11 Memorable Icebreaker Games for High School Students

It’s beneficial to incorporate icebreaker games for high school students at the start of the school year and throughout the year.

Even though students may know each other, there are still many aspects that they may not be aware of in their peers’ lives.

These engaging high school icebreaker games serve to create a sense of community, allowing students to feel comfortable asking questions and getting to know each other in a meaningful way.

What’s more, these games set students up for social and academic success.

So incorporate some of these fun high school icebreaker games into your first-week-of-school activities schedule.

You’ll build a positive classroom experience, encourage communication, and facilitate an inclusive plus enjoyable learning environment

Icebreaker Games for High School Students

1. Go On a Human Scavenger Hunt.

Create a list of traits, experiences, or accomplishments that high school students might have, such as “plays a musical instrument,” “traveled to another country last summer,” or “won an award.”

Students must find classmates who match each item on the list.

2. Respond to Icebreaker Questions.

Put students in groups of 3 to 4.

Provide fun and engaging high school icebreaker questions or discussion prompts to get students talking and connecting with one another.

3. Toss and Talk.

Provide students with a beach ball.

One student starts by tossing the beach ball to another student. When the receiving student catches the ball, she shares a fun fact about herself.

Afterward, that student tosses the beach ball to another classmate, who also shares an interesting fact about himself.

This process continues until each student has had the opportunity to share a fun fact.

4. Guess the Baby.

This is such a fun icebreaker game to play with high school students. 

Display baby pictures of students on a bulletin board or screen. Students try to guess which baby photo is which student in the class. 

5. Make a Collaborative Drawing.

Divide students into pairs or small groups. Each group is given a large piece of paper and markers or colored pencils.

One student starts drawing something random on the paper. Then, she passes it to her partner or group member, who adds to the drawing.

This continues back and forth until a unique collaborative artwork has been created.

6. Guess Secret Talents.

Each student writes down a secret talent or unusual skill she or he possesses.

Collect all the notes and read them aloud anonymously. Students guess which talent belongs to whom.

7. Create a Word Association Web.

This is a really simple and fun icebreaker game that high schoolers enjoy a lot. 

Ask students to sit in a circle.

The first student says a word, and the next student has to say a word associated with the previous one.

Continue around the circle, building a web of word associations.

Example: pizza-cheese-diary-milk-cow-grass-pasture-field-baseball-homerun, etc.

8. Conduct Interviews.

Have students pair up and take turns interviewing each other with a set of fun and thoughtful questions.

Afterward, each student introduces his or her partner to the class.

To make this game more exciting, have students use pencils as microphones. 

9. Write an Emoji Story. 

Provide students with a series of emojis and ask them to create a story or a short paragraph using the emojis as a guide.

They then share their unique stories with the class.

10. Pass the Quiz.

This icebreaker game is an excellent activity for high school students.

They will create a personalized 10-question quiz about themselves, focusing on fun and lesser-known facts. They must also prepare an answer key.

Once the quizzes are ready, students pass their quizzes to different classmates.

The recipients take the quiz, trying to answer the questions based on what they know about the quiz creator.

After completing the quiz, the original student reveals the correct answers, allowing the takers to see how many questions they answered correctly. 

Students may use this free app to create online quizzes.

11. Play Reverse Charades.

In this twist on the classic charades game, one student guesses while the rest of the class acts out the word or phrase together. 

Final Thoughts On High School Icebreaker Games

Help students connect with their peers and feel welcome in the school community using these fun icebreaker games for high school students.

They will set the stage for a successful school year, enriching the overall high school experience.