Facilitation Techniques and Workshop Activities | Library

Au Contraire

Very often when people learn something new, they assume that they knew it all along. This way of thinking is called the hindsight bias. Participants receive one of two proverbs that contradict each other. Later, they are asked to come up with examples and explanations to prove that the proverb that they received presents an obvious truth.

Quick Scan

structured sharing negotiation thiagi team teamwork action

Here's an opening for a workshop on negotiation. You may recognize this activity as a modification of our popular Hello activity.

Timescapes in Threes

thiagi knowledge issue analysis

This is a great activity to show the power of "now" which we usually underestimate.

Draw a Hand

thiagi knowledge action

Here's a jolt that can be conducted within 99 seconds, raising awarness of our automatic stereotyping processes.

Who and Why?

thiagi action trust

You already know a lot about factors that increase and decrease people's trustworthiness. This is because ever since you were a baby, you have learned through experience who to trust and who to distrust. This activity asks you to think about six people and decide why you trust or distrust them.

Sticks - A Metaphorical Simulation Game

communication team teamwork action

When people interact or communicate with each other, they use certain amount of energy or pressure. Here's an activity that makes participants aware of such energy exchange and helps them explore how to manage this process.

Quick Situations

debriefing thiagi action context teamwork

Here's a debriefing card game that enables participants to reflect on a variety of situations and to come up with suitable action ideas

Mixed-Up Sentences

review issue analysis thiagi

The use of lectures for training adults has several advantages and several disadvantages. So does the use of training games. What if we combine these two approaches in a complementary fashion? That is the idea behind interactive lectures.

Interactive lectures involve participants in the learning process while providing complete control to the instructor. These activities enable a quick and easy conversion of a passive presentation into an interactive experience. Different types of interactive lectures incorporate built-in quizzes, interspersed tasks, teamwork interludes, and participant control of the presentation.

One effective approach to adding interactivity to lectures involves requiring participants to review what they heard and summarize the key points. This approach reinforces learning and improves recall.

Missing Sentence provides an intriguing twist to an interactive lecture that is based on the review-and-summary strategy.

Whispers

debriefing closing thiagi action team

You can use Whispers as a follow-up activity to any interesting experience among a group of friends. It's my favorite game to informally debrief my colleagues at the airport or during the drive back after a conference.

Memory Test

thiagi action knowledge

Here's a quick jolt that helps participants discover basic psychological facts about our memory.

Switch

thiagi action team team dynamics project management

n a reflective teamwork activity (RTA), the process and the content merge with each other. Participants work through an activity and use the outcomes to evaluate the process they used. Here's an RTA that explores challenges associated with losing and gaining team members in the midst of a project.

Data Mining

review thiagi closing issue analysis

Here's a game that can be used in a content-heavy training session that relies on reference manuals. It is a combination of a textra game and an interactive storytelling activity.

Library of facilitation techniques

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