their high school students. Here, everyone must work in groups of four to stack plastic cups into a pyramid formation. They may only use string attached to a rubber band to stack the cups so no hands are allowed!
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15. Team Building Maker Challenge
The saying, “Teamwork makes the dream work” really rings true in this next game. In teams, challenge your staff to design new products—using only cardboard, a roll of tape, two plastic cups, a plastic bag, and string! Get your educators engaged, working together, and having fun with this challenge.
Learn More: Teachers Pay Teachers
16. Marshmallow Tower Challenge
Start things off by dividing everyone into teams for this next game. Each team will receive a certain amount of marshmallows and uncooked spaghetti to create a structure. Whichever group builds the highest tower will be the champion!
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17. Grab Bag Skits
Bring your staff together and share some laughs with grab-bag skits. Divide your teachers into small groups and allow each group to choose a paper bag. Each bag will be filled with random, unrelated items. Each group will then have 10 minutes of planning time to use their creative thinking skills to produce a skit using each item in the bag. Afterward, invite everyone to sit back and enjoy the show as each team performs their skits one at a time!
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18. Build the Tallest Tower
This is a terrific team-building activity. You’ll start by dividing your teachers into small groups. The goal is for each group to strive to build the tallest tower using 3 x 5” index cards. The groups can talk while they plan their construction, but no talking is allowed during the building period! This is a great activity to strengthen both concentration and communication!!
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19. Minefield
This epic game focuses on enhancing trust and communication as your teachers’ survival will become dependent upon other members of their group! It’s a great partner activity or small group activity. Start by constructing an obstacle course for the players. Then, some participants will have to navigate the course—while blindfolded! Other teammates will guide them verbally to try and get them safely through. You can also make things more challenging by restricting the verbal directions to certain words or a certain number of commands.
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20. Teacher Morale Game
This is a quick, engaging, and low-prep game that you can keep on hand for upcoming professional development or staff meetings. Use these school-themed “This or That” game cards to build community and boost morale among your staff- an activity that’s sure to ultimately increase student learning and success.
Learn More: Teachers Pay Teachers
21. 5 Best Board Games
A board game is a great way to instill unity, strategic thinking, communication, and collaboration among teachers. Use this collection of games and divide the teachers into groups. They’ll have lots of fun as they move from game to game in a round-robin type setup.
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22. 20 Questions
Engage the mind with 20 Questions! All colleagues will need to probe with yes/no inquiries to identify an object or concept that one participant has chosen. This game is just the thing if you’re looking to fuel inquisitive thinking and sharpen the questioning skills of your educators whilst keeping all participants involved and entertained.
Learn More: YouTube
23. Geocache Adventure
Adventure awaits with Geocache! Using GPS coordinates and a free app, your teachers will turn into explorers seeking real-life hidden treasures. This activity will encourage exercise and technological collaboration whilst offering an exhilarating break from mundane routine.
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24. Memory Game
Test your teachers’ memories with a fun and competitive memory game! Teams of teachers must recall objects from a briefly shown tray. The fusion of competition and cognitive stimulation brought about by this activity will ensure an engaging and lively experience for all.
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25. Word Association Game
Engage your educators in this fast-paced word association game! Have them create chains of related words in rapid succession- with no repeats allowed. You can start with the most basic version: where one teacher says a word, and another must say a word related to it. Depending on your group, introduce time limits or new rules to make things more challenging.
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26. Whisper Chain
Enter the Whisper Chain: a game that puts effective communication to the test among educators. The challenge starts with a whispered message; which often ends up “evolving” as it travels from teacher to teacher. Comparing the final result with the original can bring about joyous bursts of laughter and a realization of the importance of clear communication.
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27. Name that Tune
Music lovers, unite! Your teachers will engage in a vibrant guessing game where the opening notes of songs must be swiftly identified. Conversations around music preferences will flourish and undoubtedly liven up the room.
Learn More: YouTube
28. Mystery Box
Mystery awaits in a box. Your educators will delve into the unknown by feeling concealed items to make educated guesses. The suspense will keep everyone engaged, while the tactile experience will enhance their sensory perception. If you are looking for an entertaining way to push the boundaries of conventional thought, this is it!
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29. Famous Pairs
This is an enlightening game that requires participants to connect renowned duos like bread and butter. Stimulating memory and cognitive thinking, your teachers will engage in heated debates and discussions as they seek to be the team to match their pairs faster than everyone else. The aim of the game you ask? -To develop teamwork and speed!
Learn More: Teachers Pay Teachers
30. Zoom Out Game
Zoom in on a whole new world of fun! The Zoom Out game offers an ultra-magnified image for players to analyze. Teachers will have to put on their detective hats to decipher the image. The reveal, after much guessing, always results in much satisfaction and shared enjoyment.
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31. Group Storytelling
Unleash creativity with group storytelling! Every participant will add a one-liner to create a shared story, one sentence at a time. The combination of different imaginations will surely lead to unconventional yet intriguing narratives.
Learn More: YouTube
32. Charades
Charades- best described as a timeless game of laughter and joy! Your teachers will act out words or phrases as their respective team tries to guess what they’re conveying- all without a single spoken clue. A fantastic way to promote non-verbal communication, it’s sure to solidify bonds and create lasting memories.
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33. Scavenger Hunt
Embark on an adventurous scavenger hunt! Simply have your teachers form teams to find items or complete tasks from a list. Strategy, collaboration, and excitement will fuel their race, and the collective triumph at the end is sure to strengthen everyone’s camaraderie.
Learn More: Team Building
34. Two Truths and a Lie
Gather ’round for Two Truths and a Lie; a lighthearted way for teachers to learn more about one another. Every participant will share three facts about themself—but the catch is that one must actually be a lie! Surprises, revelations, and hearty laughter will follow as the other teachers try to guess which statements are true and false statements are unmasked.
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35. Pictionary
Creativity and effective communication are at the heart of this energetic game; making it an all-time favorite among teachers. Sketch your way to a stronger staff team with Pictionary! In this classic game, participants will attempt to draw a word or phrase for their team to guess.
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36. Teacher Trivia
Have some fun and learn something new with teacher trivia! This captivating game is always a great way to get your teachers talking and keep everyone engaged. Divide your staff into teams and keep track of their correct answers. The playful learning process will help you foster stronger connections and create an environment that’s filled with curiosity and camaraderie.
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37. Egg Drop Challenge
Get ready for a thrilling egg drop challenge! Here, your teachers must try to engineer a device, using recycled materials, to protect an egg from cracking in a great fall. Anticipation, creativity, and teamwork will lead to triumph or disaster; either way, excitement is sure to fill the room.
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38. The Ball Game
This is a no-prep, few-materials classic! Participants must share facts about themselves whenever the ball is tossed to them. This simple fusion of self-expression, participation, and hand-eye coordination ensures a high-energy experience that’s perfect for team-building.
Learn More: Thought Co
39. Giant Jigsaw Puzzle
Do you remember doing jigsaw puzzles when you were a kid? Kick it up a notch by turning a giant puzzle into a multi-team team-building challenge! Give each small group a puzzle to create. Once they’ve solved their puzzle, reveal that each team’s puzzle is a smaller section of the giant masterpiece. Your teachers will then have to work together to figure out how the smaller puzzles fit together.
Learn More: YouTube
40. Speed Networking
Invite your educators to experience the thrill of speed networking; a networking tool turned icebreaker game! Everyone will interact in quick, focused exchanges that foster relationships. The pace is lively, the connections genuine, and the outcome is sure to be a stronger sense of community at work.
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41. Uncommon Commonalities
Dive deep into conversation with this next game! Your teachers will discover shared experiences or interests and work on forming bonds that last. This meaningful activity will reveal fascinating connections which certainly makes it a memorable and valuable team-building exercise.
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