THRIVING YOUTH MINISTRY

50
Y T
F I
B A R
&
G E
Eunice Oderon
 I R U I

Putting together young people for the first time in a big or

small group is a challenge. Most of the time, they would be
awkward unless you luck to have outgoing personalities as
part of the group. But generally, the youth today have some
anxieties in connecting with other people for the first time.
Perhaps it is because of their personal insecurities or their
lack of confidence or other factors, but getting them to open
up to others is a pretty tough task.

Whenever you are in a meeting, you have to be able to make

sure that your participants are at ease and have lowered
their personal boundaries.

As a youth leader, you have to be able

to connect with your group and they
would have to be able to reciprocate in
such a manner that they would be able
to express themselves. It takes just one
person to make this work, as generally,
once the group is at ease with each
other, they would be able to bring down
their guard and try to make the
connections with other members of the
group.
There are several techniques to get the ball rolling and break
the ice whether you have a small group or a big group. It
actually doesn’t matter how large a group you have, as long
as you make sure that they are having fun, you would be
able to break the ice and establish the connection with the
group and within the members of the group pretty easily.

With that being said, here are some of the best ice-breakers
and games that you can use to get your group to a level
where you can provide them with teachable moments that
you need to keep them entertained and interested to be part
of the assembly.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 50 F Y T I
B A R & G E
P s a t B g
Using a blank BINGO card wherein instead of
numbers, you write characteristics of persons, you
can ask your participants to go around the room and
figure out who among the other participants they
would like to include in their list. You can make this a
loud activity or a silent activity depending on your
take on the participants. The person who completes
the most squares would be considered as the winner.

C r e
One of the classic ice-breakers, all you
need is to group the participants and
give them a category or a word that
they have to act out and have their
groups guess. This will encourage
teamwork and would have the
participants active in a hurry.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 J g w h a T s
Good for small groups. You can start off
with a prebuilt Jenga Tower which the
group would work on. Each piece would
have a question that they would have to
answer or a dare that they would have to
perform.

S g t a
m s a o
t e
If you want to build team work, you
can group the participants into triads
or quads and hand them some
spaghetti noodles an marshmallows.
Task them to create the highest and
most stable tower possible.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 T a r H t
If you have a lot of prep time, you can
divide the group accordingly and have
them work on getting you photos or actual
objects based on your descriptions. A map
would be a good thing, too as they can
work on their communication skills as well.

A z g R e

You can have a dyad or a triad or

even a quad work together to pass a
series of obstacles or challenges that
would involve their teamwork,
communication and cooperation.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 T t R e
A fun twist to an otherwise predictable
race, you can group the kids into how
many groups you like and have them
run through a series of obstacles. Mind
you, you are not going to tell them that
it is the slowest group who would win.

A m C l
If you have a big group of
participants, you can group them
accordingly and have them talk to
each other as to what their particular
group call would be. Once they have
decided, they would be blindfolded
and taken to separate places. The first
group to get themselves complete
would be declared the winners.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 H a H p R a
You can have as many groups as you
want but you need to have them hold
hands and pass around a hula hoop
from the front to the back of the line
and back again without breaking the
chain they made.

M i l c i
w h a t s
Instead of just chairs, you can have
someone sit on them and play a
song. Once the song stops, the
participants would have to choose a
partner and then talk to them for a
minute or two.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 M c n P R
If you have a big group, you can use
this to make for a fun engagement.
Tape the name of a person on the
back of each participant. A group
would be seated and know who
they are already. The other group
doesn’t know who they are and they
would have to ask around to find
out who they are. Once they know
who they are, they would have to
find their partner. Questions should
be answerable by Yes or No only.

m R I
Pair people up and have them
imitate each other’s movements.
Tell them to be as creative as they
can be as they listen to music being
played. Those who cannot imitate
perfectly would be asked to sit
together and talk while the game is
ongoing. Award the pairs who are
able to imitate each other as
perfectly as possible.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 M c n P R
If you have a big group, you can use
this to make for a fun engagement.
Tape the name of a person on the
back of each participant. A group
would be seated and know who
they are already. The other group
doesn’t know who they are and they
would have to ask around to find
out who they are. Once they know
who they are, they would have to
find their partner. Questions should
be answerable by Yes or No only.

m R I
Pair people up and have them
imitate each other’s movements.
Tell them to be as creative as they
can be as they listen to music being
played. Those who cannot imitate
perfectly would be asked to sit
together and talk while the game is
ongoing. Award the pairs who are
able to imitate each other as
perfectly as possible.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 D c g S e
Forma circle and play a lively tune.
Have the participants move to the
music and have tap people to
partner up in the middle of the circle
to dance to the music. Encourage the
participants to be as spontaneous as
possible. You can also have one
choose a partner instead of having
to tap two people.

M i e R k,
P e , S s r
The game is rock, paper, scissors
but done by the group. Have them
talk to each other and have to
outwit the other group by choosing
among rock, paper or scissors and
then turn around and do the
motions. You can do race to five or
seven and you’ll have the group in
stitches in no time.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 T e -l g
M s r R e
A rather physically challenging
game, you have to tie the legs and
feet of the participants together
with a handkerchief. They would
have to walk to a designated point
and back to their group and create a
relay. The first one to finish would
be declared the winner.

C t e t F g
Whether you have a small or big
group, this would work well. Give
each group a flag that they have to
protect at all costs during the
activities. You can limit physical
contact and just have sneaky
attempts to capture the flag
throughout a given time period.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 F a t B t

If you have access to a pool or even

just a small tub of water you can do
this easily. Give each group various
materials and task them to make a
boat that would float. The trick here
is to mix and match materials and
have groups bargain and trade for
their materials in order to make
their boat float properly.

L o M c p
A rather simple but fun game. You
can do this blindfolded or not but
you have to have a prepared set of
logos (either matching or one piece
to be put together) underneath the
chair or inside an envelope. You
would have to describe your logo
and ask around to figure out who
has the other half or the other one
similar to what you have on your
hand. Pairs would become partners
and can share experiences.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 B n M

Once you have divided them into

groups, you can now have them
bring over things that they have.
They are limited to what they have
on their persons at the time of the
game. The teams with the most
number of items brought would be
considered as the winners.

H a T e

Divide the group into manageable

sections. Task each group to create
a tower that would be the tallest
among the group. Watch them as
they cooperate to get you the best
and tallest tower possible.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 P t B l n
This would work if you have some
spare balloons and some time to
prepare. Write down the names of
the participants on a piece of paper
or if you want to make it more
challenging have the participants
describe themselves. Put the paper
inside the balloon and blow them
up. Mix the balloons in an area and
have the group get one balloon and
pop it. They would have to find the
person being described by asking
questions.

A h e f l-i
On a piece of paper write down at
least five letters. Have the
participants fill it in with a word
that starts with the letter and get to
know people who may fit the word
they put in. You can have a time-
limit and have them share their
findings in front of the group.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 N e T H t
Instead of names, have numbers
prepared as name tags. Also
prepare a series of questions or
instructions that each participant
would have to ask a particular
number. Just fun trivia, nothing too
serious at first to keep it fun and
light. Have them note these and
share with the group afterwards.

E a l W
With a predetermined set of
questions in hand, you are going to
put the group in a circle and hand a
ball of yarn to one person. Have
him hold the end of the yarn and
throw the ball to another person.
Ask the question. Have him answer
it and throw the ball to another
person. Eventually, you’ll get the
group tangled up. Refresh their
memory from time to time.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 L d g S i

Give the groups a few pieces of

paper and a predetermined spot.
Task them to create paper planes
and have them try to land as many
planes inside the spot after a
predetermined time.

B l-i t k w
y
Have a set of questions ready as
well as a soft ball. Have one person
toss the ball to another person and
choose from the set of questions
what he would ask the recipient. Do
this until everyone gets a chance to
introduce themselves somewhat to
the group.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 P s t M s e

You can group the participants into

manageable sections. They would
have to be able to relay a message
you would be whispering to the
person in front of the line to the
person at the back of the line. Make
it a tongue twister and see how far
they message would be from the
original.

M e F u n O

Task the group to arrange

themselves according to their
date of birth. However, the
catch is that they wouldn’t be
able to speak and use only signs
or bodily gestures to
communicate. The first to do this
properly gets a bonus.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 C d M -U
This would involve a lot of
preparation as you would have to
tape an even number of candies
underneath the chairs. Have the
participants get the candies from
their chairs and have them find the
other members of their group. Once
they find all the members of the
group, they’ll have to make a yell
and shout it out.

D m -r a
Once you have grouped the
participants, you would choose
from a prepared list of scenarios
something that they would be re-
enacting or re-creating. It could
be an animal, an event or a
person. Watch them interpret
each one and be amazed at how
well they work together.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 F l t L d
Put the group facing inwards and
choose one who would be the
guesser. Take him out of the room
and have the group decide on who
would be the leader who would
initiate the actions they would
follow. Invite the guesser back in
once it is settled. Have the guesser
find out who is the leader in the
group.

P c n t T t
If you have several tents
available and you want to
emphasize the value of
communication, you can do this
easily. Once the group is settled,
assign who would be the ones
who are mute, blind and deaf.
Have them work together to
pitch the tent as fast as they can.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 P t -F i

You can give each player a different

piece of the photo puzzle they would
have to find each other through a
variety of clues and questions that
come predetermined. First to finish
their photo is declared the winner.

P z H t
Give each group a puzzle to
form. The trick here is to make
sure that there will be
interchanged puzzle pieces for
all groups. Groups would then
have to barter, negotiate and do
whatever it takes to get their
puzzles completed. The good
thing here is if the puzzles are
not completed, you can still use it
as s springboard.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 P t i B G

Using BINGO cards with

predetermined questions,
participants are encouraged to go
around the group and ask the
questions themselves. Once they find
out who fulfils the description or the
question, they are to draw their
portrait. No person is allowed to be
on their card twice.

B t i S k g
One classic game with a twist.
Give instructions as to how many
people would be in a group.
Once formed, give them time to
familiarize themselves with each
other with a set of questions that
they all have to answer.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 C c a M
Conceptualized like the boat is
sinking, instead of just grouping,
assign each person to be an
ingredient in a chocolate mug. One
would be the mug, one would be the
hot water, one would be the
chocolate and the other the sugar.
Upon the cue, they would be
forming groups to make a chocolate
mug. The twist is that they have to
mingle and not stay on the same
group.

S o S s
Another take on task following,
the leader of the assembly
engages the group with a game
that can border on the silly and
humorous while keeping the
participants ready and
energetic.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 W i i?
All you need are pieces of paper,
some pens and a big hat.
Participants would write down
something about themselves on the
paper, the leader would then collect
the pieces of paper and then ask one
participant to pick one and read
aloud and guess who the person is.

C m a t s
In this ice-breaker, you would be
given time to find out as many
commonalities with another
participant whom you do not
know. You are to write down as
many things as possible that you
have in common with as many
people as possible. In the end,
you would have to be able to
share with the group your
findings and generalizations.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 I S
Another classic game that can really
serve as an icebreaker. The leader
would pick someone to start the
game and have him identify what or
who he is describing. The smaller the
detail, the better. This would set off
your group to becoming observant
and aware of whom they are with.

F o t T n
Using pictures, the leader would
be bringing the group to identify
which things they have in
common by asking, which one is
your favorite? Photos can be
anything that the participants
can relate to – food, books, pets,
games, etc. The more the group
becomes engaged, the more
aware they become of their
peers.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 S g m a T e
In this ice-breaker, it is better to
divide the group into smaller
groups. The leader would start off
by singing a line or two of a song
and have the group try to add to it –
and make a mash-up of sorts, as the
groups go back and forth.

P t n y
This is great for small groups as
there will be two competing
teams. They would be trying to
guess a common word that they
would illustrate on a chalkboard
or whiteboard. Or you can act
them out as well.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 S c a C
Groups would be engaged in
building pyramids of cups and then
putting them back to their stacks.
The first one to finish as a group
would be declared winners.

J a s W k
This is quite challenging as you
would ask the participants to tie
their handkerchiefs around their
ankles and then walk like a
Japanese geisha from one point
to another and back again.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 D w a G s
In this ice-breaker, you would have
to draw something that symbolizes
yourself and then put them inside a
box. Participants would choose one
and then try to decipher the
drawing and guess who among the
group best fits the drawing.

T T t a
a L
For groups that need to get to
know each other, you can start
by putting together two facts or
truths about yourself and a lie.
The rest of the group would then
try to guess which one would be
the lie. The sharer would be the
one to tell whether the guesses
are correct or not.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
 T t a T t
w h a B l
Let the group stand in a circle. Using
a soft ball, throw it to the person
whom you would want to ask a
question to. Once the person
answers it, he does the same thing
to another participant and so forth.

B l o T t

With a set of prepared questions,

the leader would then ask each
member of the group to pick one
question from the bowl and
answer it in front of the group.
This would help people to open
up and be at ease with
each other.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R
Getting people to open up and be part of a
group is not an easy task but with these
ideas for ice-breakers, we have got you
covered.

You can bring your meetings to become

more engaging and more open with these
things in mind. The trick is to be prepared
to mix and match and to react based on
what you feel the group is giving you.

As the leader of the meeting, you have to

be able to sense the general mood and
keep them engaged and ready to be part
of the discussion that is to come.

T I N Y T M I R | E I O R