Brain Break Wheel
Spin for a one-to-three-minute activity the whole class can do by their desks.
No spins yet. Each pick is listed here in order.
Brain breaks on the wheel
Move (14)
- Reach for the ceiling for 20 seconds
- March in place for 30 seconds
- Do 10 slow jumping jacks
- Balance on one foot for 15 seconds
- Touch your toes, then stretch up tall
- Roll your shoulders 10 times
- Do 5 big arm circles each way
- Twist gently side to side 10 times
- Stand on tiptoes for 15 seconds
- Do 8 slow squats by your desk
- Shake out your hands, then your feet
- Hop 5 times on each foot
- Pretend to jump rope for 30 seconds
- Touch each hand to the opposite knee 10 times
Breathe and calm (14)
- Take 5 slow, deep breaths
- Breathe in for 4 counts, out for 4 counts
- Close your eyes and listen for 30 seconds
- Trace your hand with a finger as you breathe
- Tense your shoulders, then let them drop
- Smell a flower, blow out a candle, 5 times
- Stretch your neck slowly to each side
- Hug yourself and take 3 slow breaths
- Rest your head on your desk for 60 seconds
- Squeeze your fists for 5 counts, then let go
- Hum quietly on one long breath out
- Press your palms together for 10 counts
- Stand still and feel your feet on the floor
- Blow slowly as if cooling hot soup, 5 times
Think (14)
- Count backward from 30 as a class
- Count by fives to 60 as a class
- Spell your name backward in your head
- Say the days of the week backward
- Name the months of the year in reverse order
- Think of 3 words that rhyme with cat
- Name 5 animals that start with the letter B
- Name a food for each color of the rainbow
- List 5 things that are round
- Find 5 blue things without leaving your seat
- Think of 3 new uses for a paper clip
- Count the corners you can see in the room
- Guess when 30 seconds are up, eyes closed
- Picture your walk to school, step by step
Laugh (14)
- Make your silliest face for 10 seconds
- Walk in place like a penguin
- Say your name in a robot voice
- Laugh like a giant, then like a mouse
- Act like a sleepy sloth for 20 seconds
- Do a slow-motion victory dance
- Pretend the floor is sticky for 20 seconds
- Conduct an invisible orchestra
- Play air guitar for 15 seconds
- Wiggle like cooked spaghetti
- Say hello in three silly voices
- Move like a melting snowman
- Try not to laugh for 30 seconds
- Say a tongue twister three times fast
With a partner (14)
- Mirror your partner’s moves for 30 seconds
- Invent a secret handshake with a partner
- Tell your partner one good thing about today
- Have a staring contest with your partner
- Thumb wrestle your partner, best of three
- Count to 20 with a partner, taking turns
- Clap a rhythm for your partner to copy
- Tell a story together, one word at a time
- Ask your partner’s favorite season and why
- Find 3 things you and your partner both like
- Make up a two-person dance move
- Guess the animal your partner is acting out
- Strike a pose for your partner to copy
- Say the alphabet together, one letter each
About the brain break wheel
There are 70 brain breaks on the wheel, split into 5 groups under “Choose a list”: move, breathe and calm, think, laugh, and with a partner. Every one of them takes about one to three minutes and needs no materials.
All of the activities are written out on the page under their groups, so you can read them through before the class sees the wheel. Some need a partner and some need elbow room, so pick the group that fits your room today.
On a classroom screen, look for the “Full screen” button, which appears in browsers that support it. Let one student press Spin, then read the activity aloud from the result window.
When to spin for brain break ideas
- Between two lessons: one spin, one activity, then back to work.
- After a long stretch of sitting: choose “Move” so the pick gets everyone on their feet.
- Indoor recess: turn on “Remove the winner after each spin” and do five breaks in a row.
- Job of the day: one student is the brain break spinner and announces each pick.
How to use the wheel
- Type or paste your options, one per line. The wheel redraws as you type.
- Press Spin, click the wheel, or press Ctrl+Enter while you are in the list.
- Read the pick. Remove it from the wheel if nobody should be picked twice, then spin again.
How the pick is made
Before the wheel moves, your browser draws one slice at random with crypto.getRandomValues, the same generator browsers use for security keys. Every slice has the same chance. The spin you watch only plays that result out.
Nothing about the animation changes the outcome: not how hard you click, not how long the wheel turns, not the size of your screen. The pointer always stops inside a slice, never on a line.
Your list stays in your browser. A link you copy carries the list inside the link itself, so nothing is uploaded.
Questions about the brain break wheel
- Can I add my own brain breaks?
- Yes. Add a line for each activity your class already knows. Every new line becomes one more slice with the same chance as the rest.
- How do I keep an activity from coming up twice?
- Switch on “Remove the winner after each spin”. The activity you just did leaves the wheel when you close the result window.
- Where do the activities come from?
- All of them were written for this site. No book, app, game or other website was used as the source.
- What if an activity does not suit my class?
- Press “Spin again” in the result window for another pick. To drop it for good, delete its line from the list, and the page keeps that change in this browser.