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How to run get-to-know-you questions in the first week
One spun question a day, answered by everyone, beats a long worksheet: students hear each other's names and answers, and you collect notes you can use all year. Keep to questions anyone can answer in one sentence.
- Pick your grade bandLoad the set for your grade below, or mix two. Remove anything that doesn't fit your class; Undo brings back one you removed by mistake.
- Answer the first one yourselfModel a short, real answer: "My favorite animal is the octopus, because it can change color." Students copy your length, so keep it to one sentence.
- Go around with namesEach student says their name, then their answer. With 25 students a circle takes about 8 minutes; in a large class, partners share first and then introduce each other.
- Let anyone passSay "pass is fine" before the first answer, and mean it. Come back to anyone who passed at the end; most will answer once they've heard a few others.
- Jot what you learnKeep one sticky note per student: "draws dragons, wants to learn about volcanoes." Use it to pick read-alouds, form groups and start conversations in week two.
If a student brings up home
Some students will mention family or home on their own. Listen, keep your reply warm and brief, and don't add follow-up questions that dig. The questions here leave home out so that sharing it is always the student's choice.
Low-risk get to know you questions by grade band
Four sets of 12, one per grade band. Any student can answer every question, whatever their home life looks like. The note says what the answers tell you as the teacher.
| Question | What the answer tells you | On the wheel |
|---|---|---|
| What's your favorite animal? | An easy first answer, and a quick way to pair students who share one. | |
| What do you like to draw? | Interests to use for writing topics and art choices. | |
| What's your favorite color? | A no-wrong-answer warm-up for the shyest students. | |
| What game do you like at recess? | Who likes running games and who likes quiet ones. | |
| What makes you laugh? | Their sense of humor, which helps on hard days. | |
| What do you want to learn about? | Topics for read-alouds and centers. | |
| What's a book you like? | Which books to put in their hands next. | |
| Would you rather paint or build? | Whether a student leans toward art or building centers. | |
| What's a song you like to sing? | Songs for transitions and brain breaks. | |
| What are you good at? | A strength to name when the student is struggling. | |
| What's your favorite season? | An easy one for grouping students by answer. | |
| If you were an animal, which one? | How students see themselves, through a fun choice. |
| Question | What the answer tells you | On the wheel |
|---|---|---|
| What's a talent you have? | A strength to call on for class jobs and group roles. | |
| What book would you recommend? | Reading interests, plus a recommendation for classmates. | |
| What do you want to learn this year? | Topics to weave into units and projects. | |
| What's your favorite subject, and why? | Where a student feels confident, and why. | |
| What game are you really good at? | A strength outside schoolwork, and a conversation starter. | |
| If you could visit anywhere, where? | Interests in places, animals or history. It's a wish, so everyone can answer. | |
| What's something you're proud of? | What the student values. Accept an answer of any size. | |
| What job would be fun to try? | Career interests for projects and guest speakers. | |
| What superpower would you pick? | Imagination, and an easy laugh for the class. | |
| What do you like to build or make? | Hands-on interests for projects and early-finisher work. | |
| Cats, dogs or neither? | A quick pick-a-side question to get everyone moving. | |
| What helps you focus? | Quiet, a window seat, a short break: use it for seating. |
| Question | What the answer tells you | On the wheel |
|---|---|---|
| What could you teach the class? | Hidden expertise: a skill, a game, a fact, a hobby. | |
| What skill do you want to improve? | A goal you can check in on later in the year. | |
| What book or show do you recommend? | What they read and watch, and something to talk about. | |
| What's a fact most people don't know? | Curiosity, and a fun minute for the class. | |
| Early bird or night owl? | When they feel sharp, which can explain first-period energy. | |
| What's a goal for this year? | What they care about at school, in a sport or in a hobby. | |
| Do you like to work alone or in a group? | How to set up partners and group roles. | |
| Where would you love to travel someday? | Interests in places and cultures. "Someday" keeps it a wish, not a trip report. | |
| What song is stuck in your head? | A quick, light answer that usually gets a laugh. | |
| What club would you start? | Interests that could become a club, or a club to connect them with. | |
| What's a hobby you'd like to try? | Interests to point toward clubs and electives. | |
| What have you changed your mind about? | A sense of how they think things through. |
| Question | What the answer tells you | On the wheel |
|---|---|---|
| What class are you looking forward to? | Where a student's energy is, which helps in your class too. | |
| What skill have you taught yourself? | How they learn when no one is assigning it. | |
| What career are you curious about? | Goals to connect to your subject and to guest speakers. | |
| What's the best advice you've gotten? | What they value. Let them keep the source vague. | |
| What podcast or book do you recommend? | What they choose to learn from outside class. | |
| What should I know about how you learn? | The most useful answer of the week. Try it as a private index card. | |
| What makes a class work for you? | Expectations to build class norms around. | |
| What problem would you like to solve? | Interests for projects, from local to global. | |
| What are you an expert on? | Hidden expertise to call on during units. | |
| What's a goal for this semester? | A concrete goal you can revisit at the midpoint. | |
| What small thing makes a good day? | Personal without being private. | |
| What's a place you want to see someday? | Interests in places, nature or history, framed as a wish. |
8 ways to use the get to know you wheel
One question a day in week one
Spin a new question each morning of the first week. Five questions, five short circles, and by Friday everyone has heard every name five times.
Name chain circle
Before answering, each student repeats the name of the person before them, then says their own name and answer. It's a fast way to learn 25 names in a week.
Partner interviews
Pair students, have each pair spin three questions, then each partner introduces the other to the class. Shy students often find it easier to talk about someone else.
Make random pairsFour corners by answer
Spin a question with a few clear answers, like favorite season, and send students to the corner that matches. They meet classmates who chose the same thing.
Turn it around
Let students spin and ask you. Answering the same low-risk questions yourself shows the kind of sharing you expect, and students love learning their teacher's answers.
High school: a written round
Spin a question, have students answer on an index card, and read a few aloud only with permission. The stack of cards doubles as your notes on the class.
Welcome a new student midyear
Keep the share link. When a new student joins in October, spin three questions at morning meeting so the class meets them the same way everyone met in August.
Then play find someone who
Once students know a few names, switch to find-someone-who bingo: they mingle and collect a classmate's name for each square. It works best in week one or two.
Get to know you: frequently asked questions
What are good get to know you questions for students?
The best ones are easy to answer in one sentence, have no wrong answer, and tell you something useful: favorite books and animals, skills, what a student wants to learn, how they like to work. Questions about wishes ("where would you go someday?") work better than questions about experiences ("where did you go?"), because every student can answer them.
What get to know you questions should I avoid?
Skip questions that make students disclose family, money or home life: "What did you do this summer?", "What do your parents do?", "Where did you go on vacation?", "What's your house like?" and questions about birthday parties or presents. Leave out appearance, health and religion too. They sound harmless, but they can single out a student whose summer, family or budget looks different.
How do you play the get to know you game with a wheel?
Spin a question, answer it yourself first, then go around the room with each student saying their name and answer. Allow passes. With 25 students, one round takes about 8 minutes. For bigger classes, pair students, let each pair spin, and have partners introduce each other to the class.
How many get to know you activities should I do in the first week?
One short activity a day is plenty: five 10-minute rounds teach names and set the tone without eating instruction time. After the first week, keep one question a week at morning meeting, so new students and quieter ones keep getting chances to share.
Are these get to know you questions OK for high school?
Yes. The grades 9–12 set is written for older students: careers, skills they taught themselves, what helps them learn. Teenagers often answer more openly in writing, so many high school teachers spin the question, collect answers on index cards, and read a few aloud only with permission.
Are students' answers saved anywhere?
No. The wheel holds only the questions; students answer out loud or on paper. If you type student names onto a wheel, they stay in your browser unless you copy a share link or save the wheel to an account. Accounts are for adults 18+, and there are no student accounts.
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