10 Community Building Activities
1. Inside-Outside Circle: Instruct students to form a circle within a circle—aim for an equal number of students for each circle. Students in the inside circle turn and face those in the outside circle. The group facilitator—this can be the teacher or a student—determines a topic and the partnered students share their thoughts on that subject, alternating every 30 seconds or so. Then, ask the inside circle to rotate and repeat the exercise. Materials: None
2. Have you Ever? Or Spots: Have students stand in a circle, each on a marker, with one person in the center. The person in the center of the circle is “it” and will ask a question starting with “have you ever?” followed by something they have done (Example: “Move to a new spot if you like dogs? Or Have you ever owned a dog?”). The person who is “it,” and everyone in the circle who has done the thing that was asked, must move to an empty spot, but not the spot right next to where they were originally standing. Whoever is last to get to a safe spot becomes "it." Materials: Chalk, Tape or Spot dots to mark the spots of the students. 3. The Line Game: Divide the class into 2 large groups. Have each group stand at opposite sides of the gym or classroom. The goal is for students to work together to move their entire group from one side of the gym to the other. They are to do this by only walking along the lines marked on the gym floor. The lines must connect. Students are not allowed to jump from line to line. They may move backward, forward or side to side. But, once they pass the mid-court line, they are only allowed to move forward or side-to-side. To add a twist - the mid-court line is the safety line! All students are safe there; however, if the students’ path is blocked once they are on the opposite side, they are to step off to the side and go back, only to start all over again. A student is never out of the game until they have successfully crossed to the other side. The first team to have all its members on the opposite side is congratulated! Remember, students begin at the same time and move as individuals; however, they work together as a group, encouraging one another as they move along. They are each working towards the same goal – getting to the opposite side! Materials: Tape, or utilize the gym for the lines on the floor. 4. The Affirmation / Encouragement Game: Sit in a circle and give everyone a piece of paper and pen. Each person should write their name at the top of the piece of paper, then pass it to the person on their left. Each person then writes one or two (or more) positive characteristics about the person whose name is at the top of the paper. After 30-60 seconds, everyone passes the pieces of paper around to their left again. This continues until everyone has written on everyone else's paper. The Encouragement Game will leave your whole group feeling good! Everyone benefits from encouragement - both giving and receiving, and this game provides the opportunity to intentionally speak positive words into each other's lives. Materials: Paper and pens/pencils. 5. Blind Count Off: The group stand in an outward facing circle with their backs to one another. As a team they have to as high as they can out loud with only one person saying a number at a time. This is a guessing game that focuses on listening skills and strategy. Materials: None 6. Back-to-Back Drawing: Working in pairs, one person must describe a shape without naming it, whilst their partner must try to draw the shape they are describing to try and get as close the original shape as possible. This activity focusses heavily on verbal communication and listening skills. Materials: Paper and Pencils |
7. Birthday Line-Up: Participants line up in a straight line side-by-side. They are then asked to get in order by their birthdays (month and day, year isn’t necessary), however they are not allowed to talk. You can also get them to get in order by height, shoe size, favorite color etc.
8. Minefield: The students have come to a battle field that has been laid with mines. One person at a time must attempt to cross the battlefield without stepping on a mine. Once a team member steps on a mine, they must return back to the start. The official Rules are: Only one person is allowed on the Minefield at any time. Every person must step on the mat and attempt to cross, if unsuccessful in their attempt to cross they must go to the back of the line and the next person must try to cross. Once a participant is on the minefield, the rest of the team must be silent. Active participants can only move one square at a time. A move can be in any direction (foreword, backward, sideways and diagonal). However, only the facilitator knows which squares are safe and will indicate appropriately (I usually will make a ‘beep’ sound/noise). Materials: Minefield (8 x 8 squares) set out in giant chess/checkers mat, tarpaulin (with taped squares), carpet tiles or even cones. But, the easiest option is tape or chalk on the floor/ground. 9. What’s in the bag? One student will bring the ‘guess what is in the bag,’ home the previous day. They will put an item into the bag that is important to them and bring it back to school the next day. During the next day, the child gives the class three clues about the item in the bag. After each individual clue, the student gives his/her peers many guesses about what could be in the bag. After each response, the student either says: “Yes or no and thank you for your guess or good try!” Next, they did steps #3-5 for the next two clues. Usually by the third clue, one of the children are able to make a correct guess about what’s in the bag. After that, the student passes around the item so the students can have a closer look at the item. Then, they explain why that item is important to them. Materials: A bag to send home/bring back to school. Also, a clue sheet for the student to write down their three clues about the item in the bag. 10. Morning Meetings: Many of the morning meetings in my class start with a silly introduction or "share out" from students. If there is an opportunity for students to share with their peers and receive feedback, I take it. So I try to spark a conversation with a few and then the rest join in. They get especially excited when they share about something that catches everyone's attention. There are so many important elements of learning that take place in our discussions including the opportunity to reflect on what's been said. Materials: Carpet/ area for the children to sit on the floor. 11. Web of Kindness: Another favorite activity in the compliment category is the Web of Kindness. It starts with one student holding a ball of yarn who pays a compliment to another student. At the same time, he or she quickly wraps the loose end of the yarn around his or her finger and then tosses the ball to the one who was complimented. This goes on until a web is created. It's really neat and creates a great visual of teamwork. I end the activity with the notion of no matter what grade or age you are, kindness sees no boundaries. It is something we all want and something we should all share with others. |