Interactive Quizzes & Games for the Classroom

What better way to get students excited about learning than to introduce some interactive games or quizzes to the classroom? Perfect for both assessing student knowledge or just as a way to diversify your lesson plans, adding in a quiz or game can help to switch up standard teaching techniques and wake up students with something interactive and engaging.

Why use quizzes and games in the classroom?

While it may seem to many that quizzes have to be a way to test students, or that games are just a way to pass the time or give kids a break, both can be used as part of a structured lesson plan, or to change up the day-to-day routine. Finding a good quiz maker will also help to make your next session all the more fun.

So what exactly are the benefits of hosting a fun class quiz or running an educational game?

• Evaluate student understanding - A nice break from a pen and paper exam, a quiz that contains interactive elements can be a great and unique way to see what students know and what knowledge gaps there may be. 
• Improve knowledge retention - It’s always important to assess whether students are retaining the information you are making an effort to impart. Posing questions about a subject, or including facts and information as part of a game can help to reinforce what they have just learned and make future lessons all the easier.
• Engage students - It’s tough to hold the attention of a class for a sustained period, no matter how well behaved, attentive and studious the group may be. Changing focus, experimenting with a new teaching method, or doing something they have never done before can be a good way to refocus attention and keep students engaged. This can be especially true if there is an enjoyable element to the quiz or game.
• As a reward - Perhaps your class excelled in their latest exam, or maybe they behaved exceptionally well during a recent outing. No matter what the reason, some fun quizzes, and games, especially, can be a great way to reward students and potentially as a way to incentivize them. 
• Make mundane topics more fun - We all recall how tough it can be to retain information when we find the topic uninteresting. Students will find different topics interesting; some will be mathematically minded and find equations fascinating, while others may struggle to even stay awake. Adding in a quiz or game can help those latter students even more than those excelling. 

How to make a fun and informative quiz and game for students?

1. Keep it short and simple, don’t complicate the quiz more than needed
2. Randomize the positions of the correct answers
3. Don’t make the questions too easy and don’t make the answers too tricky
4. Use interactive tools, like Mentimeter to easily create a quiz in a few minutes
5. Give students enough time to answer
6. Mix up the questions and the content
7. Explain the correct answers to the students for those who may have got it wrong
8. Ask your students for feedback so you can improve next time!

What types of quizzes and games can you organize?

Good question and we are glad that you asked it. We have plenty of ideas and several examples that you can use in your next class or at any time at all really. To make this easier we have broken things down into the following categories: 

1. Educational Quizzes
2. Fun Quizzes
3. Fun Games
4. Educational Games

So let’s discuss these a little more in-depth here now!

Educational Quiz Examples

So we mentioned before how a quiz can be a great way to strengthen understanding, improve knowledge retention, and make mundane topics enjoyable for everyone. Now obviously you can make these subject-specific and we have plenty of subject specific templates that you can use as an inspiration for your next history, geography, or math class. 

Biology Quiz

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Now there are plenty more ways you can run an educational quiz that is not necessarily arranged like a pop quiz or end-of-term test. There are, of course, plenty of general knowledge quiz questions you can add into your educational quiz. 

Fun Quiz Examples

There are plenty of different quizzes you can run that will bring a dash of extra fun to your classroom. Find a quiz on something your students love like a popular movie franchise, sport, or an upcoming holiday. So we have included some of our favorite quizzes that we have used extensively.

The Ultimate Avengers Quiz

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If you are feeling creative however and want to go it alone when making your fun quiz, we have some extra trivia questions that can help inspire you. 

Fun Games Examples

Perhaps you want to take a break from the planned history class, or just take a break to allow your students to reset before you jump back into an algebra lesson. No matter what the reason is, there are plenty of games that can help students think creatively, critically, and collaboratively. These games can range from elaborate creative games to short rapid fire games and activities. 

A game of This and That can encourage students to debate the pros and cons of their choices, helping them to consider their preferences. Likewise, a Murder Mystery-style game can help sharpen critical thinking and link clues and ideas together as part of a team.   

Fun This or That for Kids

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Educational Games

So we have discussed some non-subject related games above, but what about more educational focused games that nail down some valuable study points, or key facts or figures? Try arranging a game of 20 questions as a way of reviewing important historical figures no matter what time period you currently happen to be studying. Consider using a game of Two Truth 1 Lie to help students uncover which facts they have right and which they have wrong about chemical elements. 

There are plenty of ways to get creative with educational games in the classroom from hangman to a game of Jeopardy or charades. But why not get a bit more creative and a lot more interactive. Here we have put together a great way to enliven your next Geography class by getting your students to pick out countries from a world map.

Find the Country

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Make classes more fun and engaging

As we have no see, quizzes and games can be used for many different activities, from a fun trivia quiz, an icebreaker, or as a formative assessment tool. They can be an invaluable addition to your weekly lesson plan and a great way to get the kids thinking outside of the box and collaboratively. Perfect also for sparking some debate and discussion, there are rewards to be reaped from a well organized quiz and a well thought out game.