A simple warm-up activity that gets your participants comfortable with one another by sharing some facts about themselves and learning some about their peers.
Materials
- Participants wearing their shoes
Framing
One way we can get to know someone or something better is by asking questions. It can be easy to do and sometimes difficult, but asking questions helps us to clarify something we're unsure about and even make a new friends!
Instructions
- Have the group stand in a circle and choose one person to stand in the centre.
- Each participant takes off their shoes and places them on the floor in front of them. The shoes belonging to the person in the centre should be removed from the circle and gameplay.
- The participant standing in the centre announces something they like or have done (ie. I like chocolate or I have gone tobogganing).
- If the participant standing in the circle like or have done the same thing, they must run to another pair of available shoes. If they don’t like or have not done the same thing, they stay behind their shoes. The person in the centre must try to run to an open pair of shoes.
- The person who is left without a pair of shoes becomes the new person in the centre of the circle.
Modify
- Up the energy by increasing the size of the circle, encouraging participants to run further for an available pair of shoes.
Safety
- Be sure to allot enough space to reduce accidental injury.
Wrap-up
After ending the activity, reconvene for a brief reflection by posing to them some questions like:
- What was something you learned about someone in the group?
- Was easy or difficult to share something about yourself?
Submitted by Somerset West Community Health Centre.