More than 13 innovative ideas for building a community in the classroom

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Students need to feel comfortable, safe and receptive in the class to look forward to attending school every day. They will continue to engage in learning, be more open and flexible, and get along better with their peers and teachers. This is everyone’s victory!

Start building a community in the classroom with these strategies and ideas for each grade. We also provide low-key and PREP-free resources that you can use to develop a sense of community for each student in your class starting on day one.

Building a classroom community in primary schools

A successful primary school year begins with a strong classroom community. After setting up bulletin boards and following the rules of the classroom, use these ideas to create a community in the classroom so that every student feels included and accepted.

Host the morning meeting and enter the same page

Weekly meetings are a great way to get students involved in the course. During the first week of school, ask the course what they want to discuss in the morning meeting and let them jointly create an agenda to feel the sense of ownership. Then, at least ten minutes are reserved at the beginning of each class to adhere to schedules and expectations and answer any questions students may have.

Morning meeting Team Building Activities | Activities, Google Slides and Community
Core coach
Results: Prek-6th
Topic: Role Education, Classroom Community

A series of classroom slides and printable cards are a great place to start your morning meeting routine. With interactive activities and conversational tips, this low PREP resource is exactly what primary school students need to speak (and move!) when the bell rings.

Create opportunities for team building activities

Put your class along with fun projects, including team building activities for kids! With table groups or student groups, they work together to build ways for them to face challenges through classroom materials. Consider a mix of friends groups and skill levels, so get to know each other in new ways.

Cup Stacking Challenge | Team Building and Community Building Activities
By collaborative class
Results: Third place
Topic: Role Education, Classroom Community

Predictable and printable slides prompt students to work together, stack eight cups in different ways, and then reflect on the assigned individual teams.

Assign classroom work that requires collaboration

Having a light monitor in your classroom, the line manager and homework collector is the same thing. Having a group of students doing each job is another matter! Create a work team, such as an “electronic team” or a “leadership team”, for students to delegate specific tasks to group members rather than do their jobs alone.

Hosted classroom escape room

Is it possible to build a classroom community when everyone is trying to escape? This is the time for you to organize a collaborative escape room! Let everyone in your class work together to solve puzzles, solve word problems, and to the solution before time runs out (or bell rings).

Classroom community team building activities | Free escape room games
Through educational performance
Results: Third place
Topic: Classroom Community

A 30-minute emoji-themed escape room activity can help elementary school students connect and work in teams. All you need is the material in this resource, three large Manila folders, a letter envelope and scissors for students to use.

Building a community in a middle school classroom

A healthy classroom community can help students want to go to school, making it an important tool to fight chronic absenteeism. Discover how to build a classroom community in middle schools, so on a busy schedule, it’s a place to be expected.

Let them move during station activities

You may have spent a lot of time on class seating arrangements, but that doesn’t mean that students should always stay on the table! Use radio to move middle school students, work together and create collaborative projects to make your classroom feel more like home.

Return to the school station: Community construction activities | TPT
Safe haven through reading and writing
Results: No. 6 to 9
Topic: Classroom Community, Language Arts

Set up a back-to-school station for students to cover important class skills and get to know each other immediately. With student and instructor instructions, station prompts and descriptions, printable labels and response pages, and student examples for each station, this multi-functional resource is a creative first week activity for middle school students.

Celebrating the identity and personality of students

When students learn more about their peers, they are more likely to be like a part of the community. Help your friendship when you have class members share more information about themselves with individual projects and presentations.

Celebrating Student Identity Community Building Course
Through Karen Au’s Edcoach Network
Results: No. 6 to 9
Topic: Classroom Community, Language Arts

Encourage students to share more information about themselves by sharing with their entire tasks! This detailed ELA resource includes graphic organizers, student templates, audio sheets, and evaluation titles in printable and digital formats, allowing students to share what they care about most with their peers.

Help students yell and praise each other

With a little modeling and structure, middle school students can be friendly and compassionate to each other. Build a sense of community in your middle school course through a yelling system that allows students to express appreciation to their peers, appeal to their good deeds and express appreciation.

Compliment Card – Architectural Class Community
Enchantment Solution
Grade: 5th to 8th years
Topic: Classroom Community

Everyone likes to praise each other from time to time! Please use a set of praise cards for students to actively call each other and have a sentence framework for students to supplement the class members.

Encourage participation (and participation) extracurricular activities

Most community building occurs outside the classroom when students have the opportunity to socialize with others in the common interest. Encourage your students to choose an extracurricular activity that attracts them and allows them to build relationships. You can also list upcoming extracurricular activities for students to participate and support their peers!

Establish social and emotional habits

Finding ways to make students express themselves comfort and safety in the classroom can build a community in the classroom for a long way. Encourage students to bring their true self into the classroom, and the activity focuses on socio-emotional fundamentals such as self-reflective diaries, introducing students to school support staff, and a conflict resolution system that makes everyone feel heard.

By the time students reach high school, having a solid group of friends at school is a big part of their day. Bring each high school student into a supportive community through these strategies and ideas that work in each subject area and classroom environment.

Host speed discussion fast dialogue

Introduction to regular reading courses through speed discussions! Depending on the speed dating format of rotations every few minutes, this format encourages students to talk to as many people as possible. They can practice discussion skills, make new friends, and enjoy the comfort of a class community without strangers.

Independent reading speed discussion – Participate in community building activities
By writing a letter with Miss G
Level: 8-12
Topics: English art, literature, reading

Cover important literary elements such as setting, characterization and perspectives and provide ELA’s speed discussion resources. Detailed teacher instructions, editable question cards and student exit tickets make this NO-PREP resource useful part of your ELA and classroom community building process.

Personalize classrooms to reflect your students

You may have 150 students, but you can make your classroom feel like it belongs to every student! Decorate your high school classroom and doors with your kids’ works, photos, names and other items. If you need more space, consider stretching into the hallway before high school students walk in.

Return to school course Gram negative board: classroom community, door decoration
Create motivation through teaching
Results: K-10

Bring social media to your classroom in a positive way! The Door Decoration event sets your class as a “class” account, allowing their smiling faces to welcome companions and visitors into the classroom during the first week of school and year-round.

Give students the opportunity to cooperate

Assign projects to your students to give them the opportunity to work with their peers. When you discover collaboration and team building opportunities, create new pairs and teams on the rotating schedule so students can get to know each other. Additionally, as part of the assignment, students are asked to introduce their work to the class and give students the opportunity to review each speech.

Building a community partnership

By scheduling time for students to volunteer or listen to local people and work for a good reason to engage them in your local community. Career Fairs, canned food drives and volunteer opportunities are great ways for high school students to expand their community awareness outside the classroom wall and plan important community service projects nearby.

More ways to build a community in the classroom

Every day of school is an opportunity to build a classroom community that supports students from all walks of life. Use these suggestions to create a community in the classroom year-round.

• Whether it’s the first week of school and year-round, the children are integrated into the Bingbingers to get to know each other.
• Switch the seat map on each chance using various formats such as tables, clusters, pairs, and rows.
• Find tasks to develop life skills for high school students, including communication and teamwork, to support each other.
• Involve students in your classroom organization, including monitoring supply cabinets, making a list of classroom rules, and redecorating the classroom regularly.
• Have students create a “Missed You” package so that absent students can answer when they return to school.
• Celebrating all students’ birthdays in a way that makes them feel valuable, such as class songs or traditions that don’t embarrass them (especially in middle and high school!).

Create a school space for students to feel safe

When students know that their teachers and peers care about them, they are more likely to make healthy choices and look forward to their school days. Use these activities and classroom community resources for more age groups to build a truly inclusive, supportive and fun community (including teachers!).