Archive for the ‘Ice Breaker games’ Category

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Everybody can use ice breaker games!

Games can become a way of life! Once you play ice breaker games with your groups and see them work their magic - they'll be with you forever and will be an indispensible tool to call upon for all occasions. It's so useful to be able to play these games, not just for work situations in meetings and for training programs, helping people relax and get to know each other quickly, but in social situations, for parties, youth groups, committee meetings etc.

Who learns how to use and gain the benefits from an ice breaker game? Everyone - business groups, spots clubs, business leaders, conference organisers,college groups, school teachers, guide and scout leaders, social and youth workers, party organisers, church group leaders, families, vouluntary groups etc. etc. The list is endless...

Planning your Christmas party for home, office or club? Then you should think about including an ice breaker game or two. Check-out our ice breaker ideas web-site for tons of fabulous ideas to make your Christmas festivities a time to remember

 

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Why do I love ice breaker games?

• Because they can transform a rather average or dull meeting into something rather special.
• Carefully crafted, an ice breaker can be a brilliant lead in to the main topic of the day
• People learn better when they're having fun, and an ice breaker should be FUN!
• Ice breakers introduce people to one another in a fun and informal way
• Ice breakers relax people and help them to get to know each other far more quickly than without
• An ice breaker at the beginning of a meeting or conference means people are participating and joining in, they become more engaged than if merely listening
• And once engaged, your participants will be more receptive to your main message of the day
• Once you start using ice breakers you'll never look back - people will look forward to your next meeting or session with anticipation

Never run a boring meeting or training session again. Set your social functions ablaze and have your audience eating out of your hand. We show you how. Go to our ice breaker ideas web-site for tons of fantastic ice breaker ideas to really set your events on fire!

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Just got back from doing an experiential leadership program at the local university. I really enjoyed it and it was great to be on the other side of the fence - the receiving end for a change.

 To kick-start the program we did an icebreaker outside. It was a version of our "Ball Toss" icebreaker... Everyone stood in a circle and the leader holding a ball, introduced herself. As she threw the ball to someone she asked for their name and on catching it they replied "thanks .....(name) " and then asked someone else for their name and on it went until everyone had been introduced.

After a full round of introductions we were asked to do it again exactly as we had done before - no prompts this time. As we were going around the circle the leader introduced ball after ball, cuddly toys etc. All you had to do was concentrate on the person who was throwing to you but soon it was chaos and nobody did anything about it. This was the first lesson ....to take responsibility!

The icebreaker worked - everyone had fun and suddenly the tension had disappeared.

For more instantly downloadable icebreaker games and ideas visit the ice-breaker-ideas web-site

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I've just been asked about an icebreaker for a large group of  100 people and I would definitely recommend Human Bingo if you haven’t done it already.

With a group of 100 it is going to be difficult for all to introduce themselves without taking a long time so it might be better to focus on each new person getting to know a group of people. So just cut the bingo down to getting say 12 or 15 signatures

Limericks is also good for a large group but you may want to make it easier by numbering the lines so people at least know which line they have – see page 14 of the incredible ice breaker games and ideas corporate collection.

 Also try a more sedate version of “Changing Places” – have everyone stand in a circle on an A4 sheet of paper with one person (yourself) in the centre. The central person says something true about themselves like “I like to dance” or “I love music” or anything. Everyone that is in agreement with this comment must change places and find another place to stand. The person left without a place (because the central person has taken a place) takes the centre and the game starts again. Great for getting to know a bit more about people's like and interests. 

For large groups seated around tables

If groups are to be seated around tables what about gathering a few everyday objects and putting them into a soft drawstring bag- one for each table – each table has to guess the contents by feeling them without opening the bag. Give them about 5 minutes and get them to record their answers and then ask them to pass the bag to the next table. At the end of the rounds read out the correct answers – the table with the most correct answers is the winner. N.B. you may not have time for each table to do more than 1 or 2 bags in which case each bag or half the bags could have the same content.

Guess the Candy! 

Collect a few unusual shaped chocolate bars and/or candy - one for each person in the room. Put them into soft drawstring bags and place on the table. Each team must guess the type of candy, chocolate bar from the feel – get them to open the bag and see if they are right – each person then keeps the chocolate bar/candy!

For tons more fantastic ice breaker games for large and small groups check out our ice breaker ideas web-site

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On Friday we will be enjoying the last few days of the school holidays with friends - we're off to the theatre in Cardiff with friends who have 2 children, similar ages to ours.

Everytime we meet up the kids insist we play an ice breaker game we have played with them since they were small. We know it as "Killer" but you might know it as "Wink Murder" or some other name. It's a great party ice breaker!

They find it so much fun, that even though they are now 13 and 14 years old, we still have to play it. Here's how it goes:

How to Play Killer:

Tear a peice of paper into strips, enough for each person in the room. On one peice write Policeman and on another write Killer. Fold all the strips of paper up and place in a bowl. Pass the bowl round and get each person to take a peice of paper. Without saying anything each person looks at the paper, folds it back up and places back in the bowl.

When asked the policeman reveals themself. The killer keeps quiet. The object of the game is for the policeman to catch the killer before the killer, kills all the players. How does the killer kill all the players? By winking at them!

Everyone is silent during the game apart from the policeman who is the only person who can speak when trying to identify the killer -if they get it wrong the killer has won.

When a player has been winked at by the killer they can let out a blood curdling cry as they slump to the floor or silently crumple! Obviously the killer has to try and wink at people when the policeman is not looking at them and it helps if you sit in a circle!

Give it a go and let me know your favourite ice breaker game.

Don't forget we have hundreds of "killer" ice breaker games and ideas on our web-site and many can be instantly downloadable in formats for youth groups, parties and corporate groups.

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At that same business meeting I've been talking about just recently, one of the participants was so enamoured with the ice breaker game that I organized that she decided to play it at her wedding a few weeks later.

So learn how to run a great icebreaker and it will be indispensible at any event - even a wedding!

Check out our latest icebreaker games and ideas at ice-breaker-ideas.com

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Anyone can use ice breaker games to bring fun to an event, liven up proceedings and quickly disperse that awkward getting to know you stage.  Whether you find yourself in charge of organising a wedding, family reunion, meeting , function or charity event, ice breaker games are an invaluble way of helping people to feel relaxed more quickly and comfortably. Use them at the beginning of a gathering of people and help people socialise quickly.

Use ice breaker games as energizers part way through a conference or meeting. They help maintain interest and excitement within the meeting and help people keep focussed. They keep people's attention and prevent boredom from setting in.

Think also about using them for youth groups, schools events, charity meetings etc. - in fact anywhere people are coming together for a common purpose.

Take a look at our great selection of ice breaker games to enhance any event

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Considering throwing a World Cup party to support your team? Warm-up to World Cup Fever with fabulous World Cup themed ice breaker games. What better way to envelope the spirit of the world cup by throwing your own world cup party

So get the beers in, TV at the ready, BBQ sizzling and warm-up your guests with a few football themed ice breaker games and you'll be well away.

Here's a few ideas to set your World Cup party alight:

Match the Players

Select a few "unknown" and better known players from the world cup teams and write them down on a slip of paper. Cut the strips in half so you have a first and a last name on each. Shuffle them all up and hand one out to each person, and then ask everyone to find the other half of their name. There will no doubt be lots of real football fanatics around who will be able to help with the more obscure pairings.

Alternative

Give party goers a first and last name of a player that does not match. Tell everyone they have to find the correct name of a player in their hands, with matching first and last names. Ask people to move around the room swapping one part of their name at a time. The first person to end up with a complete name is the winner.

Other Ice breaker Ideas

Name the Flags - easy and simple - ask everyone to match the flags to the world cup countries

Harder - Match the player's kit or strip to  the countries

World Cup Trivia Quiz - lots of fun could be had around here with a bit of research

Picture Quiz - cut out player's from the papers and ask everyone to name the player

For more great ice breaker games and ideas to make your parties swing take a look at our web-site ice breaker ideas.com

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Most youth groups love the social and fun aspects of ice breaker games. Sometimes reluctant, participants do not wish to appear uncool and are slow to join in, but once the activities start, there's usually no stopping them.

In my time as an activities instructor in Wales, we would get youngsters from all over the UK, most from schools, some from youth work groups and some as individuals on summer holidays. Most would arrive excited but apprehensive about the week ahead. The first night was always a dedicated ice breaker games evening. So we did, not just one or two games to settle people in, but a whole evening of games and by the time we'd finished, the group were well and truly relaxed, having fun and looking forward to the rest of the week.

We'd always start with a name game, usually it would be something along the lines of "introduce yourself and say one thing you're looking forward to is...." "and one thing I'm concerned about is..." What's great about this is you get each person in turn to speak and listen to each other. In itself, this is often a massive ordeal for some people, but with support they are able to succeed. They get the respect and attention of everyone in the room, and you get to hear something about how people are feeling and what their expectations might be. Always start with yourself when introducing. "Hi my name is Sharon and one thing I'm really looking forward  to is dinner tonight because I know we're having chocolate pudding. One thing I'm worried about is the weather , because it's not a great forcast" Encourage everyone to be as open and honest as they can be. Thank and reassure people for their contributions. If someone says "I'm scared of heights", you can say "no one will be forced to do anything they don't feel comfortable with"

Name Call

Another great way to start off a session with teenagers (you will need a large beach/soft ball for this) is to get everyone to stand in a circle (preferably outdoors) and ask everyone to say their names. Ask everyone to remember as many names as possible. Once you have done the round of names, stand in the centre of the circle, throw the ball in the air and shout someone's name. They then run to the centre to catch the ball, whilst you take their place. They repeat the process by throwing the ball in the air and calling someone else to come and catch it. Don't worry if people drop it, just carry on until all names have been called. Every so often, ask the group to check if everyone has had the ball.

Rhythm

Another great game is Rhythm. This was always one of the first games we used at the outdoor centre. You will need some face paints, preferably in stick form. Get everyone to sit in a circle, and number all participants from 1 to however many you have. The leader starts the rhythm by slapping hands on both legs together, followed by a clap of the hands and then a snap of the fingers, first on the right hand and then on the left hand - this is the rhythm. Practise the rhythm together  a few times. When you feel the rhythm is established, the leader calls their own number on the first click of the right hand fingers and then calls another number from the group on the click of the left hand fingers. The person whose number is called keeps the rhythm by calling their own number on the next click of the fingers and then another number as before without breaking the rhythm. If the rhythmn is broken they receive a war paint mark on the face! Sooner or later everyone will look like warriors with their face paint marks. It's lots of fun and may sound complicated but it isn't!

You will find hundreds of great ice breaker games and ideas for youth groups and teenagers at ice-breaker-ideas.com

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It seems funny to be writing about breaking-the-ice in Bahrain where the temperature is currently around 45 degrees. But that is just what my colleague, Phil England, has been doing in the Gulf state. Phil is running a team building programme for the Bahrain Petroleum Company and he has just used simple ice breaker games to break the ice and get people engaged and listening. As well as learning names, and making people feel more comfortable, Phil said, "ice breakers have no boundaries, they work across all cultures, introducing people to each other and helping people feel relaxed and ready for the next element of the day."

Avid fell runner and mountaineer, Phil said he still managed to find time to go for a run in the sweltering heat "though I thought I might melt!"

For a cooler selection of ice breaker games visit our web-site ice-breaker-ideas.com