Looking for great resources for youth groups?

Check out YouthWorker.com to find lots of free ideas for teambuilding and group activities, as well as strategies for engaging youth. They actually highlight one of our games from Great Group Games every other week, so you can see several in their games and activities archives.

Great Group Games is now available as an e-book - so cool! So now you can download your favorite game on your smart phone and carry it to the ball field, rec center, office, classroom, camp, or wherever else you might want to play with purpose!

For info on the ebook: http://bit.ly/6PP2rO
For info on the book itself: http://bit.ly/6yf5dC

If you're looking for Christmas ideas, here's a list of games children love to play:

Battleship
Blokus
Chinese Checkers Game
Connect Four
Don't Break the Ice
Hyper Dash
Jenga
Memory
Cranium Puzzles Plus
Quiddler
RAT-A-TAT-CAT Apples to Apples Kids
Rush Hour
Scrabble Upwords
SET Game
Sorry
Trouble Board Game
Uno Card Game
Yahtzee

Games are so great for child development, because they build cognitive, academic, and social skills. If you will take time to teach children to play games, they will be able to entertain themselves - even without the television, ipods, cell phones and video games!

These are games that my children (ages 3-8) are currently enjoying, but I'm sure YOU have more favorites!!

Youth Development Training Institute - free!

If your are in middle TN, we hope you will join us for this free one-day conference on Friday September 25. We're really excited about the content and the people that will be gathering to teach and learn. You can find out more at www.yllc.org.

National Backyard Games Week

National Backyard Games Week is May 18-25, 2009. I found some great articles with ideas to celebrate this fun week:

Outside Games for Toddlers - Celebrate National Backyard Games Week
Take it Outside! It's National Backyard Games Week
Philadelphia Family Entertainment Examiner: Celebrate National Backyard Games Week

You can also find 175 more games in our book, Great Group Games - and they're all zero prep ideas and they are all connected to the Developmental Assets! If you use the "Going Deeper" questions at the end of each game, you'll also be 'playing with purpose' - using the games to build character, relationships, and leadership skills.

Whatever you decide to play, have fun being outside!!

Play with Purpose - tshirts, bags and more

If you believe in the power of PLAY, check out our new product line of t-shirts, mousepads, bags and more at CafePress.


The simple designs make great presenter gifts, decorations, or happy gifts for you and your colleagues.

If you need to adapt the design or order in bulk, feel free to contact us at cad(at)theassetedge.net.

Our Most Popular Workshops for 2009

Introduction to Positive Youth Development – a 2 hour session that gives an overview of the framework of the 40 Developmental Assets™ created by Search Institute and why they are important in the lives of youth to promote healthy behaviors, prevent negative risk taking behaviors and help youth be resilient. *** This training is covered by an OJJDP grant during 2009 for middle TN organizations/schools – that’s a $400 savings!

Caring School Climate Retreat is a one to two day retreat designed for diverse school leaders (youth and adults) to come together in a setting focused on improving school climate. Respect, support, diversity and tolerance are just a few of the caring school climate indicators explored. Fun and interactive, this retreat moves the group from building relationships within themselves to envisioning their school at its best with an action plan at the end to address school concerns and issues.

Change Your World Retreat – a one-day retreat that empowers youth to be agents for community change. These time-tested activities include interactive tools for assessing community needs, planning projects and discovering group strengths from our new books, Great Group Games and Ready to Go Service Projects,

Great Group Games: Building Relationships is a 1 ½ hour workshop based on the book that leads participant through the first three stages of developing a group. It focuses on building solid relationships, creating a safe space and a fun environment that will bring youth back! Experiential, of course, participants will play games from each of the stages and receive tips on facilitating them with their group.

Great Group Games: Building Teams is a 1 ½ hour workshop based on the book that leads participant through the last three stages of developing a group, moving youth from individuals to a functioning team. Participants will play games and face challenges from each of the stages and receive tips on facilitating them with their group.

Building Blocks of Leadership is a series of workshops for high school students to help them identify and discover their own leadership traits and gifts. This series moves them from self-discovery to action as youth explore their own personality bents, skills, talents and passions; determine key leadership traits and explore their own personal style of leadership. Youth gain skills in communication, working together, leading meetings and project planning.

To schedule a training, contact Susan at susan@TheAssetEdge.net

Join us at The Center for Innovative Educators

We will be teaching two workshops this summer at The Harpeth Hall Center for Innovative Educators in Nashville, TN. We would love to have you and your colleagues join us for our workshops, or any of the other 14 creative professional development opportunities available throughout the week. The early-bird registration ends May 1, so you have 3 more weeks to get the discounted rate.

Global Foundations:
Service Learning as a Key Part of Your School Culture
Thursday June 25, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Nashville

You want to change your school culture. You want people to be committed to serve in meaningful ways. But you’re overwhelmed and stuck. In this workshop, community-minded educators at the middle and high school levels can learn strategies for establishing a common vision for helping others, generating a contagious desire to serve and weaving compassion into the foundation of your campus – from clubs to teams to advisory groups to classrooms. Learn how to assemble a team of students, faculty and community partners to get people excited about meeting community needs. Find secrets for getting your administration excited about service-learning and finding money to fund the projects your students want to do. Discover systems that will make your job easier and help you create a culture of service on campus.


Global Foundations:
Advisory as a Key Part of Your School Culture
Friday June 26, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Nashville

Advisory groups – little time with big results! Come learn how to power-pack your advisory time with tried-and-true tools, techniques and structures to make your advisory time more meaningful and productive. Based on research on the 40 Developmental Assets, we will look at a framework for healthy student development that will help advisers mentor their students. You will be equipped with a toolbox of 200 activities to build character, leadership and personal development. These activities will also strengthen bonds between diverse students and foster the connection between advisers and students. Participants will receive a complimentary copy of Great Group Games: 175 Boredom-busting, Zero-prep Team Builders for All Ages.

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Please visit www.harpethhall.org to register.
Early-bird registration deadline: May 1

Mission: Through the Harpeth Hall Center for Innovative Educators, it is our mission to inspire teachers to develop new, creative practices; to build a network of learning professionals; to support teacher growth through innovation; to strengthen the art and craft of teaching; and to prepare students for living and working in the 21st century.

Sneak Peek into the "Great Group Games" book

Get a free sneak peek into our "Great Group Games" book. This is a really cool website that lets you preview books. Click here to see 21 pages of our book.

Candy Bar Taste Test

Here's a fun icebreaker that I learned from my friend Elizabeth. It would be great to do with your colleagues or your students:

It's a candy bar test. You take 10 paper plates and number them 1-10. Then you use a fork to squish a different miniature candy bar on each plate. Give each person a piece of paper & a pen. After they # their papers 1-10, they either pass the plates around or walk beside each plate. Without knowing the candy bar options, they quietly try to guess which candy bar is on each plate. They can't taste the candy mush, but they can look and smell. Reveal the answers and see who gets them all correct. It's very fun!!

Games – Q/A from a Reader

Question: I’m planning a luncheon and we need a fun game idea for table groups. There will be 60 people - 10 tables with 6 chairs at each table. Anyway, are you able to share any ideas with us?

My answer:
I think the Common Ground game would work really well for your luncheon. Here are the details:

Ask each table group to compile a list of as many things as their whole group has in common as possible. Give them 3-4 minutes to make their lists on a piece of paper. Then ask each group to submit outloud one answer for each of the following questions. Award mini prizes for the group with:
• the most commonalities
• the funniest commonality
• the most creative commonality
• the 'deepest' commonality
• the most adventuresome commonality
• the most memorable commonality
• whatever else you think of...
If you would like to have a conversation started sitting on the tables when peole arrive, you could let table groups do the Candy Quiz together. It's a good way to get people to start talking, by working on a common project.

1. A famous swashbuckling trio of old ___________________
2. Elmer Fudd’s sleight of hand or magical maneuvers ______________
3. Places of interring enemies of those who tend and drive cattle and who are usually mounted on domesticated, large, solid-hoofed, herbivorous mammals ____________________
4. A broad, luminous, irregular band of astral lights that encompasses the stellar sphere ___________________________
5. Crimson-colored libidinous cravings ________________________
6. A celestial body fourth in order from the sun, conspicuous for the redness of its light _______________________
7. Author William Sidney Porter’s pseudonym __________________
8. Multiple expressions of mirth, joy, or scorn in a covert or suppressed manner ____________________
9. An idiom, used here singularly, employed to describe one whose dexterous deficiency denies proficiency in getting a grip on goods _______________
10. Possessive clone alphabetical characters ______________________
11. A saloon named after the newspaper-reporter alias of a superhero _____________________
12. Childhood name of a former renowned baseball player whose strike-out record is recondite __________________
13. Celebrated street in the Big Apple _______________
14. Labial massage __________________
15. The 24-hour part of the week set aside to compensate for labor and toil ______________________
16. Subordinate herbs or seasonings _______________________
17. Lactic flops _______________________
18. A morsel of regurgitated sweet viscid material from the social and colonial hym enopterous insect _____________________
19. The jubilant sensation of an ellipsoidal and edible nut ______________
20. Label on the body bag containing the remains collected after a cat named “Reese” was run over by a mower _______________
21. Dissonant confectionery mixture of dulcet and piquant seasonings ____________
22. To rotate several members of the cylindrical-shaped component of the vowel family _______________
23. Big orb in the sky meets round sweet culinary dish of apple or cherry _____________

(You can email us if you’d like a copy of the answers)

These are both games from Great Group Games – you can find 173 more fun group games with detailed instructions in the book.

If YOU have great ideas for the reader, please share them by leaving a comment or emailing us at ann(at)theassetedge(dot)net.

The Animal Game

When we led a "Great Group Games" workshop at the Search conference last fall, a young person shared a really cool game with us. It's called the Animal Game, and we just posted directions on our Great Group Games blog. You can read the directions here.

We love hearing your favorite games, tips, activities and resources. Please take time to share them with us, so we can share them with other youth workers, pastors and teachers around the world. You can email us at ann(at)TheAssetEdge(dot)net.

Back to School - Games Style #3

Here's another excerpt from our book, Great Group Games: 175 Boredom Busting Zero Prep Team Builders for all Ages.

Hidden Hands

Time: 15 – 25 minutes

Supplies: one comic strip panel (make a copy of the strip for each group of 3-4 participants), one envelope for each group

Description:

This activity is good to give participants practice in communicating with other team members and in making group decisions. You will need a comic strip (duplicated so each work group has a copy), and one envelope for each subgroup. To prepare, photocopy enough copies of the comic strip to provide one for each work group. Cut each strip into separate panels and place the panels in an envelope.

Instruct the participants to form work groups of three to four members each. Distribute one envelope containing a set of comic strip panels to each team.

Direct the members of each team to open the envelope, place the panels of the comic strip face down without examining them, and shuffle them around the table. While the panels are on the table face down, hidden from view, members of each team take turns drawing a panel (without showing it to others), going around until all panels have been chosen. Team members are allowed to describe their own panels as fully as possible, but they are not allowed to look at the panels of the other participants or to show their panels to others.
When the team members have agreed on which panel is first in the cartoon (based on the participants' descriptions of the panels), they place it face down on the table. After they have placed all the panels face down in the order they have determined, they then turn them over to see if they have sequenced the comic in the proper order.


Going Deeper:

§ What communication process was used to describe the panels?
§ What are the strengths and challenges of your communication style?
§ How did the team decide what panels went where?
§ Did you readily share your opinions, were you hesitant to share, or were you perhaps a bit too wordy in your sharing?
§ How might this activity challenge your group to more effectively work together in the future?

Assets: social competencies, commitment to learning, boundaries and expectations

Back to School - Games Style #3

Here's another excerpt from our book, Great Group Games: 175 Boredom Busting Zero Prep Team Builders for all Ages.

Hidden Hands

Time: 15 – 25 minutes

Supplies: one comic strip panel (make a copy of the strip for each group of 3-4 participants), one envelope for each group

Description:

This activity is good to give participants practice in communicating with other team members and in making group decisions. You will need a comic strip (duplicated so each work group has a copy), and one envelope for each subgroup. To prepare, photocopy enough copies of the comic strip to provide one for each work group. Cut each strip into separate panels and place the panels in an envelope.

Instruct the participants to form work groups of three to four members each. Distribute one envelope containing a set of comic strip panels to each team.

Direct the members of each team to open the envelope, place the panels of the comic strip face down without examining them, and shuffle them around the table. While the panels are on the table face down, hidden from view, members of each team take turns drawing a panel (without showing it to others), going around until all panels have been chosen. Team members are allowed to describe their own panels as fully as possible, but they are not allowed to look at the panels of the other participants or to show their panels to others.
When the team members have agreed on which panel is first in the cartoon (based on the participants' descriptions of the panels), they place it face down on the table. After they have placed all the panels face down in the order they have determined, they then turn them over to see if they have sequenced the comic in the proper order.


Going Deeper:

§ What communication process was used to describe the panels?
§ What are the strengths and challenges of your communication style?
§ How did the team decide what panels went where?
§ Did you readily share your opinions, were you hesitant to share, or were you perhaps a bit too wordy in your sharing?
§ How might this activity challenge your group to more effectively work together in the future?

Assets: social competencies, commitment to learning, boundaries and expectations

Back to School - Games Style #2

I finally added a paypal link to our website, so you can buy our Great Group Games book directly from here! Thanks to Joanne Heim for coaching me through the process.

Here's another warm-up game for a new group during this back-to-school season:

It’s Your Birthday
Time: 10-15 minutes
Supplies: music

Description:
“Today is your birthday and this is your party! As hostess/host of this party you have to introduce as many of these people to each other as you possibly can.” After people have had a chance to mingle, do a quick hand count of who introduced the most people. To make it more like a party, play some music as the people mingle.

Assets: support, social competencies, safety

A Glimpse Into Our Working Style

I spent last night at the beautiful Barefoot Republic Camp in Kentucky with a group of 28 teens, college students and adults working to build unity among teens in Nashville through a series of worship events called Fusion. We had the best time singing, planning, and hanging out together.

My job was to create a sense of community among these volunteer leaders who will carry out 3 events for 200 teens this summer. They wanted me to lead games from our Great Group Games book because “You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.” (Plato)

So we played – lots! Our first session was focused on getting to know each other. We bounced, finger fenced, searched for commonalities, sang, played with balloons, and scavenged for treasure. We learned the stories behind the names of people from teammates around the world.

The second playtime was about leadership and community building. We played silly games that led to deeper conversations about change, empowerment, appreciating diversity, listening, using the group’s strengths, creative problem-solving and trust.

We laughed together for 24 hours and left with 28 new friends, ready to make waves of change in our city. I feel so blessed in my job!

Great Group Games in New Places

We received this letter from a woman using games from our Great Group Games book in the prison system. It's amazing to see how many different types of organizations and businesses and schools can use this resource! It's exciting to see! You can read more about the Great Group Games book on our Games blog. And you can even add your own favorite games!

The women in our program are truly enjoying the games in your book. Just to give you some background... I work at the Tennessee Prison for Women (the only maximum security prison for women in the state). I am a Substance Abuse Counselor in the Therapeutic Community, which is a long-term substance abuse program within the prison. The ladies in our program are incarcerated for charges related to their addiction to drugs or alcohol ( i.e.- vehicular homicide, possession of controlled substances, child abuse, etc.) We primarily utilize cognitive-behavioral therapy to address their criminal thinking and anti-social behaviors.

Our program is structured as a hierarchy- every person in the program has a function and responsibility. They are all put on different crews, such as Education Crew, Service Crew, Orientation Crew, and Creative Energy Crew, just to name a few. The responsibility of the Creative Energy Crew is to motivate the women first thing in the morning with some type of game, skit, activity before they start their therapeutic groups. As you can imagine, having to do this every day, they are running out of ideas. When I saw your book, I thought it would be perfect to help give them some great ideas that require little preparation and few props. It is ideal because we are limited (as staff) as to what we can actually bring into the prison. Most things are considered contraband, so it gets challenging for us to "think outside the box" when it comes to motivating the inmates.

So far, they LOVE the games! This morning, in fact, they did the one where they have to sing their name to the group and then the group in unison sings it back to them. We were all laughing hysterically and it got the day off to a great start.

The book truly give ideas that are great for any setting-- from a corporate group to inmates in prison. Thank you for your contribution and we are going to keep on having fun!

Amber Stevenson

3 Elements = Success!

A few weeks ago, I got to talk with Erika Shapiro, Junior High Youth Director at First Presbyterian Church in Nashville. She's outlining their fall curriculum on service-leadership, so she wanted to hear more about the ideas in our new book, "Ready to Go Service Projects: 140 Ways for Youth Groups to Lend a Hand".

I really like the new program model that the First Presbyterian Church youth group is following. They will have 3 components to their programming:

GO BIG - having fun with participants & reaching out to potential attendees.
GO DEEP - building deep relationships with individuals in the group through mentoring and small groups.
GO OUT - Encouraging youth to give back to the community; training young people to be leaders in the community through service.

So simple, but so well-rounded and a great big picture for programming!

Back to School - Games Style

Back to School time equals start-up time for clubs, classes, sports teams and youth organizations. Playing GAMES with PURPOSE is a great way to kick off your year to a great start. You can find 175 ideas in our GREAT GROUP GAMES BOOK, but here is one name game to help your participant's (and you!) learn everyone's names:

Names in Action
· Time: 10 – 30 minutes
· Supplies: none
· One by one, each participant introduces herself to the rest of the group by putting a motion to each syllable of her name as she says it out loud. (For example: Crystal has 2 syllables in her name, so she puts her hands on her hips with “Crys” . . . and bobs her head with “tal.”)
· The group, in turn, repeats back the name with the action motion (affirming the person and solidifying the name in their heads).
· The next person goes. The group repeats their name/action and then repeats the name of the first person again.
· And so it goes until all action names have been done.

Variation:
For the Brave and the Bold and Those Who Want to Have FUN
· After everyone has gone around and all names have been done, put on a compilation of music. Randomly yell out “do the Crystal!” or “do the George!” or whoever is in the group and everyone can dance around doing the motions of that particular person to the beat until you yell out the next person, then they change to that person’s motion action.

Assets: interpersonal competence, creative activities, safety, support