Back-To-Back Drawing

Split the group into pairs and seat partners back-to-back. Give one person in the pair a drawing of a shape, and give the other person a clipboard with a piece of blank paper and pencil. The person with the drawing must give a verbal description of the picture for his partner to replicate on a piece of paper. Once completed, pairs should compare the provided shape with the drawing. Discuss whether or not communication was effective and if the message was received correctly.

Blind Square
Assemble the group in a circle with each participant at an arm's distance from the next. Seat participants and instruct them to put on blindfolds. Place a rope in the center of the circle, and instruct all participants to hold onto the rope while forming a square. Members of the task must communicate with each other to move into proper position.

Building Blocks
Assemble groups of three participants each and ask them to assign roles of director, runner and builder. Each team is given a set of building blocks and construction paper. The directors from each group are taken to another room to view a tower constructed from building blocks and construction paper. Directors are the only team members allowed to see the tower. The director will give building instructions to the runner, who passes the information along to the builder. The runner is allowed to take as many trips to the director and builder as needed within the given time. Once the allotted time has elapsed, allow participants to see the original tower and ask them to make comparisons to the team-built towers. Discuss difficulties in conveying information between participants and how instructions could have been better communicated.

Shoe Tie
Split the group into pairs and assign one person in each pair to give instructions on tying a shoe to his partner. The individual receiving directions must follow instructions exactly as stated. While tying a shoe is an everyday skill, this activity reminds participants that specific directions and guidelines in even the most mundane tasks are required to be successful.

The Tallest Tower

Assemble packets of supplies for groups of four to five participants, with materials such as paper cups, popsicle sticks, construction paper, cardboard, masking tape, etc. Do not equally distribute supplies; keep supplies concealed so participants can't immediately recognize the imbalance of materials. Groups are asked to build the tallest freestanding tower with supplied materials. Groups will begin to notice the difference in supplies and will barter, steal, or resign to the fact that material distribution was unfair. Once the given time allotment is up, bring the teams together and discuss how participants communicated within their team, and how teams communicated with each other to accomplish the task.