teaching resource

Soup, Salad, or Sandwich Game - Interactive Icebreaker

Updated: 29 Jan 2025

Play the Soup, Salad, or Sandwich? Game for an exciting icebreaker or brain-break activity!

Editable: Google Slides, PowerPoint
Pages: 1 Page
Years: 2 - 6

Curriculum

VC2E2LY01

Use interaction skills when engaging with topics and texts, actively listening to others, receiving instructions and extending their own ideas, speaking appropriately, expressing and responding to opinions, making statements, and giving instructions <ul> <li>exploring ways to comment on what others say, including using sentence starters such as ‘I like the way you …’, ‘I agree that …’, ‘I have a different thought …’, and ‘I’d like to say something different …’</li> <li>demonstrating appropriate listening behaviours, responding to and paraphrasing a partner’s contribution to a discussion, for example in think-pair-share activities</li> <li>asking relevant questions and making connections with personal experiences and the contributions of others</li> <li>understanding how to disagree or respectfully offer an alternative</li> </ul>
VC2E3LY01

Use interaction skills to contribute to conversations and discussions to share text- or topic-based information and ideas <ul> <li>building on and connecting ideas and opinions expressed by others</li> <li>listening actively, including listening for specific information, recognising the value of others’ contributions and responding through comments, recounts and summaries of information</li> <li>learning the specific speaking or listening skills of different group roles, for example group leader, note taker and reporter</li> <li>using language appropriately in different situations; for example, explaining a procedure to a group or engaging in a game with friends</li> </ul>
VC2E4LY01

Use interaction skills to gather information in order to carry out tasks, contribute to discussions, acknowledge another opinion, link a response to the text or topic, and share and extend ideas and information <ul> <li>making notes about a task, asking questions to clarify or follow up information, and seeking assistance if required</li> <li>developing speaking and listening behaviours, including acknowledging and extending others’ contributions, and presenting ideas and opinions clearly and coherently</li> </ul>
VC2E5LY01

Use interaction skills including paraphrasing and questioning to clarify meaning, make connections to personal experience or to a text, and present and justify an opinion or idea <ul> <li>participating in pair, group, class and school speaking and listening situations, including informal conversations, discussions and presentations</li> <li>asking specific questions to clarify a speaker’s meaning, making constructive comments that keep a conversation moving, reviewing ideas expressed and conveying tentative conclusions</li> <li>using strategies for discussion, such as speaking clearly, pausing, asking questions and linking students’ responses to the contributions of others</li> <li>choosing vocabulary and sentence structures for particular purposes, including formal and informal contexts, to report and explain new concepts and topics, to offer an opinion and to persuade others</li> </ul>
VC2E6LY01

Use interaction skills and awareness of formality when paraphrasing, questioning, clarifying and interrogating ideas; developing and supporting arguments; and sharing and evaluating information, experiences and opinions <ul> <li>participating in pair, group, class, school and community speaking and listening situations, including informal conversations, discussions, debates and presentations</li> <li>using strategies (for example, pausing, questioning, rephrasing, repeating, summarising, reviewing and asking clarifying questions) when discussing topics</li> <li>recognising that closed questions ask for precise responses, while open questions prompt a speaker to provide more information</li> </ul>

teaching resource

Soup, Salad, or Sandwich Game - Interactive Icebreaker

Updated: 29 Jan 2025

Play the Soup, Salad, or Sandwich? Game for an exciting icebreaker or brain-break activity!

Editable: Google Slides, PowerPoint
Pages: 1 Page
Years: 2 - 6

Play the Soup, Salad, or Sandwich? Game for an exciting icebreaker or brain-break activity!

Have You Heard of the Soup, Salad, or Sandwich Game?

If not, you’re in for a treat! The Soup, Salad, or Sandwich Game is designed to kick-start your classroom community with a lively movement game and whole-class interaction among students. It revolves around an engaging classroom debate in which participants argue which of the three food categories—soup, salad, or sandwich—a particular food belongs to.

How Do You Play Soup, Salad, Sandwich?

Did you know that every food in the world can be divided into three categories: soups, salads, and sandwiches? In this interactive movement game, your students will have a blast thinking, agreeing, disagreeing, and defending their opinions. To play this game, check out the instructions below. Before beginning, make sure to review the definitions of each category.

Soups are wet mixtures of ingredients eaten with a spoon. The ingredients can be whole or ground up, but they will still contain liquid.
Salads are a mixture of one or more wet or dry ingredients. They can be eaten as separate components or mixed together in one place.
Sandwiches are a food with distinct layers. A sandwich is contained within itself or is enclosed in a bread-like container.

Students will look at each picture and, based on its descriptions, identify the category the dish belongs to.
Students move to the location of the room that represents their choice and talk with the other students about why they chose what they did.
They should be prepared to discuss their decisions with their group and defend them to classmates who chose something different from them.
Once the debate is complete, students will return to their seats to await the next card.

This interactive game is a fantastic way to introduce students to the dynamics of classroom discussions and debates, making the activity one to remember!

Download, Project, and Play Soup, Salad, Sandwich Today!

This downloadable teaching resource is available as an Interactive Google Slides or Powerpoint Activity. To get your new resource, click the dropdown arrow on the download button. If you are using the Google Slides version, you will be prompted to make your own copy. From there, project the slides on your screen and start playing today!

This resource was created by Lindsey Phillips, a teacher and Teach Starter Collaborator.

Even More Resources for Team-Building Fun!

Discover more ways to spark curiosity and engage your students. Before you go, take a moment to browse through these team-building activities!

[resource:4420960] [resource:4976288] [resource:4882293]

Curriculum

VC2E2LY01

Use interaction skills when engaging with topics and texts, actively listening to others, receiving instructions and extending their own ideas, speaking appropriately, expressing and responding to opinions, making statements, and giving instructions <ul> <li>exploring ways to comment on what others say, including using sentence starters such as ‘I like the way you …’, ‘I agree that …’, ‘I have a different thought …’, and ‘I’d like to say something different …’</li> <li>demonstrating appropriate listening behaviours, responding to and paraphrasing a partner’s contribution to a discussion, for example in think-pair-share activities</li> <li>asking relevant questions and making connections with personal experiences and the contributions of others</li> <li>understanding how to disagree or respectfully offer an alternative</li> </ul>
VC2E3LY01

Use interaction skills to contribute to conversations and discussions to share text- or topic-based information and ideas <ul> <li>building on and connecting ideas and opinions expressed by others</li> <li>listening actively, including listening for specific information, recognising the value of others’ contributions and responding through comments, recounts and summaries of information</li> <li>learning the specific speaking or listening skills of different group roles, for example group leader, note taker and reporter</li> <li>using language appropriately in different situations; for example, explaining a procedure to a group or engaging in a game with friends</li> </ul>
VC2E4LY01

Use interaction skills to gather information in order to carry out tasks, contribute to discussions, acknowledge another opinion, link a response to the text or topic, and share and extend ideas and information <ul> <li>making notes about a task, asking questions to clarify or follow up information, and seeking assistance if required</li> <li>developing speaking and listening behaviours, including acknowledging and extending others’ contributions, and presenting ideas and opinions clearly and coherently</li> </ul>
VC2E5LY01

Use interaction skills including paraphrasing and questioning to clarify meaning, make connections to personal experience or to a text, and present and justify an opinion or idea <ul> <li>participating in pair, group, class and school speaking and listening situations, including informal conversations, discussions and presentations</li> <li>asking specific questions to clarify a speaker’s meaning, making constructive comments that keep a conversation moving, reviewing ideas expressed and conveying tentative conclusions</li> <li>using strategies for discussion, such as speaking clearly, pausing, asking questions and linking students’ responses to the contributions of others</li> <li>choosing vocabulary and sentence structures for particular purposes, including formal and informal contexts, to report and explain new concepts and topics, to offer an opinion and to persuade others</li> </ul>
VC2E6LY01

Use interaction skills and awareness of formality when paraphrasing, questioning, clarifying and interrogating ideas; developing and supporting arguments; and sharing and evaluating information, experiences and opinions <ul> <li>participating in pair, group, class, school and community speaking and listening situations, including informal conversations, discussions, debates and presentations</li> <li>using strategies (for example, pausing, questioning, rephrasing, repeating, summarising, reviewing and asking clarifying questions) when discussing topics</li> <li>recognising that closed questions ask for precise responses, while open questions prompt a speaker to provide more information</li> </ul>

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