Ice Breakers and Warmers

Andrew Wright

Copyright not Copy Wright
These notes are copyright not Copy Wright.
If you would like to use them with your own students, please do so without telling me. If you would like to publish them or part of them then email me and tell me about it. I am almost certainly going to say, Yes!
But you must agree to acknowledge my name and website. If you don’t, it is plagiarism, unfair and theft of my intellectual property. You will see that I have taken many ideas from other colleauges, particularly Seth Lindstromberg. I have acknowledged the source and them…please do the same related to their work.

Dear Andrew
Sorry for the delay in replying. Great site…I hope it and you flourish 
mightily. By all means, you have my permission.
Best regards,
Seth

So email me if you want to publish the article, please:
andrew@ili.hu
http://www.teachertraining.hu

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Acknowledgements
Some of the activities below have been taken from:
Deller, S. Lessons from the Learner. Longman
Lindstromberg, S. The Standby Book. Cambridge UP
Lindstromberg, S. The Recipe Book. Longman
None have been taken from Hadfield, J. Classroom Dynamics. OUP but it is full of very good ideas for helping people to relate to each other.
Other books not used below which have a lot of ideas in them:
Klippel, F. Keep Talking. Cambridge UP

Moskowitz, G. Caring and Sharing in the Foreign Language Classroom. Newbury House.
Ur, P. and Wright, A. Five Minute Activities. Cambridge UP

Wright, A., Betteridge, D., Buckby, M. Games for Language Learning. Cambridge UP

Anything by Mario Rinvolucri is going to have useful and interesting activities in it.
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Icebreakers and warmers
They are not the same! Icebreakers are for groups who are new to each other and are used at the beginning of a course. Warmers are for classes that know each other and are used to relax them and get their creativity and openness going.
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Lesson beginnings and early lessons for new and established classes
* For all levels: be ready with your preparation so that you have time to greet everyone coming into the room, welcome them, make eye contact, help them to their seat, take their coat, pass a remark, ask a question…whatever.
* For all levels: have calm music playing when the sts come in…make sure there are fresh flowers in the room, perhaps a greeting on the board plus a picture…
*You must judge if they are open to playing and not anxious about losing dignity…eg with business English groups.
* You might like to summarise, for the students, your approach to helping them to learn…

– the book to give them something tangible and an overview…

– supplementary activities to add extra experience…

– some playful activities to add relief and meaning but offering the same density of use of the language as other activities…

– important that each person feels the lessons are going OK and they will be asked to tell you orally and in writing if things are not OK or not.
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Icebreakers
Icebreakers are intended to:
– help people to get to know each other in a new group
– help people to feel relaxed with each other
– help people to feel that they have some value in the group
– help people to get used to the idea that working with fellow students is part of the life of language learning
– help the students to feel that you are approachable, helpful but also know what you want
– help people to enjoy themselves
– help people to realise that the English lesson can be richer than just English…English must be experienced as part of communication which matters.
It follows that icebreakers should be easy to do…no test…no competition…very much about people getting to know and like each other.
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Icebreakers for beginner classes
1 Getting to know names and something else: ‘I’m Andrew I like stories. You are Julia and you like old Italian towns’. Repeat round circle.
2 This activity is based on lining up the sts. Sts say, ‘What’s your name?’ And then try to stand in alphabetical order. You can introduce the sound of the alphabet and follow it up afterwards. Also: When is your birthday? Which is your favorite month? Which is your favourite time of the day?
3 You can also give each st. a word which is part of a sentence…and the
sts have to work out the sentence and stand in order…and then say the
sentence.

4 Brainstorm all the words the students know which are also English words onto the board. Commonly heard in Hungary where I live, are: Hello. Auto.
Circle. One ball. Say, ‘I’m Andrew!’ and throw the ball. That person says, ‘You’re Andrew and I’m Tibor’ and throws the ball to another st. etc.
When the names are familiar: ‘I’m Andrew and you’re Tibor.’

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Icebreakers for elementary classes
1 Sts write down four topics related to themselves they are willing to talk about. You can begin with yourself as a demonstration. Eg family, sport, values, work. Their partner asks them about each topic. Allow 3 minutes per topic.
2 Each st draws a big circle on a piece of paper and then divides it into sections of what is important. The sts then mill about and ask each other about their choices. (Deller 1.5)
3 Sts tell each other about at least one good thing that has happened to them in the previous few days. (Lindstromberg Longman 1.13)
4 Sts write down one of their bad characteristics and one of their good ones. Put the papers in a bag. Sts take one (not their own) and find the person who wrote their paper and then ask them about it.
5 Pairs. Find things in common and things different. Helpful phrases; She lives in…but I live in…/We both like…/I prefer…and she prefers/ We both have…
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Icebreakers for intermediate and advanced classes
1 Pairs. Find out three things you have in common and three things which are different. Introduce your neighbour and tell the class.
2 You prepare five links you have with music. Represent each link with an enigmatic (mysterious, difficult to understand) word. Tell the sts you will share something of your life with them. They question you about each word.
They do the same thing and then work with others on discussion. (Lindstromberg 2.7)
3 Brainstorm questions on two levels: shallow, deeper. Eg Are you married? What worries you? Triads take it in turns to question and answer.
4 Sts mill about and greet each other as if they are old friends…and exchange a few words. Control with a small bell. (Lindstromberg Longman 1.15)
5 You lead visualisation…you are a wall..where are you..inside or outside…made of…colour…what do you want on you…near you…marks on you…how did they get there?
Pairs discuss the walls they visualised.
Whole class discuss walls in your life…look for differences and similarities. (Lindstromberg Longman 1.20)
6 Sts write ten sentences starting with, I wonder if anyone in the group…
Then the sts mill about and ask their questions (changing the statement I
into a question form eg I wonder if anyone in the group is nervous about
their English. Are you nervous about your English? Sts write the names of people answering next to their questions. Follow with a discussion of interest.
7 Sts write 5 questions they are ready to be asked eg What is important to you? What makes you happy? Pairs: A asks B A’s questions…but also asks supplementary questions. Class: A tell me one thing surprising about B.
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Warmers
Warmers are intended to:
– help people to ‘warm up’ in an existing group
– help people to focus their minds on the English lesson
– help people to refresh their minds and to brighten up after a long day or after a long quiet exercise.
– help people to change from one activity to another
– help people to become positive after a rather negative experience.
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Warmers for beginners
1 One balloon is thrown up…before someone hits it they must call out a word from a vocabulary topic or absolute beginners any English word. Or for elementary A calls out a verb in base form and B calls out the past tense form and then can hit the balloon. (Lindstromberg 1.3)
2 Circle. Pass on a sound, a word, a phrase with a meaningful delivery…must be passed on exactly. Comment on meanings of differences…how impt it is to listen carefully…
3 Proverbs can be learned in each lesson and at every level. They are satisfying at beginner level because it is a big thing learned. Perhaps begin with a mother tongue proverb and look for an equivalent in English. Or choose one yourself and justify it. Ensure its meaning…apply it to everyday experience.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Rome wasn’t built in a day.
Experience is the best teacher.
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.
Don’t judge a book by its cover.
A change is as good as a rest.
Never say die.
4 Sts mill about and as they pass each other they point to something they can say an English word for and say it. After some time they tap each other on the arm and point to a thing and give the wrong word to tease the other person. (Lindstromberg Longman 1.3)
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Warmers for elementary
1 Touch something green. Pat something black. (Lindstromberg 1.4)
2 Jog! Jog! Also: pat, touch, tap, stroke, tickle, slap, scratch (Learned from Nick Owen)
3 Circle. Each student chooses one word from a lexical set. One person in the middle with a rolled up newspaper. He/she says one of the words. The student with that word must immediately say another word from the group or get hit on the head with the newspaper. (Lindstromberg 1.5)
4 Each st thinks of an adjective to describe how they feel. They all stand up. You call out adjectives until they all sit down. Eg happy, tired, sad, energetic, hungry, thirsty, full, sleepy… You could begin by brainstorming all the ones they know. (Lindstromberg 2.5)
5 Sticky labels or cellotape…several per student. Sts write the word for anything in the room they can name and add their own name. At the same time the sts rush around the room labelling everything they can. At the end of two minutes inspect the labels and reject any misspellings etc. The st with the most accurate labels wins. Correct the misspellings etc. The sts keep their labels and learn the words. (Lindstromberg Longman 1.4)
6 Sts call out questions to you to which your honest answer is Yes. If it is No then the st must ask another question. Incorrect questions you cover your ears and the others help him/her to get it right. (Lindstromberg Longman 1.18)
7 Jumble the furniture in the room. Pairs. A eyes closed. B directs A round the room by speaking. Give useful phrases on the board.
Be careful. Stop. Turn left/right.
8 Pairs. Discuss what is in common, what is different. Then take it in turns
to say to the class: I am a man. You are a woman. We both have dogs.
9 Three sentences starting with I You We. Can also be used following a
discussion.
10 Class. Any object from someones pocket…see how many different things can be said about it. Look for opportunities to extend their range.

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Warmers for intermediate and advanced
1 Each st. is a computer linked up together. Give the first word a word eg LIFE. The first computer says the word, the second adds a word and the third, etc. They continue to make a sentence…one word at a time.
Other words are: work, holidays, money, men, women,…(Lindstromberg
1.8)
2 Give each st a word/phrase slip of paper eg Yesterday. / No, I hate it! Each student must ask questions of another st in order to make them say the phrase which is on the questioners slip. (Lindstromberg 2.3)

3 Sts write down ten things that they think about cats. They read to each other. They tell the whole group of some of the surprising things. Other subjects are:
10 things that have happened in your life
10 things that you would like to see in your lifetime
10 things you can do.
(see Lindstromberg 2.6)
4 You say, Choose a letter between A and Z. You write it on the board. Give me nouns beginning with that letter. You write them. Pairs…each of you take one word and talk about it for 3 minutes. (Lindstromberg Longman 1.7)
5 You think of a possible newspaper headline for something that happened to you since you last saw the class eg Teacher no longer a menace! Sts ask questions to find out what happened. (I learned how to stop on my roller blades!) The students then invent a headline for something that happened to them and then work in pairs. (Lindstromberg Longman 1.9)
6 Sts stand in the middle of the room. You say, ‘Two words: waterfall and lake. Go to that end of the room if you feel like a waterfall and that end of the room if you feel like a lake. Then sts choose one st from the other side of the room and ask why they chose their word.

I hope you find this collection of activities useful!