Group Size
- Any Size
Overview
A second way to break the ice is to get everyone into pairs, and tell them that they have one minute to draw each other. Most people think that they have no drawing talent, so when you announce this, everyone usually laughs nervously. They judge themselves negatively, so they are reluctant to do it at first. Fortunately, everybody is in the same boat, and it’s a relatively trivial request, so people go ahead and do it. Indeed, it is a small moment of courage that leads to some connection.
Materials
- Pen and Paper
Steps
- We put people in pairs, and then we ask them to draw a certain person in the group. Between the two people in each pair, they have to figure out if they know the person whose name we just announced. Thus it’s a two-part puzzle: They have to figure out who the person is, from among everyone in the group. And then they have to draw the person they think it is.
- We do this up to 9 times, each time calling out a different name of someone in the group.
- Finally, for the last round, we ask them to draw someone else in the group who hasn’t yet been called
- They can choose to draw anyone at all. The catch is that they then need to go around and show their drawing to other members of the group, and see if anyone can figure out whom their drawing depicts!
Debrief
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
- Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua?
- Lorem ipsum dignissim enim sit amet venenatis urna cursus eget nunc scelerisque viverra mauris?
Examples
Theory
This activity may seem unorthodox, but it draws upon the work of Harvard professor (and MacArthur Genius) Howard Gardner. He insists that traditional education focuses too much on the role of linguistic and mathematical intelligence. In his influential work, he theorizes that there are multiple forms of intelligence, which includes visual intelligence (one that artists and architects often have). By using art in an activity, we hope to appeal to a different kind of intelligence, and different learning styles.
Source
Transformative Action Institute, adapted from popular improv activity
Additional Readings
Gardner, H., & Hatch, T.; Hatch (1989). Multiple intelligences go to school: Educational implications of the theory of multiple intelligences.”Educational Researcher. 18 (8)