It’s arrival week here at Up with People meaning a new group of participants is arriving in Denver, CO from 20+ countries around the world. These young people don’t know each other yet but this week they will be forming bonds that will last a lifetime. It can be intimidating meeting total strangers. If you find yourself in a situation where large groups need to get to know each other quickly, ice breakers can be an incredible tool. Here are 10 of our favorites to help your group get to know new friends.
Desert Island – You know the question, “If you were stranded on a desert island what’s one thing you would bring with you?” To get to know people better, make them choose a book or a type of item. It could be books, music, food, etc. Again, a silly ice breaker, but a real way to better know the people in your group.
What’s Your Theme Song – Ask the people in your group, “If you were in a movie what song would you want to play to represent who you truly are and why did you choose that song?”
What’s your most used emoji? – Emojis have become a new language. Find out why your group members use their favorite emojis. You’ll be surprised at how much you will learn about someone and their personality.
Two Truths and a Lie – Form a circle and each person takes turns announcing 2 true things about themselves and a lie. The rest of the group must guess which interesting piece of information is the lie. This is a great way for people to tell a group things they are proud of but would never bring up in normal conversation.
If You Were Famous – Go around the group and have each person answer the question, “If you were famous, what would you be famous for?”
Whodunit – Have each person in your group write down an interesting fact about themselves on a notecard. Put the notecard into a hat and mix. Take turns pulling the cards and the group must guess who they think (upon first impressions) the card was written by.
Superpowers – Go around the group and have each person answer the question, “If you had a superpower, what would it be and why?”
Find 10 Things in Common – Find ten things that you have in common with the other participants in your group. This encourages conversation and is a quick way to get to know each other.
Around The World – Ask everyone in a small group to answer the question, “If you could live anywhere on this planet and take everything that you love with you, where would you choose to live?”
Human Bingo – This icebreaker version will help people get to know each other quickly and start interacting. Prepare 5×5 bingo matrices filled with a series of personal statements and hand them out to the group.
Some example questions:
- Have you visited more than 15 countries?
- Do you have a pet?
Instruct the participants to interview each other and tick off the boxes that apply to each person. The first person with a completed card wins.
No Comments yet!