If you’re a teacher or a parent looking to engage young students in a more interesting way, you might like this list of the best problem solving activities for middle school.
I wonder if middle schoolers could solve my life problems. Can they file my taxes or pay my rent? Those are some real problems that I have and I think they could be somewhat fun activities for middle schoolers. It’s interesting how problem-solving scenarios change as we age because I genuinely can’t identify with the struggle of theoretical problems involving trains or the alphabet, but I’m sure I enjoyed them when I was younger. I think my friends and I really used to love finding these things and solving them together, which is kind of a cute group activity.
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Problem solving is a great way to strengthen and train the brain for more difficult things as we age. They teach you teamwork, logic, and skill, which are all extremely important for developing minds. Even into adulthood you should continue solving theoretical problems like these because they’ll keep your brain strong and focused so your other issues like “how late can I sleep while still getting to work on time?” or “how much money will I have in my bank account if I order dinner every single night this week?” Those are obviously much more challenging than the fun problem-solving activities for preschoolers, or even this list with activities for kids in middle school.
In order to create this list, we used Concordia University and IceBreaker as some primary sources. We took the suggestions that were the highest ranked on both sources and averaged their rankings. If they were on both lists, they’re at a higher position on ours. Overall, each of these activities is well suited for middle school-aged children who need a little mental exercise.
Without further ado, let’s take a look at the best problem solving activities for middle school.
10. Moral Dilemma
Moral dilemma is an activity where you create a few possible dilemmas that one could experience in real life, like if a cashier gives you more money in change than you should have gotten back. Afterwards, you write them down and put them in a bowl. Each student chooses one, reads it aloud, and tells the class how they’d handle the situation.
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9. Alphabet Game
In the alphabet game, children gather in a circle and shout words in alphabetical order about specific topics, like animals, food, furniture, flowers, or clothing. If a child takes longer than five seconds to come up with an answer, they’re out. This can help increase creativity, utilize different thinking styles, improve teamwork, and help students address complex situations. After the game is done, you can discuss what everyone learned and what methods they used to succeed.
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8. Survivor Scenarios
We are continuing our list of best problem solving activities for middle school with a game that requires a lot of creative thinking. You create a scenario for children that requires them to think creatively in order to survive. For example, you can come up with a scenario where everyone is on a deserted island and help won’t arrive for three days. They have limited food and water and will need to create a shelter. The class will work together to determine how they’ll survive comfortably.
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7. Animals
On small slips of paper, write down an individual animal. Then, you distribute the paper to the children and they have to imitate the animal for the rest of the class to guess without making noises or talking. It’s an interesting and fun problem-solving activity.
6. Clue Me In
Clue me in is a detective game that requires cognitive development and critical thinking. You collect a few things that are somehow connected to a profession, social trends, a public figure, animal, historic event, or place. After that, you assemble a few items or pictures that are related the most to the target answer. Place them all in a bag and allow each student to take one clue. You should set a minimum number of clues that they should take out before they have to guess. You can see how quickly the class can finish the riddle together.
5. Group Drawing
The group drawing game requires the class to be divided into three groups. Each group will have the following roles: drawer, talker, and viewer. The drawer will attempt to recreate a pre-drawn design that they cannot see. They will receive directions from the talker. The talker will describe the drawing to the drawer. They can ask the viewer questions, but the viewer can only use hand gestures. The game ends when the drawing is complete and you can see how accurately each student completes the activity. It’s a great team-building exercise, which is why it’s one of the best problem solving activities for middle school.
4. The Problem-Solving Box
In order to play this game, the group needs to decorate a medium sized box with a slot on the top and label it “The Problem-Solving Box.” After this, invite each student to write down a problem they have that they can’t solve. A few times a week, a student will draw an item from the box, read it aloud, and have the class think of possible solutions.
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3. “Laser” Web
For “Laser” web, the next one in our list of best problem solving activities for middle school, use one ball of string to create a giant web from one end of the classroom to another. The main goal is for individuals to move through the web without touching the string. If a student accidentally touches the string, they have to start over. To make it more interesting, you could even turn off the lights or provide blindfolds.
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2. Walking The Plank
For this activity, you’ll need four-2×6 boards. You divide the class into two equal teams. You place two boards out of the four on the ground end-to-end and set the other two parallel to the first two about two feet apart. The goal is for each team to pass one board forward while they stand on the other board single file. If one member steps off, the whole team must start over. The team that successfully passes the board wins the game.
1. Brainstorm Bonanza
This is a great way to help students create a list that’s relevant to whatever they’re studying. It’ll help them understand the subject even better. For example, if they’re studying history, you can make them create a different solution to an event that didn’t turn out well and ask them what they would’ve done differently to make it better. They write their answers on lists and discuss with the class.
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That concludes our list of the best problem solving activities for middle school. If you’re looking for some fun things to do with your students, these are all excellent options.
