Advisor Bag of Tricks

(Activities to promote team building)

Pass a bowl full of M & M’s around the room. Instruct the group to take some of the
chocolate treats, but don’t eat them. Once everyone has selected the delicious
M & M’s candies, tell the group that they will disclose one piece of information about
themselves for each M & M they took from the bowl. You can do the same thing with
rolls of toilet paper.
The group forms a circle. One person has a skein of yarn or ball of string. S/he tells
why s/he enjoys the group and tosses the skein to another person. This person
states why s/he enjoys the group and tosses the skein to another person. This
Spiderweb continues until everyone in the group has caught the skein. The web formed
between all of the members illustrates the individuality of the group and the ties that
bind them into a group.
Divide the group into two equally numbered teams. Arrange the teams so they face
one another. Team members then join hands. This leaves two “free” hands on each
team (the two people at the ends of each line). Give a single pencil to one of the
Pass the “end” people on each team. The task is to pass the pencil from one end to the other
pencil without unclasping the hands of the team. The pencil cannot be passed or kicked
along the ground. If the pencil drops, it must be picked up while all hands remain
clasped.
Players stand in a circle and place their hands into the center of the circle. Join
hands with two different people, neither of whom are standing next to you. A
Human human knot is born! The goal is to untie the knot without letting go of hands. Be
Knot sure to be respectful of your neighbors! What you do may not be the best for them,
so check it out before you work it out.
Try this one in pairs first, then groups of three, then fours and work up to the entire
Back to group. Sit on the ground, back-to-back, knees bent and elbows locked. Try to stand
Back up without falling down. For the large group, sit as tightly packed as possible and
work in unison!
This is another high trust activity. The players forma line and hold hands. Everyone
in the group closes his/her eyes except for the first and last person in line. It is the
job of these people to keep the entire group “safe” while on the walk. The leader
takes the group on a walk, a very slow walk, and the leader’s instruction must be
passed down the line. The last person assists the leader by calling out feedback as
to what is happening at the end of the line. This activity can be done with dyads
where one person acts as the leader and the other the follower with his/her eyes
closed. After a time, they two people switch roles. This can be a powerful activity
for a group learning about leading and following roles in a group. Just because a
Trust Walk person is a follower does not mean s/he is passive and “blindly” followers all of the
leader’s instructions. Rather, followers have the duty to take care of themselves and
those around them. This point is illustrated by the communication of the person’s
needs (I need to slow down... We are in a rough spot, please stop... There is a rock
right here, step over it and you are clear... There is a tree to your right, so stay on
the “feel” for roots, etc.). Before initiating this activity, let everyone in the group
that if they are uncomfortable with the activity that it is all right to opt out. This is
especially true for folks dealing with trust issues or people who have experienced
some physical injury and who want to protect it.
All the players are seated in a circle. One person starts off as the person in the
center. The center person approaches on of the people in the circle and says, “I love
I Love Ya you honey, but I just can’t make you smile.” The object is to say it in such a way
Honey, But I that the person will smile or laugh. If the person smiles or laughs, then, s/he
Just Can’t become the person in the center. In order to help people feel comfortable with this
Smile activity, please no overtly sexual or demeaning actions or remarks. Use your other
skills to make this person to laugh or smile.
 Everyone should be in groups of 3s or 4s. One person is the retriever who is
blindfolded and stands on the starting line. The other person in each group is the
Speaker and stands with his/her back to the blindfolded retriever and facing away
from the playing field. The Speaker is not allowed to look at the playing field at any
time. The other players in the group are called the Directors and stand in front of the
Speaker and face the playing field. The Directors are not allowed to talk or make
any noise at any time. They are allowed to look at the playing field and must stand
where the Speaker can see them without looking at the playing field. They are
Blind allowed to use hand and body gestures. Once everyone is in place, the facilitator
Retriever places the object for each team an equal distance from each team’s Retriever. On
“GO”, the Directors give visual directions to the Speaker who verbalizes those
directions to the blindfolded Retriever who walks out and gets the object. The group
is successful when they direct the Retriever back to the start and have him/her place
the object in the Speaker’s hands.

After each group has returned their object back to the Speaker, have everyone
switch roles and go again.
Need: Blindfolds for everyone.
As many different things that can act as mines as possible. Be prepared to empty
your gym equipment room in this activity. I’ve used chairs, tables, balls, mats, etc
before. Metal bandstands work really well as they make quite the noise when the
participants run into them.

Scenario
The group has been taken hostage by the aliens and the only way out this time is to
cross a minefield.

Objective

They have to get as many of them as possible to the safe area by crossing through a
maze of mines.
Minefield!
Rules
1. The mines give off radiation that requires the people that enter the minefield
to wear blindfolds while anyone in the starting area or end areas does not have to
wear a blindfold.
2. Anyone in the minefield without a blindfold is blinded permanently.
3. Any strong contact with a mine results in that mine exploding and the death of
the person who touches it.
4. The facilitator is the judge as to the contact with a mine. I’ve usually made it
so that the contact has to be strong enough to make a noise and/or cause the mine
to move, even a little. In advertent brushes with clothing would not usually cause a
mine to go off.
5. The dead person along with the mine is removed from the minefield.
6. Avoid giving any suggestions to help the group figure out that they should
verbally guide each other.
* This activity requires working together in close physical proximity in order to
solve a practical, physical problem. It tends to emphasize group communication,
cooperation, patience and problem solving strategy, as well as issues related to
physical self and physical proximity.
* The activity can be run in many different ways.
Gilligan’s * Basic method: Ask the whole group to try to fit inside a small area which can be
Island marked by:
-small platforms, piece of chart paper, large poster board, circle of rope,
blanket
* When the group succeeds, decrease the area (e.g., changing platforms,
shrinking the circle, or folding the tarp) and challenge the group again.
 The purpose of this game is to integrate group members and build trust and
communication. Have each player take a blindfold and spread out on the floor. Ask
those who feel comfortable to put their blindfolds on. Explain that you will tap
someone on the shoulder; that person will be the “Tiger” and will take off his/her
blindfold. (None of the other players will know who the Tiger is. Everyone will
mingle around slowly (with bumpers up). Each time a player bumps into someone,
they should shake his/her hand and ask, “Tiger?” If the person says “Tiger,” they
Tiger? are NOT the Tiger. If the person does not answer you back, they ARE the Tiger.
Once a player finds the Tiger, he/she should join hands with him/her and take off
his/her blindfold. That person is now part of the Tigers, so if someone bumps into
him/her, they should NOT respond, so that person knows to join the Tigers as well.
Everyone will continue mingling around until they find the Tigers chain. When
everyone is part of the chain, the game is over. NOTE: This is a high trust activity,
and should be done at an appropriate time.
This is an incredible trust activity! Every group member is either blind-folded, not
blind-folded, but promises not to peek, or wishing not to participate. The leaders of
the group will organize the group in a straight line or in pairs, singles, etc. The
leader will make sure the group begins by holding one another’s hands in a circle to
help make them feel comfortable. The leader will lead the blinded group members
around, periodically leaving them by themselves (but always holding on to
something like a tree, fence, sign, etc. - and NEVER for any great length of time), or
with new people to hold on to. THE KEY TO THIS ACTIVITY IS NO TALKING. If there
is an object that needs to be stepped over, the leader should raise the hand of the
Trust Walk group member, the next person will do the same to warn the next person, and so on.
If there is an object that is low, the leader will lower the arm of the blinded group
member, indicating they should duck down, and the chain will continue in the same
manner as for a raised object. (The leader can pretend as well.) The leader can
organize this activity according to their group. HINT: This activity is best down in
the dark, but the leader should make sure everyone feels comfortable participating.
If someone is nervous, the could become the leader’s partner or just watch.
Squeezing the hand of a participant is very encouraging and helpful in making them
feel safe.