A Mid-Year/Year-End Check-List

A Mid-Year/Year-End Check-list

Public Achievement is not only about completing a project; a successful project is a powerful public work and example to others. Not every team finishes such a project, but there are other important indicators of success. Consider the following. Halfway through the year, or even at the end of the year, how many of your PA students will have done the following?

Fall Spring

Ice-breakers, Team Builders, Games and Activities
for Public Achievement

(Many thanks to everyone who has contributed to this list!)

During the first few weeks of Public Achievement, it is important that team members not only get to know one another, but also become comfortable and trusting of one another. The importance of these activities is not necessarily the activity itself, but rather, the activity combined with reflection and debriefing immediately after it. A successful activity is one in which the team is able to understand the concepts better, understand the problem, and are able to reflect on the group dynamics that have been the center of discussion.

Why use activities?
Activities and games cam be effective tools for:

*learning names and getting acquainted

*building trust

*strengthening community and team spirit

*identifying and discussing problems

*improving understanding of core concepts

*promoting leadership in the group

*having fun!

How to choose an activity…
When choosing a game or activity to play, keep these questions in mind:

*What is the purpose for this activity?

*What lesson (objective) do I want this game to demonstrate and can it be clearly connected in a reflection component?

*Do we have enough time to play the game, debrief and reflect on the outcome?

*In reality, will this game get the group to focus, or more sidetracked?

Ice Breakers

Name Circle
This is a name recall activity that seems difficult in large groups, but it is surprising how many names can be remembered by the end. Seat everyone in a circle. The facilitator introduces himself/herself first with "Hi my name is _____." The next person is instructed to introduce the previous persons and then give their name. "Hi, this is ____ and I'm ____." Each person then has to add the previous names. "Hi that's ____, that's ____ and I'm ____." It is very important that people to speak loudly and slowly. Everyone in the circle should be instructed to ask people to repeat and speak slowly if needed, as the people at the end will get nervous! The facilitator is last so they will repeat all the names. The activity can be varied by asking participants to give an adjective that starts the same as their name, "I'm “bouncing Bob." Or, it can be done as in the Memory Game below.

Memory Game
This is a variation on the “Name Circle” and also teaches listening skills. Pick a question (Favorite color, how many people in your family, why the group’s issue matters to you, etc.) and have everyone introduce themselves and answer the question. Go around in a circle, and have the students repeat what the people ahead of them have said, so that the last person in the circle retells the entire group’s answers.

All My Friends
This activity is a variation on musical chairs and can help people get acquainted. Everyone sits in a circle, except for one person who stands in the middle. The facilitator or coach can take this spot initially. There are only enough chairs for the other team members. The person in the center begins the game by saying something that all the participants might (or might not) have in common. "All my friends (or “all good citizens”) wear tennis shoes." At that point, all who are wearing tennis shoes must get up and move to a different chair. The person in the center goes to one vacant chair (if they can) and one person is left standing => they are then in the center and can choose what characteristic to call on; e.g. "All good citizens have been a facilitator!" or more likely, "All good citizens have blonde hair." The game continues as long as the coach wants. Debriefing could be done by discussing what they learned about similarities and differences.

I’m going to Mail a Letter
Everyone sits in a circle on chairs where there is one less chair than the number of people in the group. The extra person stands inside the circle describing the group of people to whom he will mail a letter. All those for whom the description applies must get up and attempt to get the few chairs available. The person must move if the description applies and go at least two chairs away. For example, “I’m going to mail a letter to everyone that has spoken in front of a group,” so all those in the group who have publicly spoken, and the person that chose that particular group, volley for the available seats. The person left standing is in the middle giving a new description of the people to whom he/she sent a letter. While playing, try to encourage leadership skills.

Ball Toss
Each group member greets another person as they toss a ball to them. Variations: the ball goes around in the same pattern, but silently. Another ball (or two or three) can be added. Reverse the order of the greeting. Have the group problem-solve: How could we make the pattern go faster? (Move closer, abbreviate the greeting, silently pass the ball etc.) Time the group to see how much progress can be made after brainstorming solutions!

Rotating Chair
Everyone in the group sits down on chairs in a circle. One person volunteers to be in the middle, leaving an extra chair. The person next to the open chair is competing with the person in the middle for that open chair so that person moves to fill it and the next person moves to fill that open chair. Consequently, the chair is rotating around the circle while the person in the middle is trying to beat the circle in filling it.
Pair Up
People begin by pairing up and leaving one extra person--the leader. They call out two body parts that the two people should have connected. Every time there is a new call, group members must switch partners. For example, if the leader calls out, “ear to elbow,” the ear of one person should find an elbow of a new partner.

Life Stories
Provide paper and drawing utensils, and have the group individually work on a drawing or representation of their life. It could be a time-line with significant events or just a picture of their favorite memory. Some groups may need more direction than others, so be prepared with some basic questions you are interested in knowing. For example, “how many people are in your family?” “If you were an animal, what kind of animal would you be?” “What do you think aliens look like?” If team members are comfortable at the end, have them share with others in the group. This is a great resource to have for later in the year, so try to go back to it and reference it as much as possible!

M&M’s

Have everyone sit in a circle and have enough candy so everyone in the group can take a few to a bunch. Start at one end and tell people not to eat the candy until everyone is able to get some. Have someone volunteer to go first and have them share one thing for every M&M they have. Another variation is having roll of toilet paper and telling the group to take enough pieces to last them for a 3-day camping trip. For every piece they have, they share something about themselves with the team

Team Builders

Partner Drawing
Have team members partner up, and give them two minutes to silently draw a picture using one piece of paper, one pencil, but they each had to have one hand on the pencil at all times. Afterwards, discuss what the drawings ended up looking like and how the team felt about not being able to verbalize ideas of what to draw. Some emotions that may come up are confusion and frustration, since none of their drawings turned out the way that they had originally thought they would look like.
Next, have them turn the paper over for a second round, and allow only one of the partners that they could talk. Again, once done with this round, discuss how the drawings were better, but only after the idea of one person. The person who could talk will probably feel uncomfortable with their power and feel bad because they essentially told the other person what to draw. The person who couldn’t talk will probably feel frustrated because they weren’t able to voice their opinion. In the end the team learns how important it is for everyone in a democracy to have the ability to verbalize his or her wants and desires. Everyone should have a say on how the picture should be drawn. In order for the team to draw the “big picture” together, they will have to cooperate and allow everyone to talk during the meetings. By respecting whoever is talking, the team will work a lot better.

Tarp Island--(Use a plastic tarp barely large enough for all the participants. For a large group of 10-15 you can use a larger tarp. For smaller groups, smaller tarps.) Everyone is instructed to stand on the tarp. The tarp is an island and that the floor surrounding it is "hot lava" or "filled with alligators" or some such idea. The goal for the group is to turn the tarp over without stepping off. This works well for large groups and when you set up two or more groups to compete. Groups will find different solutions. This activity gets people up and moving as they work together, awkwardly to solve a problem in different ways.

The Maze—(Use masking tape to draw a set of squares on the floor; three by four or four by four.)

Participants are instructed that they cannot speak; each is to take a turn and begin at the square the coach/facilitator designates as the beginning. Team members step on squares until they come to the end point. However, the coach or facilitator has a secret map that shows the order in which the squares must be crossed. The first person enters the maze by stepping on the beginning square and then moves onto another. If this square is not the next one of the secret map, the coach or facilitator shakes his head negatively. They move off the maze, and the next person tries, usually with a similar result. Eventually, someone gets the second square right, but eventually makes a "mistake." Still silent, the group may start to help out the person in the maze by nodding or suggesting where to go. Coaches can even set up two mazes to see which group gets done first and why. Debrief by talking about how even if a team knows the beginning point and where they want to go, they may not know how to get there. Also, even if a person doesn't remember where the team has been, the group may be able to help. It's important to remember what the team has done so the team know how to proceed.

Follow the Leader

One player goes somewhere she cannot see the others. A leader is chosen, who starts a simple movement that the others follow. The hidden player comes back to the group and tries to guess who the leader is while the leader changes regularly changes the movement.

Where is it?

A variation of “Follow the Leader,” a pebble is being passed around a circle, and a student in the middle of the circle tries to determine who has the pebble. The other players in the circle continue passing the pebble or pretend that they are. The pebble can be passed either way, but must always be kept in motion.

Incorporations

This game involves forming and reforming groups as quickly as possible. A leader calls out a variety of different groups. For example, “Make a group of three,” “find another person older than you and shake hands,” “form a group of three with people wearing the same color as you etc.” The leader doesn’t need to wait until each group is formed to call out the next category.

Guess the Number

Pick a number between 1 and 50 (can be larger to make the game more challenging) and write it on a hidden piece of paper. Each group member takes a turn asking ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions to try to determine the number. Encourage questions that give information, rather than just eliminate one number (Is it a two-digit number, An odd number, etc). The ultimate goal of the game is to see how many numbers the group can guess in a certain period of time, rather than to have one student “win” by correctly guessing the number

Obstacle Course
Demonstrate the different ways that a person could be an obstacle. Have one player be an obstacle, and explain to the next player that she will either need to go under, over, around or through that obstacle. The obstacle will tell her which way to go, and position himself so that the movement is possible. The player who goes through the first obstacle then becomes the second obstacle. Another player goes through the first two obstacles to become the third. After all the players have become obstacles, the player who was first goes through the course and then stands off to the side. Continue until the obstacle course unwinds itself. Activity can be repeated and timed to encourage students to work quickly together.
Description Game
Have two or three people pick a visible object in the room and give different, brief descriptions of the object to the other members of the group. (A bulletin board could be: something with writing on it, something that is a rectangle etc.) Have the other members try to guess the object, or ask “yes” and “no” questions to get more information. This can illustrate how different people may see the same object very differently. Team members can role-play different stakeholders who are involved in their issue, and predict how they would see the same issue in different ways.

The Human Pyramid (for 10 people)

The only instructions given to the team is they need to use ten people to make a pyramid. They can make it “cheerleading style,” on hands and knees building up, or they can make it by standing in the shape of a pyramid. Evaluate the game by highlighting how the team worked together, how they came to define what a human pyramid is, and how they defined success.
Everybody Up
Ask two people (of similar size) to sit on the floor facing one another so that the bottoms are their feet are opposed, knees bent, and hands tightly grasped. From this position ask the group to pull themselves up. After each successful attempt, add an additional person. An alternate game is that people must use non-verbal communication. (Warning: do not inter-lock arms--this may cause shoulder dislocation).
All Aboard
On a 2x2 platform, or on a 2x2 area marked out on the floor, try to see how many people you can fir on this space (12-15 people are possible). Teams can use different sizes of platform or space depending on the numbers. Be careful to safety issues—having everyone lie on top of one another like a stack of wood is not a good idea. Also, be aware of different people’s comfort levels of bodily contact and personal space.