Human Knot
Material Needed: None
Time Required: 15-30 minutes, depending on the size and speed of the group
Group Size: 8-200
Purpose: Team building, problem solving skills, communication
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If the group is really big, split them up into smaller groups. If there are too many people in a human knot it becomes extremely difficult. Groups of 10-12 are ideal.
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Arrange group members in a circle, standing shoulder to shoulder.
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Tell everyone to put their right hand up in the air, and then grab the hand of someone across the circle from them.
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Everyone then puts their left hand up in the air and grabs the hand of a different person.
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Check to make sure that everyone is holding the hands of two different people and that they are not holding hands with someone directly next to them.
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Tell group members to untangle themselves to make a circle without breaking the chain of hands.
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If group members break the chain they need to start over.
Note:
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You can give teams a time limit on this activity to make it more challenging.
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You can also mute/ blindfold participants throughout the activity.
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Instead of making groups start over when the chain is broken you can create penalties like blinding or muting a group member.
Debrief/ discussion questions:
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How did it feel to be successful/ unsuccessful?
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How did it feel to be mute? Blind?
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What strategy did your team end up using to complete the task?
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Who were the leaders in this activity?
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Did the team reach consensus on a plan of action? What process did the team go through to reach consensus?
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How do you feel your team communicated during this activity?