Best OfIce Breakers

2010 Edition

About TRC Interactive

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…training you can bank on

TRC Interactive, Inc. l 4200 Crums Mill Road l 2nd Floor o Harrisburg, PA l 17112 (717) 652-3100 l Fax: (717) 652-8281

Welcome to the Best of TRC Interactive's Ice Breakers!

1

Every successful show from Letterman to Oprah to Ellen has a warm-up act. This performer (or in this case the group facilitator or educator) goes out to people who want to be there and yet they have a daunting task in front of them… prepare a group of people to share an experience together.

Borrowing from wisdom that entertainers have known for ages, Ice Breakers assist a similar collection of people in becoming a better group than they were prepared to be before they walked into the room. The warm-up act accomplishes this by achieving three key elements.

If an ice breaker session is well-designed and well-facilitated, it can really help get things off to a great start. By getting to know each other, getting to know the facilitators and learning about the objectives of the event, people can become more engaged in the proceedings and so contribute more effectively towards a successful outcome.

Create Responsiveness l l lGet a group used to clapping, laughing or even sharing and they will continue to do so well after that initial warm-up has ended.

Adjust the Crowd to the Environment l l lEven if a group of people has worked with one another for years, they likely do not know each other in the context that you are introducing. When this is added to the fact that they are unaccustomed to the group facilitator, it can make the group buying into the purpose of the event that much more difficult.

Set the Tone for the Rest of the Presentation l l lIt is imperative that the Ice Breaker activity be paired to the meeting. Warming up a crowd by having them share personal details before a three hour lecture is inappropriate. Ultimately, the presenter will be more successful in meeting the goals that they have set for the meeting if their Ice Breaker is well-matched to the agenda.

This exercise is particularly interesting when a group is diverse and outgoing.

Tell the group that they are to imagine going on a cruisewith their favorite family members, friends, and pets. Inaddition, they may take one item from a list that you supply.

Tell the group that the list includes interesting but odditems, and that they may only take one item. Distributethe following list to each participant:

l A turnipl A frisbeel A koala bearl Body lotionsl A garden rakel A ball of stringl A can of paintl An antique paperweightl A portrait of a little girl circa 1945l A leather jacket with a Ferrari embleml A copy of a best selling book from Japan

Ask individuals to indicate which they will take, and why. You can move this along quickly or make it more in depth depending on the nature of the answers relevant to your class. You will not only accomplish your goal of breaking the ice, but you also will learn some interesting things about your class!

l A spatulal A bassinetl A centrifugel A pair of moccasinsl A gold doubloonl A PC projector

2

I'm Going On A Trip

DOUse Ice Breakers

to create amore relaxedenvironment.

DON'TIntroduce

an ice breaker

game that will make

othersuncomfortable

physicallyor mentally.

Letters Count

Select key words from the program you are conducting. For example, if you are running a product knowledge session, you could choose the name of deposit products such as Premium Checking or the Fifty Plus Club. In a management class, you might choose appropriate words such as performance, results, or expectations. Make sure the words vary in length with some being short and others longer.

Write your selected words on small slips of paper. Have as many as the potential number of participants. To "Break the Ice," have each participant draw one slip. Go around the room, and have class members introduce themselves by sharing a personal fact for each letter in their key word. For example, if Susan Smith has Premium on her slip of paper, which is seven letters, she might say:

1. She is involved with her children's PTA2. Loves watching football3. Hopes to fit into her wedding dress again4. Makes her own bread5. Graduated from American University6. Loves that her mother-in-law watches her child while she works7. Must remember to stop for milk on the way home from work

Another variation is to tell something about themselves using the exact letters from the key word. For example, if the word was "Results", one person might say, "My name is Kari Olsen and I Really like to cook; I Email my five brothers; I Send my two daughters and one son to Central Elementary School; I Understand and speak Italian; I Like my job as PBR; I Talk to my husband Drew; and I Send him to Isaac's Restaurant where he is the manager. Keep the activity light and humorous so everyone will feel at ease and participate.

3

DOUse ice

breakers as topic

lead-insduring class

andmeetings.

Where Would You Rather Be?

Let's face it. Your learners, given the choice, wouldrather be somewhere else! This is particularly truewith "required" training programs, issues of policy,or a variety of unpopular topics. Because you knowit may be unpopular, use that as a way to open yourcourse, and get at the significance of your session'slearning value.

Greet your class and, with a certain amount of"tongue in cheek", suggest that they probably would rather be somewhere else by paraphrasing as follows:

As important as this session is, I'm sure you'd ratherbe somewhere else right now. I'd really like to knowwhere you would rather be, and would appreciate if you share with us. If you could be anywhere, wherewould you like to be rather than here?

Go around the room in "round robin" fashion and encourage honest, even sometimes amusing answers.One of the purposes is to have the participants learnabout each other. Your comments, after they have shared an answer, will sometimes add interesting details.Questions like, "Where is that?", "Do you go there often?", "Has your family always owned a place there?"will keep the energy in the room and provide interestinginsight.

4

DOMake the

instructionsfor the

ice breakeras simple

as possible.

DON'TUnder-

estimatethe time

it will take to complete

the icebreakergame oractivity.

Immediately follow your ice breaker with a questionthat helps to transition to today's activities.

Paraphrase as follows:

OK. We've all shared where we'd rather be, and thereis no shame in that. So, having acknowledged it, let's look at how we can make the best of where we are!I'd like to see what you'd like to walk away with today,and how we can facilitate that happening.

You've helped them acknowledge that this may not betheir most favorite activity but you've helped them focus on the task at hand. Again, go around the room and hear what the learners want to accomplish. Often, you'll be pleasantly surprised at their direct responses that you'll be able to use throughout your facilitation.

Thank them for their candor, and even note theirthoughts on a whiteboard or electronic tablet. Frameyour facilitation around what they'd like to accomplish,and refer to their points as often as possible.

The Four C's

Have each participant name one of each of the following that best describes their personality and why:

l Cartoon Characterl Colorl Carl Cuisine

5

DOKeep

your eyeon the

participants.Make

sure thatthey arehavingfun!.

DON'TDon't limit

icebreakersto the

beginningof a

meeting/class.

Use themto

revitalizethe group

at anytime.

Two True, One False

Go around the group

and have everyone

introduce themselves.

They each must say

two true statements

about themselves, and

one false statement.

The rest of the group

then has to guess which

of the three statements

is false. This allows

people to share

interesting things about

each other, and make people

feel more comfortable

around each other!

Headlines

You'll need a piece of white paper with a 2" x 3" rectangle drawn on it.Within the rectangle, draw an ovalrepresenting a person's face. Make enough copies to give each classmember a copy. In your local newspaper there are often 2" x 3" pictures of an individual's face with headlines like "Local Person Promoted" and a short article.

Tell your class to interview anotherperson in the class for about fiveminutes. They should then create a headline and a short biography fora "make believe" newspaper andsketch a characterization of their interviewee in the picture frame. Tellthem to have fun with this exerciseand when they are finished, have eachperson read his or her article to everyone else in the class. This exercise also helps to stimulate good-naturedrapport among the participants.

Although it takes up a few minutesof precious classroom time, an ice-breaker of some sort is important inestablishing a non-threatening tone and friendly atmosphere for your training session.

6

DOPrepare to improvise

if necessary.

DON'TForce

people toparticipate.

Toilet Tissue

Begin your introduction

by tossing a roll of toilet

paper to one person with

the instructions to take as

many "squares" as he or she

wants, and then pass the

roll onto the next person

and so on until everyone has

taken as many squares as

they want. Then say to the

group, "For each square of

toilet tissue you have

taken, please share something

about yourself." Class

members who took a lot of

toilet paper will groan, but

the exercise helps build

familiarity and camraderie.

Snowball Battle

Participants write three things about themselves on a piece of paper. Then, they crumble the paper up into a snowball and have a 1-minute snow-ball battle.

At the end of the minute, everyone grabs the closest snowball and has to try to find the person who wrote it. They then introduce the person to the rest of the group, sharing the three facts.

Picture This

Distribute 3x5 cards to the group, and describe what you would like them to write by paraphrasing as follows:

On the card, I would like you to draw a symbol, a drawing, a picture or anything that represents the major change you will make as a result of this course.

While some people will struggle with creativity, try not to suggest possible graphics, or you will find the participants using them. Give the group a few minutes to draw, and then ask for volunteers to share their drawings.

Encourage people to elaborate as they explain to the group what their graphics mean. Try to tie their explanations to course objectives or other learning points throughout the program. Encourage everyone to share, but respect those who feel uncomfortable with sharing.

7

Guess Who?

Provide paper or note cards to participants as they enter.Ask them to answer four questions and write the following on a flipchart:

l Name your favorite singer or group.l What is the most unusual food that you like?l What is your least favorite TV show?l Where is the most unusual place you have visited?

Feel free to add or substitute specifics from your bankor credit union.

At the class opening, quickly gather the paper fromeveryone and choose a few interesting ones from each category. You can use them in a variety of ways:

l Tell the group to introduce themselves to each other and find the class members who like "Manheim Steamroller" (or the most interesting one in your collection).l Have the group introduce themselves to each other, and give a prize for the one who first finds class members by name who like "Sinatra", or another whose least favorite show is "Judge Judy", etc.l Use the selections throughout the class by saying things like: "I need a volunteer. Would the person who has visited the Pyramids please go to the whiteboard."8

DOChoosethe right

gamefor theright

group.

DON'TForget to

keep track

of whichice breakers

work andwhich

ones donot work.

4200 Crums Mill RoadP.O. Box 6685Harrisburg, PA 17112

717.652.3100800.222.9909

www.trcinteractive.com

This material is the property of and maintained by TRC Interactive, Inc. It is fully reproducible only if it is not used to write any new material to be distributed outside of your organization. All reproductions must include “© MMX, TRC Interactive Inc. (800) 222-9909” as it is protected by U.S. copyright laws and is the property of TRC Interactive, Inc.