This summer, as you pack your boxes and bags full of DVDs, fluffy bathroom towels, and extra long twin sheets, consider taking items that are likely to spawn new friendships with others in your residence hall. While making new friends in college won’t be as hard as you think, it couldn’t hurt to have a couple of gadgets on hand to get the ball rolling. Not sure which of your possessions would work? Check out our list of these great friend-making items you can bring to your dorm!

Gaming Systems

As if you were going to leave that behind! Having a gaming system in your room may seem like an anti-social move, but with the number of people who play video games today, and with some of the best video games coming out every fall, you are likely to find many people who will want to talk about games, play multi-player games alongside you, and start floor-wide tournaments.

Outdoor Games

With the first weeks of college still feeling like summer, now is the time to bring your frisbees, soccer balls, and Kan Jam! It won’t be uncommon for you to walk outside by yourself with a ball, and an hour later, have entire teams playing kickball, all of whom you have just met! Inviting others to partake in outdoor activities is a quick way to learn a few names, and as the person who owns this equipment, you can expect to be who others go to when they’re looking for some fun on a Sunday afternoon.

A Movie Collection

If you have a wide DVD collection, a Netflix or Hulu subscription, or the latest episodes of your favorite TV shows downloaded from iTunes, you can expect to be pretty popular around the residence hall. By turning one night a week into a theatrical event, with everyone taking turns bringing the popcorn and the pizza, you will find yourself in the company of quite a few new friends.

Appealing Dorm Room Decor

Your room is far more likely to draw others in if there’s bamboo on the windowsill, neon lights aglow around your desk, and a comfy carpet on the floor, as opposed to a room with no personality at all. A really awesome looking room will cause people walking down the hall to stop and peek in. It will be the place where your friends want to hang out. Make your room as interesting and fun as you can, while still obeying all of your residence hall rules and regulations of course!

Toys

Another way to make your dorm room more enticing to others is if you have something for others to tinker with while they’re there. I mean, we’re all really kids at heart, right? Someone who had originally come by to get the notes for a class they missed could find themselves sticking around for an hour because they were playing with the magnetic poetry on your fridge! Litter your room with these kinds of fun, addictive toys!