Icebreakers

This or That

A fast two-choice warm-up: pizza or tacos, summer or winter. Students point, stand or move to show their choice. A low-pressure icebreaker for shy classes.

  • 🎓 Grades K–12
  • ⏱ 3–10 min
  • 👥 Whole class
  • 📦 No prep
🎲 Another game

How to play This or That

  1. Say or show two options, such as "Cats or dogs?"
  2. Students point left for the first option and right for the second, or move to that side of the room.
  3. Ask one or two volunteers why they chose it.
  4. Move quickly to the next pair.

Variations

  • Content version: "Mitosis or meiosis?" with a definition read aloud.

💡 Teacher tips

  • Keep the pace quick; this works best as a 3-minute energizer.
How to play This or That: printable classroom rule card with the steps, time (3–10 min), grades k–12 and prep

📌 Rule card to print or pin

The rules of This or That on one card. Print it for the board or a sub folder, or save it to Pinterest for later.

Save to Pinterest Download / print rule card
Up next🫂 Mingle (Find Your Group) →

Keep playing

Similar classroom games

Brain breaks

Mingle (Find Your Group)

Students walk around the room saying "mingle, mingle" until the teacher calls a number, then quickly form groups of exactly that size.

  • ⏱ 5–10 min
  • 🎓 K–12
  • ✏️ No prep
Icebreakers

Would You Rather

Give students two choices and have them pick a side of the room, then explain their reasoning.

  • ⏱ 5–15 min
  • 🎓 3–12
  • ✏️ No prep
Icebreakers

Beach Ball Icebreaker

Write questions all over a beach ball and toss it around the room.

  • ⏱ 10–15 min
  • 🎓 K–12
Review games

Hangman

Students guess letters to reveal a hidden word before the drawing is complete.

  • ⏱ 5–15 min
  • 🎓 K–12
  • ✏️ No prep
Brain breaks

Carrot Squat (Luobo Dun)

Each group gets a vegetable name, and the group that is called squats while chanting, then calls the next group to squat.

  • ⏱ 5–15 min
  • 🎓 K–8
  • ✏️ No prep
Icebreakers

Desert Island

Students choose three items they would bring to a desert island and justify their picks.

  • ⏱ 10–20 min
  • 🎓 3–12
  • ✏️ No prep