43 Teambuilding Activities provides clearly written lesson plans aimed at improving a range of social and physical skills, as well as stimulating childrens imaginations through a series of exciting problems and scenarios. Each lesson plan begins with a story. From the mountains of the Himalayas to the stormy seas of the Pacific, the children are placed in problematic situations in which they will need to work together to find a solution. Not only will the activities develop your pupils PSHE skills building their selfesteem and helping them to work together as a team they will also enable you to address the Outdoor and Adventurous Activities strand of the PE curriculum without leaving the school
Contents Title Page Publisher Information Introduction Team building activities Years 3-4: Shorter activities Years 3-4: Longer activities Years 5-6: Shorter activities Years 5-6: Longer activities Photocopiable resource sheets Also available 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham Brilliant Publications Published by Brilliant Publications Unit 10, Sparrow Hall Farm Edlesborough, Dunstable Bedfordshire, LU6 2ES, UK E-mail: brilliant@bebc.co.uk Website: www.brilliantpublications.co.uk Digital Edition converted and published by Andrews UK Limited 2010 www.andrewsuk.com The name Brilliant Publications and the logo are registered trademarks Written by Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham Illustrated by Pat Murray Front cover designed by Z2 Ltd © Text Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham 2007 © Design Brilliant Publications 2007 First printed and published in the UK in 2007 The right of Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham to be identifi ed as the authors of this work has been asserted by themselves in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 Pages 57–63 may be photocopied by individual teachers acting on behalf of the purchasing institution for classroom use only, without permission from the publisher The materials may not be reproduced in any other form or for any mother purpose without the prior permission of the publisher Introduction What are the aims of this book? This book aims to provide children with the much-needed opportunity to improve in a range of social and physical skills, in particular interpersonal skills The development of these skills is targeted within a set of clearly written lesson plans These have been carefully designed with the busy primary teacher in mind, requiring minimal preparation and equipment The activities have also been designed to stimulate pupils’ imaginations through a series of exciting problems and scenarios Each plan begins with a story, which appears on the lesson plans in italic type From the mountains of the Himalayas to the stormy seas of the Pacific, the children are placed in problematic situations in which they need to work together to find a solution Each challenge addresses different social and physical skills at various levels of ability in Key Stage Where does this fi t into the school curriculum? PE Outdoor and Adventurous Activities (OAA) is one of the six areas of physical activity that Key Stage children need to engage in within the PE curriculum, along with games, gymnastics, dance, athletics and swimming The lesson plans in this book enable teachers to access elements of OAA throughout Key Stage within their own school, rather than rely solely on a residential trip PSHE Each activity acknowledges the importance of every individual as a valued part of a team Successful completion of these tasks requires even the more reticent children to become involved Some activities necessitate a leader or spokesperson to come to the fore, which can result in dramatic improvements to some pupils’ self-esteem 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham How can this book be used? The activities can be planned into the PE and PSHE programmes or can be used by the teacher as stand-alone lessons The activities have been divided into two main sections: Years 3–4 and Years 5–6 These are purely a guide and activities can be used as the teacher sees appropriate, depending on the class ability We have not specified a length of time for the activities as the time needed varies according to the children and teacher involved The extensions allow the activities to be varied and played again We have found it worth repeating favourites with variations As a general guide, the longer activities (as identified on the Contents page) will take one lesson, while you may need to use two of the shorter activities to fill a lesson Whilst the individual lessons have valuable outcomes on their own or as part of progressive planning, they have been used to great effect when organized into a competitive format We have called this ‘Team challenge’ Within this framework, teams can compete against each other, either side by side or against the clock Teams can be awarded tokens according to their finishing position after a particular challenge They can then accumulate further tokens in subsequent problems (as well as bonus tokens for efficient teamwork, good behaviour etc) When awarding tokens, those made of ‘gold’ seem to be particularly desirable! All the activities in this book have been tried and tested many times in schools However, as with any physical activity, you should a safety risk assessment prior to carrying out an activity 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham Bank-robber balance Your crack team of burglars is on a secret mission to rob the Bank of England You’ve thwarted the guards with your cunning disguises and turned off the security cameras (thanks to the skills picked up in your IT lessons) ‘Fingers’ Maguire is ready to pick up the cash, but first you and your partner need to deactivate the pressure pad to the vault This will require the combined balanced weight of two people Be careful not to let your team ‘down’! Instructions The children should begin by experimenting with their cooperative balance on the ball (pressure pad) When they are satisfied that they are ready, they can be timed YEARS 3–4 Focus Balance, cooperation Number of players 2–3 Equipment Large PE ball Aim For the children to work together to maintain a perfect balancing position on the ball For each second that the vault door remains open (the ball is balanced upon), ‘Fingers’ Maguire can acquire a fictional £1,000 in cash for your squad 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham The electrical cable There has been a thunderstorm! Lightning has caused a power cut in your town You are the broken parts of the electrical cable that normally provides all of the electricity (including the power to your games console!) You must join together to send power to the thousands of people who sit twiddling their thumbs in the dark Instructions Each group member holds hands with each other to form a human chain The first person in the chain holds the hoop in their ‘spare’ hand On the teacher’s signal, the first child drops the hoop onto their arm, and it is passed along the line through cooperative body movements YEARS 3–4 Focus Cooperation, communication, control of movement Number of players or more Equipment One hoop large enough for a child to squeeze through Aim To pass the hoop from one end of the line to the other without breaking the chain The chain must not be broken or the power charge disappears If the chain breaks, the hoop must be returned to the starting child Extension: This activity can be repeated with a smaller hoop or a larger number of children 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham Island SOS YEARS 3–4 You and your classmates are on a school residential holiday on the remote Scottish island of Jura Unfortunately, there’s been an abseiling accident, with your poor teacher suffering a suspected broken leg You hear the chug of the coastguard’s boat nearby With slate and chalk in hand, you rush to the cliff ’s edge to spell out an important message Instructions All of the children in the group need to stand on the bench The teacher provides each child with a letter card The children must work out what the word is Focus Cooperation, balance, problemsolving Number of players 4–7 Equipment Bench Letter cards (using words from resource sheet on page 57) Aim For the group to put themselves in order without falling off the cliff To complete the task they should help each other move into the correct place on the bench without touching the floor Children are not allowed to simply exchange letter cards Extension: This activity can be timed, with specified penalties being incurred each time a child touches the floor 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham The magnetic spheres It is the 22nd century AD, and fossil fuels are a thing of the past As well as using wind, wave and solar power, people of the Earth are travelling using magnetism Giant magnets at the tops of huge tower blocks are switched on and off in order to draw transportation pods through the sky and carry people to work Up until now there have been only single pods, but your engineering company, ‘McClay Construction’, have devised a ‘2-Pod system’ If you can demonstrate its efficiency to an interested audience of investors then the contract is yours Instructions YEARS 3–4 Focus Problem-solving, cooperation Number of players 4–8 Equipment skipping ropes hoops Aim To transport all members of the team across the playing area in the quickest time possible The skipping ropes should be arranged to define the start and finish lines The children need to stand behind the start line with the two hoops The teacher needs to explain that they must transport all of their classmates through the air in the two spheres However, the spheres are magnetized This means that a part of one hoop must remain in contact with a part of the other hoop at all times If this contact is lost, then the spheres will fall from the sky! In this demonstration of the ‘2-pod system’, each pod can carry only one person at a time Hint: Two children need to travel across together, with one returning with both hoops to collect another passenger 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham The seafood shuffl e Many years ago, you and your family of crabs made your home in an old WWII submarine Unfortunately, every time there is a storm it gets pushed further over the edge of an underwater ledge on which it balances Last night was the biggest storm that any crab can remember This morning you awoke feeling strangely seasick The submarine is swaying up and down Clearly, it is about to crash down into the deep and it is time for you to leave Suddenly, there is a loud clang … the exit hatch has slammed shut! Instructions An obstacle course must be arranged using benches (submarines) and skipping ropes (seaweed), ending with a hoop (hatch) YEARS 5–6 Focus Coordination, communication Number of players Several teams of Equipment Benches Hoop Skipping ropes Aim To successfully negotiate the course whilst being ‘locked into position’ with a partner Children need to stand back-to-back with a partner Pairs can now link arms Correct positioning will see their elbows hooked together behind them with their hands returning to a forward position They are now a crab Children can practise moving and turning as crabs Upon a given signal, crabs will attempt to successfully negotiate the obstacle course To make their final escape they will have to work out how to lift the hatch and climb into the open water Extension: Two benches joined at sharp angles will increase difficulty 52 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham Submarine commander It is World War II and you are the commander of an Allied submarine Your task is to escort shipping as it travels across the Atlantic Ocean This has been relatively simple – until now! Somehow, enemy frogmen have managed to lay mines across the entrance to Portsmouth Harbour It is pitch-black, and if any of the ships hit a mine they will be destroyed With your sonar equipment, it is up to you to inform the ships’ captains of the location of the mines and to save as many ships as you can Instructions The cones (or markers) should be randomly laid out in Portsmouth Harbour The group needs to elect one member as submarine captain The remaining players will be ships coming into port YEARS 5–6 Focus Communication, cooperation Number of players 2–8 Equipment Cones/markers Blindfolds Aim For players to cross the playing area without touching any of the markers and whilst wearing a blindfold The ships’ captains will be blindfolded and, upon a signal, they must attempt to cross the harbour without touching a mine Should they so they are deemed to have been sunk The submarine captain should then attempt to direct the ships into port using verbal instructions As soon as a ship reaches port, its captain may aid the submarine captain with instructions to other ships Hint: It is best to get one ship home as soon as possible so that the other ships can be assisted by the recently docked captain 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham 53 Survival of the caterpillars You are a caterpillar Yes, that’s right – a caterpillar! But all is not right in the garden Your evil human neighbours have decided to dig up the greenery and lay a patio Therefore, it is time for you to vacate your dwelling Can you wriggle your way in and out of the garden’s obstacles before you are sliced in half? Instructions Create an obstacle course using the equipment The group then needs to form a human caterpillar by placing a large ball between each person The caterpillar should attempt to move without breaking up The sections of the caterpillar need to remain tight so that the balls not fall to the floor The caterpillar must attempt to reach its destination Penalties are incurred each time a ball falls or a child touches a ball with their hands YEARS 5–6 Focus Cooperation, communication Number of players 2–6 Equipment Large balls Assorted objects (eg, quoits, beanbags, benches and hoops) Aim For the group to move from one end of the garden (course) to the other without the balls falling and the caterpillar breaking up Extension: The obstacle course may be made more difficult as required Courses that include turning demand a much higher degree of skill 54 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham Treasure trove You are in the Himalayas with a party of fellow explorers You have not found a yeti, but you have unearthed a fantastic treasure trove and are in the process of taking it home Unfortunately, as your lead member crosses the rickety bridge that links two mountain peaks, the bridge collapses Your task is to somehow transport the precious and fragile treasure across to the lead member before nightfall … Instructions One player (the lead member) must cross to the bench (or mat) opposite them Next, all children must be told that the rickety bridge has collapsed The players must attempt to transport the treasure (equipment) across the gap between the benches Children must not step off their bench, otherwise they fall to their death! YEARS 5–6 Focus Problem-solving, cooperation Number of players 3–5 Equipment benches or mats crate or small box of small, assorted objects (eg, quoits, balls, skipping ropes etc) Aim To transport as much treasure as possible to the lead member across the gap without dropping and therefore destroying it Hint: Throwing equipment over to the lead member is permitted, but if it is dropped it is out of the game Also, the skipping ropes could be used to slide items along Extension: This can be tried again with a different variety of equipment (including the box itself) and a bigger gap between benches 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham 55 The unexploded bomb Panic has broken out in the suburbs of Northampton Builders in the area have found an unexploded bomb from World War II, and it needs to be defused This would normally be an easy task for you and your work colleagues After all, you are bomb-disposal experts who have years of experience behind you However, this bomb is lying deep in a river Moreover, it is highly unstable and will explode if dropped The local residents have been evacuated and now it is up to you to extract the bomb from the river … Instructions The bomb must be placed in the centre of the river No player is allowed to enter the river throughout the task Teams are given two skipping ropes each to assist them YEARS 5–6 Focus Problem-solving, cooperation Number of players 4–30, divided into groups of 4–6 Equipment Crate or waste bin PE mat or cones Skipping ropes Aim To extract the bomb (crate) from the river (PE mat) without entering the river or directly touching the bomb The teacher must inform teams that the residents’ evacuation is complete and that they may begin the task If the bomb is dropped at any time, it should be repositioned in the centre of the river and the team must start again Hint: Successful teams will use the skipping ropes simultaneously Extension: The bomb is ticking The task has a set time period 56 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham Island SOS YEARS 3–4 Photocopiable resource sheet (see page 8) H E L P Q U I C K R E S C U E TRAPPED 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham 57 Detective squad YEARS 3–4 Photocopiable resource sheet (see page 16) Detective report Criminal’s name: Age: Occupation: Location of crime: Type of crime: Weapon used: 58 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham ‘Lost’ in the Pacifi c YEARS 5–6 Photocopiable resource sheet (see page 33) OUR PLANE THIS IS A HAS CRASHED BIG EMERGENCY DROP SOME FOOD DOWN TO US OUR A TWO PILOTS DOCTOR 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham NEED URGENTLY 59 Alien communication YEARS 5–6 Photocopiable resource sheet (see page 35) 60 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham Chance to dance YEARS 5–6 Photocopiable resource sheet (see page 38) These are suggested routines However, the children may enjoy making up their own Round side-steps left, side-steps right, star jumps Repeat Round steps forward, steps back, side-steps left, clap hands once, side-steps right, clap hands twice Round hops on the right leg, hops on the left leg, spins, side-steps left, side-steps right, jumps forward, jumps back, star jumps Round star jumps, side-steps left, jumps, side-steps right, jumps, spins, clap hands twice, steps forward, steps back, hops on the left leg, hops on the right leg 43 Team-building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham 61 Codebreaker Photocopiable resource sheet (see page 40) A 2743652 ÷ 598258 = B 7645399 ÷ 628122 = C 5633233 ÷ 332232 = D 6343456 ÷ 132132 = E 3232323 ÷ 233233 = F 7432 x 321 – 50000 + 123321 = G 65324 x 44 – 40024 + 321132 = H 100000 – 100000 + 10000 ÷ 20 = I 101010 – 10101 + 1010 ÷ = J 25.5 + 25.5 + 2525.25 – 52.52 = YEARS 5–6 A quiet life YEARS 5–6 Photocopiable resource sheet (see page 50) House of the shake House of the shake st nd House of the shake House of the shake House of the shake House of the shake House of the shakes House of the shakes rd House of the shakes th House of the shakes th House of the shakes th House of the shake House of the shakes House of the shakes th st nd House of the shakes House of the shakes House of the shakes rd House of the shakes th House of the shakes th House of the shakes th House of the shakes th st nd House of the shakes House of the shakes House of the shakes rd House of the shakes th House of the shakes th House of the shakes th House of the shakes th st nd rd th th th th Also Available ... teams may be required to prove that each item fits Other teams are allowed to ‘challenge’ if they disagree 43 Team- building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham 23 ... captives Hint: Chins, knees or feet could all be used to pass the beanbag 22 43 Team- building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham The king’s ransom Your name is Phil... incurred each time a child touches the floor 43 Team- building Activities for Key Stage 2 © Gavin Middlewood and Andrew Debenham The magnetic spheres It is the 22 nd century AD, and fossil fuels are a