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Random name picker for class

A name picker on the board chooses whose turn it is, visibly and without you choosing. Paste the class list or work with numbers, tap the box, and after a short spin one name stands large on the board. Whoever has been drawn sits out until everyone has had a turn, so «who is next?» never lands on the pupil who just spoke.

Ask the question before you draw, and give thinking time. Name first, then question, puts one pupil on the spot and the rest on mute; question first, ten seconds, then the name keeps the whole class thinking.

The name picker

No names yet.

Paste the names or pick a number, and the box to draw from appears here.

How to use the name picker in a lesson

Turns in a class discussion. Ask, give thinking time, draw. The class knows anyone can be next, and the hand of the same three pupils is no longer the only voice.
Who starts, who presents. In group work you draw who speaks for the group; nobody has to volunteer and nobody can hide. That is also the idea behind Numbered Minds.
Checking answers. Draw who reads out the answer to exercise 3. Because it is random, everyone has done exercise 3.
With numbers instead of names. No list at hand? Pick numbers 1 to the number of pupils; everyone takes their number on the class list or counts off from the window. Works in a class you meet for the first time today.

Frequently asked questions

Can the same name come up twice in a row?

Not by default: a pupil who has been drawn sits out until you click «Everyone back in» or until everyone has had a turn. Under the box you see how many pupils have not been drawn yet. If you do want repeats, untick the box.

Are the names kept?

Only in this browser, so you need not paste them again next lesson. The group maker uses the same list. Nothing goes to our server and no account is involved. Clear the field and the names are gone.

Can I put it large on the board?

Yes, with «On the board». The box fills the screen, the name is in large type, and Escape or «Close» brings you back to the page. You draw by tapping the box.

Is random drawing not stressful for pupils?

It depends on what you do with it. Drawing to catch someone out is stressful; drawing after thinking time, with the agreement that «I am not sure yet, but I think…» is a good answer, makes the turn predictable. Say that agreement out loud, once.

How is this different from the draw in a structure?

Here you draw one name or number from the whole class. In a numbered structure every group has numbers 1 to 4, and the board draws one number that applies in every group at once: four or seven pupils stand up, not one. That is the step from «who answers» to «everyone must know the answer».

Compiled by Oksana Oliinyk · Last updated 28 October 2026

Inside a structure, the draw is the point

The numbered structures on this site turn on exactly this moment: everyone prepares, one number comes out, and that pupil gives the answer of the group. The player draws the number on the board.

See all structures