Icebreakers

What This Game Teaches This exercise helps participants explore identity and personal narrative by telling the story behind their name. Also builds connection through short personal sharing. Group Size Individuals, pairs, or small groups Time 10–20 minutes Energy Level Low How to Play Ask participants to reflect on the story of their name. This could include: How they got their name, Who they were named after, A nickname, How their name has changed over time, or A story ab

What This Game Teaches Builds focus, presence, and quick pattern recognition while helping participants get out of their heads and into their bodies. Also used as an opportunity to teach the “Circus Bow” (accepting failure) Group Size Pairs Time 5–10 minutes Energy Level Medium → High How to Play Two players stand facing each other. Count to three together, alternating numbers: Player A: “1” Player B: “2” Player A: “3” Player B: “1” Player A: “2” Player B: “3” Repeat until be

What This Game Teaches This game builds connection quickly by helping participants move beyond surface-level conversation and find meaningful common ground. Group Size Pairs or small groups Time 5–10 minutes Energy Level Medium How to Play Put participants into pairs or groups of three. Give them two to three minutes to find three things they all have in common. The rule: they cannot use obvious or surface-level answers (no “we are all human” or “we all work here”) or any pri