Month: December 2020

Duration: 30 – 45 minutes

Group Size: Section Level

Resources: Masking tape & stop-watch

Purpose: To solve a problem as a team, with an emphasis on communication & quality thinking.

Overview: To collectively move 7 persons across a 7-metre divide with only 5 body parts in contact with the floor.

Conduct:

1. Mark out clearly the start and finish points, 7 metres apart. Choose a suitable open space, indoors or outdoors
2. Give instructions to the group:
   • You are tasked to travel across this 7-metre minefield.
   • The entire group has to cross the minefield together. Everyone has to be in constant contact with one another at all times. 
   • Because this is a minefield, you are only allowed to have 5 body parts in contact with the floor, collectively as a group.
   • Be as creative as possible but remember to be safe as well. (Note: facilitator to ensure safety of the participants; do NOT allow groups to build an unstable or unsafe movable pyramid / structure).
   • During execution, if more than the specified contact points touch the floor, the entire team returns to the start point.
3. The group that finishes the task the quickest is the winner. Give the group 10 minutes to complete the task.
4. The recommended group size for this activity is 7. Larger groups may be split. If there are a different number of participants, please refer to the table below for the corresponding number of contact points:

5.  People who have played this game before can participate as the experience is different each time.

Debrief Questions:

1. Did the members believe they could achieve the objective or did they feel it was an impossible task?
2. Did members complement each other’s roles? For example, were they too many leaders or too many followers?
3. Did the team work out several rules to guide team functioning? Did anyone violate the rules? How did others feel when the team rules were violated?
4. What was the team like in terms of open communication (i.e. sharing of ideas), morale (i.e. positive encouragement or negativity) and support (i.e. willingness to support group decisions)?

Notes:

In a large group, team dynamics are more complicated. For example, members of larger groups tend to communicate less and it is difficult to keep track of what one another are doing, etc. Hence, it is important that as a team we need to gather regularly to clarify and establish what we want to achieve as a team, our work processes and our working relationships – i.e. V + 3Rs.

Duration:          30 minutes

Group Size:       Section Level

Resources:  6 tennis-sized balls (or crushed paper) & stop-watch

Purpose:      To solve a problem as a team, learning the importance of adaptability.

Overview:    To figure out, as a team, the quickest way to pass, in a specific sequence, a number of balls from hand to hand.

Conduct:

1. Participants form a circle. 
2. Participants must pass one ball around the circle, according to the following rules:
   • the ball cannot be passed to someone directly beside you
   • the ball must be thrown and not handed over to the next person
   • running or diving for the balls is not allowed
3. Instruct the team to figure out their sequence of passing, and practice it until they are all familiar with it.
4. Time how long the team takes to pass all the balls to the last person, using the same sequence. The facilitator can stand next to the last person in the sequence, to help free his hands by collecting the balls in a bag or helmet.
5. Based on the initial timing, get the team to set an optimal timing that the team should attempt to beat.
6. Challenge the team to modify their positions and technique to beat the timing. The balls must still move from hand to hand in the correct sequence, but they need not stand in a circle any longer.
7. Once the optimal timing is achieved, set an even shorter timing (e.g. half the timing) to challenge them to think of even faster ways to pass the balls.

Note: Appoint people who have played this activity before as observers or timekeepers.

Debrief Questions:

1. How did the group perform as a team? [Observable behaviours – effective communication, leadership, sharing of suggestions/ideas, etc.]
2. Did the team learn well as a unit? What actions helped/didn’t help?

Notes:

Setting stretched targets can challenge teams to find novel and alternative ways to achieve the targets. Merely fine tuning current practices only leads to small incremental changes. In addition, teams need to be receptive to trying new approaches to meet new challenges, despite risk of failure (we can surely learn from our mistakes!).

Duration:          20 – 30 minutes

Group Size:       Section Level

Resources:       NIL

Purpose:      To learn how important trust is within a team situation.

Overview:    To take turns experiencing a situation in which one is required to have complete trust in fellow team-members.

Conduct:

1. Facilitator divides the participants into pairs or threes, and instructs each group to assign 1 Faller and 1 or 2 Spotters.
2. The Fallers are blindfolded (blindfolds are recommended, but simply keeping their eyes closed during the exercise is acceptable) 
3. Fallers stand facing away from their Spotter (the second Spotter can stand in front of the Faller.) Fallers should keep their bodies stiff, with feet slightly apart and knees locked; their arms either folded lightly across their chests or held flat against their sides. 
4. Spotters should stand with one leg forward, foot pointing at Faller. The other foot should be perpendicular to the forward foot. Their body weight should rest more on the front leg. Their shoulders should be forward, and their hands up in front of their chests, palms facing the Faller, ready to catch him.
5. Use the following statements to initiate the fall:
   • Spotter: “I am ready.”
   • Faller: “I am falling.”
   • Spotter: “Fall.”
6. Upon the cue “Fall”, the Fallers are to relax and let their bodies fall backwards (and forward, if a trio). The Spotter should catch them, using their hands and bodies as cushioning.
7. After a few “falls”, ask them to exchange places so that everyone has a turn at being a Faller. 
8. Once everyone has experienced being a Faller, gather the whole section for a group Trust Fall.
9. One appointed Faller stands in the middle of a ring of Spotters. He is blindfolded as before, body manner as before. The Spotters stand in a tight circle, all facing inwards, standing shoulder to shoulder.
10. An appointed head Spotter checks that the rest are ready and initiates the fall with: 
    • Spotter: “We are ready.”
    • Faller: “I am falling.”
    • Spotter: “Fall.”
11. The Faller falls in any direction, trusting the Spotters to catch him and push him upright. He should continue to fall in different directions as the momentum carries him.
12. Once he is safely upright, the Faller can remove his blindfold and a new Faller can be chosen.
13. Try to repeat the group exercise enough times to allow everyone to be the Faller. 

NOTE: Facilitators should remind the participants to take this exercise very seriously – otherwise people could get hurt and mutual trust can be damaged.

Debrief Questions:

1. What does this activity tell us about trust?
2. What does it takes to build trust?

Notes:

• Trust is a two-way thing. Sometimes we play the role of Spotter – responsible for supporting others who trust us; and sometimes we are the Faller – who must learn to trust the people around us. Trust fails when the Spotter is unreliable or the Faller is afraid to give trust. 
• It is easier to trust people in big situations when the person has shown dependability in smaller situations.
• Each successful experience reinforces trust.
• Demonstrating competency and care is important in building trust.

Duration: 15 minutes

Group Size: Platoon Level

Resources: NIL

Purpose: To experience group problem-solving and learn how the team functions in executing a task.

Overview: To untangle a knot of linked hands, thus forming a full circle.

Conduct:

Step 1

1. Divide participants into small groups (4 – 6 people).
2. Form a “tight” circle facing one another.
3. Ask each person to hold out their right hand and grasp the right hand of someone across him, as if shaking hands.
4. Then, extend their left hand and grasp the hand of a third person, so that everyone is holding the hands of two different people. (Note: They should not hold hands with anyone directly beside them.)
5. The group is then to try to disentangle itself from the tangled state.
6. Hand contact must not be broken at any time. 
7. In the resulting circle, members may end up facing different directions.

Step 2

1. Get the small groups to form one or two large groups. Maximum recommended group size is 16.
2. Repeat the similar procedures as explained in Step 1.
3. Facilitator may choose to help group if it is stuck by allowing the team to make 2 reconnections.

Note: depending on how the setup is done, groups may not end up as a complete circle. Possible formations include two interlocking or separate circles. 

Debrief Questions:

1. What was the experience like untangling in a small group VS a large group?
2. What skills do we need to develop in order for us to work more effectively in a large group/team?

Notes:

A larger group requires more coordination. Each member has to play his part well and know how to contribute in the right way. Team skills/tasks that the group would need to develop include: clear understanding of goals, giving and receiving feedback, providing back-up, providing support and understanding own and team members’ roles.