1. Helium Stick
Deceptively simple but powerful exercise for
learning how to work togetherand communicate in
small to medium sized groups.
Line up in two rows which face each other.
Introduce the Helium Stick- a long, thin, lightweight
rod.
Ask participants to point their index fingers and hold
their arms out.
Lay the Helium Stick down on their fingers. Get the
group to adjust their finger heights until the Helium
Stick is horizontal and everyone's index fingers are
touching the stick.
Explain that the challenge is to lower the Helium
Stick to the ground.
The catch: Each person's fingers must be in contact
with the Helium Stick at all times. Pinching or
grabbing the pole in not allowed - it must rest on top
of fingers.
Reiterate to the group that if anyone's finger is caught
not touching the Helium Stick, the task will be
restarted. Let the task begin....
Warning: Particularly in the early stages,the Helium
Stick has a habit of mysteriously 'floating' up rather
than coming down, causing much laughter. A bit of
clever humoring can help - e.g., act surprised and ask
what are they doing raising the Helium Stick instead
of lowering it! For added drama, jump up and pull it
down!
Participants may be confused initially about the
paradoxical behavior of the Helium Stick.
Some groups or individuals (most often larger size
groups)after 5 to 10 minutes of trying may be
inclined to give up, believing it not to be possible or
that it is too hard.
The facilitator can offer direct suggestions orsuggest
the group stops the task, discusses theirstrategy,and
then has another go.
Less often, a group may appear to be succeeding too
fast. In response,be particularly vigilant about
fingers not touching the pole. Also make sure
participants lower the pole all the way onto the
ground. You can add further difficulty by adding a
large washer to each end of the stick and explain that
the washers should not fall off during the exercise,
otherwise it's a restart.
Eventually the group needs to calm down,
concentrate,and very slowly, patiently lower the
Helium Stick - easier said than done.
How Does it Work?
The stick does not contain helium. The secret (keep
it to yourself) is that the collective upwards pressure
created by everyone's fingers tends to be greater than
the weight of the stick. As a result, the more a group
tries, the more the stick tends to 'float' upwards.
Toxic Waste
This is a popular, engaging small group initiative
activity which always provides a rich teamwork
challenge for about 30-45 minutes. Involves
thinking, imagination, action, fantasy,risk and an
attractive solution.
Can be done with adolescents oradults.
The challenge is to move the toxic waste contents to
the "neutralization" container using minimal
equipment and maintaining a safe distance within a
time limit.
Moderately difficult - avoid using with groups who
are still in the early stages of group development.
Works best towards the end of a program and/orafter
the group has come togetherand dealt with basic
teamwork issues.
Can be done indoors or outdoors; outdoors is more
dramatic because water can be used as the "toxic
waste" instead of balls.
Set-Up
Use the rope to create a circle at least 8 ft in diameter
on the ground to represent the toxic waste radiation
zone. The larger the radiation zone, the more difficult
the activity.
Place the small bucket in the center of the radiation
zone and fill it with water or balls to represent the
toxic waste.
Place the large neutralization bucket approximately
30 to 50 feet away. The greater the distance, the more
difficult the activity.
Put all other equipment (i.e., bungee,cords,and red
herring objects (optional)) in a pile near the rope
circle.
Directions
The challenge is for the group to work out how to
transfer the toxic waste from the small bucket into the
large bucket where it will be "neutralized", using
only the equipment provided and within a time frame.
The waste will blow up and destroy the world after
20 minutes if it is not neutralized.
Anyone who ventures into the radiation zone will
suffer injury and possibly even death,and spillage
will create partial death and destruction. Therefore,
the group should aim to save the world and do so
without injury to any group members.
The rope circle represents the radiation zone
emanating from the toxic waste in the bucket.
Emphasize that everyone must maintain a distance
(circle radius) from the toxic waste wherever it goes,
otherwise they will suffer severe injury, such as loss
of a limb or even death.
Give the group some planning time with no action
e.g. 5 mins. Then start the clock and indicate it is
time for action, e.g., 15 or 20 mins.
Facilitator Notes
Toxic Waste is not an easy exercise and most groups
will benefit from some coaching along the way.
The solution involves attaching the cords to the
bungee loop, then guiding the bungee with the strings
to sit around and grab the toxic waste bucket. Then
with everyone pulling on their cord and with good
coordination and care, the toxic waste bucket can be
lifted, moved and tipped into the empty neutralizing
bucket.
If someone breaches the toxic waste zone, indicated
by the circle, enforce an appropriate penalty e.g., loss
of limbs (hand behind back) or function (e.g.,
blindfolds if a head enters the zone) that lasts for the
rest of the game. If a whole person enters the zone,
they die and must then sit out for the rest of the
activity.
If the group struggles to work out what to do, freeze
the action and help them discuss.
If the group spills the waste entirely, make a big deal
about catastrophic failure (everyone dies), invite
them to discuss what went wrong and how they can

2. do better, then refill the container and let them have
anothergo.
Ideas for varying the level difficulty of the activity:
Adjust timeframe
Adjust distance between the buckets
Include obstacles between the buckets
Include red herring objects in available equipment
Processing Ideas
There are invariably plenty of key communications
and decisions during the exercise that provide for
fruitful debriefing.
The exercise will tend to naturally expose processes
and issues related to many aspects ofteamwork,
including cooperation,communication, trust,
empowerment, risk-taking, support,problem-solving,
decision-making, and leadership.
Can be videoed for subsequent analysis and
debriefing.
How successfulwas the group? e.g., consider:
How long did it take?
Was there any spillage?
Were there any injuries? (Often in the euphoria of
finishing participants will overlook their errors and
seem unconcerned about injuries and deaths caused
by carelessness along the way. Make sure there is an
objective evaluation of performance - it is rarely
'perfect'.)
How well did the group cope with this challenge?
(e.g., out of 10?)
What was the initial reaction of the group?
What skills did it take for the group to be successful?
What would an outside observerhave seen as the
strengths and weaknesses ofthe group?
How did the group come up with its best ideas?
What did each group member learn about him/her
self as a group member?
What lessons did the group learn from this exercise
which could be applied to future situations?
More information on Facilitation and creative debrief
and processing tools
Variations
Can be used as a staff selection or group assessment
exercise.
Can be used with large groups (with multiple kits and
divided into small groups).
The toxic waste bucket can be used upside down,
with a ball balanced on top.
Mine Field
A popular and engaging game involving
communication and trust. The task is very flexible,
works for groups of various types and sizes, and can
be adapted to youth, adults,corporate, etc.
Select an appropriate area. Go outside,if possible.
Can be done inside, even in rooms with fixed
furniture (which can become objects to be avoided).
Distribute "mines" e.g., balls or otherobjects such as
bowling pins, cones,foam noodles,etc.
Establish a concentrating and caring tone for this
activity. Trust exercises require a serious atmosphere
to help develop a genuine sense of trust and safety.
Participants operate in pairs. Consider how the pairs
are formed - it's a chance to work on relationships.
One person is blind-folded (or keeps eyes closed)and
cannot talk (optional). The other person can see and
talk, but cannot enter the field or touch the person.
The challenge is for each blind-folded person to walk
from one side of the field to the other, avoiding the
"mines", by listening to the verbal instructions of
their partners.
Allow participants a short period (e.g., 3 minutes) of
planning time to decide on their communication
commands, then begin the activity.
Be wary of blindfolded people bumping into each
other. The instructor(s) can float around the playing
area to help prevent collisions.
Decide on the penalty for hitting a "mine". It could
be a restart (serious consequence)or time penalty or
simply a count of hits, but without penalty.
It can help participants if you suggest that they each
develop a unique communication system. When
participants swap roles, give participants some
review and planning time to refine their
communication method.
Allow participants to swap over and even have
several attempts, until a real, satisfied sense of skill
and competence in being able to guide a partner
through the "minefield" develops.
The activity can be conducted one pair at a time (e.g.,
in a therapeutic situation), or with all pairs at once
(creates a more demanding exercise due to the extra
noise/confusion).
Can be conducted as a competitive task - e.g., which
pair is the quickest or has the fewest hits?
The facilitator plays an important role in creating an
optimal level of challenge, e.g., considerintroducing
more items or removing items if it seems too easy or
too hard. Also considercoaching participants with
communication methods (e.g., for youngerstudents,
hint that they could benefit from coming up with
clear commands for stop,forward, left, right, etc.).
Be cautious about blind-folding people - it can
provoke trust and care issues and trigger post-
traumatic reactions. Minimize this risk by
sequencing Mine Field within a longer program
involving other get-to-know-you and trust building
activities before Mine Field.
Variations
Minefield in a Circle: Blindfolded people start on the
outside of a large rope circle, go into middle, get an
item ("treasure",e.g., a small ball or bean bag), then
return to the outside; continue to see who can get the
most objects within a time period.
Metaphorical Framing: Some set ups for minefield
get very elaborate and metaphor-rich, e.g., hanging
objects which metaphorically reflect the participants'
background and/or issues. For example, items which
represent drugs, peer pressure,talking with parents
about the problem, etc. have been used in a family
adventure therapy program (Gillis & Simpson, 1994).
Participants can begin by trying to cross the field by
themselves. In a second round,participants can then
ask someone else to help them traverse the field by
"talking" them through the field.
To increase the difficulty, you can have other people
calling out.The blindfolded person must concentrate
on their partner's voice amidst all the othervoices
that could distract them from the task.
Be aware that some participants may object to, or
have previous traumatic experience around the
metaphor of explosive mines which have caused and
continue to cause much harm and suffering. It may
be preferable to rename the activity, for example, as

3. an "obstacle course" or"navigation course".
Alternatively, the activity could be used to heighten
awareness about the effect of land mines on the lives
of people in countries such as Afghanistan and
Nicaragua (see UNICEF information on land mines).
Processing Ideas
How much did you trust your partner (out of 10) at
the start?
How much did you trust your partner (out of 10) at
the end?
What is the difference between going alone and being
guided by another?
What ingredients are needed when trusting and
working with someone else?
What did yourpartner do to help you feel safe and
secure?
What could your partner have done to help make you
feel more safe/secure?
What communication strategies worked best?
For some more ideas, download Minefield in a Circle
- Debrief (.doc)
Equipment
Mine Field Kit with Activity Guide & facilitation
notes
Markers or lengths of rope to indicate the boundaries
(e.g., 50 yard rectangular field)
Bowling pins or many soft objects,such as larger
balls and stuff - the more the better
Blind folds (can be optional)
Warp Speed
Warp Speed is a Group Juggle spin-off activity to
focus on problem-solving and teamwork.
Extends the common Group Juggle icebreaker/name
game to a team building exercise by asking
participants how fast they can pass the ball to
everyone (including saying names). Groups can
tender a time and then try to deliver. Push them to go
even faster.
Use the set up & instructions as for Group Juggle, but
probably not emphasizing names.
Challenge the group to see how fast it can juggle one
ball around the whole group. Time the group,and
ask them to "tender" for how fast they think they can
really do it.
Explain that the tenderis like a business tender - they
must put in a really good bid, but they must be able to
deliver.
Allow time for discussion and planning.
Then ask them what their tender is & then ask them
to deliver it.
If they make it, then ask them to think again, because
they undersold themselves. Askthem to come up
with a new tender which better reflects their
capabilities as a group.
If they don't make it, then ask them to discuss what
went wrong, and say you'll give them a second
chance to make their tender.
Generally requires debriefing.
Links to other descriptions of Warp Speed
First steps oftraining & development - Group
Juggling
- plus Warp Speed
Equipment
15 tossable items in mesh stuff sack with directions
Several soft balls or throwable objects-The more, the
merrier!
Time
~15 minutes
Variation
Group Juggle
A team building exercise based on the icebreaker
"Group Juggle". Groups are challenged to juggle as
fast as possible. Invite group to "tender" a time they
can deliver.
Tangle
November 21st, 2010 by teamaholic No comments »
Materials: None
Aims: Group development, trust,warm-up
Procedure: The whole group links hands into a
human chain. First person leads chain through itself,
over and underarms, between legs, etc. Extra care
must be taken not to break the chain, to move slowly
and to be gentle. Tangle ends when group is too
tightly packed to move. One person then untangles
the group,giving them directions without touching
them.
Sitting Circle
November 21st, 2010 by teamaholic No comments »
Materials: Circle of over 25 people
Aims: Trust, fun
Procedure:
Group stands in a close circle, in queue form, with
right shoulders towards the center of the circle. The
circle closes so that everyone is touching the person
in front and behind them. Each participant holds the
waist of the person in front. Everyone bends their
knees until they feel themselves supported on the
knee of the person behind.
If successful(rarely happens first time) the whole
group is self supported,each person sitting on the
knee of the person behind.
Note: This can only be successfulif the circular
shape is maintained throughout and it is helpful if the
group leans slightly towards the center as they are
trying to settle down.
Variations: After secure sitting position is achieved
everyone leans inwards slightly and raises left leg.
Try to alternate stepping with right and left feet (very
difficult).

4. Body Lift
November 21st, 2010 by teamaholic No comments »
Aims: Trust, concentration,group development
Procedure: Group chooses each member in turn and
elevates them to a horizontal position above the
heads of the group. The person is held there for a
specific period, and then lowered carefully to the
floor. The elevated person must relax and close eyes.
It is often a good idea to have the groups raise and
lower in unison. This often avoids confusion and
helps concentration.
Variations: Vary speed and control of lift: walk, rock,
etc. Have the person involved give instructions to the
group. Combine with Backward fall & catch.
No comments »
Posted in Team Building Games
One Special Thing
November 21st, 2010 by teamaholic No comments »
This exercise is a good one to use early in the
semester because it helps to build a sense ofgroup
rapport through the establishment of an environment
for self-disclosure.
Divide the class into pairs. Instruct the students to
carry on a normal conversation for five minutes, each
person telling the other as much as possible about
himself. Ask the students to pick those things about
themselves that they think are important to share.
After five minutes ask the class to come back
togetheragain as one large group (preferably in a
circle). Then ask each student to introduce his partner
by stating his partner’s name and the one special
thing that impressed him as most important about that
person.
If you like, you can end the discussion by asking the
group to talk about what it was like to talk to the
other person and what it was like to be talked about
in the group.
No comments »
Posted in Ice Breakers
Bomb Shelter
November 21st, 2010 by teamaholic No comments »
Materials: None
Aims: Role-playing, group decision-making, group
interaction
Procedure: Divide in groups of 8 – 10. Each group
member adopts a specific role, usually an occupation
(for example: a doctor, an athlete, a teacher, movie-
star, mother, housewife, etc; these can be written out
and picked from a hat).
Tell groups they are in an air-raid shelter after an
atom bomb has fallen, big enough and with enough
air and food for only six people, therefore they must
get rid of several members.
Each group member must argue why he should be
allowed to survive. A group decision must be reached
for who goes and stays:no suicides or murder
allowed.
Set a time limit for the decision.
Later discuss how the group interacted making the
decision, whether each person played an active or
passive role, how satisfied each was with his role,
etc.
Variations: Instead of an air-raid shelter, have a life
raft or desert island or space ship. Add incidents,
accidents,rituals, funerals, ceremonies.
Guess the person
Also known as the Name Game or Fishbowl
This game works best with smaller groups - around
8-12 people, so if you have a big group, it's best to
split up and play multiple games.
Each person should write down the names of 10
people - either famous people or people everyone in
the group knows. Get people to cut their pieces of
paper up so there's one name per piece of paper. Go
around and collect them in a basket or hat. You
should have quite a few names in the basket.
Split into 2 or 3 teams (each team having around
three or four members).
Round One.
Pick a team to start - one member of that team gets
the basket of names, picks out a name, and has to try
and describe that person to the other members of his
team. Once they guess correctly, pull out another
name from the hat and so on. The team has one
minute to go through as many names as they can. If
they get stuckon a name, they can pass and move
onto the next name. Names that are guessed
succesfully, put in a separate pile, those that are
'passed'put back in the basket. When the minute is
up, add up the total number of names guessed,and
add that to the team's score. Move onto the next team
who do the same as above. This continues until all
the names have been used up or 'guessed'.
Round Two.
Similar to Round 1 but you can only use one word to
describe the person to your group. The group will be
aware of all the names in the basket (from round 1)
so it is easier than it sounds. Score a point per name
guessed as above.
Round Three
Same as previous rounds but this time, you have to
'act' out the person without speaking.
Add up the scores at the end to see who wins
Equipment needed
Pens
Paper
Basket or hat
Body speller
Form two or more teams. Then have team members
take turns standing in front of their teams and
spelling out words or phrases for the team to guess.
The speller is not allowed to speak or mouth the
words. You'll assign various methods that kids can
use to spell the words. For example, the spellers may
only be able to use their index finger, or even their
feet. A point is awarded to the first team to guess the
word or phrase.
Build a bridge

5. The idea of this game is simple - split your group into
teams of 3 or 4, and give each team a "Building Kit"
(explained below) and a bowl of water. Each group
has 30 minutes to build a bridge to span across a
bowl of water.
At the end of 30 minutes, each group has to
demonstrate their bridge. You then test it for strength
by adding pebbles one at a time, until the bridge
collapses. The team with the strongest bridge wins!
Building Kit
The Building Kit is a shoeboxwith a variety of
building materials. For example:
Ice cream sticks
Putty / Bluetack / Elmer's Tack
Paper clips
String
Glue
etc
Make sure each group has the same amount of
materials, just to keep things fair.
Buzz Fizz
Separate the group into groups of 10 (or there abouts
depending on the size of your group). They have to
count from 1 to 50 as a group. However, the catch is
that at all multiples of five they must say "Buzz!" and
at all multiples of seven and at any number that also
contains the name seven,they must say "Fizz!". If the
group messes up, they have to start over again. As the
groups finish, have them stand up and cheer.
For your reference (don't use this while playing the
game):
Buzz Numbers 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50
Fizz Numbers 7, 14, 17, 21, 27, 28, 35, 37, 42, 47, 49
Dodgeball
Dodgeball is a classic youth group game - definitely
needs to be played in a place where balls cannot
cause too much damage!
Split yourgroup into two teams. They line up at
opposite ends of the hall or gym. In the middle, place
5 or 6 balls. See diagram below
Team
1 5 or 6
balls
here
Team
2
Start by yelling "Dodgeball". The two teams then
race to the middle, grab the balls, and start throwing
them at the otherteam.
If you are hit directly by a ball, you are out and must
leave the playing area
If you catch someone's throw, they are out, and in
addition, you can bring one of your 'outed' team
members back into the game.
If you fumble whilst trying to catch a ball, you're out.
You can use a ball you are holding to deflect a ball
thrown at you.
The game continues until a team runs out of team
members.
Guess the person
Also known as the Name Game or Fishbowl
This game works best with smaller groups - around
8-12 people, so if you have a big group, it's best to
split up and play multiple games.
Each person should write down the names of 10
people - either famous people or people everyone in
the group knows. Get people to cut their pieces of
paper up so there's one name per piece of paper. Go
around and collect them in a basket or hat. You
should have quite a few names in the basket.
Split into 2 or 3 teams (each team having around
three or four members).
Round One.
Pick a team to start - one member of that team gets
the basket of names, picks out a name, and has to try
and describe that person to the other members of his
team. Once they guess correctly, pull out another
name from the hat and so on. The team has one
minute to go through as many names as they can. If
they get stuckon a name, they can pass and move
onto the next name. Names that are guessed
succesfully, put in a separate pile, those that are
'passed'put back in the basket. When the minute is
up, add up the total number of names guessed,and
add that to the team's score. Move onto the next team
who do the same as above. This continues until all
the names have been used up or 'guessed'.
Round Two.
Similar to Round 1 but you can only use one word to
describe the person to your group. The group will be
aware of all the names in the basket (from round 1)
so it is easier than it sounds. Score a point per name
guessed as above.
Round Three
Same as previous rounds but this time, you have to
'act' out the person without speaking.
Add up the scores at the end to see who wins!
Equipment needed
Pens
Paper
Basket or hat