The Do You Dare activity is ideal for primary school teachers or educational teams who want to reflect on their personal and professional growth, comfort zones, and willingness to embrace new challenges. It is particularly useful for educators looking to improve self-awareness, collaboration, and empathy, both in their personal lives and in their teaching practices. This activity can foster deeper discussions among staff about their strengths, fears, and aspirations, helping to build trust and mutual understanding within a school environment.

Increase Self-Awareness: Help teachers reflect on their personal comfort zones, strengths, and areas where they might feel challenged or fearful, both in personal and professional settings.

Encourage Growth Mindset and Risk-Taking: Foster a mindset of curiosity and openness to new experiences, encouraging teachers to step outside their comfort zones and embrace new challenges with confidence.

Promote Compassion and Empathy: Encourage teachers to understand and respect the different challenges and fears their colleagues face, promoting a more supportive and compassionate professional environment.

Here and now.

Self-awareness.

Compassion

Wider Adhesive Tape: To create the two concentric circles or squares on the floor.

List of Challenge Statements: Pre-prepared list of statements for participants to reflect on (either printed or projected on a screen). You can also used the list of statements we prepared.

Open Space: A large enough area for participants to stand and move around freely within and outside the circles.

Optional: A whiteboard or flip chart for writing down reflection points or participant feedback during the activity.

15 minutes.

Preparation:

Set Up the Circles/Squares:

Use masking tape to create two concentric circles or squares on the floor, large enough for participants to stand in.

Inner Circle: Represents tasks the participants feel confident and comfortable with.

Outer Circle: Represents tasks they are interested in or would like to attempt but have not yet mastered.

Outside the Circles: Represents tasks that participants avoid, fear, or have no interest in.

Make sure the space is large enough to accommodate all participants with room for movement.

Prepare the Challenge Statements:

Write down a list of challenge statements on a sheet of paper or project them so that they are visible to the group.

Example challenges:

Spend a night in a tent deep in the forest.

Safely light a fire in nature.

Give a speech in front of 400 spectators.

Run a half marathon.

Organize a vacation abroad for a group of people.

Introduction (3-5 minutes):

Explain the purpose of the activity: to reflect on participants' abilities, desires, and fears.

Describe what each circle/square represents:

Inner Circle: Tasks participants are confident they can complete with little challenge.

Outer Circle: Tasks they haven't mastered but are willing to try or learn.

Outside the Circles: Tasks they avoid, fear, or have no interest in attempting.

Emphasize that this activity is about self-reflection, not competition, and encourage participants to be honest about their choices.

Steps to Perform the Activity:

Present the First Challenge (1 minute per challenge):

Read out the first challenge statement aloud (e.g., ""Spend a night in a tent deep in the forest"").

Ask participants to choose their position within or outside the circles based on their personal feelings toward the challenge:

Stand in the inner circle if they feel confident they can do it without any issues.

Stand in the outer circle if they are interested but haven’t tried it yet.

Stand outside the circles if they are not interested, afraid, or have no intention of attempting it.

Encourage Brief Feedback (Optional) (1-2 minutes per challenge):

After each challenge, invite a few participants to briefly share why they chose their position.

Encourage them to reflect on their reasons for confidence, interest, or avoidance of the challenge.

Move to the Next Challenge:

Repeat the process with a new challenge statement, allowing participants to move between the circles as their comfort levels change.

Continue for as many challenges as time allows.

Reflection

Seated or Stationary Version (For Limited Mobility):

Modification: If some participants have limited mobility or cannot stand for long periods, you can adapt the activity by allowing them to remain seated.

Instructions: Instead of physically moving into circles, participants can indicate their choices by raising a specific hand gesture or using colored cards (e.g., green for confidence, yellow for interest but not yet mastered, and red for avoidance or fear).

Benefit: This allows all participants to engage in the activity without physical discomfort.

Virtual or Remote Adaptation:

Modification: For online settings or remote teams, use virtual tools like polls or colored response options in video calls (e.g., Zoom’s reaction emojis or polls).

Instructions: The facilitator can present the challenge statements, and participants can respond using virtual cues such as colored cards, the chat function, or reaction buttons to indicate their level of confidence or comfort with each challenge.

Benefit: This allows teams to engage with the activity remotely while still reflecting on personal challenges and growth.

Silent Reflection Option (For Introverted Participants):

Modification: Some participants may prefer personal reflection rather than verbalizing their thoughts in a group.

Instructions: After each challenge statement, give participants a moment to reflect silently and write down their reasons for choosing a specific circle before moving on to the next challenge. This provides space for more introspective participants to engage meaningfully.

Benefit: This adaptation allows for more thoughtful, individual engagement for those who may not be comfortable sharing in larger groups.

Customized Challenges (Tailored for Specific Contexts):

Modification: Adjust the challenge statements to reflect specific professional or personal experiences relevant to the participants (e.g., classroom management tasks, professional development goals, or common challenges faced in education).

Instructions: Work with the group to brainstorm or suggest challenges specific to their school environment or teaching context, making the activity more relevant and engaging.

Benefit: This personalization makes the activity more applicable to real-world challenges, increasing its impact.

Group Discussion Focus:

Modification: Instead of focusing purely on individual reflection, have small groups discuss each challenge after moving to their chosen circle.

Instructions: After participants choose their position, break them into small discussion groups to share why they made their decision. This allows for deeper connection and learning from one another’s experiences.

Benefit: Encourages greater group dialogue and empathy-building, as participants reflect on and understand different perspectives.

After the activity, invite participants to sit in a circle and reflect on how it felt to take on dares or choose not to. Emphasize that both choices are valid and valuable. Encourage discussion around boundaries, peer pressure, courage, and respect. Highlight how the experience can help build self-awareness and strengthen mutual understanding within the group.

Enhanced Self-Reflection: Teachers will gain a deeper understanding of their own limits, strengths, and growth areas, leading to more intentional personal and professional development.

Greater Willingness to Take on Challenges: Participants will become more open to taking risks and embracing new opportunities, both in their teaching practices and in personal life.

Improved Team Cohesion and Empathy: By sharing their personal experiences and hearing those of others, teachers will develop greater empathy and support for their colleagues, leading to stronger team collaboration and understanding within the school community.

REFLECTION: 

For which statements did you decide quickly, and for which did you hesitate and why? Were you surprised by the decisions of your fellow participants? Have you learned something new about yourself or others?