Fun Icebreaker Ideas & Activities

Author: Blahman

  • Who Done It (Whodunit)

    Who Done It? is an icebreaker that reveals interesting (and sometimes incredible!) things people have done. It’s a simple guessing game that is straightforward to play.

    This game is a get-to-know-you style icebreaker in which players try to guess which person corresponds to each item written on notecards.  The recommended group size is a medium sized group of about eight to sixteen people, although the game can be adapted to accommodate other sized groups.  Playing this icebreaker indoors is most ideal.  Materials required are: several notecards and pens. Who Done It? is playable by all ages, including college students and adults in corporate settings.

    Setup and Gameplay for Who Done It (Whodunit?)

    This game can be played individually or with two teams.  For extremely large groups, choose ten volunteers and split them into two teams of five.  To set up the game, pass out an index card and a pen for each participant.  Ask each person to write down something interesting they have done.  Examples include the following:

    • I went skydiving once.
    • I got arrested before.
    • I once drank a gallon of milk.
    • I lived in seven different states.
    • I ate bugs before.

    Try to instruct people to write a fact that most people don’t already know – the sillier (or more unbelievable) the better.  Collect all the cards (separate them into two piles if two teams are playing).  Shuffle the cards and then pass them back out.  Each person (or team) takes turns reading aloud their card and then the reader must guess whose fact he or she read. After he or she guesses, the guessed person simply says “yes” or “no”.  If the person guesses correctly, the guessed person can briefly explain what they wrote (if desired).  The guessing continues until all cards are exhausted.  Everyone reveals who wrote which card at the end.

    The Who Done It? game is a good, simple get-to-know-you game that is especially good for groups with new people, or for whenever you wish to help people get to know each other better to break the ice.  Sometimes humorous facts can be revealed, leading people to exclaim, “You did WHAT?”

  • Fear in a Hat

    A good activity to run at the beginning of a class semester, Fear in a Hat (Also known as Worries in a Hat) is a teambuilding exercise that promotes unity and group cohesion. Individuals write their personal fears (anonymously) on sheets of paper which is then collected in a hat and read aloud. Each person tries to describe his or her understanding of the person’s fear. This leads to good discussion centered around the fears.

    This teambuilding exercise requires writing utensils, sheets of paper, and a hat. Allow about five minutes of writing time, plus one to two minutes per participant. The recommended group size is at least eight, but no larger than 20. It’s possible to run this activity with a large group, if the group is divided into smaller groups and if there are enough facilitators. This activity is for people ages 14 and up.

    Setup for Fear in a Hat

    Distribute a sheet of paper and a writing utensil to each person. Instruct them to anonymously write a fear or worry that they have. Tell them to be as specific and as honest as possible, but not in such a way that they could be easily identified. After everyone is done writing a fear/worry (including the group leaders), collect each sheet into a large hat.

    Running the Fear in a Hat Teambuilding Activity

    Shuffle the sheets and pass out one per person. Take turns reading one fear aloud, and each reader should attempt to explain what the person who wrote the fear means. Do not allow any sort of comments on what the reader said. Simply listen and go on to the next reader.

    After all fears have been read and elaborated, discuss as a whole group what some of the common fears were. This teambuilding exercise can easily lead to a discussion of a team contract, or goals that the group wishes to achieve. This activity also helps build trust and unity, as people come to realize that everyone has similar fears.

  • Sardines (Reverse Hide and Go Seek)

    Sardines is an active game that is played like hide and go seek — only in reverse!  One person hides, and everyone else searches for the hidden person.  Whenever a person finds the hidden person, they quietly join them in their hiding spot.  Soon, the hidden group starts to look like a bunch of sardines!

    This game should be played in a large indoor area.  Be sure it is safe and that you are allowed to play in the area.  The ideal group size is 8-15 people.  This game is for ages 12 and up.  No special materials are required to play.

    Instructions for Sardines (also known as Reverse Hide and Seek)

    Gather everyone together and explain the rules and boundaries of the game.  Be sure to keep everyone safe and ensure no one wanders into areas that they aren’t supposed to be in.  When everyone understands the rules and boundaries, ask for a volunteer to be the first person to hide.  Give the person a set amount of time (e.g. a few minutes) to hide, while everyone else closes their eyes or sits in a neutral spot away from the playing area.

    When time is up, everyone splits up and tries to find the hidden person.  When someone finds the hidden person, the game is not over!  He or she quietly hides alongside the hidden person.  Over time, several people will be hidden together, resembling a bunch of sardines.

    The last person to find the hidden party loses that round.  He or she is the next person to hide.  Alternatively, you can reward the first person to find the hidden person by allowing that person to hide if he or she wants to.

    Variations 

    There are other variations to this game, such as playing it in pairs.  This adds a little more teamwork to the game.

  • Defend the Egg

    Defend the Egg (also known as the Great Egg Drop) is a teambuilding activity that involves collaboration, problem solving, and creative teamwork.  Groups build a structure out of ordinary materials and try to protect a raw egg from breaking when dropped from a high elevation.

    This exercise in teambuilding can be messy, so choose an appropriate setting where making a mess is acceptable.  The recommended group size is: teams of four or five people.  Several materials are needed: raw eggs, several plastic straws, masking or scotch tape, newspaper, and other materials of your choice.  This activity is for people ages 14 and up.

    Setup for Defend the Egg

    This game works well with teams that are not too large.  A good team size is four or five people.  Pass out one egg and a limited supply of materials (e.g. four straws, a three foot strip of Scotch Tape, one section of a newspaper, etc.)  This activity is more challenging with less materials provided, so decide how challenging you wish to make it.

    Gameplay for Defend the Egg

    Explain the rules: the mission is to protect the egg from cracking using teamwork, creativity, and a good design.  You will drop each structure at least fifteen feet, and so the goal is for each structure to be able to withstand such a fall.  Each team will only be given limited resources, and so they must be wise with what they have.  They may not use any other resources other than what is given to them.  Optionally, you can have other criteria for judging including:

    • most creative design
    • most stylish/visually appealing
    • (any other awards you wish)

    Decide on an appropriate amount of time (e.g. 20-25 minutes) and then instruct them to begin!  Tell them to place their egg inside their structure.

    Be sure to supervise each team as they build their structure.

    When time is up, collect all the structures.  Now is dramatic finale in which the structures are dropped (or thrown!) from at least 15 feet in elevation and then carefully inspected to see if the eggs survived. The winners are the groups that successfully protected the egg.  If you chose to have other awards, announce those winners also.

    This activity is useful to illustrate the importance of teamwork.  Ask everyone to reflect on how their group accomplished the task, what worked, what was challenging, etc.

    Variation

    A much more challenging variation of this activity is to provide no materials (other than the egg) and ask the participants to find materials from outdoors.

    To order materials for Defend the Egg and other teambuilding supplies, visit our online store.

  • Corporate Icebreakers (Online)

    Here is a collection of corporate icebreakers for work, especially for online settings. We’ve collected activities that can work great in person — and also a few that work especially well online for Zoom meetings (or Skype, WebEx, Microsoft Teams or your video conferencing program of choice) as well. You can use the text chat feature or have people play online during the video call.

    Two Truths and a Dream Wish – Similar to the Two Truths and a Lie classic icebreaker, this game asks players to state three sentences about themselves; but one is a wish that has not yet come true.

    Book Covers – Ask each person to come up with a phrase for a book title, perhaps their auto-biography. This can reveal something about a person and how they summarize their life.

    Unique Virtual Backgrounds that Tell a Story (Online Icebreaker) – Have each person search for a photo or image (or to find one using Google Images) that showcases a hobby, passion or something interesting about themselves. Have each person change their virtual background. Take turns and have each person share their image.

    Favorite Places (Online Icebreaker) – Have each person use Google Images to find a photo of a foreign city or favorite vacation spot. Each person changes their background to that photo. Each person introduces their name and then all players take turns trying to guess that location. Use the chat window to see who can be the first to correctly guess the city or town. Award one point to each time someone guesses correctly.

  • Catch the Ball Introductions Icebreaker

    Catch the Ball Introductions is a get-to-know-you icebreaker that is very simple to play, yet effective.  This activity works well for small and medium sized groups.  The only material that is required is a small ball or other object that can safely be passed around the room.  For example, we recommend a soft foam ball such as this one: Nerf Mini Sports Pack

    Playing Catch the Ball Introductions

    First, give the first person the soft foam ball.  Introduce the game and explain that the ball is the “share an interesting fact” ball.  The first person must reveal something interesting about themselves (hopefully not too controversial!) and then throw the ball to the second person. The second person also reveals something about themselves and throws it on to the next person.  In this way, the icebreaker is an effective way to get people to start talking and sharing about themselves.

    Variations

    There are several possible variations for this activity.  Instead of sharing interesting facts, you can have players share stories, questions, memories, embarrassing moments, or something related to a theme.  For example, if you are a teacher who is teaching a unit on American history, you can announce that the game is about sharing facts about a history lesson.  Each person who receives the ball must say a fact about the topic that you have established.

    Another way to play is to use a marker and write a number of good questions on the ball that players can choose from.  For example, you can write the questions at icebreaker questions.

    Have fun!

  • Air Balloons

     

    See which group has the strongest lungs by trying to keep your balloon in the air for longer than the other teams, using only your own air!

    Recommended ages:

    Air Balloons is an activity that is ideal for ages 10 – 25.

    Recommended number of people:

    This game is best played with groups of 8+ people.  It is not ideal for small groups.

    Materials needed:

    In order the play this game you will need the following materials:

    • Basic rubber balloons for air
    • A timer or stopwatch for each team
    • Optional: small paper or plastic fans

    How to set up the game:

    If you would like you can have each team blow up their balloons, but to make the game fairer it is better if you inflate all the balloons for each team ahead of time. Make sure to inflate extras in case of breaking balloons.

    How to play:

    1. Separate the group into different teams. Teams should be between 3-5 people ideally. You can play this game with as many teams as you’d like.
    2. Give each team a balloon to use as well as a paper or plastic fan (fans are optional, balloons are not).
    3. Choose a player from each team to be the time-keeper. Give them one of the timers or stopwatches to record the time that their team keeps the balloon in the air without touching it.
    4. Instruct players that the rules of the game are you cannot touch the balloon at all once it is in the air. Balloons must be kept in the air for as long as possible without being touched and without touching the ground at any time. Each time a balloon is touched by a member of the team or touches the ground, the time on the stopwatch must be reset back to zero. The only thing players are allowed to do to keep their balloons up is to use air either from their fans or by blowing on the balloon.Tip: try to give each team a different colored balloon so that there can be no mix-ups if the teams overlap at any point.

    Winning the game:

    The team that manages to keep their balloon in the air for the longest consecutive amount of time will be the winners. They should not sabotage any other competing teams during this time. Monitor the teams as they’re playing to ensure they are keeping time properly.

  • Magic Word Game

    Collect the most party favors from other people when they say your designated magic word – but be careful and make sure you don’t say the word yourself!

    Recommended ages:

    This activity is best for players who are ages 14 and up.

    Recommended number of people:

    Good for large groups of 12+ people.

    Materials required:

    For this game you will need various party favors for each person (or you can also use candy) as well as a list of “magic words.”  Words should be relatively commonly used to make the game more interesting. Words might include: “dog,” “cat,” “man,” “eat,” “boy,” “water,” etc.  For this game, good party favor items might include items like:

    • Bead necklaces, Hawaiian leis, or plastic sunglasses

    How to set up the game:

    Prepare your party favors/candy and list of magic words to be distributed upon the arrival of guests.

    How to play:

    1. As each person arrives, gives them a party favor and tell them what their magic word is. Make sure to instruct them not to use the word themselves. If everyone is already together, you can have people come up one by one to receive their party favor and magic word instead.
    2. Each person will go about the activities normally. If a player hears someone else use the magic word that was given to them, they may take the party favor of the other person. For example: If person #1 has the magic word “dog” and person #2 starts to talk about their pet dog, person #1 is allowed to take the party favor from person #2.
    3. Allow the game to continue throughout the entire party/event or else cut it off at a certain point in time. Whichever you choose, be sure to inform the participants about the choice so they will know when it stop playing the game. At the end of the game, count the number of party favors each player holds to determine the winner.Tip: You can penalize players who say their own magic word by making them give up one of their party favors to another player.

    Winning the game:

    The winner of the game is the one with the most party favors or candy by the time the game stops. Players can collect party favors from anyone involved in the game, even if they have already lost their own party favor, making this a fun way to battle to become the last man or woman standing. You can give away a small reward or prize if you choose to the winner of the game.  Have fun!

  • Marshmallow Toss

    Toss marshmallows to your teammates — as they try to catch as many as possible with their mouth in a set amount of time.

    Recommended ages:

    This game works best for ages 12 and up.

    Recommended number of people:

    Marshmallow Toss activity works well for groups of 8 or more people.

    Materials needed:

    • Marshmallows (large, not mini marshmallows)
    • Timer or stopwatch
    • Plastic bags (for clean up)
    • Masking tape or cones (for marking boundaries)

    How to set up the game:

    To set up for the marshmallow toss game you should make lines on the ground to set distance barriers. Use masking tape on a solid surface or plastic cones on a grassy surface. Set the distance so that it’s appropriate for the age group of the people who will be playing the game. They should be able to toss a marshmallow fairly accurately from one line to the other.

    How to play:

    1. Separate your group into pairs to compete in the game. Line each pair up so that one player is behind one marked line and the other player is directly across from them behind the other marked line.
    2. There are two different ways the game can be played. You can either have one player throwing to the other to see how many they can catch within the time period or else you can have the players alternate throwing back and forth to each other to get the longest streak of catches.
    3. Whichever method you choose to play, set your timer for around 1-2 minutes or any other time of your choice. Signal players when you start the timer and allow them to begin playing.
    4. At the end of the time, let all the players know that the time has expired and that they should stop throwing marshmallows. Any marshmallows thrown or caught after the time stops should not be counted in the total score for that pair.Tip: After each round of the game, have each player help to clean up the marshmallows that were dropped so that they don’t make a bigger mess later by getting stepped on or squashed around the area. This is where the plastic bags come in handy.Disclaimer: Like all food-oriented games, safety comes first! Be careful of choking hazards.

    Winning the game:

    The winner of the game is the pair that either catches the most total marshmallows or else has the longest back and forth streak of catches between one pair.

  • Hot and Cold Game

    The Hot and Cold game is a simple, crowd pleasing icebreaker game!  It gets the crowd going.  Simply choose a mystery action and have a volunteer try to figure it out.  The group cheers for them loudly when they are closer to doing the action and boos them when they are farther away.

    This game is best for ages 12+ and ideal for groups of 6+ people.  Large groups are okay.  Multiple groups can also play this simultaneously.

    Materials Required: No materials are required for this game, although you can use any props around the room that are available to you.

    How to set up the Hot and Cold Game:   You do not need to do anything to prepare for this game. All that’s needed is the group members themselves, although it may be wise to remove any unsafe objects that are present to keep players from using these during the game.

    How to play:

    1. Gather group members together in one room. It’s time to select the 1 or 2 people that are the “chosen players” for the first round. You can ask for volunteers or else choose the first players for yourself.
    2. Send the chosen players out of the room. Once they are out, have the group come up with an action they must perform when they come back into the room. Moderate this process to make sure an appropriate and safe action is chosen.
    3. Bring the chosen players back into the room and instruct them to try to figure out and do the mystery action. Other group members should be observing the chosen players and cheering or encouraging them when they are getting closer to doing the action (“hot”) and booing when they are getting farther from doing the action (“cold”). No words should be spoken by the group about the mystery action and no gestures should be used to indicate what needs to be done.
    4. The game is over once all the chosen players perform the mystery action. You may choose the next players by who was the most encouraging, who came up with the final action ideas, or any other criteria you see fit.

    Winning the game:

    Normally there is no winner or loser in this game as it is just a fun activity to help with group bonding.  Alternatively, you can divide the group into two or more sets of people with their own chosen player and mystery action. Set a timer and let the teams compete to see whose chosen player will complete their action first.  You can also time each chosen player to see how long it takes them to complete their mystery action. The one with the shortest time is the winner.