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Maze alive

A hilarious energizer. It’s playing tag with surprising twists.

Deze activiteit bevordert:

Here is the instruction:

Time: 5 – 10 min

Participants: 8 or more

Outside

Active

Required materials

nothing

How it works:

Arrange all the participants in such a manner that the explanation can be heard well. Tell them that we are going to do ‘Maze alive’ and that it involves playing tag. After that you ask the group to stand in rows behind one another. Everyone is faced to the same side.

Independently of the size of the group all participants are supposed to form a square with eachother in the same way as the example beneath shows.

0 – 0 – 0

0 – 0 – 0

0 – 0 – 0

When the group is bigger there could be for example five rows of five people. The distance between the participants is about the length of their arms. If they put their arms to the side they can touch eachother’s hands. Make sure that the rows are arranged in sequence.

The people in the row keep standing and hold their arms up horizontally.

Two people won’t stand in the rows.

One of them is the tagger and the other person is the one who has to be tagged.

It works in this way.

 

Tell the participants that you (the trainer) will give them the command ‘turn’ constantly.

This means that a person has to turn a quarter clockwise. If you give the command again the people turn back.

It is a good idea to practice this before doing it.

Because the standing people keep their arms up horizontally a kind of wall is created which the tagger and the runner can’t pass. They can run though where there are no arms.

The tagger and the runner run through the standing people.

Now the one who gives the commands can say ‘turn’ unexpectedly. Everyone who stands turns a quarter to the right or back. A maze is being created for the tagger and the runner which constantly changes.

The tagger and runner swap roles when the runner is tagged.

Differentiation

  • Differentiate with the rule: the runner can give the commands.
  • It’s the same for the tagger.
  • Let someone from the group give the command.
  • There are two taggers…

Evaluation

Enjoy it! Look at it and if it is just fun;

why would you evaluate?

Security check

Geef instructie dat de mensen die hun armen omhoog houden opletten dat ze de loper of tikker niet slaan tijdens het draaien. Met nat gras is dit niet aan te raden omdat de tikker en de loper heel vaak moeten veranderen van richting.

Explain that the people which hold their arms up have to pay attention and that they don’t beat the runner or tagger while they are turning.

 

Clap-Step-Scratch

This energy-boosting exercise takes very short, is hilarious and can let the cerebral hemispheres work together again.

How it works:

Form couples.

Each couple keeps working together so there is no change.

  • Count to three together;
  • First one person says: 1
  • After that the other one says: 2
  • Finally the first person counts again and says: 3.
  • Let the participants do this for about half a minute.

Then the next phase starts:

Replace the ‘1’ by clapping in the hands. The other says: 2, then 3 and then there has to be clapped again.

Then the next phase starts:

The ’2′ is replaced by stamping with your right foot.

Then the next phase starts:

The ’3′ is replaced by ‘scratching’ at the arm of the other.

Race against the clock

A very simple energizer which only takes 2 minutes, which will make everyone gasp (after it) and everyone feels alive again. What gorgeous after dinner!

How it works:

The group starts to stand in a circle. Everyone holds eachother’s hand. You, as the trainer give the go-ahead sign. When you have given the go-ahead sign, the group starts to turn around three times clockwise, stop, and turn around two times counter-clockwise.

It has no meaning or whatsoever…., but it is really fun to do! And… everyone is ready to ‘learn and discover’ again.

Differentation

With a large group you can also turn around only once.

Do this while you are recording the time. After the first time you encourage the group to do it faster the second time.

Outside in

A fun start for a team is this one:

This activity promotes:

he instruction:

Time: 10 minutes

Participants: 8 or more

Has to be done inside, not outside

Active

Required materials

duct tape

Arrangement 

The participants are sitting in splits on the ground in a circle with the faces turned to the center. The left ankle is strapped to the right ankle of the person at the left side with duct tape.

How it works:

Participants have to turn from the inside to the outside of the circle. In other words, the backs are getting closer to eachother. This has to happen without releasing the ankles.

Solution (give it straight away):

If half of the people in the circle hang or sit as low as possible to the ground, the other half can creep over the others.

Evaluation

  1. How was it?
  2. Was there discussion, was there a strategy?
  3. Did you keep trying?
  4. Who was in charge?

Security check

N/a

 

Roundcounter

Something to do in between the training is ’the roundcounter’. It’s energetic, big fun and after it’s finished people have learned a few things.

This activity promotes:

Required materials

None

How does it work/Instruction

  • The participants get a group assignment.
  • Laat de groep in een cirkel polonaise gaan staan, zonder de handen op de schouders te leggen.
  • Let the group stand in a circle  without putting the hands on the shoulders.

The instruction for the group is as following:”You have to take ten staps forward, after that you turn 180 degrees and you take nine steps back, you turn 180 degrees again and you take nine steps back, then you turn 180 degrees again and you take eight steps back, etc. etc. until you can’t take steps anymore.”

Evaluation:

One person will take the lead and count out loud. The other person will have mostly big FUN while another person wants to be guided by others and another person wonders why he/she is doing this. What did you show? What have you learnt as a group for the future?

Color areas

This method promotes:

The instruction:

Time: 1-10 min

Participants: limited to 4 (Adapt the color areas to the size of the group)

Inside and outside

Required materials

3 ropes (length is dependent on the size of the group starting from 5 meter)

Arrangement:

lay down three ropes parallel to each other (space between the ropes has to be at least 1.5 meter)

The space up to rope 1: red

Space from 1-2: white               

Space from 2-3: blue

Space after rope 3: orange

How it works:

Say a color and the participants have to try to stand in the area with this color as fast as possible. The last one which tries to stand in it drops out. If you stand in a wrong area you also drop off.

An alternative way:  

  • To make it a bit harder for the participants you can:
  • Split the area from red white blue in a different order than the order of the Dutch flag.
  • Say red and point to the blue area.
  • Say the wrong colors.
  • Make the areas bigger.

 

Sitting on lap

This method promotes:

the instruction:

Time: 5-10 min

Participants: unlimited

Outside and inside ( it’s a matter of pushing the tables and chairs to the side)

Required materials

none

How it works:

The participants get the task to sit on the lap of another person.

They can do this in the following manner.

All participants start standing in a circle with their left leg in the middle and look at eachothers back. Make the circle smaller until every participant is belly to back with another participant.

Let a person count from one to three and everyone kneels down at the same time which makes them sit on the lap of another person.

alternative 

Count from 1 to 3 again and at 3 each participant steps with his or her right foot, after that with the left foot, etc. In this way people run round in a circle.

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