Attention Grabbers
As teachers, we know the value of having good classroom management and the ability to get students back on track to make every moment count! Whether students are working together on group projects or just being absolute chatterboxes, fun attention grabbers are sure to work a charm!
If you are in need of some great attention-grabbers to quiet your classroom, this list is for you!
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Clap or Snap in a Pattern
This classic technique has certainly been used by every teacher at least once! Use familiar songs or simple rhythms and ask students to repeat it back to you. It’s easy and fun to switch up the patterns to keep things interesting too.
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2. Hands on Your Head
Put a twist on the classic “put your hands on your head if you can hear me”. It could be anything but try to make it funny! If you really want to test your students, you can make a different action to what you are saying. For example, “put a finger on your nose”, but instead put your hands on your head to trick them!
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3. Call-and-response
The possibilities are endless with call-and response attention grabbers, and your students are sure to love them! The teacher says the first phrase, then the students respond with the second. Whenever kids repeat phrases multiple times a day, it’s sure to be ingrained in their memories, so use this opportunity to teach something meaningful – check examples 19-22 for inspiration!
Macaroni and Cheese… everybody FREEZE!
Marco… POLO!
Waterfall… shhhhhh!
Hocus Pocus… everybody focus!
Class, class, class… yes, yes, yes!
One, two, three… three, two, one!
One, two, three… eyes on me!
Holy moly… guacamole!
Ready to rock… ready to roll!
Freeze, everybody clap your hands!... (7 claps)
Hakuna… Matata!
Spongebob… Squarepants!
Eeny meeny… miny mo!
L-I-S… T-E-N!
Avengers… assemble!
Wingardium… leviosa!
Pencils down… down, down, down!
You need to calm down… we’re being too loud!
Ready to listen… ready to learn!
We are learning… all the time!
Never give up… work hard, do right!
Alright stop… collaborate and listen!
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4. Get students involved
Ask students to come up with their own attention grabbers. Allow students to work in groups and brainstorm some call-and-response attention grabbers. Not only does this foster a sense of community in your class, but you’ll instantly have an endless supply of different attention-grabbers to use throughout the year!
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5. Bells or Chimes
A great way to get students’ attention that isn’t too harsh or disruptive, is to simply use a bell, chime, or rainstick. This technique works great when students are busy working but it’s time to stand up and switch math stations or reading centers.
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6. Hand-Signals
Lastly, our final attention grabber promotes calm and quiet in the classroom by use of non-verbal actions. When you don’t feel like raising your voice, simply raise your hand high in the sky and wait for students to follow. It’ll take some time at first as each student sees the signal, but to make it more exciting, start timing how long it takes for everyone to raise their hand and then challenge them to beat their time next time.
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