How to Maintain Relationships via Distance Learning

But how do we build deeper relationships? The best approach we have found is
through using sparks. A spark is what a student is passionate about, what lights them
up and gives them well......that “spark”. Sparks were developed by the Search
Institute, who explains them as follows: “Sparks are the activities and interests that
truly engage kids to be their best. Research shows that kids who know and develop
their sparks—and who have adults in their lives to help—have higher grades, better
school attendance, and a sense of purpose.”

In our STEM programs, we use different games and activities to help students find
their spark, and then we utilize those sparks throughout the year to personalize
activities. Click here to read more about using sparks in the classroom, and click here
for a guide on sparks via distance learning. Many of the games below are a perfect
way to share and connect with student sparks.

10 Get to Know You Icebreakers

These activities are a great way to share student sparks and build relationships with
students.

1. Show & Tell: Ask students to find an object to share with the class. This is a
perfect way to have students share their personal sparks. Another option is to
share a meaningful object and tell a related story.
2. Costume or hat day: Ask students to dress up as their favorite character or
wear a silly hat. Students who are shy on camera might also prefer wearing a
hat or mask during video chats. Students can also dress up related to their
spark!
3. 1 Truth & 2 Lies: A twist on the classic game, ask students to share 3 sparks
with only one being their true spark. The rest of the class then puts up one
finger if they thought the first statement was true, two fingers if they thought
the second statement, and three fingers for the third statement.
4. Charades: Give the student a set of words to chose from. The student acts out
the word, and you try to guess what it is. Here is a fun list of words.
https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/games-puzzles-and-worksheets/charades-
word-lists-kids.html
Students can also act out their sparks for the class to guess.
 5. Create a video: Send students a video where you explain your spark or show
it in action. For example, love baking? Show students how to make your
favorite recipe!
6. Flipgrid: We love Flipgrid! Set-up topic boards for your class and have
students submit video responses. Videos are moderated by teachers to create a
safe environment. We use Flipgrid for students to share sparks and introduce
themselves in the beginning of the year.
7. Zoom In: Find a photo that represents your spark. Zoom into the photo and
have students guess your spark. Keep zooming out until they figure it out. You
can also have students take a photo of something from a weird angle or
extreme close up and have the class guess the object.
8. 20 Questions: Have students try to guess your spark by asking yes and no
questions.
9. Current events: Share a news story or real-world video related to your spark.
For example, if your spark is space, you can share a video of a recent NASA
mission.
10. Virtual Backgrounds: Ask students to create a virtual background that
represents their spark. This provides a great visual to help you refer to their
spark during the class session.
CLICK FOR RELATIONSHIP BUILDING VIRTUAL ICEBREAKERS
Need more ideas? Click here for a teacher’s activity guide on icebreakers that build
relationships during distance learning.

30 Fun Distance Learning Games

The following activities are perfect for back to school or throughout the year as a
way to increase engagement during live class sessions. Some are to add some fun to
your class while others can be connected to academic content.
 Tell a Joke: Who doesn’t love a good joke? Students can take turns telling
their favorite jokes or share via the chat box.
 Describe & Draw: Describe to students how to draw an object like a butterfly
without revealing the object. Students share drawings and try to guess the
object.
 Scavenger Hunt: Send your students on a mission to find common objects in
their house. This is a great way to practice vocabulary (find an insulator) or
share student interests (find your favorite shirt). Check out our STEM words
scavenger hunt here.
Click here for the STEM Scavenger Hunt.

 Pictionary: Via private chat, send a student an object to draw. The student can
share their screen and using an application like Paint, draw the object while the
class guesses.
 Virtual Field Trip: Share your screen and take students on a tour of an art
museum or the zoo. Check out a great list of tours here.
 Guess the Baby: Parents provide a baby picture and the class needs to guess
who it is.
 Mad Libs: Use a site like Wacky Web Tales to collect random words from
students that generate a hilarious story!
 Quick Share: As soon as students log on, share a prompt like “what would
you bring on a trip to Mars?”. Have a quick round of sharing with 10 seconds
per student or share in the chat box.
 Mystery Bag: Show students a bag with a mystery object inside. Students ask
questions in the comments then write their guess on a piece of paper and hold
it up.
 Secret Word: Put one student back into the waiting room of the video
meeting. Tell the class a secret word, and then bring the student back.
Classmates give clues to help the student guess the word.
 Would You Rather: Would you rather live on Mars or underwater? Would
you rather be a famous inventor or a famous artist? Ask students to select an
option using Kahoot, the polling feature on Zoom, or simply have students
hold up 1 or 2 fingers. FInd more ideas here.
 Guess the Sound: Play a sound and ask students to guess the object. Here is a
great video to use. Take it further with a STEM musical instrument challenge.
 Quick Build Challenge: Using materials available at home, have students
complete a quick build challenge such as designing a tower to hold a stuffed
animal. Share results with the class. Find building task cards here.
 Mystery Guest: Invite a familiar guest such as the principal or the school
nurse. The guest joins in disguise, and the teacher gives clues. Students can
guess via private message or ask questions to learn more. At the end, the
mystery guest reveals him/herself, and the teacher announces the first person
who guessed correctly.

Click for STEM building challenges.

 Writing warm-up: Have students answer a thought-provoking prompt as a
quick writing warm-up. Students can write responses in the chat box or read to
the class. Here is an option for a random question generator.
 Trip ABCs: “I went on a trip, and I took ____.” The first person says a word
that starts with A, the second person says the A item, then does B . Each turn,
the person repeats all the other items in ABC order, then adds 1 more items
depending on the alphabet.
 Class Story: “Once upon a time…” The teacher randomly calls on a student to
complete the sentence to start the story. The next person provides another
sentence to continue the story. Keep going until everyone has a chance!
 BINGO Game: Who doesn’t love BINGO? Click here for an option to create a
free virtual BINGO game for students. Are you a STEM teacher? Check out
this STEM Careers BINGO game for elementary or middle and high school.
 Two-Minute Talent Show: Whether singing, using screen share to draw, or
having their pet do a trick, ask students to share a quick talent!
 Memory Game: Place 20 objects on a tray and take a photo. Share the image
on your screen for 30 seconds, stop sharing, then give students a minute to
record as many objects they can. Another option is to create a digital tray with
clip-art images.
 Boggle & Noggle: Students use a grid to create words or number sentences.
Click here for Boogle (word version) and Noggle (numbers version) with a
great TpT freebie here.
 Learn to Draw: Show a YouTube video on how to draw simple objects and
ask students to follow along. Here is a great site with video links.
 Spin the Wheel Activities: Create your own wheel of activities using this free
website. Spin the wheel and have individual students or the whole class
complete the challenge like do 10 jumping jacks, find something orange, or
draw a monster.
 Guess the Disney Character: Similar to Zoom In game described above, use
this website for students to try to guess the Disney character.
 Tongue Twisters: Send students a tongue twister to practice. Have them read
the tongue twister to the class and with the class
 Good News Sharing: Read out loud an article from Good News Network to
bring some positive vibes to the class. Students can share reactions.
 Never Have I Ever: Get to know your students with this game by having
students create a “I Have” or “I Never” signs. Teacher reads a statement, and
everyone holds up a sign saying whether they have or have never done the
action. Statements can be silly and fun like “Never have I ever used someone
 else's toothbrush.” or “Never have I ever sneaked desert before dinner.” Tons
of great ideas found here.

 Am I a Scientist? Show pictures of real people and have students guess their
career. This game can help students break down the stereotypes while
showcasing a wide range of careers and professionals. Click here for a version
on STEM careers.
 Guess the riddle: “What has a face and two hands but no arms or legs?” Post
a riddle of the day and have students private message you their guess. Reveal
the answer!
 MUTE-iny: There is always the one person who forgets to un-mute! In this
game, you will put yourself on mute and say a sentence really slow. Have
students guess in the comments what you are trying to say.
 Tomato Ketchup: One student is the detective. They turn on their mic and put
their head down so they can't see the screen. Everyone else is muted. The
teacher selects a student who switches their mic on and says 'tomato ketchup'
in a funny or disguised voice. The detective has to guess the student!
 I Spy: Provide clues about one of the students in the class like “I spy someone
with a red striped shirt.” Have students guess the student. Another variation is
giving clues about an object in the background.