Crossing Galaxies
Get your group on their feet with this team building activity! Group members must “cross into another galaxy” with limited resources and a whole lot of teamwork! While it may appear easy at first, participants will realize it is much more challenging than it looks. Strategy and good communication are necessary to conquer this challenge. Can your group do it?
Time Needed: 15-20 minutes
Group Size: 4 or more (Difficulty increases with group size!)
Materials: Paper plates (You will needs as many as the number of participants, plus two.)
Directions: Tape two lines on the ground; they should be parallel to each other and about 10-20 feet apart – more feet of distance the bigger the group.
Have participants line up on one side of the tape, and tell them they are standing in one galaxy, and their goal is to cross to the other galaxy. The only way they can do this is by stepping on stars (paper plates) due to the lack of gravity. Participants may not put any body part (i.e., hand, foot, etc.) on any space that isn’t directly on a paper plate.
Tell participants that they should practice safety while doing this activity. Ask participants what they think that means. Explain that they should practice safety by paying attention to their surroundings and being cautious when moving across the galaxy so that no one gets hurt in the process.
Give the participants as many plates as there are members of their group, plus two (i.e., if you have seven group members, give them nine plates).
Advise the group that this challenge isn’t about physical abilities, but rather it is about communication.
Explain that unfortunately, the lack of gravity is so strong that it actually drops the stars (like a meteor shower) to Earth if someone is not holding them down (with their hands or feet). (This means if someone is not touching a paper plate, the facilitator should remove it and the group can no longer use it.)
Once you’ve given directions, give the group 10-15 minutes to cross from one galaxy to the other. If the group loses so many plates that they are unable to complete the activity, allow them to start over.
**Note: Participants can slide the paper plates using their feet once they are on the ground. Don’t tell them that; see if they are able to figure it out!
Debrief Questions:
- What process did your group go through to complete the task? If you weren’t able to complete it, what were some of the issues you encountered?
- How does this activity relate to communicating with your group?
- What were some of the emotions that came up for you?
- How were you able to identify your group’s strengths and weaknesses? Now that you’ve identified these, how can you grow from them?