Ages: All. Recommended # of people: 6-10. Messiness factor: No Sweat. Materials Required: None. Recommended Setting: Indoors.

Two Truths and a Lie

Two Truths and a Lie is the classic icebreaker game in which one attempts to identify which of three statements is bogus.

Instructions: Have everyone sit in a circle. Each person prepares three statements, two of which are true and one of which is a lie. In any order, the person shares the three statements to the entire group. The object of the game is to figure out which statement a lie. The rest of the group votes on each statement, and the person reveals which one is the lie.

Variation: Two Truths and a Dream Wish. As an interesting variation to the classic Two Truths and a Lie icebreaker, people may also play a version called Two Truths and a Dream Wish. Instead of stating a lie, a person says something that is not true — yet something that they wish to be true. For example, someone that has never been to Hawaii might say: “I have visited Hawaii when I was young.” This interesting spin often leads to unexpected, fascinating results, as people often share touching wishes about their lives.

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Ages: 12 and up. Recommended # of people: Larger groups of 24+ people. Messiness Factor: No problem. Materials required: bingo cards prepared in advance and writing utensils. Recommended Setting: Indoors.

Autograph Bingo

Autograph Bingo is a fun way to help both new acquaintances and old friends discover facts about each other. The goal of this icebreaker game is to mingle and obtain the signatures of people who have the facts listed on their bingo card. Just as regular bingo rules, once a player successfully obtains a full row (5 in a row) on his or her Bingo sheet, whether obtained horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, he or she shouts “BINGO!”

Setup

Prepare a table with 5 rows and 5 columns (5×5), with interesting facts inside the boxes. These facts can include humorous or bizarre things. For example you can use facts such as:

• Speaks more than two languages
• Enjoys walking in thunderstorms
• Likes anchovies
• Has been to Alaska
• Has gone skydiving before
• Has more than three sisters
• Has gone without a shower for more than three days

Try to be as creative as you can. Like traditional bingo, you can mark the center square as a “Free Space”. After you are finished preparing the table, print out enough copies. You are ready to play!

Instructions for How to Play

Pass out pens and the bingo cards to each player. Explain the game along with the following rule: each person you talk to may only sign your sheet once (so that people can interact with as many people as possible). When everyone is ready, say “Go!” and begin the game!Once a player shouts “Bingo!” everyone returns to the center and the person must introduce the people who signed his or her sheet. If desired, you can ask each person to explain their fact.

The Autograph Game is a great way to learn humorous or unique facts about people. Have fun!

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Ages: 10 and up.  Recommend # of people: 6-15.  Messiness factor: No Sweat.  Materials Required: None.  Recommended Setting: Indoors.

Instructions:  Hodgy Podgy (also known as Hodgey Podgey and the Hodgy Podgy Word Game) is a simple yet very fun rhythm game.  A group of people stand in a circle, with everyone facing the center.  Choose a person who will start the round.  He or she starts to clap a relatively slow rhythm (slap both legs on the first beat, then clap hands on second beat, thumbs-up on left hand for third beat, and thumbs-up on right hand on fourth beat, and repeat the four beat cycle).  Everyone in the circle matches the rhythm set by the leader.  To start each round, the leader says (while clapping to the rhythm, one beat per word), “Hodgy podgy, hodgy podgy, hodgy podgy, hodgy podgy!”

The leader starts a sentence by saying any word on the one beat (for example, he or she could say the word “Big” as he or she slaps their legs on beat one).  The next person in the circle must continue the story by adding the next word in the sentence by the first beat of the next rhythm cycle (for example, the 2nd person could say “dogs,” so the sentence is now “Big dogs..”).  The third person in the circle must continue the story by adding the 3rd word in the sentence at the right time (for example, the person could say the word “eat,” making the current sentence “Big dogs eat..”).  The next person in line must continue the sentence.  Each word must make logical and grammatical sense when added to the sentence.  If a person wants to end the sentence, he or she says a punctuation word, such as “period” or “exclamation point” or “question mark.”  At this point, the next person in the circle starts the new sentence.

An example of a sample round of play would look like this (assuming there are 6 players in the circle):

• Player 1 (while clapping a 4 beat rhythm): “Hodgy podgy, hodgy podgy, hodgy podgy, hodgy podgy!”
• Player 1 starts sentence on beat one: “Big..”
• Player 2 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle: “..dogs..”
• Player 3 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle: “..eat..”
• Player 4 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle:
• “..yummy..”
• Player 5 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle: “..food..”
• Player 6 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle: “..when..”
• Player 1 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle: “..they..”
• Player 2 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle: “..are..”
• Player 3 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle: “..hungry..”
• Player 4 ends sentence on beat one of next cycle by saying: “..PERIOD..”
• Player 5 starts new sentence on beat one of next cycle: “They..”
• Player 6 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle: “..are..”
• Player 1 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle: “..very..”
• Player 2 continues sentence on beat one of next cycle: “..smelly..”
• Player 3 ends sentence on beat one of next cycle by saying: “..EXCLAMATION POINT..”
• Player 4 starts new sentence on beat one of next cycle by saying: “Bob..”

And the game continues, as players create silly stories together, word by word.

When a player makes a mistake (is unable to continue the sentence in time, or says something logically or gramatically correct) the round ends and he becomes the person who starts the next round.  This game offers lots of entertainment and is a little educational too!

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Ages: All.  Recommended # of People: 10-20.  Messiness Factor: No Sweat.  Materials Required: Blanket.  Recommended Setting: Indoors.

Blanket Name Game

Instructions:  The Blanket Name Game is a simple name recognition/identification game.  Go around the room and make introductions (share your name and other information such as your hobbies, major, etc. if desired. Separate into two groups and have two people hold a large, thick blanket separating the two groups so that neither group can see the other. When the blanket drops, the first person to correctly call out the name of the other group’s designated person wins the round (which typically means the loser of the round must leave the game, though if you prefer to avoid ‘elimination’ then you don’t have to do this).  The group may strike different humorous poses to distract the attention of other group’s person. As a variation, several people may be facing the other group with one person being chosen to call out the information of the other group’s people.

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Ages: 10 and up.  Recommended # of People: 20 and up (large groups work fine too!).  Messiness factor: Might break a small sweat!  Materials Required: None.  Recommended Setting: Indoors or Outdoors.

Giants, Wizards, & Elves

• For the giant, each person stands on their tippy toes, lifts up their arms, and makes an angry growling noise: “Roooar!”
• For the wizard, each person crouches a little bit, flutters their fingers as though they are casting a spell, and they make a magical noise: “Woooo!”
• For the elf, each person gets down very low on their knees, cups their hands around their ears, and makes a high pitched elf noise: “Eeeeee!”

Practice each motion together a few times.  Divide everyone into two teams and have them separate into opposite sides of the room. The game invovles several rounds.  For each round, the following takes place:

1. Each team forms a huddle and decides to become a giant, wizard, or elf.
2. Both teams then line up and face each other, about 5 feet apart.
3. The facilitator says “3..2..1..Go!”
4. Each team acts out the giant, wizard, or elf (whatever they decided to become).
5. As soon as they act out their character, the winner tries to grab the loser and pulls as many people over to their side as they can.  The loser tries to run away, back to their side, in order to be safe.  The winner of each round is determined by the following.The giant defeats the elf because giants “squash” elves.
   Elves defeat wizards by outsmarting them, chewing at their legs.
   The wizard defeats the giant by “zapping” them with a magic spell.
   Identical characters are a draw (no one wins).This process keeps repeating for multiple rounds until one team is entirely consumed (or when time runs out.)

Variations

Other variations of this game exist – or you can make up your own.  Be creative!

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Ages: 12 and up. Recommended number of people: 7-200 (group sizes of 10 are ideal). Messiness factor: Might break a sweat – (close proximity – hope you’re not claustrophobic!). Materials required: None. Recommended setting: Both indoors or outdoors.

Human Knot Game

Goals of the Human Knot Game:

• Team building and communication
• Problem solving
• Ice-breaker or get to know others better

Setup for the Human Knot Game:

This game is versatile in that multiple group sizes can play. Form groups of about 10 people each. Have each group standing, facing towards each other, in a circle. Each person should be standing shoulder to shoulder. First, instruct everyone to lift their left hand and reach across to take the hand of someone standing across the circle. Next, have everyone lift their right and reach across to take the hand of another person standing across the circle. Make sure that no one is holding hands with someone standing directly beside the person.

How to Play the Human Knot Game

To play, the groups must communicate and figure out how to untangle the knot (forming a circle of people) without ever letting go of any hands. If you wish, this icebreaker can be played competitively, in which the facilitator says “Ready.. Set.. Go!” and has all the groups race to become the first group to finish. If any group member lets go of a hand (breaks the chain), then the group must start from the beginning, or you could impose a penalty/punishment for that person (e.g. wear a blindfold).

This game typically takes 15-30 minutes to complete. You can impose a time limit if you wish to make the game more challenging. When you are done with the Human Knot activity, you can ask some debrief questions if you wish, such as “How well did you group work together? What strategies did your group adopt? How did it feel to solve the game?” etc.

Variations

To increase the difficulty level, you can either (1) blindfold some of the players or (2) require that the game be played silently (no talking).

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Ages: All. Recommend number of people: Groups of 3-12. Messiness factor: No sweat. Materials required: A large bag of M&Ms or any candy with multiple colors (e.g. Skittles).

M&M Game

This icebreaker is a simple way to help people introduce facts about themselves. It’s very flexible and adaptable – and (if you have a sweet tooth) delicious too! The M&Ms Game goes by other names: the Skittles Game, the Candy Game, the Color Game, among other names.

Setup

Pour M&Ms or any other multicolor candy into a bowl. Have everyone in the group grab as much or as little as they like from the bowl. Make sure that no one eats their candy right away.

How to Play

For each piece of M&M candy they took, they will have to answer a question, depending on its color. For example, you can designate:

• Red candy: favorite hobbies
• Green candy: favorite foods
• Yellow candy: favorite movies
• Orange candy: favorite places to travel
• Brown candy: most memorable or embarrassing moments
• Blue candy: wild cards (they can share anyone they choose)

 

You can be creative and choose any questions you think would be fitting for your group. The facilitator will then call out the color topic and everyone will go around the room sharing 1 answer per M&M. As an example: if you chose two red pieces of candy, you will have to name two of your favorite hobbies. After the individual has shared that color with the group, he/she may then eat their candy. Continue to go around the room until each color topic has been shared. (This game was provided by LeeLee1433. Thanks LeeLee!)

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Ages: All.  Recommended # of People: At least 40 people.  Messiness Factor: Might break a small sweat. Materials Required: A coin, a chair, and any small object like a tennis ball.  Recommended Setting: Indoors.

Pulse Game

The Pulse Game (also known as the Electric Current Game or the Electricity Game) is a great way to break the ice, especially if you have a large group people.  In a fast paced action game, two long lines of humans resemble a fast moving electric current!

Setup

To set up the Pulse Game, you need to form two teams of equal size.    The easiest way to do this is probably to have each player pair off with another person.  When you’ve divided the group evenly, have each team member face the same direction, and have each team facing each other.  Instruct each team to hold hands to form two long human chains.  At the end of the two lines, place a chair with a small object (e.g. a tennis ball) on it.  The referree stands at the front (see picture below).

Playing the Pulse Game

To play the pulse game, have the two players at the front of the line watch the referee.  Have everyone else close their eyes and face downward.  Instruct everyone to be silent.  For each round, the referee does the following:  Flip a coin and quietly show it only to the first two players at the front of each team.  Whenever the coin shows ”Heads,” the two people at the front of the line must squeeze the hand of the next person in line as quickly as possible.  Whenever that player’s hand gets squeezed, he or she quickly continues to “pass the electric current” by squeezing the next person’s hand, and so on.  As the “electric current” transfers along the line, the goal of the game is to be the first team to grab the object (the ball) on the chair.  If heads was flipped and a team successfully grabs the ball, that team wins a point.  On the other hand, if the team grabs the ball but heads was not flipped, then the point goes to the other team.   After each coin flip, wait several seconds and then flip again.  Keep flipping until the coin shows “Heads.”  For a short game, the winner is the first team to score 10 points.  For a longer game, you can increase the number of points. 

Have fun playing this fast paced, quick reflex action game.

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Ages: 10-21 years old.  Recommended # of People: 5-20.  Messiness Factor: No Sweat.  Materials Required: A fun attitude.  Recommended Setting: Indoors.

The Name Game
 
How to play

The Name Game (also known as the Adjective Game) starts with one person in the room picking a word that describes himself or herself as a person. The catch is, that the word must start with the first letter of their first name.  For example, my students call me Miss Velasquez.  I would say “Hello! My name is Vivacious Velasquez.” The person after me must say my adjective and name before saying theirs.  So they would go, “Hello, Vivacious Velasquez, my name is Silly Sam.” Then the third person would go, “Hello, Vivacious Velasquez, and Silly Sam, my name is Easy-going Edwin.”  This continues on until all of the students have gone. Being last is hilarious in this game, because they must remember everyone’s name AND adjective before stating theirs. 
  
Additional comments and suggestions

I’ve played this game in college and, of course, used my first name. I said, “Hello, my name is I-love-you Irene.” It was funny because everyone after me had to say “Hello, I-love-you Irene, I’m (insert witty adjective and name here).”  This is neat because you don’t necessarily have to pick a single word that describes you.  In fact, it doesn’t have to be an adjective at all.  Notice, however, that the first word of my phrase started with the letter “I.”  This is the only rule that cannot be broken. The more creative you are the better and more humorous the game will be.  This game will help students that may not already know each other to get to know one another better. When students pick their adjective (or phrase) it will also double as a great “tip” for the next person if they get stuck and cannot remember the other student’s name.  
 
(This game was contributed by Irene Velasquez.  Thanks Irene!)

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Ages: 13 and up. Recommended number of people: At least 10. Works with very large groups and meetings. Mesiness factor: No mess, no stress! Materials required: A large piece of paper or posterboard for each participant, pens/markers, sturdy tape. Recommended Setting: Indoors or outdoors.

First Impressions Game

This is a fun game that involves writing your first impression of someone you meet. If some people already know each other, that’s fine too — people can simply write some nice, encouraging words or adjectives to describe each other. This works well as an icebreaker for meetings, when there are new people present, or when people don’t know each other well. It can be entertaining as a party game, too.

To set up First Impressions, pass out the large sheets of paper and writing utensils. Have each person write their name on the top of a sheet of paper. Tape each person’s sheet to their back so that they can’t see it. Instruct everyone to mingle with each other and to converse. Tell everyone to say hello and to introduce each other for a few moments. After a minute or so, ask each person to write an adjective (their “first impression” of the person they just spoke with) on each other’s papers. Then have each person continue mingling with new people, repeating the process. After 10-20 minutes (depending on how large your group is and how long you want this activity to run), each person should have several adjectives and descriptive words listed on their backs. Go around the room and introduce each other, reading the words writen on your neighbor’s paper. This should be pretty humorous, and if people did this activity correctly, there should be lots of kind things said about each other.

Important note: instruct everyone to write nice (or encouraging) words ONLY! Do not allow any mean, rude, or critical words to be written. For example, one can write words such as “beautiful smile,” “great sense of humor,” “smart and witty personality,” “gifted listener,” etc.

(Credits: This game was brought to you by osu_fan. Thanks, osu_fan!)

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