January 2009 by Ms. Corinne and Ms. Pinky


On Friday 2nd January the girls took part in some teambuilding exercises in order to encourage them to work together as a group. There had been some concerns that the older girls and the younger girls (newer intake) were not getting along together, therefore the aim of these activities were to unite the two groups by bridge the gap between them through team activities and make them realise that they could work together.

The following is an outline of the exercises and the order in which they were done. The exercises were divided into those that were conducted inside (Part One) and those conducted outside (Part Two), to allow some variety.

Where the girls were required to pair off, the names of the younger girls were written on small piece of paper and put in one bag, and the names of the older girls were similarly written and placed in a separate bag. A person was chosen to select a name from each bag and therefore a younger girl was paired with an older girls. Where the girls had to work in larger teams, two pairs were joined together, so there was an equal number of older and younger girls in each team, where possible.

PART ONE: INSIDE EXERCISES

1. The Trust Game – Backward Fall and Catch.

Requirements:
Groups of approximately 5-6 girls.

Purpose/Objective:
Trust games are constructive both for the individual and for the group as a whole and will help the group builds greater trust as it begins to crystallise. Participants need to rely on everyone's full cooperation and encourage support behavior. Trust games in general are fun to play because they are more physical. The movement and outcomes will ease tension and they are therefore helpful in enhancing group development.

In this particular trust game, working in small groups, one participant at a time stands apart from the group, with her back to the rest of the group. The distance between her and the group should be at a safe limit. Without looking back, she must let herself fall and trust that she will be caught by her group (i.e. before she falls on the floor). The moderator must ensure that everyone in the group has a turn.

2. Three Positives.

Requirements:
Girls need to work in pairs.

Purpose/Objective:
The participants have a few minutes to sit with each other and interact with their partner. Then they all sit in one large circle (next to their partner) and one by one, they say three things that they like about their partner. For example, I like her hair, her eyes, her dancing, her laugh, her dress. Try to encourage them to think creatively and try to avoid all participants saying the same things (ok, so everyone has nice hair and eyes – anything else?!) Maybe in future, some things can be excluded, such as nice hair and eyes. Perhaps this would encourage them to think more about their partner’s positive attributes. The main objective here was to encourage the younger and older partners to recognise positives in the other.

3. Blindfold Game.

Requirements:
One blindfold (the ones you get free on some airlines work well, otherwise a scarf or length of fabric works well). The girls need to form one large circle (standing). A volunteer is chosen who stands in the middle and is blindfolded.

Purpose/Objective:
The blindfolded volunteer is spun around on the spot until they are disoriented (in the centre of the circle) and then they have to walk forward until they reach one of the participants standing in the larger circle. They feel the person’s face and try and identify who it is. They have two guesses to try and figure out who the person is. If the blindfolded person is not successful after two guesses, then a new volunteer can switch roles. This exercise was more of an ice-breaker than a team building exercise. The girls managed to get a lot of laughs out of this one.

4. Name Game.

Requirements:
A chart of pictures/images needs to be prepared before hand and appropriate copies need to be made. We found that Google Images is a very good resource for this exercise. Just type in the name of the image (e.g. elephant) followed by line drawing into Google Images and you will generally find a simple drawing of an elephant. Please see the attachment for an example we used. A pen/pencil is also needed for the participants to write the answers.

Purpose/Objective:
Not all participants have the same level of language skills (especially because some of them are newer intake). Decide as a group the names for the images in both Hindi and English. When finished, the groups switch their answer sheets with another group (so they are essentially marking each others work). The ‘teacher’ asks all the groups at the same time what the first image is. When marking, the following instructions are given: For each word that is correct, one point is scored. However, if the word is correct AND the spelling is correct, then two points are scored. If the word is spelled incorrectly, but it is evident that they knew the correct word (e.g. writing spun instead of spoon), then only one point is awarded. The same applies to the Hindi word. Therefore a maximum of 4 points can be scored for each image. At the end, the points are tallied and a ‘prize’ (e.g. chocolates) is awarded to the winners.

This encouraged a little competition, as well as team work (as they had to pool their knowledge of spoken and written English and Hindi). At the same time, this had educational relevance, as the girls could practice their English and general writing skills.

Blindfold game Participant has just located someone; now she has to figure out who it is.

PART TWO: OUTSIDE EXERCISES

Purpose:
The purpose of all of the outside games was to show the participants that they needed to work together to finish the task. There was also a big element of competitiveness which helped to fuel teamwork principles in an effort to win.

1. Three-Legged Race

Requirements:
Participants need to be in pairs, and each should be given a length of fabric to tie their ankles together.

Objective:
The pairs have to work together with their ankles tied, to get to the other side and back. Due to lack of space, we had three pairs race each other at a time, then the top three (one from each round) raced against each other to be crowned the ultimate winner of this game.

2. Ball Over and Under

Requirements:
Two teams and two balls (or a ball for each team if there are more than two teams).

Objective:
Each team stands in a single line, each facing forward (i.e. facing the back of the person in front). The person at the front starts with the ball and passes it to the person behind them, by raising it over their head. The second person in line takes the ball and passes it between their legs to the third person, and so on. The ball continues to pass under and over until it reaches the last person in line. The last person then runs, with the ball, to the front of the line and the under and over passing begins again. This transfer continues until the person who was at the front of the line when the game started, ends up in the same position at the front. Thus, they are the winners.

3. Egg and Spoon Race (with a lemon)

Requirements:
An egg (or lemon) and a spoon per team.

Objective:
Again two teams. This time, they stand in a line and the first person in line is handed a spoon and a lemon. They have to run with the lemon on the spoon (or walk very fast!) to the finish line and then come back. The lemon has to stay on the spoon all the way to the other end, but on the return trip, them lemon can be held in the hand and the participant can run back very fast. There re many variations and stricter rules of the game. For example, if the lemon falls off the spoon, then the person has to return to the beginning and start again, or they have to balance to lemon on the spoon for the going and return journey. Once the first participant returns, the spoon and lemon is handed over to the next person in line and the pattern continues until all persons have had a turn. The first to complete wins.

Variation used on this sports day: place spoon in mouth, with hands behind back.

4. Relay Race

This was improvised, because the girls were enjoying the games so much.

Requirements:
Two teams and a water bottle for each team (to act as a baton).

Objective:
Two teams racing each other. The first person of each team is handed a water bottle. They have to run to, and return from, a certain distance (marked by pots or the equivalent). On their return, they pass the water bottle to the next person in line. This continues until the last person in the team has had their turn. The first to finish wins.

OBSERVATIONS AND CONCLUSION

Overall, Corinne, Govind, Tamanna and I thought that the Sports Day was very successful. We addressed the problem of a lack of teamwork and unity through these varied and fun sports and activities. Although the girls were all quite shy and quiet at the start, they obviously had a lot of fun, there was a lot of laughing and, more importantly, a great deal of competition and teamwork. Perhaps this could be a weekly event, to ensure that this teamwork is encourages, developed and enhanced.

These exercises followed onto the second part of the project, where the girls had to work together in pairs and design and produce a pillowcase that would be judged by a panel at the end of 7 days. This will be further explained in a following report.