Origami Easter Eggs

At our facility this year, we are not allowed to use plastic eggs for the Easter egg hunt so we got a  creative and made origami Easter eggs with the patients for group! We will hide these Easter morning and have an Easter egg hunt!!!


Materials

• 5 pieces of origami paper for each patient

Instructions
Have the patients pick a partner and sit at a table next to each other. Tell everyone to raise the hand they write with and then put it behind their backs. Give them the instruction page on this blog. During this activity, they can only use their non-dominant hand and work with their partner. Each partnership will make 10 origami eggs.

*Watch the patients closely, if they are anything like the patients at my facility they will try to switch hands or use both.






Discussion
*This activity spurred a long discussion. Many of the patients tried to cheat, some became frustrated and yelled at their partner, and one partnership worked really well together.
Importance of Instructions/Rules: we talked about the importance of rules on the unit and why we have them on the unit and in life
Communication: how to communicate effectively (tone, accusatory language, etc.)
Teamwork: ways to work with others
Listening
Frustration Tolerance/Management
Importance of Practice: talk about how things get easier with time and have patients give an example of something in the past that became easier with time or a goal they are currently working towards and how they are going to be patient with themselves

Please Share
How would you wrap this activity up with a group?
What other Easter crafts do you do with your patients?

More Easter Activities
Easter Banners
Easter Puppet Bunnies
Easter Bags

Image Credit
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqfYLqdN43DwaPtQAvfQyrrgfrAdQuM1zwk4HmueUwWnvFvvAKvFVn73-UOp8nFm5M35rm_QxdeYmhQwlYloFxzVBcgRmoiVPX2AOCtrgfZj7qhAxXp1xYJsVCQWu72doD9pmjjaNg8_SY/s1600/egg.gif

Group Juggling

Equipment: one ball for each person in the group

Objectives

First, ask your group who can demonstrate juggling (There is usually at least one person who can juggle). Ask, “Who can juggle the most balls?” Two or three balls are usually the limit.

Now have everyone (usually best with 8-12 people) stand in a circle about arm’s length apart.
Ask the participants to throw the ball to someone in the circle that is not standing next to them. each person catches the ball only once except it must start and end with the same person. tell them you are creating a pattern; they need to remember to whom they threw the ball and who threw it to them.

After the ball has made it around the group once, send in more balls until there are two less than the number of people in the group, or until they start dropping a lot. Try it two or three times. Ask them to be more efficient each time.

Discussion

How much more can a group accomplish than an individual?
What happens to the process when one person drops a ball? How does the group compensate?

Whose responsibility is it?

What does it take for a team to be successful?

Variations

Use stuffed animals instead of ball and use the story of Noah’s Arc and tell them water is coming in and we must juggle the animals to keep them from falling in the water.

 Image Credit:

Lava River

Objective: participants work together to move entire group across simulated “lava river”

Emphasis

·      Develop cohesion and teamwork

·      Enhance communication skills

·      Stimulate care and concern for others through individual and group responsibility

·      Identify or improve leadership potential

·      Establish support systems

Materials

·      A large open area, a hallway or gymnasium floor

·      One block, brick or rock for each participant (various sizes of cut 2”x4” work very well. Pick up scrap lumber, different shaped wood from a construction site or a piece of paper if you are really low on budget/time)

Instructions

·      Mark a start and finish line on the field

·      Give each participant one block. Explain the only place a team member can step is on the blocks

·      Team members lay down the blocks one at a time in a line toward the finish point, with team members standing on the blocks. It will be necessary to share blocks in order that an extra block is made available

·      Pass the extra block to the front team member who places it on the ground in front of him

·      Repeat this process until all have crossed the “lava river”

Variations

·      Have each member choose a block that represents them. then allow each member to share with the group the attributes that the block possesses that are similar to the individual. Do not give any instructions as to how to complete the task. Remind them the block represents themselves and others and they need to learn and practice using themselves and others as a support system

·      Teach social responsibility by establishing the rule that if one team member steps off the blocks or has some other miscue where the floor is touched, the entire team must return to the beginning to start the exercise again

·      Divide large groups into competing teams and challenge each other to the finish line, or race against set time

·      Give an extra block to the group, or take one block away

·      Blindfold a member of the group to increase care and responsibility for one another

·      Individuals must step on the blocks and not skate across the area on them

·      Do not give specific instructions, but tell group to figure out possibilities

The group must get everyone through an electric tunnel. No one can touch any of the interior or exterior sides of the tunnel or anything that is touching those sides. The group is provided with some “insulated blocks.” Location should be any open area where a tunnel can be improvised out of boxes, etc. or an area where a tunnel area

Image credit: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1O1D-3RK-FCODUOUGrWnSDhDGxzyAiY3WvVV8MLp8KthusIvKK93UaXPNmnHuMupkhxG43d4ucf6RkvPMKuLXzmCXsZd6I7MDH7f6Jid5TD3mEZVhiIY1PobBqmxLSFBn2AJCLnXE3yE/s1600/IMG_3220.JPG

Mine Field

Equipment: blindfolds, variety of obstacles, boundaries

Rules

·      Put numerous obstacles on the ground in a path about 10-15 feet wide and 25 feet long. Natural obstacles are fine, but make sure it is safe.

·      Several people are blindfolded and expected to make it to the end of the dangerous minefield without touching any of the objects or “mines.”

·      Other people are appointed to lead them through safely with only verbal commands.

·      If the blindfolded participant touches a mine they must start over.

Variations

·      Appoint someone to give them false information or distractions.

·      If they step on a mine, have them switch with their partner.

·      Mine Field II: the first partner is blind, deaf, and mute. The second partner can see but is deaf, mute, and cannot use their legs. The partners must go together through the field (Partner one ends up carrying partner two. They will have to create a way to communicate with one another non-verbally).

Discussion

·      Why was it difficult for the person to make it through the mine field?

·      What methods of communication did you use to help your partner?

·      How is the communication in this game like that in your family?

·      Why was it important to rely on your partner? How is this like life? 
·   How can the mines in this activity be like the boundaries in life?

Image Credit: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG_nPfvHJD9w5OnkJj4BHwceO2GADmB9dtCdxulHkzgfybE3lBhIbVFq84ukcxBGQhrIXl_Hfo_nJxXZkgfUV3aNVOj2lPQfWbL9ypvzxnAel5CrNdvyPUU8ONn6ggpN7mZRkChWnxosHy/s320/19.Crossing.Mine.Field.jpg

Tarp Maze

Equipment

• Tarp with a grid on it
• Make the grid as big or small as your group will need it
• Pen
• Piece of paper

Objectives
Place the tarp on a flat surface with the grid side facing up. Select one member of the group to be the guide. Draw a grid on the piece of paper the same as the one on the tarp. The guide then chooses a course through the maze using 8-15 steps, and draws the course on the piece of paper using numbers.

 
The rest of the team lines up on one side of the maze and tries to guess their way through the course without the map. As the first person steps into a square, the guide will tell them whether or not that square matches the #1 on the map. If they are wrong, the guide makes a buzzing sound, and they must go to the end of the line and let someone else try. If they guess correctly, they can keep moving until they make a mistake. The team must try to remember the pattern on the map to eventually make it through the maze.

*The guide can be the CTRS/leader of the activity or you can assign a group member to do this.

Variation
Time them secretly on the first try. After successfully completing the course, tell them their time and then have them try it again (with a different way through the maze), timing them again. Discuss the differences.

Discussion

• How many times did you make a mistake because you couldn’t see the map?
• Do we live life by trial and error, or do we follow others advice/example?
• Why was there such a difference between the two times? Discuss urgency.
• Was this frustrating? How did you handle the frustration?
• Did anyone step forward to be the leader? How did they lead? How would this have worked out if no one stepped up to be the leader?
• Did everyone listen to each other? 
• Could this have been solved if no one paid attention to their teammates going through? 

Traffic Jam

Equipment

• Something for each participant to stand on plus one extra - I've used foam squares, put X's on the floor with tape, etc.

How To Play
 The participants stand in a semi-circle with one marker on the ground that each participant stands on. Put the extra marker in the middle (you do not need an equal number of participants). All participants should face in-wards toward the empty marker. The object of the game is to get the two sides to pass each other, ultimately switching sides by moving strategically from one marker to another.

Rules

• Only one person can be on a marker at a time
• Participants can only move to an empty marker
• Participants can only move forward - if the group gets struck, everyone has to start over
• Participants can skip one person going the opposite direction, but s/he cannot skip someone going the same direction (to walk around the other person, the participant can step off the marker and walk around the person to step on the empty marker)

Variations

• When the group gets stuck and has to start over, have the participant at the front marker move to the last marker so there is a new person leading every time
• Have the group do it without talking. Be strict about it, and when they start to get frustrated, allow them to talk. Process the differences after the activity
• Once the group gets it the first time, have them do it while holding their breath. If someone breathes (exhales or inhales) in the middle, make them start over. This takes precise knowledge and planning. After, process the difference  between just doing what you are told and knowing your place/role.
• Try the activity with two lines in a "plus sign" formation with one empty spot in the middle

·   
    Solution

·      This activity works even if you have odd numbers. First move a person forward into the empty space. Then the first person from team 2 goes around to the empty space, and the second person from team 2 steps forward. This pattern continues (team 1 moves one person, team 2 moves two people, team 1 moves three people, team 2 moves four people, etc.) until all people are moved. After all have moved, the pattern is reversed: five people move four, three, two, one.

·      Hint: There are three “unspoken rules” that if followed, will solve this puzzle. First, at every juncture, there are only two possible moves: one will get them stuck and the other will not. Second, participants from opposing team should always be alternating on the spaces. If one team has two in a row, they have created a traffic jam. Third, for the first half of the game, when they arrive at a juncture, always move the person that is positioned closer to the outward tails of the semi-circle, not the person closer to the center. After all participants have moved, the pattern is reversed.

Lessons Learned
Process with the group throughout - talk them thru their frustration, ask how their current solution is working, help them listen to each other if they are struggling to do so, etc.

Problem Solving: At the beginning of the activity, participants often say this activity is impossible, but by the end, they feel great! When the group makes unanimous decisions, they usually make fewer mistakes. Some problems get solved much faster if you focus on the process or how you are interacting, rather than focusing on the problem.

• How did it feel to accomplish an “impossible” task? 
• Would you be given a task if there was not a way provided to accomplish it?
• What steps were taken to get the activity done?

·      Communication:

•       Whose ideas were important? (every suggestion)

·      Teamwork:

•       How many people did it take to do this activity?
•       How difficult would it be to accomplish this task if someone was not cooperating or doing their part?

·      Frustration

     Enduring

•       What was more rewarding, the fact that everyone is standing in a different place or the process that brought you there? How does that relate to your life and other projects you are involved in?

Picture Credit:
First picture: http://www.playmeo.com/uploads/89ac3ca9270f995412eccd8c13c609bd.png
Second picture: http://eaglepointresort.com.ph/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/team-building-project-adventure-w18368-traffic-jam-4.jpg

Noah's Arc and Chicken in the Hen House

Noah's arc has become one of my new favorite games. It brings out people's creativity and laughter. Chicken in the hen house definitely gets the energy going and is a lot of fun as well!

Noah's Arc
Before everyone shows up, write a name of different animals on slips of paper. Each animal should be on two slips of paper. Put these in a hat/bowl, and have everyone draw out one slip of paper. Participants do not show their animal. Once the last person has drawn their paper, everyone starts making the noise of the animal on their slip of paper. Participants walk around and try to find their match. Once they have found their match, they sit down. After everyone has found their match, collect the slips of paper, and have everyone draw again. This time they act out their animal without making any noise.

Chicken in the Hen House
You can have Noah's Arc lead straight into this game. Either have the participants choose a partner or tell them to keep their same partner from Noah's Arc. Tell the participants to form an inner circle and outer circle. One person from the pair goes into the inner circle, and one person goes to the outer circle. The inner circle walks clockwise and the outer circle walks counter-clockwise. The leader yells out different directions to the participants:

• Rodeo: one partner gives the other a piggy back ride
• Lover's Leap: one partner leaps into the arms of the other partner
• London Bridges: one partner creates a bridge and the other goes under the bridge
• Sailors Sit: one partner kneels down on one leg for the other partner to sit on while both saluting
• Chicken in the Hen House: one partner puts arms above head to form the top of a house (triangle) and the other squats next to him/her and flaps wings like a chicken

Once the leader yells an action, each pair must find their partner and complete the action. The last couple to act out the action is eliminated and becomes a judge to help decide who is eliminated next. Game play continues until there is one triumphant couple left.

Recommendations
Chicken in the Hen House can seem a little overwhelming at first. One way to have the game run smoother, have them pair off and practice each action (London bridge, sailors sit, etc.) as you call it out and explain it. If you feel everyone has got it down, you can do a few practice rounds or just jump right into the game!
For Noah's Arc, make sure you write legibly so everyone can read your hand writing. You can also turn the lights off to add a third round. Have everyone draw a slip of paper and make the noise of their animal. It is awesome!


Life Lessons
Chicken in the hen house can teach kids that they can still have fun and contribute even when they get out. They can enjoy watching their friends run around like crazy, help judge, and talk to other friends. This game can be used to teach kids that it is okay to get out. This game can also teach participants how to work together using good communication and how to adapt quickly. 
Noah's Arc teaches children the importance of listening. You can apply it to different parts of their lives whether in the classroom or in the home. Listening to others allows everyone to help each other. 
Both of these activities get participants out of their comfort zones which creates the opportunity to build friendships and great memories. 

Materials
No materials are needed for chicken in the hen house. For Noah's Arc you will need:

• Enough slips of paper with animals written on them for the whole group (20 people, 20 slips of paper, 10 animals)

Please comment below on how you would use it with your population, thoughts on how it has worked for you, advice for others on how to implement it, what you would process and so on! We'd love to hear about it!

Here are a few links to ideas on how to lead activities better:

• Why Leadership and Activities are Important 

• Correctly Using Leadership

• Leading the Activity (Problem Solving, Group Control, etc.)

• Handling Different Age Groups

• Managing Large Groups and Choosing Teams (relays, team spirit, including everyone, etc.)

The Amazing Race and Evolution

Both of these games can be used as pre-openers or normal activities. Pre-openers are games used when people are arriving. These allow people to participate as they walk in the door so no one is sitting around bored waiting for others to come. The Amazing Race is great to get people talking and learning more about each other. Evolution makes everyone laugh super hard! It gets people outside of their comfort zone and opens people up to talking.

My Experience
I have had great experiences with both of these games. Everyone who participated had tons of fun and were talkative. These games are definitely good ones to help people get to know each other. After you have played these games, please comment and tell us about your experiences!

The Amazing Race
As people arrive, put them in groups of two. Give them one piece of paper and a writing utensil. They have 5-10 minutes to write down as many words they can think of within a category you assign them when giving them the piece of paper. Some examples are:

• Food
• Words with doubles
• Words that start with a certain letter
• Animals

Once everyone has arrived and had a few minutes to write with their partner, call everyone together and have them count up how many words they wrote down. The partnership with the most words wins. You can give them some sort of prize (candy bars work well).

Evolution
Everyone in the group must know how to play "Rock, paper, scissors." Everyone starts out as an egg, and waddles around going "Whobble, whobble!" When an egg finds another egg, they play "Rock, paper, scissors." The winner will evolve to a chicken, and hop around making chicken noises until they find another chicken to play "Rock, paper, scissors." The loser will become an egg again; an egg is the lowest species one can be. The winner of the chickens will become a dinosaur. The dinosaurs walk around like dinosaurs repeating, "Auh, Auh!" The winner of the dinosaur match becomes Elvis. Elvis walks around playing his guitar. The loser of the dinosaur match becomes a chicken again. Once Elvis has won his/her final match up (with another Elvis), he/she wins the game! 

Recommendations
For evolution, if you want the game to continue longer, you can tell participants to keep count of how many times they become Elvis (or something along those lines) and call the game when you feel it is over. This way the game does not end super early.
You can use the Amazing Race for fun or to get people thinking about a certain topic. For example, if you are running a Bible camp, you could have the participants write down all of the word they can think of that go along with Bible such as people, places, and things in the Bible. If you are a teacher, you could have the students write down as many adverbs, adjectives, etc. that they can think of. This game truly has endless possibilities. If you would like ideas on how to apply this game to a situation, please feel free to ask!
Please share any ideas and recommendations you have.

Life Lessons
The Amazing Race can be used to teach participants that others have a lot to contribute as well and that their ideas can be made better by others. It can teach the value of teamwork and also how to work as a team member - giving ideas and allowing others to give their ideas as well.
Evolution can be used to teach the importance of laughing. Many people do not realize how much laughing truly impacts a person. This is a great lesson for kids to learn, and adults to remember. This can also be used to teach participants that even if they have a bad day or experience that gets them down, they can make it better. You can lead this into specific examples for participants if you would like to.

Materials
No materials are needed for Evolution. For Amazing Race, you will need:

• Enough pieces of paper for every two people (Ex. 10 people need 5 pieces of paper)
• Enough pens for every two people

Where to Play
Both of these can be indoor or outdoor games. If the other games are outdoor, you can start out indoors or start outdoors. If the other games are indoor, I would recommend staying indoors because getting people regrouped and coming back inside after would be harder. 

Please comment below on how you would use these activities with your population, thoughts on how it has worked for you, advice for others on how to implement it, what you would process and so on! We'd love to hear about it!

Here are a few links to ideas on how to lead activities better:

• Why Leadership and Activities are Important 

• Correctly Using Leadership

• Leading the Activity (Problem Solving, Group Control, etc.)

• Handling Different Age Groups

• Managing Large Groups and Choosing Teams (relays, team spirit, including everyone, etc.)

Credits
Image 1: http://www.montroseaccess.org.au/images/pic-kids-writing.jpg