Lego Structure Copy
Do you have a group that can benefit from exploring team dynamics and enhancing problem solving skills? Ideal for larger groups, this activity promotes teamwork, communication and attention to directions and detail. Not only do participants get to work in a small group to accomplish a task, they also learn how their actions can affect the bigger picture. Give it a try!
Time Needed: 30 minutes
Group Size: At least 10, divided into small teams of about 5
Materials: Several identical sets of Legos (or similar building bricks) that vary in size and color; writing utensils and paper can be provided but are not required
Description & Directions:
Create a Lego structure out of different colored and sized Legos and place it somewhere in the room where it can’t be seen until the activity begins.
Divide the group into smaller teams (depending on number of available Legos and size of the group). Each team should be given a set of bricks to build an exact copy of the Lego structure you have already built. The rules are that only one person from each team is allowed to go and have a look at the structure. When they come back to their team, they cannot touch the bricks, but they can tell the others how to build their copy. Anybody from the team can go and have a look, but only one at a time. Once another person comes back from having a look, the previous person can then touch their bricks to help build.
Be sure to emphasize that the goal is for each team to complete an exact replica of the model.
What you don’t tell the teams is that you have swapped one brick from each of their supplies with another team. This means that they cannot complete their copy unless they get the correct brick from another team. The teams will only begin to realize this once they are far enough into building their replica structure that they notice they are missing a piece and/or have a piece they don’t need. Of course, the other teams will not be willing to give away their bricks until they know which ones they have to spare. Negotiation comes into play.
Debrief Questions:
- What happened? Were you successful?
- What was key to being successful in this activity?
- Was this a competition? Did you think so originally?
- What did you notice about how this activity was facilitated?