Team Building Exercises

Basically I will be describing some Team based Exercises that, done right WILL help kids( and less then intelligent adults) to be better in a team no matter what the circumstances.

There are lots of different kinds of teams, Sports teams, Work teams,Paintball teams, Superhero teams, and most come together for one purpose or strategic goal. Now if you want to create a permanent team that will stand the test of time you'll need more time and effort. you'll need to get together more often and learn about each other but for teaching kids or others the following steps will show you some of the exercise you can use with a little planning and work.

The first things people have to realize is not everyone can be a leader. some people are just natural leaders and command a group easily. Figuring out which person leads is a must or else there will be confusion and nothing will get done.(especially if there is a time limit that puts pressure on a group of kids) So number one is to find a leader or someone who knows what they are doing and can tell others how to do it. Number two is to let the people know that just because someone else is the leader it does not mean they can't give input or ideas. So now that your team is assembled and a commander picked you can move on to the actual exercises.

If it is a quick exercise your after you can do this simple team challenge. Step one is to split the team if it is large and section the kids off into groups of four. They will be doing the Square Pushup (Queue dramatic sound effect). You will take the first person and lay them down one the ground on their stomach ( preferably on the grass or somewhere relatively clean). Next take the second person and lay them one the ground with Their feet onto of the other persons back. Do the same thing with the next person on the one you laid down before that so they are arranged in a square once all the four people are laid down on the ground. This challenge will take timing and strength to be able to lift everyone off the ground at the same time(remember, no knees in a pushup).

The Human Knot is a fun exercise that can be used in groups ranging from 4 to as many as you want. The People involved will be standing in a circle, they should be rubbing elbows they are so close. Now get the group to stick out their left hand WAY up high into the air, then bring it down into the circle and grab the hand opposite of any other person in the group,do the same thing with the other hand but this time make sure they grab the had of a different person or else the game wont work. Now they have to untagle themselves without letting go and get back into a circle while still holding hands.

Now for some Challenges that need materials.
This is the skis challenge
For this you will need:


A 12 foot 2x4
15 feet of rope or twine
Some wide head screws
A screw driver

First you take your twelve foot board and cut it in halve so you have two six foot boards.
Then take your rope and cut it to about seven inches in length and attache it to the board with the screws by placing the hide head screw in the middle of the rope. Place the rope at 1 foot intervals
down the length of the board on the sides so it creates foot-holds. This is what the people will put their feet into so they can move.

Now the challenge of this is to make everyone lift their feet at the same time in order to move down a specified path.

This will require major timing and responsibilities of a specific person to create the pace

IMAGE NOTE: this picture is different from my skis but it is a better challage to not make hand holds so the people running the exercise will have to balance as well as time their steps.

The object of this activity is to take the tire( picture A)
and place it over the pole in the ground ( picture B ) without using your hands or elbows.

Hammer a pole or stake about 6 feet high and sink it into the ground a little ways so it does not move if bumped. then lay an old tire without a rim on the ground next to the pole and teach your group about the activity.


Now you have to take the tire and place it around the pole without using your hands or elbows. BUT there is a catch. Once the tire is around the pole and on the ground they have to get the tire back up off the pole with out using the same body part they just used, that included everyone involved not just the ones who lifted it.

This is a quick easy activity that lots of people can enjoy, just make sure you clean the old tire.

Now those were just a few activities to get you started but the best ones are the ones you think up yourselves. Get involved and get out there in that big wide world. check things out.
Maybe start a team of camel racers and make it big.
Just don't make a team of villains.

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