Paper telephone

Group size: Big group 10+
Timescale: 10-30 min
Where?: Anywhere, indoors, outdoors, gym hall
What you need: Paper, Pens
Instructions: First you need to pass out paper to each person playing. Each person should have as many squares of paper (whole sheets would be too big) as there are people playing. For example, if there are 12 kids playing, then each of them should have 12 squares of paper.

Second, instruct each student to write down a crazy statement on top sheet of paper. Make sure they don't say it out loud or tell anyone what it is. The crazier the statement the better the game will be. An example would be " a clown riding a bicycle on a pepperoni moon" or something equally ridiculous.

Once they have each done this everyone passes their entire stack of paper to the right. Now each person should have their neighbours stack of paper in their hands. Here's where it gets fun.

Each person must now read quietly to themselves, their neighbours’ statement that they now hold in their hands. Once they have read it (not out loud!) they put that piece of paper at the back of the stack and they have to draw whatever they have just read, to the best of their ability, on the next square of paper in the stack.

Once everyone has drawn, everyone passes the entire stack of paper to the right again. Everyone will now have the picture their neighbour has just drawn. They must look at it, move that piece of paper to the back and on the next sheet write down their best guess as to what that drawing is supposed to be. Then everyone passes the paper to the right again.

Now everyone is reading someone's interpretation of the picture they've just seen, and must now move that piece of paper to the back of the stack and now must draw that interpretation. Pass entire stack again, and interpret the picture.

Categories: Ice breakers, Communication
Core outcomes: Participate