Initiatives

Props: Beach ball—one per group if you have multiple groups

Number of Participants: 8 and up

Time: 10-15min

How to play:  Create groups of 8-12 people groups.  

1. Each group is given a beach ball.  

2. The group must keep the beach ball from hitting the ground.  If it does hit the ground, the group starts over.  

3. Every person in the group must hit the ball once before people can hit it again.  Or something along those lines so everyone is involved in the activity. 

4.  You can either time the activity—how long can they keep the ball off of the ground.  Or, you can see how many times they can hit the ball in a given amount of time or before it hits the ground. 

5.  Setting a goal of how many hits or how long they keep the ball off the ground would be a good progression.

Debrief:  There is potential for some rich debriefs from this activity.  How do people “drop the ball” at work or in life?  How do we support one another so we don’t drop the ball?  What did you notice about how the group worked together or didn’t?  Did people take on roles?  What was the key to success for your group?  What “balls” are you trying to keep from dropping?  How can you take the lessons from this activity to manage the responsibilities in your life?

Variations: You can do all sorts of other challenges (blindfolds, speaking, leadership role reversals). Often facilitators tell the group that they have to have everyone on the platform long enough to sing Row Row Row Your Boat (or any song). 

Number of participants:  Minimum 10

Props: 

1. Throwies

2. Blindfolds

How to Play: Get into teams of 5+ people (minimum 2 teams, 5 per team)

1. Designate an area for each team to assemble their “battleship” within throwing distance of the inner circle.

2. Each team chooses:

   • One person to be blindfolded in the middle of the circle with lots of throwies. 

   • One person on the team is outside the circle and they can direct their teammate (only this teammate can speak during the activity!)

   • The rest of the team is the battleship.

3. Each team has their blindfolded member enter the circle with the throwies.

4. Then, each team assembles their “battleship” by having the battleship team members choose a spot to stand for the duration of the activity. They cannot move after the activity starts.

5. As soon as you say Go! The blindfolded member will try to find throwies and hit the stationary members of other teams. If they hit a member, that member "sinks" and is out of the game.

6. The person giving directions can retrieve stuffies on the ground that missed their targets and hand them to their blindfolded team member.

7. The first team to “sink” another team’s battleship and hit all of their team members with stuffies wins!

Note: This game can be noisy and chaotic, make sure you have a big open space! It is technically a variation of blindfolded dodgeball, but it needed its own tab due to the additional instructions.

Debriefing Ideas: What was frustrating? How did the team communicate? How was the leadership?

Props: 

1. Rope, 

2. Blindfolds, 

3. Throwies

Time: 15-30min

How to Play: This game works with three lines of communication. Get into teams of 2. 

1. There are 2 roles. 

   • One person (from each team) will be blindfolded in the middle of the circle with all the throwies. 

   • The other person on the team is outside the circle facing in, so they can direct their teammate

2. All the people in the middle are playing a large game of dodgeball. If you get hit, you’re out. People on the outside tell their teammate where to move and when to throw.

3. Have the people switch roles in the team after each round. 

Note: This game can get pretty noisy. Not recommended for groups over 30 people. It is possible but at the beginning the concept of relying on each other in order to move/communicate is not empathized. 

Variations: The person who can talk can’t use words. They usually make some sort of code in gibberish. You can also play with 3 people on a team, one blindfolded and in the circle, one person that can talk, but can't see the circle, and one person that can see the circle, but can't talk.

Debriefing Ideas: What was frustrating? How did the team communicate? How was the leadership?

Props: Long rope, blindfolds if wanted

Time: 20 minutes 

Number of participants: 8-15

How to Play: Tie the rope together at the ends (forming a circle) and lay on the floor. 

1. Have participants circle up and grab the rope with two hands. 

2. Have the group close their eyes or wear blindfolds. 

3. Ask them as a group to form themselves in a certain shape. 

4. Start easy with a square and go from there. Common shapes: Pentagon, rectangle, star etc. 

Variations: Add role cards, silent etc. 

Debriefing ideas: Sit while still holding rope. Shift in hands in circle while debriefing. Talk about strategies and communicating while blindfolded. 

Props Needed: 

1. Bull Ring Bucket (Contents: Bullring with strings attached, Ball, Ball Stand, Bucket)

Time: 15 to 20 minutes

Number of Participants: Maximum of 8 people per ring.

How to Play: Set up the stand with the ring on the base and the ball on top such that when the ring is lifted, the ball is carried within the ring. Further away, place the bucket or any sort of goal for the group on the ground. 

1. The goal is to carry a small ball using the ring and string through a path (with or without obstacles) and place the ball into a goal, usually a bucket. 

2. Each person should hold onto the end of the string and not the actual ring or the ball. 

3. If the ball falls, the group should start over or choose you can choose any punishment that fits the group. 

Variations: Have two bullrings running at the same time within a small corridor defined by rope. The two groups must then coordinate how to maneuver past each other to get to each other’s goals. This presents valuable debriefing opportunities when the groups accept this as a competitive activity if you did not mention any sort of competition.

• Props: City Perspective Cards

• Participants: Works well with groups of around 20 or fewer

• Time: 20minutes but flexible, you choose how much time they get

You can read directly off this script below:

Purpose: To create a shared perspective in order to gain alignment within a team. 

Goal: To discover how a series of pictures relate to one another and then to quickly align the pictures, face up, in their proper sequential order. 

Rules:

• The problem begins with all of the pictures face down and surrounded by a rope boundary. Pictures must stay within the boundary. The rope boundary may not be moved. 

• Only one person may enter the boundary at a time. Only the person inside of the boundary may manipulate the pictures. 

• A person can only stay inside the roped boundary for as long as they can hold their breath. Once their turn is finished, they can no longer enter the rope boundary or move the pictures until everyone else has had a turn. 

• No one in the group is allowed to talk or use vocal sounds while someone is inside of the boundary. If anyone breaks this rule, then the person handling the pictures loses the rest of that turn. 

• You have 20 minutes to complete this task. Time begins now. 

Variation:

Everyone has only ONE opportunity to enter the circle.

Type of game: initiative

Props needed: poly spots, starting and ending point (the banks of the river)

Time: as long as it takes them (usually 25 min.)

Number of participants: 8-15

How to play: Have all participants stand on one side of the room behind the boundary (or having to touch the wall). 

1. Tell them they need to cross the Hot Chocolate River without falling in! 

2. The only way to get to the other side is to use the marshmallows (poly spots). 

3. Rules: 

   •  The group must be in constant contact with the marshmallows—they can’t throw them because they will float away; someone must have a foot or hand on the marshmallow when in the river or it will float away; or someone needs to be holding the extras. If they lose contact, they lose the marshmallow. 

   • Marshmallows cannot slide on the floor—once they are stepped on, they are stationary.  

   • If anyone touches the hot chocolate river, the entire group starts over.  

4. To determine how many marshmallows to give, walk off the space between the “river banks”. Give one or two more marshmallows than steps.

Debriefing ideas: Were you happy with your role in this activity? Who got chosen to be first and last? How did you make sure you didn’t lose contact with the marshmallows and that no one fell in? What happened when a marshmallow was lost? Was it okay to make a mistake?

Variations: 

• You can also call the game peanut butter river. Use bandanas as crackers to cross the river

• Have multiple groups starting from various points in the room trying to get to the middle. Let them figure out if they bring their poly spots with them they can share them with other groups. 

• Challenge the group by telling them that each marshmallow must be connected to the starting or ending point (can stand on two poly spots, and have another person stand on one of the same and start/end point). Also tell them they can only have 3 feet on each marshmallow otherwise it will sink!

Props: 

1. Connectiles cards

Time: 5-10 minutes

Number of participants: any number, we have multiple sets of cards so split the group into smaller numbers.

How to play: 

1. Give the group the connectiles and tell them that they must complete the puzzle. 

2. The group should put the tiles together in a way that they line up and make sense as a whole. 

3. The less rules the groups get the better!

Variations: Possible variations include having the group use role-playing cards, muting some of the participants, or giving them time limits. For larger groups, you can split them up into teams of 3-5 players (sometimes groups then assume that it is a competition, which can bring about a good debrief)

Debriefing ideas: If you use these variations you can talk about the different roles in a group, how you communicated silently, forms of leadership, etc. Also can talk about the tiles and how the group figured out the word puzzles.

Props: 

1. CrowdWords letter cards

Time: 5-10 minutes

Number of participants: Any number, best with multiple small groups  and 3 or more participants per group. 1 deck = up to 40 participants

How to play: 

1. Place the CrowdWords cards facedown in a disorganized pile in the middle of the room

2. Form groups of 3-5 participants

3. Ask them to find a spot about 10 ft away from the pile

4. Each group should assign their participants with these roles:

Runner: Responsible for picking up cards from the middle when told to do so

Caller: Responsible for shouting "Grab two" when told to do so

Word builder: Responsible for building the collaborative crossword puzzle for their team

5. Game starts with "GO!" and the runner hustles and selects 7 random cards and brings them back to the word builders. Then the word builders and the group work to construct a crossword with those letters, for example if you got the letters "L A M L E T C" you can make:

T

E

C A    L    L

M

6. Once one of the teams makes a crossword from their 7 letters, they must call "Grab two!" When this happens, all teams are required to send their runners up to get 2 more cards from the pile. They must now incorporate the additional two letters to their crossword, without leaving any letter behind. The first team to get this done would be responsible to say "Grab two!" And the process continues until all the cards in the middle are depleted.

Variations: 

1) If teams are struggling, you may tell them to flip over any two cards to now become "blank" cards

2) Can have 2 players switch allegiance and move to a different team

3) Have teams shuffle their cards with another team and restart

4) Have teams shift to the right so they get a new crossword puzzle to work on

5) Have them link their crossword puzzle with another team

Debriefing ideas: If you use these variations you can talk about the different roles in a group, how you communicated silently, forms of leadership, etc. Also can talk about the letters and how the group figured out how to use each of them.

Props needed: 

1. Cup filled with water, 

2. bandanna,

3. Random objects

Time: 15-20 minutes

How to play: First tell the group that they need to create an obstacle course in the room, using the given props. 

1. When ready, ask one person in the group to show the facilitator what the route is. The facilitator can continue with a few options:

   • Tell the group that they must get the cup of water through the course blindfolded without spilling, 

   • Everyone must go through with the cup, 

   • All participants must be linked together with each other

   • Decide what happens if the water spills

 Debriefing ideas: Was everyone included in the creation and implementation of the game? What does the cup symbolize?

Props: 

1. Rope or webbing

2. Some blindfolds (optional)

3. Two things to tie the rope or webbing between (chairs, trees, etc.)

Time: 20-30 minutes

Number of people: 8-15

How to Play: 

1. Be sure to talk about spotting and safety (physical and emotional) before starting this activity. 

2. Tie the rope at about waist height between two chairs. Start the group on one side of the rope barrier. 

3. Tell them it is an electric fence, with a current running through and under it. They have to get over it. 

4. If they touch it, there will be some kind of consequence. 

5. They must get the entire group safely to the other side of the fence. 

6. Consequences can be anything you or the group decides: blindfolds, people can't use certain limbs, the whole group starts over, etc. 

Note: This activity tends to bring up a lot of body size issues. If you anticipate this being an issue, potentially omit the activity.

Variations: 

• You can also stipulate that the whole group has to be connected in some way (they all have to be touching someone else from the group and the whole group must be a continuous circuit). 

• Allow 2 people to travel underneath the electric fence.

• You can give a time limit. 

• You can put a circle of rope on the ground on the other side of the fence and say that the people who come over the fence must hit that patch of ground first. 

Debriefing ideas: Trust is a big thing to talk about. This can also be good for talking about planning ahead, teamwork, the involvement level of all the members, etc.

Props: 

1. Tarp with 5x5 or bigger grid, or lots of poly-spots placed into a grid

Time: 15-30min

Number of participants:  12-16 per tarp

Set up:  Using the guidelines from tarp maze, the facilitator draws up a route through the maze and replicates it on a total of 4 maps—a map for each side of the maze.  The route is exactly the same for each direction.

• Divide the group into four small groups

• Within each group, the participants pick one person to be the guide.

• Assign each group to one side of the maze.  This is their entry point to the maze and they can not wander around the outside of the maze to other sides.

• Each group must blaze a route through the maze from their side to the opposite side of the tarp, so they are going across from one side to the other.

• The guide will be standing on the exit end of the route, which means they are standing on the opposite side of the tarp from the rest of their group.  They have the map and can not show it to anyone.

• Only one person can be in the maze at a time from any of the groups.

• No one can talk.

Directions: The person from Group A steps into the maze.  

1. Their group’s guide will indicate with a thumbs up or down whether or not they stepped into a grid that is part of the route.  

2. If they are on the path, they continue until they take a wrong turn.  Once they make a wrong turn, they exit the tarp and the next group goes.

3. Group B will now send in their first trailblazer and the process repeats.

4. Once all the groups have gone once, it returns to Group A and they send in a new person to try the route and the process repeats for all of the groups.

5. Everyone must get through the maze from all of the groups.

Debrief:

• How did you communicate in your small group?

• Did you communicate with the other groups?  How?  Why or why not?

• Did you notice anything about the routes for the groups?

• What resources were available to you on your journey?  

• What resources are available to you on your life journey?

• What happened when you made a wrong turn?  How did it make you feel?  Why?  

• When you make a wrong turn in your life, what happens?

Group Juggle

Type of activity: Name game, initiative

Props needed: 2 types of throwies (i.e. balls and stuffed animals), hula-hoop, cell phone

Participants: 10-25

Time: 15-30 minutes

How to play: This is a variation of Name Juggle. People are in a circle and must introduce themselves. Goal: The throwie needs to start and end with one person and be received by each person in the group only once. When you toss the throwie, you must say the person’s name. Remember who you threw it to! Go around once to establish the pattern.

Each round will introduce another type of element (stuffed animal, tennis ball, hula hoop, or phone) to add to the juggle. Start with a stuffed animal. Send it through the pattern. Then introduce the rest of the stuffed animals (3-5 depending on the group size).

Next introduce the other throwies (tennis balls). These will travel like the stuffed animals except that they will go in the reverse order. The facilitator will hand the starting person the balls and throwies, alternating between the two.

Next introduce the hula-hoop, choosing someone in the circle to start with it. Each person will step through the hula-hoop when it gets passed to them, and then pass around the circle to the next person. The hoop travels counterclockwise in the circle.

The final element to add is the cell phone. Choose someone else to start with the cell phone. Each person will answer the phone when passed to them saying, “Hello? ...It’s for you!” and then they will pass the phone to the next person. The cell phone will travel clockwise around the circle.

Have the group juggle all these things a set number of times. As you continue to add more items, prioritize them to help avoid chaos (i.e. don’t throw a ball at someone while they are holding the hoop).

Debrief: This activity is an excellent metaphor for multitasking and prioritizing as well as teamwork and communication. What happens in your life when you have multiple things to juggle? Identify some things in your life you are trying to juggle. What happens when you drop some things? What do you need to do to make sure you can manage what is going on in your life? What worked in this activity that you could apply to your own life? Be creative.

Variation – warp speed: Stick with only one throwie this time and use the same order as established in group juggle. The goal is to accomplish the same as above, but as quickly as possible. Do as many rounds as needed to get the fastest time. Allow for planning between rounds. (Debrief “thinking outside the box” – one way to make the time faster is if the participants rearrange themselves in the circle so they are standing in order, and pass one person over instead of across).

Debrief: How did your plans evolve? What did you do to get your times faster? What was a key lesson to this activity? What application does that lesson have in your life?

Props needed: 

1. Hula Hoop

Time: however long it takes participants

Number of participants: 5-8 per hoop

How to play: Have each person put the side of their index finger underneath the hoop as you hold it in the air. 

1. Then tell them that they will need to lower the hoop onto the ground as a group. Remind the group that all of their fingers MUST remain connected to the hoop at all times, otherwise the group must start over. 

2. They may not hook their fingers onto the hoop, they must rest their finger below it. 

3. When the facilitator removes their hand, soon the hoop will fly into air. You can repeat these steps many times, and also give them some hints. 

4. If they are struggling, it may be a good idea to sit them down and talk about what problems they are facing. 

Debriefing Ideas: what problems were encountered and why? Did they all work together or was there a leader that emerged? 

Variations: have some participants blindfolded, or not allowed to speak, give them a time limit.

Props needed: Poly spots/mini poly spots (9 per group), Cones (if # of participants per group is less than 9)

Time: 10-20 minutes (however long it takes for participants to finish)

Number of participants: 9 - 18+ (9 per group. May have 10 per group but not advised)

How to play: Place the poly spots into a 4 layer triangle (1 - 2 -3 - 4 ), approximately 3 feet apart from each other.

O

    O    E

O    O    O

      O   O     O    O

1. Then ask participants to move to the poly spots on the triangle marked with an "O". If there are not enough participants to fill all the "O" locations then fill in the rest with cones. Leave the poly spot marked "E" empty without a cone or a participant. If there were more than 9 people in the group the people unable to find an empty location may advise the group from outside the triangle.

2. Explain to the participants that they will need to "jump" the human pegs in order to escape the triangle. They must "jump" a connected poly spot occupied by participant or cone to an empty poly spot on the opposite side in order to leave. 

3. Upon making a "jump", the participants may leave the triangle. They can help advise the group from outside the triangle once they leave.

4. The challenge ends when all the participants apart from one are able to escape the triangle.  

5. If the participants get into a situation where they are no longer able to "jump" any more human pegs, have the participants restart.

Debriefing Ideas: How did your group approach the challenge? Did you jump into the activity or discuss strategy before starting? If you have done multiple attempts, what did you learn as you trialed and erred while trying to solve the activity? What strategies worked well in achieving your goals?

Variations: Have participants stay silent during the activity, Blindfold some of the participants.

Props: 

1. Similar looking puzzles (4)

Time: 15-20 minutes—can take longer

Number of Participants: 12+

Setup: 

1. Mix the puzzles so each group has some pieces of each puzzle (but make sure each group a total of 24 pieces). 

2. Divide the group into smaller groups and spread them out into corners of the room; give each group one set of mixed puzzle pieces.

How to play: “The goal of the activity is for all the puzzles to be completed. 

1. Do NOT tell them the puzzles have mixed up!  That is part of the challenge—that is something for them to figure out.

2. If at any point you (meaning the participants) want to “  speak” to the other groups, you must yell “I Call a Meeting”.  

3. At this point, each group must send only 1 representative to a specified meeting area.  They have to bring 1-3 puzzle pieces with them (facilitator's choice).  They have ten seconds to get there (as the facilitator, you are counting out loud to ten.)  

4. The meeting can start when all members are there.  If not everyone makes it on time, the meeting is adjourned.  (They can call a meeting right away if they like—you don’t have to tell them that, though.)  In the meeting, no one can talk.  

5. Representatives can only leave the meeting once everyone gives a thumbs up sign and is ready to leave.  

6. Each representative comes with 3 puzzle pieces and leaves with three.  (If anyone goes back to their group with more or less than 3 pieces then the rest of the game will be off.  It's fixable, but usually not noticeable until the very end of the game).”

7. The activity is over once everyone completes their puzzle or you feel like it should stop.  This activity can be full of teachable moments, so be very observant!

Things the facilitator knows but the group may not: The groups will usually turn this into a competition, but that is the key to the game- it doesn't end until each group has completed their puzzle. Often this means that one group will claim to be finished and will not send representatives to the 'meetings' while the other groups are trying to finish. This results in the meetings always being dissolved after the first countdown until someone realizes that every group still needs to be present at the 'meetings'.

Variations: Could have no speaking whatsoever. Limit the amount of time within a meeting.

Debriefing ideas: 

• What did you notice about your actions in the meetings?

• At what point did you realize you had more than one puzzle, what did you do at that point?

• How lack of communication between factions of an organization affects the productivity or cohesiveness of the whole

Props: 

1. K’nex Helicopters (all in a designated box)

2. Tarp (or some sort of visual barrier)

Time: 20-30 minutes

Number of Participants: Up to 18

How to Play: Place the pre-constructed helicopter behind the tarp without any participants seeing it. 

1. Divide the participants into groups of no more than ideally 6-9. Either divide the remaining K’nex amongst the groups or make a big pile between the groups and call it a free-for-all. 

2. In each group designate 1 person to have the privilege of being able to go behind the tarp and look at the constructed helicopter. 

3. That individual cannot speak and cannot touch any of the K’nex pieces. 

4. The group must ascertain from that individual how to build the helicopter so that they can ‘escape from the jungle’. 

5. Ideally, there will be enough K’nex for each group to complete a helicopter of their own.

Possible variations:

• Limit the amount of K’nex (without telling the group) so that the groups must combine forces in order to complete a helicopter or two and then escape.

• Put a time limit on it (5-10 minutes) and see who has the most complete helicopter

• Permit the 1 individual who can see the helicopter to speak, but blindfold the builders

• Make it a race between the groups to see who can escape first and fly to the island where the secret treasure is waiting that will turn everyone in their party into Dr. Manhattan (or a similarly bizarre story)

• (only use two groups for this one): Give each group a completed helicopter AND all the pieces to build another. Tell them to study the completed helicopter for a few minutes, and then blindfold everyone. They must now do their best to reconstruct the same helicopter from memory. Use a time limit on this and make a competition to see which group can most-accurately replicate the original helicopter.

Props: 

1. Keypunch polyspots

2. Paper and pencil (optional)

Time: 15-30 minutes 

(Depends on the number of polyspots in the sequence, if any are hidden, etc.)

Number of participants: 5-10

How to play: 

1. Participants start in a “safe zone” where the polyspots are not visible, facing away from them or in a separate room/area.

2. Place the keypunch spots in the gameplay area. Flip the keypunch spots upside down so the numbers are not visible. 

3. Inform the group that their goal is to break into Area 51. They already snuck past the first layer of security… BUT! The gate has a secret lock and the buttons must be pressed in the correct order to break in. 

4. Goal for participants: figure out the sequence of polyspots in order from the lowest to highest number.

Rules:   

1. One at a time, players run into the gameplay area with the polyspots and turn over a single polyspot, revealing the number on it. Then, they must flip it back over and rejoin the group. Each participant can only flip one polyspot over per turn. 

2. Players cannot move the polyspots to different locations, they can only flip them over to check the number and then flip them back over.

3. Once the group thinks they know the full sequence from lowest → highest, they must send all members through the course one at a time. 

4. Each group member must correctly demonstrate the sequence and flip over all of the keypunch polyspots in the correct order WITHOUT any other group members leaving the safe zone.  

5. If a participant tries to flip each polyspot in the correct sequence but fails, there is a consequence for the whole group! (Embarrassing dances, complimenting all other group members, etc.) Also, if any other participants have already finished, they must complete the sequence again!

6. If there are a lot of polyspots in the sequence, players can be offered paper and pencil to draw a map of the polyspots they flip over. However, players can only write on the paper in the safe zone. (Emphasize write. They can bring the paper with them at the end when going through the sequence, but you can decide whether or not to tell them this explicitly.)

Variations: Hide some of the polyspots as an extra challenge- players need to find them all first and then figure out the sequence! (Remember to tell the participants how many total polyspots are in the sequence if any are hidden.)

Props: 

1. Deck of cards, 

2. 15 foot webbing lengths or masking tape

Time: 10 minutes

Number of participants: 6 or more

How to play:  You will need to make a large square with your webbing or masking tape.  Each side of the square should be 15 feet long.  

1. Ask the group to all stand on the webbing.  

2. Shuffle your deck and give each participant a card.  Participants must not trade cards for the duration of the activity.  

3. The group should designate a suit for each side of the square. The King card has to maneuver to the corners.  

4. The other cards must line up in order from the King down to the Ace without stepping off of the webbing.  

5. You can create penalties for touches, such as having the entire group start over, or just one person start in their original position.  Working together is the key to success.

Debriefing questions:  

• What were some challenges you faced trying to maneuver around each other?  

• What were some strategies that you came up with?  

• How did you communicate with your teammates?  

• What was frustrating for you?

Time:  5-10 minutes

Number of participants: 5-30 people, ideally 6 people per group/set. Can be done with one group.

Props: Lego blocks, picture cards -> 5 sets total!

Goal: To build the correct lego structure based on the picture cards

How to play: 

1.  Ideally, split groups into teams of 6. Have 1 person assign themselves as the "builder", and have the rest be assigned the role of "architect"

2.  The architects will each receive a picture card with a different perspective on the lego structure. Using this picture, they are responsible to guide the builder to build the pictured structure

3. Builders are the only ones who are able to interact with the legos. They are responsible for building the structure, based on what the architects tell them to build.

Variations:  Can have certain people not talk, have the architects face away from the legos

Debriefing Ideas: Reveal the name of the activity "Lego perspectives", relate back to their organization and how different people have different perspectives, ask if they would have preferred to be in a different role, etc.

Type of game: initiative

Props: Throwies (or anything that can be picked up), blindfolds

Time: 15 minutes

How to play: This game works with three lines of communication.  

1. Split the group into 3 smaller groups—ideally of the same size.  Make sure to mention that one group will be blindfolded and allow people who don’t want to be in that group join one of the other two groups. 

2. One small group will be blindfolded in an area with all the throwies. Another small group will be facing away from the area with the throwies (and therefore cannot see) but can talk. The third group is facing the throwies (so they can see what’s going on), but can not talk.  They can only use motions to signal the person that can talk to tell the blindfolded people where to go.  

3. The goal is to have the blindfolded group grab up all of the throwies and put them in a designated area. 

Debriefing Ideas: 

• What was frustrating? 

• How did the groups communicate? 

• Was their a designated leader?  

• How did you figure out how to get the job done?  

• What was it like to see but not be able to talk?  To talk, but not be able to see?  To be blindfolded?

Variation:  Make it a competition.  The same set up as above with the three groups in the communication line, but now, instead of everyone working together, create even smaller groups that are competing to get the objects in the blindfolded group’s area.  For example, create 4 groups of 3 people—1 can see, but not talk; 1 can talk, but not see the area of throwies; and 1 is blindfolded and needs to pick up the throwies.  See which group can get the most throwies or have each group assigned to certain ones and see which group gathers up their throwies first.

Props needed: 

1. Marble 

2. Marble Luge Tube bag/s (there should be 25 in each bag)

Time: 20-30min 

How to play: Have each participant grab a piece of PVC pipe. 

1. They must start with the marble at the starting point, and get it to the other side into the bucket/cup. 

2. However, they can’t touch the marble, or anyone else’s tubing. They can’t switch tubes or move their feet while the marble is in their tube. The tube cannot be tilted while the marble is inside of it. The marble must always move forward towards the destination and the marble must go through everyone’s tube at least once.

3.  If the marble is dropped, then you start over. You can give them time to plan.

Variations: give them only short tubes, use only one hand, blindfold someone, role cards, can lay out a rope as the path that the marble should follow.

Debriefing Ideas: 

• What frustrated you with this experience? 

• What did it take for your team to achieve success? 

• How did you find yourself reacting if the marble dropped?

Props: Deck of cards (You will use 16 cards including 8 matching pairs)

Time: 10-15 Minutes

Number of Participants: 3-8 

Setup: Find 8 pairs of cards matching in value- ace, 2, 3, etc…. (16 cards total).  Shuffle these cards and arrange them in a grid- on the floor or on a table- in rows of 4 and columns of 4. Flip all of the cards upside down.  

How to play:  

1. Set a boundary for the group to stay behind, far enough away so that the flipped cards are mostly out of sight/the cards’ text can’t be read from behind the boundary (approx 10-15 ft).

2. Only one person at a time can be across the boundary line.

3. When you say “go”, one person at a time approaches the set of cards and turns over two cards. For each turn, only two cards can be flipped over. 

4. If the cards match, the person picks up the cards and brings them back behind the line. 

5. If the cards don’t match, the person flips the cards back to face down. 

6. The person then returns to the group behind the line and the next person in line gets a chance to match the cards. 

7. The participants can all talk and discuss the position of the cards while they are behind the line, but they can't yell out instructions to any person who is across the line.

8. The goal for the group is to find matches for all of the cards.

Variations: 

• You can start with more/less cards that need to be matched to make the activity shorter or longer.

• For an extra challenge, you can make it so participants can’t say any numbers out loud during the activity.

• You can have two groups compete against each other to see who can match their set of cards faster.

• To make this more physically challenging (or silly), you can move the boundary farther from the cards or require participants to hop on one foot/skip whenever they cross the boundary.

Debrief Ideas: 

• How did your group decide on a strategy?

• What were some barriers to communication in this activity? How did you overcome them?

Props needed: 

1. Rope to create a boundaries (need to make a large square) 

2. Throwies/cones to be used as mines.

Time: 10-15 min

How to play: Create mines that are randomly dispersed in minefield. 

1. Then have one blindfolded partner enter the field and get directed to the other side by their partner, using only verbal commands and staying outside of the field. 

2. Once they finish, they can switch positions.

Variations: The partner may not use verbal commands. Create a time limit

Debriefing ideas:  Communication difficulties or strategies. 

Props: Rope or Webbing

Number of participants: 8 and up

Time: 20 – 30 min

How to play: Below is a set of instructions you will give the group. 

1. Try to follow the words exactly, using the descriptors to define what each category of leader is, and how the participants should go about identifying with any of these groups and reaching their own conclusions regarding the kind of leader they believe best suits their personality. 

2. Once they’ve all decided which categories they identify with, ask the groups questions that will get them talking to one another about the role they occupy and how their role fits into their specific group setting. 

3. Aim to get the participants thinking of themselves individually, and then about how they interact with other kinds of leaders in this context.

Directions for the Group

1. Outline a long continuum line (consider using webbing or rope to create this) with two far ends defined thus:

   • Water: “I don’t often voice strong opinions, particularly if I think it will cause hurt or be a waster of time. I put others before myself pretty consistently. I’m very flexible. You probably don’t really know where I stand on issues, or what I think about you, unless you ask very directly. It’s hard for me to state my own needs.”

   • Wind: “I state my opinion and take stands easily. People know exactly what I think, feel, and want. I’m an open book and you don’t even have to read the words because I tell them to you, especially if you try to cross one of my lines. Fight or flight? Let’s get real - I stay right here and tell it like it is. I don’t have a problem saying ‘my way or the highway’ if need be.”

2. Place yourself anywhere on the continuum where you view yourself. The precise middle is out of bounds.

3. Without moving from your place in this left/right line, move yourself along a second, up and down continuum (again, consider using rope or webbing) with the two far ends defined thus:

   • Cool cucumber: “I am calm and rational, and I do not get flustered about anything. I even have difficulty getting excited about things most people think are neat and exciting. My emotions are a glassy pond.”

   • Hot tamale: “I tell people how I feel about everything. I cry at sad movies. My emotions are extremely active - the perfect storm.” Again, these refer to how you feel you are internally.

4. At this point, you will be in one of four quadrants, outlined below.

Explanation of Leadership Styles

Architects & Analysts

• • Water/Cool Cucumbers

  • Architects and analysts emphasize meaning and conceptual functions.

• Pluses

  • Information and opinion seekers

  • Good at analysis and process observation

  • Prefer to make decisions based on facts

  • Prefer as much information as possible before deciding

  • Can come out with totally off-the-wall solutions that work

  • Translate feels and experiences into ideas

• Deltas

  • Can be slow in making decisions or dogged in facts

  • Can happily leave most decisions to others and focus on only one decision

  • Have to watch out for non-involvement or unrealistic ideas if they get into their own world

If a leader has this style, honor their need for information while also requesting they tell you how they will decide or delegate, and when.

• Some Effects on the Group 

  • Architects and analysts are often in the minority but their function is essential. If a group doesn’t pay attention to this area, it will miss out on significant learning that comes from observation and analysis. The group may also be missing important process steps or other ways to view a situation. Too much of this style in a group may stall movement because the discussion, laissez-faire attitude and analysis allows opportunities to pass.

Drivers

• • Wind/Cool Cucumbers

  • Drivers emphasize action and directing.

• Pluses

  • Information and opinion givers

  • Decision making is easy for them

  • Often the keepers of the vision in a group

  • Great at taking a stand, being direct, and making things happen

  • Usually not too shaken by critical feedback

• Deltas

  • Often will urge “let’s decide” as indecision can drive them crazy

  • Will sometimes decide without input from others and step on toes

  • Make mistakes when moving too quickly without adequate information

  • Can come across as too impersonal and lose connection with their group

  • Have to be careful not to “over-lead”

If a leader has this style, be as direct as possible when dealing with them. Bring problems and opinions to them: they expect this.

• Some Effects on the Group

  • If a group does not have drivers, they must pick up driver functions or they can fail to meet far-reaching goals. Mature drivers are non-reactionary individual with much ability in the other quadrants, and they help ground a group. When this style is not mature, there may be too much individuality or structure. Turf battles or a lack of member autonomy and collaboration ensue.

Relationship Masters

• • Water/Hot Tamales

  • Relationship masters emphasize caring.

• Pluses

  • Excellent at building and sustaining community

  • Work well on a team

  • Great at building rapport, consensus, and commitment and seeking feedback

  • Support, praise, and feel concern

  • Display high regard for others’ wishes, viewpoints, and actions

• Deltas

  • May not take an unpopular stance if it puts a relationship at risk

  • Can put so much emphasis on a relationship that tasks and decision-making fall behind

  • Can forget or downplay their own needs, to their detriment

If a leader has this style, you may need to ask them to be more specific in outlining their expectation. Encourage critical feedback from them and tell them when you want to know what they think and want.

• Some Effects on the Group

  • You cannot have too much caring and respect as part of your capacity - it is the glue that’s essential for a group to function. As a leader, it is powerful when combined with other quadrant functions. If it is the only style a group has, the group may not take enough risks or make enough decisions to move forward significantly. The group may also avoid conflict to the extent that there is lack of depth in genuine connection and innovation.

Spontaneous Motivators

• • Wind/Hot Tamales

  • Spontaneous motivators emphasize emotional stimulation.

• Pluses

  • Often voice their ideas and supply passion to follow those ideas; energizers

  • Great at motivating people as they possess a sense of mission or vision

  • Good at energetic dialogues with other group members

• Deltas

  • Can be emotionally bound to their ideas; objectivity may be their biggest challenge

  • Can create a highly emotionally charged climate if they put too much emphasis on challenging others and confronting assumptions

If a leader has this style, know your own position and don’t be afraid to voice it. Ask them to give concrete examples to back up their viewpoints.

• Some Effects on the Group

  • Spontaneous motivators are often light bulbs. Groups need this function to sparkle, create, prod, stir the pot, and impassion. A group without this style may be functional, but somewhat lackluster. When mature people with this style choose to be detached and monitor their emotional involvement, this is highly effective. If too much of this style is present in a leader, a group can be overly reactive or so impassioned about their ideals that they lose touch with other realities. Interestingly, many charismatic leaders and cult leaders come from this quadrant.

Debriefing Ideas: What do you believe are the strengths of your leadership style? Weaknesses? What are some other characteristics of the other leadership styles you identify with? Which leadership style do you least identify with? How do you think your leadership style functions in the context of you group? (To the group at large) What do you notice about the distribution of leadership styles in your group? Is it surprising, or what you expected? 

Props: 

1. Picture circle cards  (+ help cards)

Time: 15 minutes

Number of participants:  small groups of 2-4 OR large group

How to play:  The goal is to arrange the picture/word cards in a circle in the correct order in a given amount of time. 

1.  Tell the group to put the cards in order, in a circle. You can do this by placing the cards down and having them arrange it in a circle, or by giving each player 1 card and having them figure out where to place themselves in a circle.

2. Each of the cards represents an idiom, and each of the decks has an answer key EX:  Hill, Top, Banana, Bread, Stick, Pin, Wheel, Base, Line, Up: This is the solution to the given words because "Hill top", "Banana bread", "Bread stick", "Pin wheel" "Base line" and "Up hill" all make up their own individual idioms.

3. If the group is struggling, there are help cards available. When a group shows the facilitator a help card, you are obligated to provide the  answer related to the card. For example, “What is the name of this picture?”,  you simply tell the group the name of the picture that is in the answer to the  puzzle. If they present you with the card, “Tell us one combination”, you can  either tell them a combination of your choosing or ask them if they have a  specific combination (pair) they want you to tell them. 

Props: 

1. Pipe cleaners—1 per person

Time: 15 minutes

Number of participants:  small groups of 4-8

How to play:  The goal is to build a mascot out of pipe cleaners as a group.  

1. First, have the small group decide on a mascot that represents their group.  

2. Then, hand out a pipe cleaner to each person.  Have them put one hand behind their backs.  

3. As a group, they need to construct the mascot using only the pipe cleaners and their one hand.  

4. Have them share and explain their mascot to the large group once everyone is finished building.

Props: 

1. Deck of cards

Time: 10 minutes

Number of participants: At least 12 players

How to Play:  This one works when you can have at least two groups of 6-8 players (you can have more than 2 groups playing.)  

1. Shuffle the deck of cards.  After splitting up into small groups, give each player a card—ask them not to look at the face of the card just yet.  

2. When you say, “go”, each player can look at his or her card.  

3. Then, each group must line up in sequence based on an Ace through King order as fast as possible.  

4. When a team is in the right order, they raise their cards up high together and yell “Done!”  As the facilitator, you can award the metaphorical gold, silver, or bronze medals as they finish (you might have to do spot checks on the order!)  

5. After each round, have the groups turn their cards face down and do a team shuffle—handing the cards around the group in random order so the values of the cards are not seen by the players.  Then say, “Keep a card”.  

6. Each player should have a card ready for the next round—not looking at it until you say “go!”.  Provide 30 seconds of planning time before each attempt.  

7. Play three or four rounds with smaller teams, then combine two teams together—keeping the same cards, but now shuffling up with both team’s cards—they have the information, how do they share it to make the activity successful?  

8. Play a few times for super-speed rating. 

NOTE:  An interesting shift might occur if players choose to share “verbally” what their card is as they shuffle—never said they couldn’t!  This goes along with sharing ideas as well.  Will a team share this bright idea with the group (other teams?!).

Debriefing questions:  

• How successful do you think you were at this activity?  

• Was there any confusion on where you were supposed to go?  

• Did your group share any information with other groups? Why or why not?

The purpose of the game: 

• This is a great workshop to get people out on an adventurous journey trying to find someone and figuring out where they are on campus.  Thrilling and fun!  Once again, allowing people to have an adventurous experience together while communicating and working together across groups to accomplish a task.

The story:

• There is a rogue agent loose in Madison.  (You can come up with some funny things that they have done if you want that are “criminal”, for example, was wearing a Michigan sweatshirt on game day or just leave it as a rogue agent.)  It is our job, as a group of agents to find this rogue agent and “capture” them.  We have hacked into their communication system with their handler so we can track their movements, but they are pretty crafty, and sometimes we need to do some quick thinking and analyzing to figure out what they mean by their messages or pictures.  You have X amount of time to find the rogue agent.

The setup and how the game works:

• An ALPs facilitator will play the rogue agent.  During the briefing for the workshop, a picture of the rogue agent will be shown to the group—in the clothes they are currently wearing.  The rogue agent will be out on campus somewhere waiting for the go ahead to start the game (which means a text from their co-facilitators as to when the group has been briefed.)

• Two roles for the group in this activity:

  • Central command—1 or 2 people who remain back in the room where the group met.  They will be in charge of intercepting the information from the rogue agent as they send messages to their handler.  (You need to use an electronic platform from which to intercept these messages—GroupMe, Google+).  At central command, we had computers set up to a projector where the briefing occurred and the central command agents could easily read intercepted messages and do some research on the internet.  So, an internet connection is needed.

  • Agents—we broke up into groups of 4 and set off into the area to search for the rogue agent.  We came up with a way to communicate with central command and with the other agent groups.  One idea would be to create a GroupMe for the workshop so agents can communicate across groups.

• Central command intercepts the information and sends it out to the agent groups.  The agent groups coordinate with one another to go find the rogue agent.

• Meanwhile, the rogue agent will send in information as to their location and then, move on, periodically sending in information as to where they are.  (Some suggestions for information that could be sent is photos of where they were or send in riddles or vague texts about where they are.  I.e., having a few s’mores on a point by the lake.)  The first photo is intercepted before the group leaves the briefing room, or just as they leave the briefing room.  The rogue agent will wait 15 minutes or so in this location and then, move out.  The facilitators can work out a general route before the workshop begins just to have an idea of where the workshop will go.  

  •  Workshop starts and ends in the same location/room.

  • The search will only go on for a certain amount of time.  We may have played for 2 hours—out searching for the rogue agent.

• To capture the rogue agent, the agents need to take a photo of them without being seen.  The agents take the photo and send it in to central command.  That is a capture.  You want to capture the agent as often as possible.

• The rogue agent can capture the secret agents by waving at them.  When that happens, the secret agent is frozen for a certain amount of time.  (Maybe a minute or so?  Whatever seems reasonable—gives the agent a chance to get away.)  The rogue agent doesn’t know who the secret agents are or what they look like, so they just need to be paying attention to the people around them and if they keep showing up, or look sneaky, or are trying to take their picture, etc.

• You play until time is up!  Everyone, including the rogue agent need to get back to command central at a certain time.

Setup:

1. Determine a communication platform between rogue agent, central command, and secret agents.  We thought GroupMe might work because people could come into the workshop, enter their phone number into GroupMe on line, and we create a group specifically for that workshop.  Easily deleted afterwards.

2. When group is there, divide groups into the roles.  Each group needs someone with a smart phone and the GroupMe app—or whatever communication platform is agreed upon.

3. In the workshop description, it needs to be stated that people bring fully charged smart phones with them if they have one.  I don’t know a good backup for this because the iPad’s we can borrow only work on Wi-Fi and that can be spotty if you are away from a University building.

4. Position rogue agent and have a previously agreed upon route that only you and the agent know.

5. Have 1-2 computers set up in the room (can borrow these from college library, use personal ones, or borrow from CfLI) and connect at least one of them to a projector.  (maybe this is optional.)

6. Stress safety concerns—need to follow all laws and traffic regulations.  Be thoughtful about how you might appear to others on the street—don’t look suspicious or that you are planning or sneaking around and doing something that might be perceived as illegal.  No jumping, tackling, or grabbing of the rogue agent.  Be careful about running down the street—could look like something illegal is happening if a group of people are chasing someone down the street.

Takedown/Wrap up:

The wrap up/debrief for us was just hanging out after the activity with everyone—central command, secret agents, and rogue agent and telling stories about the experience.  As you may imagine, people were all excited about the escapades that occurred during the experience—near misses, crafty evasions, etc.  There were snacks. 

Props needed: 

1. Floor dots, Floor tape, or a piece of rope to stand on

Time: 5-10 depending on group size

Number of participants: all sizes, preferably 10-15

How to play: 

1. Have participants lined up on floor marking in a straight line in no particular order. 

2. Tell them that their challenge is to get in order based on: birthday, height, age….etc. 

3. The participants cannot talk, nor can they step off the line.

4. Talking and stepping off the line will result in a penalty.

Debriefing ideas: 

• What was the most challenging about this? 

• What techniques where successful, not successful? 

• What were efficient ways of communicating? 

Variations: Some participants could be blindfolded for extra challenge or make everyone mute. Participants could line up on something where balance is necessary, like a log or board.

Props:

1. Lycra tubes (1 per 10 participants)

2. Blindfolds

3. Stuffies 

Time: 

Number of Participants: 10-25 (when you run out of space in a lycra tube, remaining people will be coaches)

How to Play:

1. Eight people will be blindfolded standing inside of the lycra tube. Make sure it goes over each participants shoulders and down to about their knees. At least two participants are outside of the lycra tube. These two participants are coaches. 

2. Explain to coaches that it is their responsibility to guide everyone inside of the lycra tube to a stuffy/some object that has been placed somewhere in the room. You may give the coaches restrictions and time to plan.

3. Let the participants know when they can begin directing/moving. Either time them and do it several times to try to get faster, set a countdown, or have them do it as a race. 

Variations:

• Participants inside of lycra tubes cannot speak

• Restrictions for coaches: they can each only say one word at a time, certain words (back, forward, left, right, etc.) cannot be used

• With larger groups, use two lycra tubes and have the groups race against each other either for their own unique objects or only one object

Debriefing:

• How did coaches plan to communicate with each other and the large group? How about participants in the lycra tube?

• How did it feel to be blindfolded?

• Emphasize trust, supporting/leaning on each other

Props: 

1. Tarp—the same tarp from tarp maze works well

2. A ball or throwie

Time: 15-30min

Number of participants:  12-16 per tarp

How to play:  Start with everyone holding the tarp and the object on the tarp.

1. The goal is to the flip the tarp over completely while the ball is in the air and to catch the ball with the tarp before it hits the floor.  

2. Everyone must be holding on to the tarp at the beginning and the end.  

3. Without anyone touching the ball, it must be thrown in the air and caught.

Debrief:  

• What was your plan?  

• How did you come up with it?  

• What worked for your group?  What didn’t?

Props: 

1. Tarp—the same tarp from tarp maze works well.

2. Blindfolds if you want to spice it up a bit

Time: 15-30min

Number of participants:  12-16 per tarp—or however many will fit on the size tarp you have.

How to play:  Have everyone stand on the tarp.  

1. They must flip the tarp over without anyone stepping off of the tarp—or any part of their body touching the floor.  

2. Think of the tarp as an overturned rescue boat and all of the supplies are on the other side.  You need to flip the boat over to get to the supplies.  

3. No one is allowed to fall into or touch the water because the water is full of sharks….or something like that.  

4. There is a consequence if someone steps off the tarp—start over, muted, blindfolded, etc.

Props 

1. Tarp with 5x5 or bigger grid, or lots of poly-spots placed into a 5x5 grid

Time: 15-30min

Number of participants:  12-16 per tarp—or however many will fit on the size tarp you have.

How to play: 

1. The facilitator in advance must draw a route through the grid on a separate paper. 

2. There is only one square you can enter from, and only one you can exit from. 

3. The path can go diagonal, forward or sideways, but not backwards (unless the group needs more of a challenge). 

4. The participants line up and take turns trying to figure out the secret path: one at a time they step in, the facilitator says “yes” or “no”, and they continue if they correct or leave the maze if they were wrong (and someone else takes a turn). 

5. The catches: nobody can talk while somebody is in the maze.

Variations: Direct a blindfolded person through the maze – everyone else can talk/see. Everyone except the person in the maze CANNOT see the maze – they have to be out of the room or facing the other way. Only the person in the maze can see the maze. But everyone can communicate the whole time. This is a fun variation.

Debriefing: 

• What strategies did you use? 

• How did the team communicate?

Props needed: 

1. 1 tennis ball per person (roughly)

2. Two boundary markers (rope)

Time: 15 min

Number of participants: 10-15 

How to play: Set two boundaries using the rope, about 10 feet apart. 

1. Place the group on one end. Hand out the tennis balls and tell the group they must cross the gap by standing/walking on the tennis balls. 

2. They must make sure to get everyone across. 

NOTE: Safety is a big consideration.

Variations: someone must always be touching the tennis balls, or they evaporate.

Time: depends on size of group

Number of participants: At least 20

How to play: Divide your group equally in two and form two straight lines with each player standing opposite someone from the other line. 

1. The lines should be just far enough apart so that when the player’s arms are fully extended (in front of them at shoulder height), their hands reach to approximately the wrist of the person opposite. These players are called the spotters. 

2. The goals is for one player (the runner) to start about ten yards from the group and walk, jog, or run between the two lines of people. 

3. The spotters raise their arms just before the runner reaches them and lower them as soon as the runner has passed by. 

4. The faster the runner goes, the more of a challenge it is (for the runner and for the spotters).

Safety Issues: Make sure that you have a large enough room for this activity. You need a good amount of space after the zipper line as well, as many participants will be running at a pretty fast speed. Use commands (similar to a trust fall) before running. It is important that everyone stays focused throughout this activity.

Props needed: 

1. Tin can with bolts, 

2. 4-6 ft. yarn, 

3. Webbing/rope, 

4. Throwies (poisons)

Time: 20+ minutes

Number of participants: about 15

How to play: 

1. The toxic waste tin can has bolts screwed into it. Yarn should be tied to each of the bolts, about 4 to 6 feet long. Form a circle with rope/webbing around the can. The yarn is laid out and should extend just a little bit farther than the boundary marker so participants can grab it to lift the can. The can, throwies, and dump should all be within the limits of the rope. 

2. Everyone spreads out on the outside of the circle, this is the city that has just witnessed a toxic waste spill. 

3. The task is to clean up the mess staying far enough away from the spill to avoid exposure, yet cleaning up all poisons and depositing them in the dump before the people of the city become infected. 

4. Use the yarn you see in front of you to manipulate the collector, but you cannot go inside the boundary or you will be exposed and eliminated! 

5. Any poisons that leave the city will contaminate other cities. You want to clean up the city, prevent it from spreading, and keep all the members of your team safe. 

Variations: Have some people blindfolded with partners telling them what to do. Have some people who cannot talk. Using fewer pieces of yarn per participant changes the challenge. Also, the amount and type of throwies used also changes the challenge. Have participants complete an obstacle course without spilling the can.

Props: 

1. Poly-spots for each person +1 for the middle             

Time: ~10 min. + Debrief

Number of participants: 6+

How to Play: Line the poly-spots up in a V-shape. 

1. There should be one poly-spot for each participant plus one in the middle. Divide the participants in half.

2. Each of them will be standing on a poly-spot. The objective of the activity is for the teams to switch sides. 

3. Rules: 

   • You can only move FORWARD if there is an empty space in front of you or if you are passing somebody facing you and there is an empty space behind them. 

   • You cannot move backward or jump two people or pass someone facing the same way. 

   • You do not need an even number to play this game. Try not to give clues as a facilitator.

Variations: Some people cannot see or speak                

Debriefing ideas: - What was frustrating? How did the team communicate? How was the leadership?

Solution: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alFCqX-qxog 

Props Needed: 

1. Long rope

Time: 7-30+ minutes

How to Play: 

1. Facilitators will play a big game of jump rope with participants. 

2. Have the participants make it through the jump rope consecutively. 

3. If anyone touches the rope, there is a consequence.

Possible Variations: 

• Have the participants hold hands,

• Have a time limit, 

• Have a limit on number of swings, 

• See how long they can go (go in a circle), 

• Have participants jump the rope before making it to the other side. 

• Have participants create their own consequences and goals. 

• For a large group, you could create a “hop box” and make a box out of four ropes. 

• To escape from the box, you must jump over one of the ropes. 

• Twirlers included – they must be replaced and make the jump as well. 

Props Needed: 

1. Ropes or Tape

Time: 5-15 min.

Number of Participants: Two in circle and others around

How to Play: 

1. Have two people and have them each on one side of the circle (that was already made with rope). Use tape to divide the circle in half. 

2. The object is to get the other person to step completely over the line, you may not touch them, but you can use tricks, bribes, arguments, lectures etc.

Debriefing Ideas: This is a huge debriefing game because it delves into the ideas of competition and what it means to win. The fastest way to end this game is to give in and go over the line, but it is never specified whether the winner is the one who crosses the line first, or gets the other person to cross the line.

Possible Variations: maybe use the entire group rather than just two people, although that might get out of control.

Props needed: 

1. Props for necessary for tasks, 

2. Blindfolds

Time: 10 minutes

Number of participants: 8 or more

How to play: Begin by inviting your group to form a circle. 

1. Ask them for them to close their eyes, and raise their hands if they would like to be a “leader” in the activity. 

2. Explain that leaders will have their eyes open in the activity, while the “participants” will be blindfolded or have closed eyes. 

3. Then move around the circle selecting “leaders” from those who have volunteered. 

4. Ask the leaders to stand up and open their eyes and meet over in an area away from the hearing of the rest of the group. 

5. The rest of the group should keep their eyes closed and remain sitting in a circle. 

Leader Group: Give the following instructions to the  leaders:

• Your goal is to get a bunch of silly tasks done, and only the people with their eyes closed will be able to perform the actual physical tasks for the group. I will only give you the list of tasks once and the rules once. If you have questions that I have already answered, I will not answer, and you can check with each other to see if the answer is in the group. 

• Proceed to read (or write them out and give them the paper) them a list of 4 to 8 pre-planned tasks, depending on number of people. 

  • Examples include: getting one person to drink from a water bottle, getting the entire group to sing a song, get five people to line up in a certain order, get 10 people to give high fives to each other, group of 4 to uncoil a rope etc.

• However, there are three rules:

• 1. You cannot touch the people who have their eyes closed

  2. You cannot talk to the people who have their eyes closed

  3. You cannot touch any of the stuff that the people performing the tasks are working with 

• You may whisper among yourselves, but not so as to let the people with their eyes closed to gain information about anything. If you have any questions that I haven’t already answered, you are allowed to listen to the instructions I am about to give to the “eyes closed people.”

Non-leader, Eye's closed group: Give the instructions to the other group.

• Your goal is to get as many silly tasks done as you can in the amount of time (designate time) we have. You must continue to keep your eyes closed while you perform tasks, and you can talk to and touch each other while you are performing tasks. 

• The people who were pulled aside have their eyes open and know the list of tasks to be performed. The eyes open people cannot touch you, talk to you, or touch any of the stuff that might be involved in performing tasks. 

• Ask for any questions, and if not, let the game begin!

Debrief:

• On the simple first level, I’ve found it useful to hear from the “open-eye” people, and then “closed-eye” people, or vice versa on “what was it like for you”.  Continue to refer to these groups as ‘eyes open’ or ‘eyes closed’ groups because leadership has to happen in both for the activity to go forward… but I usually wait to see if someone in the group will make that point!

• A lot of communication issues will often come up; including that usually the suggested communication system of ‘yes/no’ is suggested (or at least articulated) by the ‘eyes closed’ folks.

• At some point, I ask “what was leadership behavior and who provided it?”, to try to draw out the point that leadership looks different, depending on your role, i.e., if you have your eyes open you may listen or respond or just pay attention with clearer communication.

• People usually ask about the fact that I chose some people with their hands up to be “leaders” and left others behind.  The belief is to make sure that both groups have the element/willingness for leadership in them.