Now that the weather is nice and you’ve probably finished with your high-stakes testing, it’s time to focus on skills that might not have been on the test but are important nonetheless. Some team-building activities outside can help with collaboration, communication, and critical thinking skills.
The parachute
Nothing beats the parachute to show students the value of working together. They are surprisingly cheap and offer lots of fun. Just make sure the students don’t get carried away (literally).
Geocaching
Think of geocaching as a technological scavenger hunt on steroids. Using the GPS capabilities of their devices, they track the coordinates of an object that’s been placed by another geocacher. There might not be any in your schoolyard, so either place some yourself, have the kids place them for another class, or go on a cache-rich field trip.
Blind soccer
Students choose a partner. One is blindfolded and put on a small soccer field while their partner is on the sidelines giving them directions verbally. The blindfolded players try to kick the ball into an unguarded goal.
Organize the zoo
Each student is given an animal to mimic. They are only allowed to make the sounds of that animal. Students then have to organize themselves in a line in order from smallest to largest animal.
Communicative Red Rover
Split students into two teams and give them about 10 minutes to discuss general facts about their lives (number of siblings, hobbies, after school activities, etc.). They then play Red Rover, but instead of calling for names, they call for people who match a certain trait.
We’ve got everything you need for outdoor fun at the Classroom Direct online store.
