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Tag Archives for " Getting Acquianted "

the ultimate name game: Everyone is someone else.

“What was your name again?” is a question your hear all the time, especially during a training or at a meeting. The ultimate name game plays with this idea. The ultimate name game is, like the activities described above, a good way to get acquainted.
This activity promotes
     • acquaintance
     • contact
     • energy
     • fun
     • many more
Required material
     • name tags (to pin or put down and a marker)
Game sequence / instruction
You will see during trainings or seminars that after registration, you will receive a name tag that you can pin on your shirt. This also happens in training rooms in the form of a folded card on the table.
With this method you give each participant a card that is not his/her own. It is then the first task of that person to find and hand over the name card owner.
How you organize it exactly is up to you. Examples: you consciously pin the wrong card on arrival at the participant (or you let someone of your team do this) and tell them that they will soon be told why they did not receive their own card.
Or allow the participants to enter the room and they will find a ticket in their seat. But you ask them to pin it and then find the owner. Extra assignment: Let them discover why they have just received a card that belongs to somebody else (search for community).

“Guess the animal” The game

This way of working is, just like Human Bingo, a way to start before the training, workshop or meeting begins to get the participants to get to know each other.
This icebreaker promotes
Required material
  • two rolls (painters) of tape
  • good black highlighters.
Game sequence / instruction
The participants do not know each other. You want them to come into contact with each other in a easy-going way.
You start your explanation by saying that you tear off a piece of tape and write an animal name on it. You stick this tape to someone on his back without him knowing what animal name there is. This person must discover by asking closed questions which animal he ‘is’. In the meantime, others are also busy tearing down tapes and writing animal names on them and sticking these tapes to someone else’s back.
When the last participants have arrived, you can see if you can complete the game. Of course, there must be a few people who have guessed their name.
There is no need to evaluate. Look for yourself what kind of meat you have in the tub; which people are more easy-going and which are more quiet and introverted, so that you as a trainer also get to know the group.
Have you tried this game? Let us know what you think and leave a comment below!

 

Human Bingo: Bingo with a twist!

‘Human Bingo’ is a fun way to introduce participants to each other, at the start of the training, workshop or meeting. ‘Human Bingo’ is excellent for getting good energy. I always see hugely enthusiastic and happy faces. You hear everyone talking to each other, a lot of movement, laughing and finally there is someone calling “Bingo !!!”.

This activity promotes

• communication
• getting aquainted

Required materials

• pens.
• a bingo card with statements (for each participant a card).

Game sequence / instruction

The group is instructed to enter into a dialogue with each other and to enter the names of the participants on the bingo card.
After all the participants are in possession of a bingo card, the icebreaker starts. Then people start talking to each other and try to answer all the statements on the bingo card as quickly as possible. An example: “Are you in possession of a first aid diploma?” If the person to whom the question is asked “yes”, he writes his name on your bingo card.
The person who called “Bingo!” may come forward. Naturally, the card is checked. I do this by simply mentioning one of the questions: ‘Which of you is in possession of a first aid diploma?’

Differentiation

You can only ask one question at a time. Then you must first have been with someone else before you can ask a second question to the same person.

Goal of the game

Try to fill your bingo card with as many different names as possible.

Game sequence

Find a participant for whom the question is valid.
Have this person fill in his or her name in the box.
Only one name will appear in each box moreover, each name can be placed on the card only once.
Loudly call “BINGO” once you have filled all the boxes.

Human Bingo, Bingo with a twist! Bingo card

Have you tried this game? Let us know what you think and leave a comment below!

Making Connections

Mark Collard is the founder and director of playmeo and he has written many books on the subject of icebreakers.

He started playmeo as an innovative online platform to share fun and valuable group games. Besides having a website and many books on his name, he now also has a youtube channel. It is called Mark Collard and it gives a helpful guide on how to facilitate a great group activity. The channel also give a few examples of great teambuilding activities.

In this video he explains and shows a fun exercise you can do with a group of people that don’t know each other yet.

Over 600 Icebreakers & Games

Jennifer Carter

Content

In Over 600 icebreakers and games, you will always find the right icebreaker. You can choose from over 6oo icebreakers as the title say. These icebreakers are divided in categories  from Getting To Know One Another and Hopes & Dreams to Fun Ice Beakers and Ideas & Creative Thinking. They will help you and your team to become more effective and have fun at the same time. It can be a great way to get acquinted with each other or to come up with new ideas and strategies. It can also help to find the strengths and weaknesses of the team. And this is just the top of the iceberg. It can stimulate skills from communication to Out-Of-The-Box thinking. This book make your team better and more productive in a fun and informal way.

Appearance

It has a very nice cover as you can see on the picture, it is very simple jet very suitable and elegant. When you open the book you see the same thing. It has a clear structure. Every Icebreakers starts with it’s purpose, title and a short explaination of how it works and when you can use it. Even more at the beginning of the book Carter explains some general ideas about icebreakers, which are very helpful.

If you want to order the book or read more about it, you can click here.

The big book of icebreakers

By Edie West

Content

Are you trying to get people to work together in a great atmosphere? Yes! Then this is the book for you. You can use icebreakers when leading a meeting or giving a presentation. It is a great way to start a workshop or event and it will encourage people to participate more. In The big book of icebreakers you will find 50 icebreakers that are designed for everyday business situations. The book helps you start every session or meeting with energy and fun. In this book are icebreakers for sales meetings, teambuilding, meeting complete strangers, introducing a topic, staff meetings, groups over 20, outdoor settings and many more. These quick fun activities will help light up your meetings and workshops.

Appearance

This book is a must-have when it comes to icebreakers. It has a very clear structure and there is a matrix at the beginning of the book to help you find the perfect icebreaker. With a couple of questions you can easily find the icebreaker you need. Edie West gives you tips on how to use these icebreakers. He also made a list of his top 10 icebreakers and he even took care of opening and closing lines. Besides that the book is very convenient it also has a humorous tone in it. So, is there for example one icebreakers category called “Icebreakers for stuffy conservative types who hate icebreakers”. This makes the book fun to read. And the icebreakers themselves have the same structure every time, which gives the book a organized look.

If you want to order the book or read more about it, you can click here or on the picture.

Papersmash

This icebreaker is great with a group that just met.

this activity promotes

Instructions

Time: 10 – 15 min

Participants: 6 – 14

Inside as well as outside.

Active

Required materials

Newspaper

Arrangement

All the participants stand in a circle.

Frame

The participants just met each other and may have done some games already to get to know each other.

How it works

  • Everybody stands in a circle and “the smasher” stands in the middle.
  • Someone in the circle says the name of someone else. The smasher tries to find this person and hits that person with the newspaper on the legs.
  • To avoid getting hit the person, whose name has been called, says another name. Then the smasher has to go after this person. If he is too late and gets hit, he becomes the smasher.

Differentiation

  • Making the circle bigger or smaller.
  • Adding rules such as, a man can only say a woman’s name or you can’t say someone whose hair has the same colour as yours.
  • Before you say the name you have to clap in your hands.
  • Suggestions from the group.

Safety check

Make sure that the participants only hit under the knees, in such a way that it doesn’t hurt.

Attention points

Keep changing the rules. To make sure that it stays interesting.

 

 

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?

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