How to Be Annoying in School

Co-authored by Amber Crain

Last Updated: November 8, 2022 References

If you want to annoy your classmates and teachers at school, you've come to the right place! We'll walk you through a ton of options you can try out to get on everyone's last nerve, starting with stuff that will annoy the entire class. Then, we'll touch on a few ways to really ruffle your teachers' feathers. Have fun messing around, but be careful not to overdo it! If you go too far with your antics, you could end up getting in trouble.

1

Act like a know-it-all.

Answer every question in a smug voice to show off in class. The class know-it-all irritates teachers and students alike, so it’s a solid choice. Start by raising your hand lightning-fast every time the teacher asks a question so other students never get a chance. Then, blurt out the answer without waiting for your teacher to call on you. Don’t forget to give everyone a conceited grin afterward!^{[1]
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Research source} You can also:
- Blurt out unnecessary details or facts just to show that you know them
- Try to correct, argue with, or outsmart your teacher

2

Make jokes that aren’t funny.

Disrupting class with terrible jokes is exhausting for everyone. There are lots of ways to goof and joke around in class that will drive pretty much everyone in the room nuts! Interrupting your teacher or fellow classmates with unwitty banter is a classic. Giving silly or joke answers when your teacher asks you questions about the lesson is another great one.^{[2]
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Go to source} You can also try:
- Making terrible puns. For example, you might share this joke-pun combo during a relevant science lesson: "A photon checks into a hotel. The front desk asks if it has any luggage. It replies, 'No, I’m traveling light.'"
- Sharing the worst dad jokes the internet has to offer. For example, "Want to hear a joke about construction? Sorry, I'm still working on it!"
- Laughing at your own jokes

3

Show up late and unprepared for the lesson.

Be as disruptive as possible if you want to be extra annoying. Show up late enough to interrupt the lesson once it’s in full swing. Then, fly through the door and fumble your way to your desk, apologizing loudly the whole way. Dig in your backpack and rattle papers around looking for the supplies you need. You forgot them (of course) so start asking other students if you can borrow theirs.^{[3]
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4

Slack off during group projects.

You’ll be the least popular member of your group within minutes. Shamelessly shirking your duties, going to the restroom repeatedly, and giving silly excuses for why you can’t do this or that task are just a few ways to get on your group's collective last nerve. The group will probably end up ostracizing you out of sheer annoyance; mission accomplished!^{[4]
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5

Eat noisy snacks during a test.

Shattering the silence by loudly munching on chips is cringe-worthy. Bring the noisiest, crunchiest snacks possible, of course. If you want to be next-level irritating, be sure to chew with your mouth open, lick the cheese dust off your fingertips, wipe your hands on your shirt, and crinkle up the empty snack package when you’re done!^{[5]
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- Bonus points if the food is extra smelly. Scarfing down a tuna sandwich during class won’t win you any friends, but it will definitely irritate everyone.

6

Click your pen incessantly.

Pen clicking is extra annoying during a test or study period. Pen clicking is pretty common and a few glares from other students is usually all it takes to get the offender to stop. Well, not today! Choose a time when it’s nice and quiet, like during a test, and get to clicking. It won’t take long for one of your classmates to snap at you to knock it off!^{[6]
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- Don’t look up from your test or make eye contact with anyone so you pass it off as absentmindedness.

7

Sleep through the entire lecture.

This mostly annoys the teacher but it can disrupt the whole room. Sleeping in class may not sound disruptive at first, but it communicates to everyone that you’re super bored with the whole class thing. Your teacher won’t like this one bit, so they’ll either stop what they’re doing to wake you up or just let you sleep, which will make your classmates wonder why they’re bothering to pay attention if you aren’t. You win at being annoying either way!^{[7]
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- Throw in a few snores and maybe a little drool for good measure.

8

Ask the teacher tons of questions.

Stall class and drive everyone to their wits’ end with nonstop questions. Interrupt your teacher's next lecture by asking dumb questions about every single detail. Be serious and pretend that you truly don’t understand something so your teacher feels obligated to explain it again. The other students might think it’s funny at first, but they’ll become increasingly annoyed as you continue wasting class time.^{[8]
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- You might say, “Professor Hart, can you explain that algebraic equation one more time? I’m just not getting it.”
- Or you can say something like, “Mr. Rhodes, would you mind repeating that definition word for word? I couldn’t write it down fast enough. Can you speak more slowly?”

9

Try to be the teacher’s pet.

Everyone will roll their eyes at your brazen attempts to kiss up. Offer to help your teacher with the simplest tasks, like sharpening their pencil or plugging in their laptop, because “you just want everything to be perfect.” Asking awkward questions and making random comments are other great ways to set everyone’s teeth on edge, especially your teacher.^{[9]
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- For example, interrupt your teacher to say, “You mentioned on the first day that you play guitar. That's so cool. Do you ever bring your guitar to class?”
- Raise your hand in the middle of a lesson and say, "I just want to tell you that you're my favorite teacher ever." This might be flattering the first time, but after a few days of this your teacher will probably start completely ignoring you out of sheer annoyance.

10

Mess around on your phone during class.

Nothing annoys a teacher faster than seeing a cell phone out. Scroll through Instagram, take a few Snapchats of yourself in class, or send out texts—it doesn’t really matter what you do, because as soon as your teacher sees that cell phone, they’re going to be irritated.^{[10]
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- At the very least, your teacher will stop the lesson to call you out, which disrupts class and annoys everyone. Keep in mind, though, that if your school has strict rules about cell phones, you might get in trouble!

Community Q&A

Question

Will this get me friends?

wikiHow Staff Editor
Staff Answer
This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

wikiHow Staff Editor

Staff Answer

Some of this stuff might make the other kids laugh at first, but most of these suggestions are designed to annoy everyone, including your classmates. Doing this stuff probably won't earn you any friends.