Learning and Laughing Activities With a Purpose

8/6/2019 Learning and Laughing Activities With a Purpose

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/learning-and-laughing-activities-with-a-purpose 1/17

© Scottish Mediation Network

Scottish Charity Number SC034921 Company Registered in Scotland SC258173Registered Office: 18 York Place, Edinburgh, EH1 3EP

Learning and Laughing

Activities with a Purpose

Accelerated Learning Tool

The following activities have been collated for all trainers in themediation community. Most work well with any age group and some

are more suited to children and young people. These activities all have

a purpose and take into account how different people learn.

How We Learn

10% of what we READ

20% of what we HEAR

30% of what we SEE

50% of what we SEE and HEAR

70% of what is DISCUSSED with OTHERS

80% of what is EXPERIENCED PERSONALLY

95% of what we TEACH TO SOMEONE ELSE

William Glasser





ACCELERATED LEARNING

What is accelerated learning?

When we 'learn' in ordinary situations (with a book or a teacher), weare actually using less than 20% of our brain's capacity. Our learningpotential isn't fixed. Intelligence is a group of abilities that can be

developed.

Accelerated learning, also known as 'super-learning' or 'brain-friendlylearning', is a system designed to help people of all ages learn more

and retain more by using the whole of the brain.

Left- and right-brain thinking

Traditional methods of learning concentrate on the left side of thebrain (which controls our powers of language, logic and sequencing)

more than the right side (which deals with forms and patterns,rhythm, space and imagination).

Creating connections between both sides when we learn stimulateselectrical-chemical impulses so that our 100 billion active brain cells

work harder.

We can learn many things simultaneously like the tune, rhythm andwords to a song. This demonstrates that learning is not confined to

one part of the brain, but can happen in both parts at once.

Learning by doing

Since we learn to talk by talking, swim by swimming and mediation bymediating, it makes sense to make learning anything as practical and

activity-based as possible. Working collaboratively (in a group) isideal, because a learning 'community' will have more success than a

collection of isolated individuals.

Accelerated learning increases your ability to learn by stimulating your

brain to work harder. This can be done by creating new practical





learning situations such as using drama to learn about mediation. If it's done as a group activity, the experience can be fun and rewarding.

For instance, at school students could participate in some role play, or

create a one-minute drama about the life in the play ground. Insteadof simply writing about it, students might write a rap song about peer

mediation.

The experiences will be memorable, so more will be learnt - and that

will increase the desire for more learning.

Reviewing learning

Another important aspect of accelerated learning methods is to reviewnew knowledge during the learning process. Studies show that thehuman brain forgets much of the information it processes during one

day if that information isn't reviewed.

To help remember what has been learned, encourage participants to

talk about the main learning points in each day, and to giveconstructive feedback throughout the training.

Some of the activities in this list can be used to evaluate the training

experience as it happens.

Accelerated learning

Based on an article by Lorna Smith





LAUGHING, LEARNING AND USING BOTH SIDES OFYOUR BRAIN!

Group Yell

Fun activity also helps to provide an energiser.

Everyone stands in a circle and then lies down curled up on the floor.Each person chooses an animal noise. They pretend to be asleep and

then wake up starting from silence. They start making their noisessoftly and then build up into a crescendo. They finish by jumping up in

the air with a yell and then stand silently in a circle.

Pink Frogs

Fun, relaxation, creative questions

Everyone sits in a circle with one person in the centre of the circle.Anyone can ask the person a question and s/he has to answer 'Pink

Frogs' without smiling or laughing. If they do, they sit down and thequestioner takes their place.

The trick is to think of questions which make the answer 'Pink Frogs'really funny (without being too personal, rude etc.!). For example,

what did you have for your breakfast? What do you brush your teethwith?

Wink Murder

Fun, relaxation encourages eye to eye contact

Everyone sits in a circle. One person, the detective, goes outsidewhile the murderer is chosen. The detective comes back in and stands

in the centre. The murderer winks at someone and they 'die' e.g. closetheir eyes, put head on lap. The detective tries to find out who the

murderer is by watching everyone very carefully.





Co-operative Counting

To promote group co-operation, observation.

Everyone sits in a circle. Initially, the aim is to count up to 10. This is

done by one person only calling out a number. The starter begins with0 and then anyone can call out 1 and so on. If more than one person

calls out the number, the game is started again with 0. It frequentlytakes some time for the students to stop being competitive and work

together!

Rainstorm

To co-operate and participate in teamwork.

Everyone stands in a circle with object of creating a rainstorm buildingup into a crescendo and then dying down. The leader rubs her/his

hands together and the person on the left copies and so on round thecircle until everyone is doing it. Then the leader changes the sound to

a slightly louder one e.g. tapping two fingers on the palm of the hand.Each person in turn then copies this. The process is repeated with the

next louder sound e.g. clapping. This can be done with 4-6 sounds so

a crescendo is built up. The steps are then reversed until the lastperson rubbing their hands is silent.

Knots

Co-operation, fun

Groups of 10 - 12 form a tight circle. Everyone closes their eyes and

then stretches out both hands until they are holding another hand ineach of theirs. Some sorting may be required.

Everyone opens their eyes and then has to try to unravel the knotwithout letting go their partner's hands. They can adjust their hold.

Gender and touch might be an issue.





I love you honey but I just can't smile

Fun especially after a very serious session

Everyone sits in a circle. One person starts by saying the above to the

person on their left and they repeat the statement to the person ontheir left and so on round the circle.

The aim is to say it very seriously without smiling or laughing. It works

well if boys and girls are not sitting in gender groups in the circle.

Liar Mime

Fun, can be used as evaluation tool if the mimes are linked tomediation.

Everyone stands in a circle. One person goes into the centre and

mimes an action e.g. mowing the lawn. Someone says, "What are youdoing?" and they answer with a lie e.g. "I'm feeding the dog". The

questioner goes in the centre and mimes the answer and the processis repeated. The idea is to get people to do things that are

funny/clever but without putting people down or embarrassing them.

Moving

Observation, fun and opportunity to look at body language.

Half the group sits in a large circle of chairs with the other half standing behind the chairs. One chair is empty with a person standing

behind it. People standing must have their arms by their sides.

The person behind the empty chair winks at a seated person who thenattempts to leave their chair without being touched by the personbehind. The person behind tries to touch them before they get up. The

person who now has the empty chair, winks at someone and theprocess is repeated.





Tug of Peace

Co-operation and trust.

Tie the rope so it forms a circle and lay it out on the floor. Thestudents sit around it and take hold of it. The object of the game is for

all members of the group to raise themselves to a standing position bypulling on the rope. If anyone falls, they start again.

Shield and Threat.

Concentration

Clear a space; everyone secretly identifies 1 person as a shield andone person as a threat. Everyone moves around trying to keep theshield person between themselves and the threat person.

Touch these Things

Encourages team work. Helps to develop listening skills and following

instructions.

You might want to do this activity in small groups as it can get quiteenergetic and noisy.

A race to see how quickly people can touch 4 or 5 named objects in

the room. Call out the objects and participants touch them as quicklyas they can. The last person to finish calls out the next list.

Grandmother's keys

Team work and cooperation

One person is the grandmother and stands at the end of the room withher back to everyone. Behind her, on a chair is a large set of keys. Thegroup moves towards her and every time she turns round they freeze.

If she sees anyone move they have to go back to the beginning.





Aim of the group is to get the keys and get them back to the startwithout grandmother seeing them. Once the keys have been taken

each person has to touch them on their journey back to the beginning.

If anyone is caught with them, the keys are returned to the chair andthe participant goes back to the beginning.

Wind in the willows

Cooperation and trust

Form a tight circle. One person in the middle. They close their eyes

and allow themselves to fall; keeping their body straight and the

others catch and support them.

Supporters hold their hands up in front and stand with one leg slightly

in front of the other with knees bent.

The people in the circle can gradually move away a little when the

person in the middle gets more confident.

Just a minute

Helps with all aspects of communication

In a circle, individuals talk for 1 minute (or half to start with) on a

given topic without deviating, repeating or hesitating. When anyonenotices any of these they can say 'buzz' and finish off the minute of

talking.

Greeting Your Majesty

Active listening skills

Everyone in a circle. One person is blindfolded and stands in themiddle of the circle. A person goes up to her/him and using a false

voice, says 'Greetings Your Majesty'. If the person in the middle





get the children to throw Leo and as they throw it they have to say theperson’s name. If it is a large group ask the children to say their own

name as they pass it e.g. I am David and I am passing Leo to Jack. If the group gets a difficult to manage then get the children who have

had a chance to catch Leo to step back one step and the ones thathave not had a chance to take one step forward. The game is completewhen all the names have been called. You may want to consider namebadges although watch for children swapping name badges! It is

important to be deciding how you are going to split the children in togroups. You can do this in a number of ways.

Forming groups

Following instructions working as a team.

Asking the children to stand in a line oldest to the front and youngest

to the back. They can not speak to each other so they have to find analternative way of communicating e.g. using hand signals or body

language some children get this activity quicker than others. In oneschool recently not only had they got themselves in a line according to

height they had also worked out each others birthday and factored thisinto the line. At this point it is useful to give them all a number

depending on the number of groups you are having. This way helps tomix up the children in terms of their age and size.

Swap places if you like.

Getting to know you.

This game involves everyone standing in a circle the idea is to say

something that will involve someone swapping your place e.g. Swapplaces if you like football, swap places if you like apples, swap places if

you have a pet. From this activity you may be able to split the groupsup according to their interests. This way does take a bit of time but it

could be argued that people learn best when they feel comfortablewith the each other.

Or you could put up the names of Nobel peace prize winners and askthe children what group they would like to join e.g. Mandela, Luther





King, Carter, and Hume. This activity is good for older children andadults.

Working together

Our House

Ask the group to work in pairs. Give them one pen and a large piece of paper. Invite them to draw a house with four windows, a door, a

chimney and two trees.

The participants are not allowed to speak and have a time limit (the

time set will vary depending on the age of the participants).

Mirror mirror

Working in pairs. Participants stand facing each other. One person

makes slow movements and the other person has to copy theiractions. Variation: An observer tries to guess who is leading and who

is following. Helps to develop working as a team. Good for co-mediators.

Feelings

One person acts out a feeling (happy, sad, angry, afraid, and worried)

Members of the group have to guess what they the feeling and why

they think it is that feeling.

Conflicts

Groups are given 3 conflicts each and they suggest a) what causesthem b) how participants currently handle conflicts c) howschools/organisations handle conflict.





Human Machine

A fun game, good for releasing tension and lightening the mood afterintense discussion. One person starts by imitating the movements and

noise of a machine, the others gradually join in, making similarmovements and sounds. Anyone not part of the machine can stop it,oil the parts and restore the machine. The speed of the machine can

be slowed down or increased as a way of ending the activity.

Human Machine 2

Evaluation tool

Making the machine of something like school or shop or the training

session. Each person acts out an activity that happens in the school forexample; writing on a flip chart, the next person would perhaps act

out working on a computer the next person would act out eating

a school dinner, as each person joins in they have to make contactwith the person next to them by touching a hand or foot or elbow.

When the last person joins in, the machine can be “switched on”. Thisexercise has a number of benefits:

1. It helps to encourage participation2. It promotes working as a team

When used for “Making the machine of a mediation training course”

Participants can demonstrate good eye to eye contact, appropriatebody language, welcoming the mediation parties etc. This activity can

be used to evaluate what people have gained from the training.

Animal Choice

Each group member is asked to think of an animal that they can

identify with, and then mime this to the group who try to guess theanimal. For shy participants everyone can do their mimes at once.

Each member explains their choice of animal and the reason for theirchoice.





Magic Parcel

Taking turns, group members mime an object special to them, eitheractual or wished and pass the imaginary object on to the next person,

who changes it to an object special to them.

Pass the Squeeze

Everyone stands in a circle with joined hands. One person starts the

squeeze of hands going round the group. It is not visible and can bepassed either clockwise or anti-clockwise round the group. A variation

is to have someone stand in the middle and guess where the squeezeis.

Magic Shop

In an imaginary shop, group members can buy things, qualities or

feelings they would like, and trade in what they think they can dowithout.

Categories

A category is chosen, e.g. fruit, countries, pop stars. Each personround the circle has to name an object in the chose category, keeping

time with a rhythm which all participants clap or beat out.

Salad game

The group members are seated in a large circle round one person whostands in the middle. Each person in the circle chooses to be aningredient in a salad. The person in the centre calls out to ingredients,e.g. lettuce and tomato; they then have to swap seats before the

person in the centre takes one of their seats.





People to People

One person is the caller. The others work in pairs. The caller calls outdifferent parts of the body, like knees to knees, finger to finger, toe to

toe, wrist to wrist. The participants have to connect with their partnerand listen very carefully as the speed of the instructions can get faster

or slower. When the caller shouts “peer mediator to peer mediator” everyone changes partners.

Cooperation not Competition

Divide the group into two and give each group a sheet and a ball. Eachperson holds a part of the sheet and the ball is placed in the middle.

The groups are give instructions such as “place the ball near the topright hand corner of the sheet”, “Keep the ball moving clockwise thenafter a moment make it go anti-clockwise. This activity encourages

people to work closely.

Exploring Feelings

Each person in turn says how they are feeling on a scale of 1-10,

with10 representing feeling very low and depressed and 10 feeling

really happy and relaxed. If the person wishes ask them why they arefeeling as they are. Emphasise feelings are natural and normal- it ishow we handle them that is different.

The Anger Puddle

Everyone stands in a circle, each person thinks of a time when theyfelt really angry. Every one tenses their muscles as tightly as possibleand breathes in. You can give them instructions on where to start e.g.

from their toes to their ankles, to their knees, to their hips and so on.Ask participants to breathe out still tensing their muscles and breathe

normally for a few seconds. Then slowly relax and as they are doing





this tell them the anger is draining out of them and is a puddle at theirfeet. They can step away and leave their anger in the puddle.

We all matter

Ice breaker, valuing every one in the group.

Ask participants to sit on a chair either in a circle or spread out in aroom (this works in a class room set up too) One person is the

investigator, he/she asks the group to “stand up if you were born inScotland?” All those standing are applauded by those still seated.

Other questions

Who likes chips, pizza, curries, and cabbage?

Who can speak more than one language??

Who has a sister, brother; have more than one 2 siblings?

Who has a pet, more than one pet?

Who likes snakes, cooking, football, singing, curling, watching

films?

The Positive Path

Helps to build confidence and self esteem.

Participants form two rows facing each other. Each person will walk

slowly down the middle of the pairs as they go down the patheveryone will say as many positive things they can think of about that

person for example “kind and caring, lovely smile, beautiful hair, goodat football” The journey should be a positive one. It is important to

explain the rules to encourage positive comments.





Proud Peacock

Encourages respectful interactions.

Everyone takes it in turn to say something positive about the personsitting next to them.

Perceptions.

One person sits in the middle of the circle and does not move. Each

person in the circle then says how many eyes the person has-they onlyanswer according to what they see. Another person walks slowly round

the circle and gives a running commentary on what they can actually

see and how this changes.

Discuss the purpose of the exercise and how what we see depends on

our perspective. It is our knowledge, backgrounds andexperience influences our response.

Magic Carpet

Develops listening and feeding back skills

In a circle each person in turn says “If I had a magic carpet I would

fly…………”

This activity can also be used to develop listening skills if the grouppair up and one side are the communicators and the other side are the

listeners who have to feed back what the communicators have said.




Scottish Charity Number SC034921 Company Registered in Scotland SC258173Registered Office: 18 York Place Edinburgh EH1 3EP

Magic Journey

Each participant has an A4 size paper on their head. Someone givesinstruction to draw a journey or a school or a past holiday they must

not remove the paper from their heads until the instructions arefinished. Good ice breaker for adults and children.

Pepperoni pizza, (Scotch broth or Fruit salad)

Encourages listening and team work.

Ask participants what ingredients you need to make a pepperoni pizza.It’s normally Cheese, Tomato. Pepperoni and Dough. Go round thecircle giving everyone the name of the ingredients Call out cheese and

all the people who have been given the ingredient cheese swap placeswith another cheese people. You can call out two ingredients or three

at the same time but when you call out pepperoni pizza …..everyone

changes places. You can play this game with anything that hasingredients e.g. Scotch broth, fruit salad, birthday cake if someone has

a birthday.

I used to be a coat hanger!

Used as an ice breaker and a team builder. Good for young peopleand adults.

For this activity you need a wire coat hanger. All the participants standin a circle. The coat hanger is passed from one person to another.

When you have the coat hanger in your hand you have to imagine the

coat hanger something else for example it can be a bow and arrow or

it can be an earring or it can be hat or a necklace, you can take thecoat hanger apart and be as creative as you can.

Learning and Laughing Activities With a Purpose

Documents

Transcript of Learning and Laughing Activities With a Purpose