Bullring Monkeys (Video)

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I learned this activity from my friend Chris Ortiz may years ago. Recently, I got to play it again during a workshop he led at ACCT. It’s one of those ‘simple’ but not easy tasks. Groups do not travel so they don’t need a lot of room. And it’s a nice ‘tabletop’ activity when working with participants seated at Rounds.

Here’s what I like about it:

• Barrel of Monkeys! Who doesn’t get excited about hooking those monkeys?! So, there's good energy throughout the experience. 
• Each person has some autonomy through their string – how much will they use it.
• This can be a small group (e.g., 3 people) or larger group (e.g., five groups of 8 people) activity. 
  
• Leadership behaviors emerge as the group navigates what monkey to go for and how to position themselves to get that monkey. 
• There are opportunities for goal setting – both process-oriented and product-oriented. And does the group set goals? What are the benefits? Drawbacks?  
• Success and failure are obvious – losing monkeys (progress) helps to refocus on the task.
• Communication behaviors surface. How do group members talk to each other? Are ideas suggested? Forced? Held back?

I like Chris’s micro ring apparatus. It’s made with (what I’m guessing is) a small brass ring about 1-inch in diameter. (Any traditional Bullring apparatus will work for this activity. See this FUNdoing Post with video, to learn how to make your own Bullring.) He used cotton string about an 1/8-inch in diameter – it has a good feel to it – with an overhand knot tied at the ends. Each string is about 8-feet long and then girthed to the ring, making eight 4-foot strands to hold. Group size can range from 3 to 8 people. 

Leading Bullring Monkeys

There are a variety of ways to lead this activity depending on group outcomes. Chris’s workshop was about exploring some of the different ways a facilitator might influence a group’s experience. After using Bullring Monkeys we discussed, with Chris, some facilitator impact. (Maybe I can get Chris to share more about his work and pass it on to you. I’ll keep you posted.)

Here’s what we were instructed to do:

• Each person in a group is invited to hold the end of one of the strings of the bullring apparatus at the knot. If there are extras, some people can hold two strings.
• When the strings are pulled tight, hook one of the monkeys from your pile onto the ring of your apparatus.
• When ready, pick up the monkeys.

We played for about 10-minutes before we stopped to discuss facilitator influences.

Prop Notes: 'Barrel of Monkeys' is easy to find in the States. Typically, there are 12 Monkeys in the Barrel (from Hasbro). I like to give each group a big pile of 16 to 20 monkeys, it just looks better.

I've seen creative configurations with paper clips that can be linked up. And I've used 'Chain Repair Lap Links' (below) with a bullring. When linked together, the strand can get very heavy! A great discussion point about what happens when we 'pick up' too many things and how we manage them. 

Have fun out there! Why Not?!

Chris Cavert, Ed.D.