Teamwork Group Games

Challenge Games

• Promote communication and teamwork through games that challenge participants to achieve a common objective. For large groups, place participants in two lines that face each other; the longer the lines, the more effective the challenge. Have each participant extend her index finger. Lay a lightweight stick or rod across the line created by the participants' fingers; an unbalanced rod or stick is also effective. The group must lower the rod to the ground without pinching or grabbing the rod; everyone must touch the rod with their index finger at all times. The first team to successfully lower the rod wins the round.

  For a game with no materials required, place large teams into circles so that participants face one another. Each participant extends their hands into the circle and grabs the hands of two other participants. After everyone has locked hands, the teams work to untangle themselves without letting go of the hands of their partners. Teams will have to develop strategies, solve problems and initiate leadership to complete the task. The first team to untangle the knot of hands wins.

Active Games

• Get groups moving with active teamwork games. Host a marble race by placing participants into two teams. Provide 6-inch sections of hollow tubing to several members on each team, and give each team one large marble. Teams must race across the length of a field so that the marble is transported through the tubes without touching the ground or any part of a participant's body after the race has started.

  Adapt the challenge depending on the skill level of participants. For example, restrict the marble to five seconds of contact at a time for each tube, place team members in a specific order or add obstacles like logs or ladders to the course. Make the game even more interesting by replacing the marble with an egg. In each variation, teams must develop a strategy, communicate effectively and work together to complete the task. The first team to get the marble to the other side wins.

Problem-Solving Games

• Problem-solving group games add cognitive skill-building into teamwork skill-building and are ideal for groups confined to indoor spaces. Support critical thinking skills by challenging groups of four participants to determine hypothetical survival strategies. Provide a hypothetical scenario, such as a plane crash on a tropical island; each group must create a list of the top five survival items ranked in order of importance. Group members must present their argument for the most important items and work together to develop a ranked list. Compare the lists against those suggested by survival experts and award points based on correct answers.

  Adapt a survival challenge by inviting groups to creatively use a limited number of supplies to create a necessary survival item. For example, provide groups with river stones, twine, a sheet of lightweight cloth, duct tape and wooden planks. Each group must create a useful item or structure from the supplies. Groups must first decide on what type of object, such as a shelter or a distress signal, would be most useful. Invite groups to present their items and an argument as to why they chose the object.