Blog Posts

The A-Files #2 (and Professional Development)

2/14/2019

Here's the second installment of The A-Files. (HERE is the first one if you missed it.) I run across short activity snippets in my files (both paper and digital) all the time - activity ideas with little information. Just the basics. I always say to myself, "Chris, you need to do something with these." Okay, so, again, here's me doing something with these.

If you are interested in picking up some Professional Development credit, read below. If you want to just pick up some new activity ideas, skip down to the descriptions.

NEED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT HOURS? (I know Challenge Course Practitioners need them!) Click the Professional Development link below - this link takes you to the (super secret) PD Information and how to start your "Decoding" adventure. (With the two A-Files posts available, you can pick up two professional development hours.)

Professional Development

Where Do I Stand (Get to know others, from a workshop notes)

Needs & Numbers: One ling activity rope for 10 to 30 players.

Description: Place a long activity rope on the ground in a straight line (or, maybe a circle - that would be fun). Designate one end as, "Not me at all!" and the other end as, "That's Really Me!" Then, the facilitator (at first), asks preference-type questions to the group. After each question, players place themselves on the rope depending on how they fit between, Not me at all! and That's really me! After the facilitator asks some questions, open it up to the group members to ask questions. Examples:

I love to travel.
School/work is fun for me.
I get my schoolwork done right away.
I am an outdoorsy person. I'm into reading.
I follow the news.
I love to cook.
I'm a risk taker.

(What are some other good ones?)

Someone Like Me (Name Game & Ice-breaker, from workshop notes, then I changed it up a bit from what I saw - adding, break up lines when there are more than three players.)

Needs & Numbers: No props needed. Play with at least 20 and up to 50.

Description: Circle up the group and count off by threes - 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3 - until everyone has a number. Now, mingle around as a group for 15 seconds, saying hello, maybe share some head-nods. After 15 seconds, the facilitator says, "Shake!"

At this time, everyone starts shaking hands with others in the group. Their shaking must equal the number they gave themselves - a 1, 2 or 3. So, if I am a three, I shake a person's hand three times. When a shaker finds someone shaking the same number of times, they stay together (they can hold hands or link elbows).

Staying together, they continue shaking with their free hand (someone will be offering a left-handed shake, this is okay). When they find a like shaker, they stay connected. When a line of shakers gets longer than three players, this line divides in half (or close to it). The smaller lines go off to shake some more. Play until everyone is connected to a line. Celebrate people like you and move on....

Letters with Friends (Name Game & Warm-Up, from a Mike Spiller booklet)

Needs & Numbers: No props needed. Plays well with 20 to 50 people.

Description: Players mingle around the room sharing high-fives (or fist bumps) with other players, as they do this they say the name of the player they are connecting with - or, ask the name if unknown and say "hello" to this person.

Every 10 seconds, or so, the facilitator will call out a letter. Players get together in groups of three or four and form the letter using their bodies - challenge everyone in the small group to be a part of the letter.

When everyone has achieved the lettering, the facilitator calls, "Mingle" - all players jump up and mingle around again sharing high-fives and learning/saying names.

Easier Letters: A, C, D, E, F, H, I, K, L, M, T, U, V, Y, Z
Harder Letters: B, G, J, O, P, Q, R, S, W, X

Add it Up (Group Challenge, adapted from a Mike Spiller workshop activity - I added the group adding, instead of just adding in pairs.)

Needs & Numbers: No props needed. I think 10 to 14 players in a group would work (I haven't tried this one yet. Let me know....)

Description: This is a timed activity. During this challenge, no planning is allowed - it's meant to be a jump-in-it challenge. Only throwing numbers and counting are allowed. (Maybe some telepathy can be allowed??)

Circle up your group - designate a "start" player and a "finish" player - these two players are standing next to each other. On, "1, 2, 3, throw" (rock, paper, scissors style), each player "throws" out a number in front of them, zero to five with one hand.

The "start" player calls out his/her number, let's say, "Three!" (At this point, the stopwatch starts.) The next player (going in the direction away from the "finish" player) adds his/her number (let's say, four) to the first number, and says, "Seven!" The next player adds on and shouts the sum and so on around the circle until the "finish" play shouts the final sum of all the numbers added together. Time stops!

If someone catches a mistake, they "BUZZZZZ" the group. Restart. Try a few rounds to see how fast they can get. Change the "start" and "finish" players each round.

Cross the Divide (Problem Solving, conference workshop notes from 1992!!)

Needs & Number: Something to designate a start and finish line - something the groups will not trip over. This one works with 12 to 24 players.

Description: Designate a start and finish line - about 20 feet apart. Players get into groups of two or three behind the starting line and stand side-by-side and foot-to-foot (sides of the shoes touching).

Challenge each small group to cross the space between start and finish keeping their feet/shoes connected at all times (end players will not be connected by their outside foot). If the feet/shoes separate, they start again.

When everyone makes it across, combine two (four to six player) groups together in a line and have them go back across. How did the activity change after making the group larger?

Super Challenge: The whole group crosses in one long line.

Keep me posted my friends! Have FUN out there.

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.

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Flip and Find (with Playing Cards)

1/31/2019

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Hello Team Builder! I'm sticking with the playing card theme for this post. After you play the Ice-Breaker "Who Am !" from the LAST POST, you can play Flip and Find.

In the video above, you will see the large group version of Flip and Find (small group version below). This large group was participating in a Team Olympics - there were about 60 players in the room. Points were awarded for the top three places. So, how does it play?

Set Up:
Establish a starting line (I suggest cones or masking tape. If you use a rope, players might trip on it.) We used Jumbo Playing Cards in the Olympics (video), but any cards will work. You need a suit of 13 cards for each group of 6 to 8 players. Mix up (shuffle) each suit and then set them down in a vertical line moving away from the starting line - the first card is about 10 feet from the starting line. The further the cards are apart, the more running involved (and the more challenging they are to see from behind the starting line - if teammates are watching/ helping).

The Objective:
Turn the cards over in sequence - starting with the King and ending with the Ace - as quickly, and safely as possible.

Directions:

One person from each group can be in the "card field" at a time (over the starting line).
One card can be turned over during each turn into the card field.
If the card turned over is the first one (the King) or the next one in sequence (after the King), it can stay turned over - face up. The card must stay in the same place on the floor (or, ground).
If the card is not the one in the sequence, it must be turned back over, face down in the same place on the floor.
All players must take one true before any player takes a second turn. All players must take a second turn before anyone take a third turn, and so on.
Players can talk to each other during the activity - they can help each other remember where certain cards are positioned.
When the Ace (the final card) is turned over, the player to turn it over lifts the card into the air to signify completion of the task (jumping up and down is okay too!).

Depending how you play, there can be 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, or go by time - play two rounds and add time together for the overall place in the game.

Small Group Version

Set Up: Depending on space, you can set the cards up vertically (like in the video) or horizontally (like in the picture). When I set them horizontally, the line of cards is about 20 feet from the starting line (the closer they are the easier the cards are to see - make it easy or more challenging depending on the group). Notice, there are two groups in the picture, one is playing down the other side of the porch. I set it up this way so the two group could collaborate.

The Objective:
Turn the cards over in sequence from King to Ace.

Directions: The activity plays the same (see directions above). However, in the small group version I give each group three attempts so they have the chance to improve on their process (and, hopefully share ideas with other groups in play). A super fast time comes down to creating roles and responsibilities and relying on each other for help.

Let us know how it goes! Leave a Comment below.

Have FUN out there,

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.

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Team Building a la Card, by Jon Grizzle

1/16/2019

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I was gifted this new book by Jon Grizzle (from Jon himself) when I was attending the Association for challenge Course Technology Conference last year. (This year The ACCT Conference is in Denver Colorado, my backyard, Feb. 7-10. I'll be leading a pre-conference on Portable Team Building Activities - I get to bring ALL my props - and a couple other activity workshops during the conference. If you are in the area, it would be great to see you - let me know you follow the FUN so I can thank you properly!)

I have really enjoyed learning some new card activities and variations from the book. Along with the new activities I've picked up, Jon opened my thinking about using cards as boundary lines and borders (literally in one case) - perfect. There are some really good adaptation of well-known team building activities as well, that substitute the standard props with cards - like a card Spider Web. Clever! (You've got to build it, but we all know I like it when we build stuff.)

I put an Amazon link below to Jon's book if you're interested in picking it up.
(To help me supplement my professional blogger income, I'm now an Affiliate for Amazon. If you buy the book after using the link below, I get a little - super little - piece of the action. Every "little" bit helps.)

Here's one from the book I've already used, with a little addition from me:

Who Am I? (A nice tried-and-true ice-breaker - take out the index cards with names on them and use playing cards)

Have everyone randomly select a card without looking at the face value. Then, break into pairs (I, Chris, always ask my participants to raise up a hand, look for someone else doing the same thing, and get together.)

The goal is to discover which card they are holding by asking each other ONLY five "yes" or "no" questions. It's perfectly okay to ask more if needed, but the challenge is getting it in five questions or less.

Having multiple rounds will allow people (pairs) to begin strategizing. (Excerpted from the book.)

Here's the way I've used this one:

After giving everyone a card - asking them not to look at the face - I hold the remainder of the deck in my right hand, face down, and call it the draw pile. The same goal - discover the "rank" of the card you are holding (that's the number, letter or face card - no need to guess the suit), without looking at it. The additional goal: As a group, discover the rank of as many cards as possible in 3 minutes.

"When the activity starts, hold your card out in front of you, mingle around and ask other players questions that can ONLY be answered with a "yes" or "no". After you ask a question of someone, and get your answer, you must go off to ask someone else a question. You can always return to someone you've questioned before, you just can't ask more than one question at a time.

Once you have discovered the rank of your card, find me (the facilitator) and place your card, FACE UP in my left hand - my left hand holds the discard pile - and then take a new card from the draw pile in my right hand - don't look at the face. Then, get back out there to ask more questions. (Discovery - participants get some good cardio when doing this.)

The activity begins when I say, "GO" - time starts - and ends when I say, "FREEZE" - when time stops."

As Jon notes, multiple rounds will allow participants to develop strategies. (Discovery - I set the countdown timer on my phone to "BUZZZZZZ" after three minutes and had to put the phone in my pocket since my hands ended up being full of cards.)

Thanks for the inspiration Jon - GOOD STUFF!

HERE'S a link to Jon's book if you want to add it to your library.

(I was a guest on Jon's Card Talk - Team Building FUN with Cards. You'll see in the video (Episode 5), we added some Cups to Card Throwing. Check it out!

Do you have a favorite card activity? Leave us a Comment below.

Have FUN out there!

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.

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CUPple-a-Points (with Video)

1/3/2019

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First and foremost, I want to thank the wonderful team building facilitators at BRIDGES for trying this activity with me (for the first time ever). And, a BIG shout out to the creative mind that gave us the name for this one. (It was fun watching you all work!)

Context Note: The footage was taken at a day-long team building facilitator training. I kept in the "learning" conversations. I thought some of you out there might benefit from the thinking that went on during this discovery process. (Alfie Kohn might call this, taking the facilitators, and you, "backstage" for some Deep Modeling as a way of learning.)

More Team Building Activities with CUPS! Check out CUP IT UP

CUPple-A-Points (here's what we have so far):

Set Up: Place 10 nested stacks of 30 cups each (300 Cups), inside a hula-hoop (or maybe even make a small box shape on the floor with tape).

Objective: Gain as many points as possible in two minutes. Every cup that is not touching the floor after two minutes earns you a point.

Directions: If you have time, and the planning dynamic is part of the group's program objective (e.g., practicing planning behaviors), allow for unlimited time to plan and practice before the first official two-minute build. If you don't have unlimited time, give them, say, three minutes to plan and practice before the first build, then maybe, two minutes before the second build and one minute before the final third build.

Note:

Round 1 Footage: Participants can be used as resources/props.
Round 2 Footage: Participants CANNOT be used as props.

Rules: (Applied to either Round 1 or 2 set up. Each round, or variation, includes three building attempts.)

After two minutes, only cups outside of the hula-hoop will count for points.
Any nested cups, one or more cups inside of each other, will not count for points.
After two minutes, all "hand" must be off the cups. Then, after three seconds, "1, 2, 3," the cups that remain off the ground can be counted for points. (It might be faster to count the cups NOT off the floor, then minus this number from 300 for the score.)
When you (the group) are ready to start an official two-minute building, let your facilitator know. The facilitator will keep time and inform you about time remaining.

To reiterate, there are two different presentation variations so far (shown in the video - they are noted as "Rounds") - one where participants CAN BE use as resources/props, and one variation where participants CANNOT be use. We tried both to get some film of each.

Also, at this time, I would choose one of the variations and take time for three two-minute building sessions in order to see how the evolution of the builds turn out. What will be "success" for the/your group?

Let us know how it goes. Leave a Comment below.

All the best,

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.

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Tools for Team Builders: Game Spots

12/13/2018

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The start of something new!
Tools for Team Builders.
Welcome to the first episode - Game Spots.

Hello Team Builders, I'm getting starting with my "instructional" filming (working on my first online course right now as well) - there is a fun and interesting learning curve to be sure. I look forward to your feedback - any and all, I can take it - as I move through this adventure. Leave a Comment below or fill out and send the form in the Contact tab at the top of the page.

In this first episode, I share my ideas (and preferences at this time) on game spots. Heads Up! This instructional format is a bit longer than my activity videos (at this point). Below you'll find Blog Notes for the video and four links to posts I've made in the past that include game spots.

Blog Notes

Poly Spots: Flaghouse has a nice selection.
HERE are the 9-inch Spot Markers in a variety of colors.
HERE are the poly spots with numbers on them (I've used these a lot - I highly recommend them. Downside: If one goes missing you cannot order a single replacement.)
HERE is a set with a variety of shapes and round spots.
(Note: Once you know the kind of spot you're looking for, there might be better prices at alternative sites.)

Livestock Tags (numbered spots):
HERE is a link to Premier 1 Supplies. Lots of choices and sizes. You choose how many numbers you want. You could even put the name of your program on them (if it's a short name).

Shelf & Drawer Liner: (non-skid spots, great on hard surfaces and washable if you use them outside)
HERE is the Bed, Bath & Beyond link to the brown Con-Tact shelf liner (I didn't see the white or blue??). Free shipping for orders over $39 at the time of this post. And, if you happened to be a BB&B member, the rolls are cheaper! (Of course, if there's a store near you....)

Rope Lengths: (I usually use P-Cord from my rope lengths, but other nylon types of rope work too. Be sure to safely burn the end so they don't unravel.)
HERE is the link to West Coast Paracord - my go to place for easy shopping. And, I buy enough for free shipping. I cut my rope at 4-foot lengths. Others have told me they like 5-foot lengths.

Questions: If you have questions about any of the game spots talked about in the video, leave a Comment below or fill out the form under the Contact tab at the top of this page.

Activities Using Game Spots Found on FUNdoing Blog Posts

Crazy Eights Players move around spots in a figure eight pattern. Groups of any size.

Card Quad Jam (with Video) While standing on a pattern of spots, move playing cards to their correct place in line. Up to 52 players.

Double Group Juggle Two tossable objects in play with lots of moving from spot-to-spot. Groups of at least 10 and up to 18 players. Multiple groups can be in play at once.

Switching Places Spots are all you need (or use the playing card version). Players switch around based on a categorical topics. Any size group can play.

Have FUN out there my friends!

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.

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The A-Files #1 (and Professional Development)

11/29/2018

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Here's something new I want to try (not sure I can make it last, but let's try). I run across short activity snippets in my files (both paper and digital) all the time - activity ideas with little information. Just the basics. I always say to myself, "Chris, you need to do something with these." Okay, so here is me doing something with these.

I wasn't feeling 100% about simply typing them up in short form. So, how about we (meaning you) decode them?! What is "decoding", you might be asking? Well, in a nutshell, it's taking an activity in short form and putting it into long form. Reading a summary and then writing it out in a way that someone new to team building could read and lead.

NEED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT HOURS? (I know Challenge Course Practitioners need them!) Scroll down below the activities and find the Professional Development link - clicking this link takes you to the (super secret) PD Information and how to start your Decoding adventure.

DON'T NEED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT HOURS? Well, then, just jump right down to the snippets below and read on.

Marilyn's Game (From a Laurie Frank Handout, year unknown)

Needs & Numbers: One deck of standard playing cards for every 5 to 7 players.

Description: Get into smaller groups of 5 to 7 - each group gets a deck of cards. Within each group, deal out the cards and no one looks at them. Go around the circle and have everyone say his/her name (if needed). Everyone has his/her pile of cards face down in front of them.

On a signal, at the same time, everyone turns over the top card of his/her pile. If anyone has a rank (number or letter) that matches with someone else, he/she says the name of the person that has the match. Whoever says the name first gets all the turned over cards from his/her group. These cards are added to the bottom of the "winner" pile.

This is My Nose (From a Laurie Frank Handout, year unknown)

Needs & Numbers: No props. 8 to 14 players.

Description: Circle up players. One starts by saying, "This is my nose" while pointing to a different body part (e.g., ear). The next player to the starters left points to another body part (e.g., knee) and says, "This is my ear" - saying the body part the first player pointed at. The next players in turn, while pointing to a new body part, will always say what the last player pointed at.

Passing Gas (From hand written notes, by Chris Cavert [way back in the day] attending a Karl Rohnke workshop)

Needs & Numbers: One balloon for each player and several permanent markers. (If you have a big group) Divide any size group into smaller groups of 16 to 20 players.

Description (decoded from my notes): This game can be done standing or sitting. Give each player a balloon [be mindful of latex allergies] to inflate to the size of their own cranium - and then tie off the opening. Pass around the permanent markers so each player can write his/her first name on their balloon. The Challenge: Time how fast all the balloons can get around the circle back to their owners - each player is required to pass along every other balloon in the circle. Play multiple rounds to achieve the fastest time.

Easy Line Up (From a hand written note, by Chris Cavert, attending an AEE workshop - no note about what workshop this was (??). Easy Line Up ended up in Challenge Energizers in the book, The EMPTY Bag, Cavert & Hammond)

Needs & Numbers: No props needed. 12 to 24 players.

Description: Line up in alphabetical order by first names with your eyes closed.

Free Professional Development

Even if you don't officially decode these snippets, I'd love to hear about the "variants" you add to them. Leave a Comment below!!

All the best,

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.

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Teambuilding with Index Cards (and More!) from Jim Cain

11/15/2018

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My good friend Dr. Jim Cain just released his new book, Teambuilding with Index Cards. (Training Wheels has them discounted this week HERE - get your copy today!)

Here's the tag line: 180 activities for teachers, trainers, facilitators & group leaders of all kinds that turn ordinary index and playing cards into extraordinary teaching tools. (Full transparency: Jim has packed his new book with LOTS of activities - about half of them use Index Cards and Playing Cards. The other half are team building activities that utilize other props.)

STORY CARDS Here's a fun Icebreaker I found right away. Give each participant an index card (I like the bigger cards) and supply a variety of colorful writing tools. (Other supplies can be fun too, like stickers, glitter and glue, and even magazines so people can cut out pictures and words to glue on their card.)

Next, invite everyone to draw on their card (or create) five events from his/her life and then be prepared to share and discuss these illustrations (creations) within a small group of four to six people. So, this one can be done with any size group if you have enough creative materials.

(The story behind my card above: I'm an only child [the number 1] - I had an amazing mother. Summer camp and camping changed my life after moving "up north" from Milwaukee Wisconsin to Lake Five - country life was much kinder than the BIG city. I discovered my calling as an adventure educator and never looked back. And, finally, I've been able to travel all around the world, and have met some incredible people with their own wonderful stories.)

Crossword Names (in Jim's book) is another index card favorite of mine. When Jim requested activity submissions for this book, I gave him this one. It's written up HERE (I call it, Name Letter Opener) if you haven't seen it yet. You can play with any size group and with anyone able to write their name.

All the best my friends!

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.

NOTE: Received some feedback about font size - "...can you make the font bigger?" Well, yes! Thanks for asking. What do you think out there? How's this font size?

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Immobile Chopsticks (with Video)

11/1/2018

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If you know me, you know I love team building with noodles!! Noodles are the most versatile activity prop on the planet! My good friend and team builder Sam Sikes and I wrote a couple of books on the subject - you can find 50 Ways to Use Your Noodle and 50 More Ways... HERE.

Immobile Chopsticks is from our book, 50 Ways... It's a variation of the classic Pipeline activity. (I've written about Pipeline Variations in the past. And, another related, called Bridges & Traits.)

In this noodle version here, it takes two players to make the channel needed to allow the tennis ball to travel from one point to another. And, multiple pairs of noodled players to get somewhere. Here are the basic rules in this version (video below) of Immobile Chopsticks.

Rules:

Each player is allowed to touch/use one, and only one, noodle prop.
Tennis balls (six of them), start 60 feet from a set of six cups (Volcano Tops) circled together - cups are open-side down.
If a tennis ball is touching a players noodle, that play may not move his/her feet in the direction of the cups. So, no tennis ball touching your noodle, you can move in any direction.
Only one tennis ball is allowed to touch a pair of noodles at any time.
If a tennis ball drops to the ground/floor, this tennis ball is returned to the start (a player is allowed to pick up the ball and return it to the start).
When all the Volcanos (cups) have been capped, you have successfully completed the task.

Adjustments:

The closer the cups, the more challenge.
Players can move their feet if they have their eyes closed.
Turn the cups over and drop the tennis balls inside (a bit easier) - if they don't let the cups tip over.

Why I Like This Team Building Activity:

You can run this one with any size group - if you have enough equipment.
I can break the group up into smaller groups, from four to twelve in a group.
I can use it as a competitive activity - First, Second & Third places.
I can use it as a cooperative activity - "All the Volcanos in the room must be capped as soon as possible."
I can vary th replacement of the cups (Volcanos) - in a small or larger circle, or randomly around the room.
And, noodles make anything fun!!

Let me know how it goes. Leave us a Comment below.

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.

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Exploring Values from The Thiagi Group (Print-N-Play)

10/18/2018

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A good friend of mine (thanks JS!) sent me a link to an activity called Exploring Values from The Thiagi Group (check out their FREE GameBlog HERE). To work this activity it calls for 50 "or more" value cards. There is a PDF list of values provided by The Thiagi Group, which is a great resource. I jumped right in and made a set of cards using the list so I could try this one out. I thought you might like to join me. Below you'll find my set of 76 print-n-play cards (blank cards are included as well so you can add to the set)

The purpose of Exploring Values is "to explore the relative importance of different values in an organization." The activity is set up for a group to compare two values and decide which one is more important. Even though both are important, "thinking about these values, discussing them, and placing them in order of importance makes them more specific" for the group.

As with all Thiagi Group activities, there are clear presentation (Flow) details and useful Debriefing questions and Learning Points. HEREs the LINK again for all the details.

And There's More....

If you have been following the FUN, you know I like to get a lot of "milage" out of my team building tools - doing more with less. Here are a few other ideas for using the value cards:

What's Important - Scatter the cards out face up on some tables or the floor. Ask everyone to find a value (card) that is important to them right now. It is perfectly okay to share a value (card) with another person in the group. If the group is manageable (smaller), go around and find out from each person why this value is important to them. Keep these particular cards with you during your program. Let them help you spark thoughts and learnings before, during and/or after team building activities (i.e., cards can be processing prompts).

Values Tool Box - Have the group decide, by consensus, five values they want to focus on during your program. Use them before, during and/or after activities as check-in prompts for discussion. Maybe the values (cards) need to change over the course of your program - allow for swaps or additions.

What's Missing - If your group is "stuck", pick five of the values from the set and ask the group what value, of the five, might get them un-stuck at that particular time. Maybe you pick five value cards at random (let the Universe decide, so to speak), or you might choose five value cards that you believe are particularly relevant to your observations of the group. For example, your group might need one of these five:

Decisiveness
Energy
Helpful
Persistence
Transparency

Sometimes all the group needs is a little nudge to get un-stuck.

Random Considerations - Another way to explore values is to simply pick a card at random and have a discussion about its meaning to the diverse population of your group. I did something like this (with another list of values) with residential participants that I worked with over a longer period of time. You might also find it important to pick a card "on purpose" because you want to talk about a value that might have surfaced during a team building activity.

Here are the Value Cards

exploringvalues_thiagi_cavertfdb18.pdf
File Size:	930 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

Do you have an activity that could work with these value cards? Share in the Comment below. Thanks.

All the best,

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.

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Handshakes, Part 1 (Learning) & Part 2 (Playing) - Videos

9/20/2018

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A lot of people ask me for my favorite large group activity. "Handshakes" is always at the top of my list - especially, when I turn handshakes into an action-packed exercise, called Handshake Buddies, I learned from my good friends at Group Dynamix. (See Handshakes, Part 2 - The Game with the Shakes, below.) And the BONUS: Handshakes works with smaller groups too.

First, let's learn some fun handshakes you can use with your small and large groups (Handshakes, Part 1 video). Michelle Cummings, the Big Wheel at Training-Wheels.com and me (Chris Cavert, from FUNdoing.com) got together to film some of our favorites. Here's the list:

The Basic (Right-Handed) Handshake
The High Five (more of a "connection" than a shake, but you're okay with it!)
The Fist Bump (another "connection")
The Fisherman's Handshake and the Double Fisherman's variation
The Rodeo Handshake
The Lumberjack Handshake
The Caterpillar Handshake
The Moose Handshake
The Heartbeat Handshake
The Dairy Farmer Handshake

I'm guessing many of you know lots more. Hopefully we've added one or two new ones for you. No matter how long your list of handshakes and connections, you can use them together in Handshake Buddies. It's a great way to mix and mingle groups at the beginning of a program. The Handshakes, Part 2 video (below) gives you a short verbal description, with some visuals. (I hope to add a group-in-play video soon). Here's a written description of how I play:

Handshake Buddies

Ask everyone to go back-to-back with someone in the group. (a group of three can work too).
Demonstrate a handshake (or connection).
When you say, "Ready, GO!" partners turn around and perform the handshake (connection) just demonstrated and then find someone new to stand back-to-back with (emphasize "someone new" - not someone they have shaken/connected with).
Now, demonstrate a new handshake/connection.
On "Ready GO!" partners turn around and perform this new handshake and then go off to perform the first shake with their first partner, then find someone new to stand back-to-back with.
Demonstrate a new handshake/connection.
On "Ready GO!" partners turn around, perform this new handshake, then go back to their second partner for their shake, then the first partner for their shake, then back-to-back with someone new.
And, the process continues.....
On the final back-to-back, you now have your group's attention so you can give them information for the next activity.

If you go through six handshakes/connections with your group, it takes about 10 minutes. I find six shakes is a good number to get everyone moving, interacting and warmed up. However, if the group is really into it, a couple more is not a bad thing. (Remember, don't over-play or the activity loses it effect.)

Extension: When I use handshakes with a group, I now have a way to partner up participants when I want to form other groupings. "Find you High Five partner!" Now I'm ready to split the group in half, work in pairs, put two pairs together to form a group of four, and so on. And, at the end of the program, when I call, "Handshake Buddies" everyone is energized as they work through all their shakes.

Have FUN out their my friends! Share your favorite handshake with us in the Comments below.

All the best,

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.