Feb 28, 2025
Why Icebreakers Matter for College Students
Beginning university can be a little overwhelming—new friends, new lessons, and brand new surroundings. And icebreakers aren’t merely fun activities; they’re excellent strategies that allow students to connect, embrace their comfort zone, and establish friendships that last throughout the academic year.
Want to know the full benefits of hosting ice-breakers? Check out the article by Drexel here
Icebreaker Games to get Your Group energized
Let’s loosen up nerves and break down barriers among students using those ideas
Train Wreck: Set up chairs in a circle, one number less than the number of participants. Students take out a placeholder object (such as a shoe) to mark their spot. The person in the middle introduces themselves and shares a personal fun fact. Anyone find the fun fact relatable has to move fast and find a new seat. The person who was left standing goes next.
Ultimate Ninja: The players stand in a circle and take turns striking ninja poses. On each turn, one player attempts to tag another’s hand in one smooth motion. If hit, that tagged player loses that hand. The last remaining person with an active hand wins!
Hula Hoop Relay: Teams stand in lines and link arms. Pass a hula hoop from one end to the other without unlinking arms. The fastest team wins.
RPS Tournament: Everybody plays RPS in pairs. The lost one leads the winner. Winners keep playing until there’s a final showdown, and everyone cheers their champ!
Pterodactyl: Players form a circle and attempt to say “pterodactyl” to the player beside them without showing their teeth. If you laugh or even show any teeth, you’re out. Whoever is the last person standing wins.
Similar to Ice-breaker Games, Scavenger hunts are also an effective way to engage students! Check out those 50 creative scavenger hunt ideas.
Simple and Creative Icebreakers for Any Setting
These low-prep games are ideal for quick intros and small groups.
Two Truths and a Lie: Everyone tells two truths and one lie. The group takes turns guessing which one is the lie. This game generates fun conversations and allows students to learn some funny facts about each other.
Alliterative Name Game: Students introduce themselves in a circle with an alliterative phrase that describes something they like (e.g., “My name is Sam, and I love surfing”). Everyone repeats all previous names and descriptions, which aids memorization and gets a few laughs.
Beach Ball Q&A: Using a marker, write fun questions on a beach ball. Students throw the ball around, and when they're caught, the player answers the question closest to their left thumb. This game is very versatile and can be played indoors or outdoors.
Sentence Completion: Provide students with prompts such as “Before I came to college, I loved...” or “One thing people don’t know about me is.” There’s nothing like sharing and completing sentences with your fellow students to create that sense of community!
I Chose This College Because...: In a circle, students share their names and the reason they chose the university or their major. It’s a small but powerful way to find common ground.
Team-building and Leadership Icebreakers
Perfect for student groups, leadership development, or RA training.
Human Knot: Students form a circle, extend their hands out, and grab the hands of two different people (not next to them). The group must untangle while holding on to one another. This enhances collaboration, communication, and solution-finding.
Webs: Everyone sits in a circle, and the leader asks questions like “Why this university?” The first person answers and passes a ball of yarn around the circle while holding onto a piece. This continues until everyone’s answered, weaving a web of connections. Discuss the contributions of each individual to the group dynamic
Chainlink: One student shares something about themselves (like, “I love dogs”). People who share similarities link arms with them and tell them their names and interests. This goes on until everyone’s interconnected in one big Vesuvian chain.
Marshmallow Challenge: Divide students into teams and provide them with marshmallows and toothpicks. Their task is to construct the tallest edifice within a time frame. This activity inspires creativity and collaboration.
Blindfolded Polygon: Teams are blindfolded and provided with a rope. Everyone has to form a perfect square (or similar shape) without looking off their blindfolds. This tests communication and leadership abilities.”
We have created a guideline for improving student engagement via digital technology. Click here to read!
Virtual and In-Person Icebreakers for Flexible Engagement
Whether in person or online, these games engages with everyone.
Virtual Icebreaker Trivia: Leverage Deckle’s Incredible Race feature to create trivia challenges based on your group’s interests. Break students into teams and play in educational, interactive rounds.
Where Were You When...?: Each student recounts where they were for big events (e.g., “When Taylor Swift dropped her latest album”). It’s a fun method for bonding over mutual experiences.
This or That: Quick questions like “Pizza or burgers?” or "Netflix or YouTube?" Students then move to different classroom areas (or type their answers in the chat for virtual classes).
Alphabet Freeze: Students take turns saying something thaey’re looking forward to, beginning with the letter A and going through the alphabet. For instance, " A—Adventure,”“B—Beach trips,” etc.
Comic Chaos: Use scissors to cut a comic strip into separate frames and distribute one frame to each student. Their job is to locate others with that same comic and piece the story together in sequence. This activity also works well in virtual breakout rooms.
Want to discover how different Ice-breaker apps can help you with physical and virtual games? Check out our article for the top 5 best ice-breaker apps.
Tech-Savvy Icebreakers: Using Apps to Boost Engagement
Use tech to make icebreakers more interactive and fun.
Photo Scavenger Hunt: Create a list of specific campus landmarks or quirky items. Students take selfies with these things using their phones. Deckle can help you build a custom scavenger hunt and can track submissions.
Social Bingo: Create digital bingo cards featuring fun facts, such as “Has traveled outside the country” or “Plays a musical instrument.” Students socialize to find pairs and stamp their cards.
Apps to Entertain: Using Deckle's templates, design interactive quizzes, games, and challenges uniquely catered to your event.
Virtual Orientation Tools: Increase remote orientation with Deckle’s challenges, quizzes, and live leaderboards.
Deckle the scavenger hunt app makes planning and running these activities a breeze with customizable templates and real-time engagement tools. Read more here.
The Bottom Line
Icebreakers can be just fun — and they can be the first step in building a connected, engaged campus. These creative ideas will help you set the stage for students to feel welcomed, supported, and ready to succeed in a new environment.
Are you ready to revamp your orientation events? Deckle — Customizable, Interactive icebreaker games students love. Check out the Incredible Race feature to see how simple connecting on campus can be!
