Fun Icebreaker Ideas & Activities

Author: Blahman

  • Bigger and Better Game

    Bigger and Better is a team building activity in which teams compete by trading ordinary objects. The winner is the team that ends up with the biggest and best items when time expires.

    This active teambuilding exercise requires six people at minimum, and can support very large groups if the teams are divided evenly. Teams should be about three to six people in size. This game involves interacting with lots of strangers in a public place such as a school campus. Props required include small objects such as paper clips or pens (one for each team). Recommended age is 18 and up. This game can be played with adults and even in corporate settings. When playing with younger people, please be sure to provide proper supervision when necessary.

    Setup for Bigger and Better

    To prepare for Bigger and Better, get several paper clips or some small objects that are low in value. Be sure to have enough to provide one per team.

    Playing Bigger and Better

    Explain the rules to everyone: You will give each team a small object, and their job is to keep trading and upgrading their team’s object to obtain the largest and most valuable item possible. They may not offer anything other than the item they have, and they must stick together as a group. Set a time limit, such as one or two hours, and tell everyone that they must be back in time or else they will be disqualified. Announce that each team’s item will be judged in three categories: size, value, and creativity.

    Divide the group into teams of three to six. Pass out the paper clip (or other small object) to the each group and send them off. When time expires, the judging process begins. Each team presents their item before the entire group. They explain why their item is biggest and best. At the end, choose winners for each of the three categories, or judge the items in any other way you wish. This activity involves good teamwork and creativity as each team coordinates their efforts and decides what strategies they will approach when playing. Camaraderie will be built, and surprises will come out of the activity. Who knows, a group might be able to turn a paper clip into a car! Well, maybe a toy car.

    Be sure to visit our online store for various useful supplies, such as paper clips and items for the Bigger and Better activity.

  • Superlative Game

    The Superlative Game is a simple icebreaker that asks players to line up in ascending order for various different categories (e.g. height, birthday month, etc.).  It’s very easy to learn and play, and it doesn’t require a lot of time.

    This game can be classified as a get-to-know-you style icebreaker.  The recommended group size is medium, large, or extra large groups.  Players will be divided into multiple teams of at least five people.  This game can be played both indoors or outdoors.  There are no special materials required to play.  It works great with all ages.

    Setup for the Superlative Game

    The facilitator of the Superlative game needs to prepare a list of categories.  These categories can be surface-level categories such as height (in ascending order), birthday month (in ascending order, from January to December), shoe size, number of siblings (least to most), etc. or you can also make deeper categories, depending on your goals.

    Playing the Superlative Game

    Split the group into at least three teams.  The ideal team size is at least five players per team, but preferably no more than nine.  Explain the rules and consider using one of the variations below (such as the no talking rule). 

    Read the first category aloud, such as “Line up by increasing order of height.  Go!”  Each team scrambles to get in the proper order.  When a team thinks they are done, they must all sit down and raise their hands.  At this point, the facilitator checks the team and verifies that they are in the proper order.  If they made a mistake, they get awarded zero points that round and the facilitator checks the next group that sat down.  The first team to correctly get in order and sits down gets awarded a point. 

    The facilitator then reads off the next category, and this process repeats until the game is over (no more categories).

    Variations

    There are many variations to this game that are worth considering.  These include:

    1. No talking allowed.  All players must rely on body language and hand gestures to get in the proper order.

    2. Head and feet only.  You can only use your head and feet to signal where to go.  No talking or use of arms/hands to communicate.

  • Telephone Charades

    Telephone Charades (also known as Charades Down the Line) is a hilarious icebreaker in which a person acts out a charade only for the next person in the line, who in turn acts out for the next person.  The last person standing in line attempts to guess what the original clue was.

    This is in active icebreaker that works best with a group of five or six people.  It can also be implemented for larger groups by taking five or six volunteers per round.   This game is best played indoors.  No special materials are required other than sheets of paper with the clues written on them.  Telephone Charades is for people age 10 and up.

    Setup for Telephone Charades

    Telephone Charades or “Charades Down the Line” is an active icebreaker that combines charades with the “telephone down the line” game.   To prepare for the game, write a list of humorous actions to be acted out.  Some examples are:

    • a pantomime
    • a nerd’s first date
    • a cat bathing itself
    • going skydiving
    • fishing and catching a huge fish

    Instructions for How to Play

    Choose five or six people (or ask for volunteers) and ask them to line up in a row, facing the left side of the room.  Ask the first person to turn around to see the first clue to be acted out.  Reveal the clue to the person, and display the clue to the audience as well.

    The first person turns around and taps the next person in line on the shoulder.  He or she then acts out the clue using classic charades rules (no talking or noises permitted).  The second person then taps the third person and acts out his or her understanding of what was acted out.  This process continues until it reaches the last person in line, who must guess what the action is.

    This game is funny because the acting tends to warp and get distorted based upon each person’s interpretation of what is going on.

    Variation

    A good variation to try is to have two teams line up and act out the same clue simultaneously.  The teams that guess the clue correctly (or most correctly) wins the round.

  • Trust Walk Teambuilding Activity

    The Trust Walk is a popular teambuilding activity that helps people practice trusting each other.  A leader guides his or her blindfolded partner around obstacles using verbal or nonverbal instructions.

    This activity is an active teambuilding activity that requires a great deal of space.  An outdoor setting with some obstacles (but nothing too dangerous!) is ideal.  The recommended group size is: small, medium, or large.  Participants will form pairs.  Materials required include blindfolds and any props that you can set up as minor obstacles.  This activity is for ages 14 and up.

    Instructions for the Trust Walk Teambuilding Activity

    The Trust Walk Activity is an effective team building activity involving leadership and building trust, as blindfolded participants must rely on instructions given to them in order to avoid various obstacles.

    As the faciliator of the Trust Walk Teambuilding Activity, be sure to scout out a safe area in advance.  Safety comes first!  Large fields or the woods may be good places to try.  Minor obstacles (trees, branches, small hills) are okay, but do not play this game in a dangerous environment (for example, anywhere with very steep ledges or sharp protruding objects).  Once you have found a safe, large area, you can prepare additional obstacles if desired (cardboard boxes, balloons, etc.).

    Start in a nearby location.  Ask participants to arrange themselves into pairs.  Instruct one partner to be the guide (navigator) and the other to be blindfolded.  Once the blindfolded partner is ready, slowly spin the person around a few times so that they are unsure which direction they are headed.   Guide the participants to the field with obstacles.  From this point on, the guide should not touch the partner at all, but rely solely on verbal cues (e.g. “In approximately five steps ahead, there will be a tree branch.  Go ahead and step over it slowly.”)

    Remember that the guide is solely responsible for his or her partner’s safety.  He or she try their best to steer their partner away from obstacles.  Valuable lessons can be learned to teamwork and unity.  For example, the guide will learn about the challenge and responsibility of caring for another individual’s well being, while the blindfolded partner learns to trust and rely on another person.

    Reflection of the Trust Walk Activity 

    If desired, ask participants to reflect and share what they learned from this experience.  The following are some sample questions to ask following the Trust Walk team building activity:

    • What was it like to be the “guide,” being fully responsible for the safety of your partner?
    • What do you think was the purpose of this team building activity?
    • Did you have any difficulty trusting your partner while blindfolded? Why or why not?
    • Why is trusting your teammates important?
    • Afterwards, how did it feel when you and your teammate successfully trusted each other to accomplish something challenging?
    • How does this relate to _______ (here you can fill in the blank with the current scenario of the participants, such as class, a sports team, employees working together on a project, etc.)?

  • React and Act Game

    React and Act! is a funny icebreaker in which players randomly select a sheet of paper that has an occurrence on it (for example, winning a million dollars in the lottery) and they must react to the occurrence using animated expressions, gestures, and words.  After a set amount of time, other players try to guess what happened that caused those reactions and actions.

    React and Act is an active icebreaker game that can work with a variety of group sizes.  It can work for small groups of five people, or adapted for very large groups by selecting volunteers.  This game is best played indoors.  Materials required include paper, pens, and a bag.  React and Act works with all ages, including adults.

    Setup for React and Act

    React and Act involves some preparation; however, this is part of the fun!  Pass out sheets of paper and pens to the players.  Have each person write an event.  Tell them to be creative!  Examples of events can include:

    • Being surprised by a large, aggressive bear in the woods
    • You just won the lottery
    • You have just been proposed for marriage with an engagement ring
    • You just got fired by an incompetent boss
    • Making the game winning pass to win the Superbowl
    • You just fell in love

    Once everyone writes an event, fold the paper once and place it into the bag.  Divide the group into two teams (or select five volunteers if it is a very large group).

    Instructions for How to Play

    Ask five people on each team to randomly select an event from the bag.  Instruct them to react to this event, without explicitly giving away what the event is.  Choose a time limit (usually 30 seconds to a minute works well) and when you say “Go!”, have all five people to simultaneously react to their event using exaggerated gestures, facial expressions, and their voice.

    For example, the person who has just won the lottery could raise his or her arms and scream excitedly, jumping up and down.  The person who has just confronted a bear might make a terrified look, shake in fear, and call for help.  And so on.  Each of the five actors can interact with each other, but they must stay “in character” and continue reacting and acting based upon what their sheet said.

    After time expires, the other members of the team try to guess what happened for each person.  If you wish to keep score, each team gets a point for each correct guess.  This game is a great way to break the ice, while watching people act out silly (and usually hilarious) things.

    Variations to Try

    There are many variations to React and Act that changes the way the game is played.  Try experimenting with these and see whether you like them.

    • No talking allowed, but noises are okay.  This increases the difficulty of the game by a lot, but it can be more hilarious.
    • Narrator explains the event before each person acts.

  • String Game

    The String Game is an introduction-based icebreaker game and simple conversation starter that allows people to  tell others about themselves.  It’s a simple game and can be adapted according to your needs.

    This getting-to-know-you game usually does not take long, unless you choose to run it that way.  The recommended group size is small and medium groups, although with careful planning it might be possible to do this activity in a large group by splitting it into smaller groups.  An indoor setting is ideal.  This icebreaker is recommended for young children up through eighth grade.  It’s well suited for classrooms, camps, or other settings where people may not know each other very well yet.

    Instructions for the String Game 

    This icebreaker activity needs a little bit of preparation work.  Purchase a big roll of yarn or string.  You can buy any color, or multiple colors if you wish.  Take a pair of scissors and cut strings of various different lengths — as short as 12 inches, and as long as 30 or more inches.

    When you are finished cutting the string, bunch all the pieces up into one big clump of string.

    To play, ask the first volunteer to choose any piece of string.  Have the person pull on it and separate it from the other pieces of string.  Ask them to introduce themselves as they slowly wind the piece of string around their index finger.   The funny part of this icebreaker game is that some of the strings are extremely long, so sometimes a person must keep talking for a very long time!  This is a good way to get everyone to start talking.  People might find out something interesting or new about each other!  Feel free to adapt this game according to your needs.  Have fun.

  • Sorts and Mingle

    Sorts and Mingle is an interactive icebreaker game that helps people recognize their common and unique interests and preferences.  The speaker calls out various categories and everyone moves toward various parts of the room, finding people with similar tastes as them.

    This game is classified as a get-to-know-you icebreaker with a little bit of active movement involved (walking around the room, meeting and talking to others).  The recommended group size is: medium, large, or extra large.  Can be played indoors or outdoors, but indoors is ideal.  No special materials are required.  No mess.  For ages ten and up.

    Instructions for Sorts and Mingle

    There are two parts to this icebreaker.  The first half is the “Sorts” game.  The moderator tosses out two contrasting choices and everyone must move either east or west of the room (for example. “Do you prefer Nature or Cities?”) Then the moderator shouts out two more choices and everyone moves north and south of the room.  In this way, each person must move to somewhere and can’t get “lost” in the crowd.  Some sorts that work well include: dogs vs. cats, books vs. movies, sweet vs. salty, casual vs. dress up, inside vs. outside; be on the stage performing vs. in the audience watching, and so on.

    The second half of the icebreaker, the “Mingle” game, works as follows:  The moderator shouts out a general category and the group is asked to mingle around to find others that have the same answer and they clump up to form a larger group. After about thirty seconds to one minute, the moderator asks each group call out their answer.  If a person is unique and is the only one with an answer, that’s okay.  Examples of mingles: your favorite place on Earth; your favorite dessert; the kind of animal you like best; if you could have dinner with someone, who would you choose; your favorite hobby; if you could be anyone, what would it be?

    Both halves of this game help people introduce themselves in a fun, interactive format. Give it a try!

  • Unique and Shared

    Unique and Shared is a get-to-know-you icebreaker game as well as a team-building activity.  The game helps people see that they have more in common with their peers than they might initially realize, while highlighting their own individual strengths that they can contribute to the group.  Perhaps the icebreaker can help people learn empathy skills.

    An indoor setting is preferable.  Participants will split into groups of about five people, so this activity works fine with medium, large, and even some extra large groups.  Each group of five needs paper and a pen.  This activity is for all ages.

    Instructions for Unique and Shared

    Ask participants to form groups of five people with the people around them.  Pass out sheets of paper and writing utensil.  The first half of the activity is the Shared part.  Instruct a notetaker for each group to create a list of many common traits or qualities that members of the group have in common.   Avoid writing things that are immediately obvious (e.g. don’t write down something like “everyone has hair” or “we are all wearing clothes”).  The goal is for everyone to dig deeper than the superficial.  Allow about five or six minutes and then have a spokesperson from each subgroup read their list.  If there are too many groups, ask for a few volunteers to read their list.

    The second half is the Unique part.  Keep the same groups or, optionally, you can ask everyone to rearrange themselves into new groups.  On a second sheet of paper have them record Unique traits and qualities; that is, items that only apply to one person in the group.  Instruct the group to find at least two unique qualities and strengths per person.  Again, strive for qualities and strengths beyond the superficial and past the obvious things anyone can readily see.  Allow another five or six minutes.  When time is up, share the unique qualities in one of the following ways: (1) each person can share one of their unique qualities themselves; (2) have each person read the qualities of the person to their right; or (3) have a spokesperson read a quality one at a time, and have the others guess who it was.

    Unique and Shared is a valuable team-building activity because it promotes unity as it gets people to realize that they have more common ground with their peers than they first might realize.  As people become aware of their own unique characteristics, they can also help people feel empowered to offer the group something unique.

  • Lost on a Deserted Island

    Lost on a Deserted Island is a valuable teambuilding activity that also helps people share a little about themselves.  Given the scenario that everyone is lost and stranded on a deserted island, each person describes one object that they would bring to the island and why.

    This game is a teambuilding and get-to-know-you icebreaker.  The recommended group size is medium, although small and large group sizes are possible too.  An indoor setting is ideal.  No special props or materials are required, making it easy to play.  This icebreaker works well for any age, including adults and corporate settings.

    Instructions for Lost on a Deserted Island

    The situation is dire — following a shipwreck, everyone has been stranded on a deserted island!  Each person is allowed to bring one object to the island — ideally something that represents them or something that they enjoy.  The first part of this icebreaker is simple: each person is asked to describe what object they would bring and why.  This need not be realistic; if someone loves music, he or she might choose to bring a guitar, or an animal lover might choose to bring a dog, a food lover might choose to bring sirloin steaks, and so on.  Encourage people to be creative.

    After everyone has introduced their object and why they have chosen that object, the teambuilding portion follows.  Divide into smaller groups and ask everyone to work together to improve their chances of survival by combining the various objects that they introduced.  If necessary, you can add more objects, but be sure to use all the objects that everyone mentioned.  If you wish, you can reward the most creative group with a prize.

    Lost on a Deserted Island is an approachable way to get people to open up and share a little bit about themselves and what they enjoy or value.

  • Personal Trivia Baseball

    Personal Trivia Baseball is an icebreaker game that involves guessing facts of various difficulty levels to obtain singles, doubles, triples, and home runs. This game helps people discover facts about each other in a fun way.

    This get-to-know-you game is played with two teams of about six to eight people each. The recommended location for this game is indoors. Materials required are: several sheets of paper and pens. Personal Trivia Baseball is playable by ages 10 and up, including college students and adults in corporate settings.

    Setup for Personal Trivia Baseball

    This game should be played with two teams. Divide the players into two teams of about six to eight people — other team sizes are possible but less ideal, as the game may be too short or too long. You can increase or decrease the number of sheets accordingly, depending on how long you want the game to last.

    To prepare for the game, pass out four sheets and a pen to each player. Instruct each person to write “S” on the first sheet, “D” on the second, “T” on the third, and “HR” on , the fourth. These letters stand for single, double, triple, and home run, respectively. On each of these sheets, each person writes an interesting fact about themselves. Do not write any names on the sheets, because the goal of the game is to guess whose fact is written on each sheet. The fact written on the single (“S”) sheet should be the easiest to guess; the double (“D”) sheet should be a little harder to figure out; the triple (“T”) even harder; and the home run (“HR”) should be the hardest.

    Once everyone is finished writing their clues, collect them and sort them into four piles per team: singles, doubles, triples, home run. Shuffle all the papers and arrange the piles into four different corners of the room, in the shape of a baseball diamond (see image below).

    Baseball Diamond

    Playing Personal Trivia Baseball

    The way Personal Trivia Baseball is played is similar to normal baseball rules. Each team has three “outs” per inning and tries to score as many runs as they can. On a turn, a player chooses to go for a single (easiest), double, triple, or home run (most difficult). He or she picks a sheet from the other team’s piles, reads it, and then guesses which of the people on the other team wrote the fact. Once he or she makes a guess, the guessed person on the other team simply says “yes” or “no”. If the guess is correct, the person successfully gets on base with a single, double, triple, or home run and moves to that part of the room. If the guess is incorrect, then the team adds another “out”. Move on to the next batter and repeat until there are three outs. Once there are three outs, change to the other team and repeat. Keep track of the number of runs each team has scored.

    Keep playing until all the clues are revealed, or for a shorter game, set a time limit or a set number of innings. The winner is the team with the higher score at the end.