10 Attention Grabbers

When our students are using devices it can be really challenging to get their attention. Sometimes they have headphones on, sometimes they are just really engaged in the lesson. These 10 attention grabbers are something to try with your students. Some will stick with your group and you can add them to your regular rotation of classroom management strategies.

These attention grabbers are split up into 2 categories

Call and Response

The teacher says a phrase and the children respond to it with a specific response (usually also requires a physical response from students like putting their hands up, etc.)

Hands Up – Buttercup (students raise their hands from their devices and look at the teacher)
Mac – Cheese, Children – Freeze (this one is two parts to give students a moment to prepare to stop)
Hands on Top – That means stop (hands on head)
Floppy – Disk (fun tech themed one)
Light Show – Time to go (teacher flashes lights and then says the phrase. This one is great for when they are wearing headphones)
Waterfall – Shhhhhh
Class Class – yes yes
Kiki – Do you love me?
TECH-NOLOGY
Hocus Pocus – Everybody focus
www dot – zip it dot com

Teacher Phrases

This set of attention grabbers doesn’t require a verbal student response, but rather a physical one.
6. Clap it and Lap it (to get your students to remove their hands from the keyboard)
7. Flip the Flap (for use with iPad covers, “Close the lid” would work well for laptops)
8. T-Rex Arms (again, to get your students to remove their hands from the keyboard)
9. Horn signal
10. Chime or music with specific patterns or songs for different effects
11. Dead mouse (students flip mouse upside down)