How to Implement Community-Building Activities for Elementary School Children

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Community-building activities are designed to help students know one another and work together. When you promote team building and cooperation among elementary school children, you give them the opportunity to develop their interpersonal skills with kids from other homes, backgrounds, and cultures.

Apart from working as a team and establishing relationships, being able to build trust is important in school. And with the right mix of community building activities, you can prepare students for the new life ahead of them.

Why are Community Building Activities Important?

At the beginning of a new year, schools welcome new students and encourage their already-known students to interact with them. Even teachers try their best to help new kids fit in into the classroom and school system.

However, there have been cases where some students kept to themselves. In other cases, new students have been bullied into silence and withdrawals, therefore losing the opportunity to mingle, make friends, and have fun.

In as much as elementary education is the primary level of actual learning for many children, it should be filled with games and activities that allow them to connect with other students and appreciate the school experience.

In essence, the onus lies on the teacher to engage students in community building activities for kids that enhance social skills and verbal fluency. The right ideas come with the following benefits:

  • Students in the new class are often eager to express themselves during team games
  • Every child gets to feel a sense of equality
  • The need for critical thinking is gradually developed during activities
  • Physical health is encouraged through movement-based activities
  • The learning environment becomes welcoming and supportive


How to Implement Community Building Activities

Now that you appreciate the value of community building activities for elementary students, let’s discuss the ways through which you can execute these ideas.

Try a STEM Activity

Even though STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) is common during summer, you can integrate some of the interesting STEM activities into the classroom.

Put the students into groups and give them some materials to create something (like a design). Additionally, you could ask them to solve a puzzle or try to crack a code.

Parachute Games

Parachute games are another group of community building activities that encourage students to work together and depend on each other.

Talk About Yourself Activity

Ask the children to write something about themselves on a tiny piece of paper. Afterward, have them fold it neatly and drop it into a basket. Play a song and have a child pick one when the music stops.
When the papers have gone round, let each child read the content of their paper and identify the child who wrote it.

Conclusion

Are you looking to bring out the best in the students in your elementary class? Consider including some community building activities in your classroom routine.

Encourage each child to contribute something or get involved in one activity or the other. In time, you’ll find that they’ve built strong and impactful relationships.

Steve Hiles

I am a retired military and elementary school teacher living in Tennessee. I am an avid reader and love to write. I am very passionate about helping teachers. I hope you find my educational tips and strategies useful,and enjoy hearing about my personal journey.

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Steve Hiles

I am a retired military and elementary school teacher living in Tennessee. I am an avid reader and love to write. I am very passionate about helping teachers. I hope you find my educational tips and strategies useful and enjoy hearing about my personal journey. Thanks for visiting!

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