101 Games, Energizers, and 101 Games, Energizers, and 101 Games, Energizers, and 101 Games, Energizers, and

Activities for Under $10Activities for Under $10Activities for Under $10Activities for Under $10

2

A FEW THANKS AND CELEBRATIONS

Hello there,

Games are one of the most effective ways to get people energized to learn and

change their communities. Over the years, I have had the opportunity to work with

some great games, folks. When I am visiting groups throughout the country, people

always ask where I get my ideas for activities. This book is just a sample of games

I have played or facilitated over the years. Use it well and let me know how things

turn out. In fact, share your ideas and let’s build 101 More Games, Energizers and

Activities for next year.

I would like to thank Lottie Walker, of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, for

putting this together for us during her summer internship with Youth Crime Watch

of America in the Washington, DC Office. I would also like to thank some of my

colleagues, friends, and allies who have shared their ideas or taught me how to play.

Kip Lowe, California Youth Authority, Lisa Lybbert formerly with National Crime

Prevention Council, Clarence Small in the Midwest, Brent Blackburn and Jana Hogan

formerly of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Del Erwin in Virginia, Suzanne Young in

Texas, Regina Asaro in Virginia, John Mattson in Rhode Island, Kim McGillicuddy

formerly of Youth Force in New York City, the youth of RA (Respect and Accept) in

Muskegon, Michigan, and folks over at the San Francisco Youth Institute.

And now finally YOU. Have a great time engaging others in building stronger more vibrant communities. Let me know what happens!

Kindest Regards,

S. Jonann Wild

3

101 GAMES, ENERGIZERS,AND ACTIVITIES

FOR UNDER $10 TABLE OF CONTENTS

I Introduction……………………………………………………………………..4

II For Advisors……………………………………………………………………..5

III Activities…………………………………………………………………………..8

Ice Breakers/Name Games………………………………9

Commonalities Games………………………………….…….11

Energizers……………………………………………………….….13

Team Building……………………………………………….……20

Trust Building……………………………………………….…..24

Checking In………………………………………….………….…25

Disclosure/Values……………………………….………….…26

Affirming…………………………………………………………...26

Coping Skills…………………………………………………….…31

Listening……………………………………………………………..32

Reflection…………………………………………………………..34

Teaching Games………………………………………………..35

Closure………………………………………………………………..36

IV Action Projects……………………………………………….…………….38

4

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this book is to give Youth Crime Watch sites and participants ideas

for group activities and events. In order for Youth Crime Watches to be

successful, cohesion amongst YCW members is a necessity. In order to establish

these bonds between the members of the group, games and activities are excellent

facilitators of social bonds. The activities within this book are to energize and

build trust within the group. This booklet also serves another purpose, to outline

the objectives of Youth Crime Watch and to excite and motivate its members.

This handbook is divided into three separate sections depending on the reader and

the type of activity you wish to complete. The first section of the book is especially written for group advisors. This section gives an overview to advisors and also tells them what to look out for when participating in these activities.

The second section is the 101 activities section. This part of the book has been divided into separate subcategories depending on the type of activity needed (ice

breakers, name games, affirmations, etc.). These activities can be used to

entertain a group for the day, or to get the group on task at the beginning of a

group meeting. The activities are to help groups remain entertained and socially

bonded throughout the duration of their meetings and subsequent Youth Crime

Watch activities.

The third and final section of the book is about action projects. This section provides information about planning, executing, and evaluating your community

action project. These projects work best for groups with extra time available for

more long-term undertakings (i.e. summer or spring vacation). Even though formal

school may not be in session, Youth Crime Watchers can remain an asset to the

community by organizing and performing one of these projects. This section

provides strategies for planning and implementing action projects. For more detail

on completing an action project, see the Action Project Manual published by Youth Crime Watch of America.

Hopefully this handbook will provide valuable ideas and opportunities for youth

involvement and participation.

~ Lottie Walker

5

For AdvisorsFor AdvisorsFor AdvisorsFor Advisors

6

For Advisors

As a leader, your job is to get young people involved by making them feel

comfortable and building in a fun factor. The first thing you need to keep in mind

as an advisor, at all times, is the aspect of safety. All participants should be safe

and should feel comfortable in every group and individual setting.

Safety for each activity should be assessed in terms of both physical and

psychological safety. Are there any physical dangers in the immediate area? Does

each participant know what is expected of them in this activity? Is everyone

comfortable with participating? One way to make people feel more comfortable

with the activity is for the leader to participate himself/herself.

When leading activities, it is important too, that you as the leader exhibit a sense

of fun as well. Nothing will motivate a group to participate more than seeing the

leader having a good time. The most important thing you, as a leader, can do is to

have fun! If you enjoy yourself, you are sure to see your enthusiasm reflected back

from your kids!

The overall book of activities should serve as a tool to energize and motivate the

group to pursuer the YCW mission and vision of youth-led crime prevention and

education. As an advisor, you should take advantage of the group gatherings as an

opportunity for the group to understand the meaning and vision of Youth Crime

Watch as a program based on youth commitment to the reduction of crime,

violence, and drugs.

These activities and group meeting can also be used to motivate the group of youth

to plan for the following year. Many of the following activities provide opportunity

for brainstorming and idea gathering, use these to your advantage. Rather than

naming helpful attributes of a friend, come up with project, fundraising,

recruitment, and publicity gathering ideas. Take advantage of each of the

activities in this book and use them to your liking. Feel free, as an advisor, to

change the rules a bit and to use the activity for a different yet productive

purpose. The activities provided in this book are merely a suggestion and

opportunity to get your kids together and motivated to prevent crime and improve

the overall school environment.

As a leader, one of the best ways to tie these activities to the Youth Crime Watch

vision is to debrief the kids after each activity. Ask them what they learned.

What strategies were used? How can these strategies be converted over to crime

7

prevention and education? How does the level of trust within the group affect the

outcome of the activity? What types of communication were utilized in completing

this activity? Try to do this as much as you can so that the activities retain their

ties to the YCW foundation. Keep in mind, not all of the following activities lend

themselves to this type of review.

8

ActivitiesActivitiesActivitiesActivities

9

Ice Breakers/Name Games Behind the Blanket This exercise can be used as an ice breaker, name game, energizer, or even a

teaching game. Have the members of the group introduce themselves. Ask for two

volunteers to hold the blanket or two facilitators can hold the blanket. Divide the

group into two teams. Explain the rules. Each team will send up a person to stand

behind the blanket (on their side). When the facilitator signals go, the blanket will

be dropped to the floor. The first person to yell out the other person’s correct

name wins. The person named first must join the winning side. This will continue

until everyone is on the same side. Before starting the game, have the members

say their names one more time.

Four Corners Card Distribute 3x5 cards to everyone in the group. Have everyone place their first

name in the center. On each corner, people are to write or draw the answers to

four questions such as “What is your favorite food?” “Who is your favorite

TV/Movie/Music Star?” “If you could talk with anyone (living or dead) for one hour,

who would it be?” Ask the members to find a partner and share the information on

the card. Next, ask everyone to share their information with the group.

Koosh Name Game This exercise can be used as a team builder, an ice breaker, a method to assess the

group’s collaboration skills, a method to build collaboration, to establish norms, or

simply as an energizer. Have the group form a circle. Explain the group will be

playing a name game with the Koosh Ball. The rules of the game are to keep the

Koosh in the air and to help others succeed. In order to play the game, a pattern

(how we are going to toss the ball) must be established. Members will toss the

Koosh to the same person each time. Each person can only receive the toss once

when we are setting up our pattern. So when someone has received the Koosh and

tossed it, they should place their hands behind their back. Have everyone say their

name, so that when the Koosh is tossed to them – their name can be called out.

Then establish the pattern. After the pattern is established and you have received

the Koosh, repeat the pattern and include additional Koosh Balls. If the group is

having trouble tossing and catching the balls, stop and have them brainstorm ways

of being more effective. Then repeat the exercise.

Link Name with Food/Adjective of Same Sound or Letter This is a great name game and/or energizer. Have the group sit in a circle. Each

person will introduce their name and attach it to the name of a food or adjective

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that sounds the same. For example, Jonann is for Jell-O, Lottie is for Loveable.

Variations include not saying the same food or adjective twice. Try linking on names

and foods/adjectives until the last person has to say everyone’s name.

Name/Adjective This activity is a great name game, energizer, or way to learn about people’s skills

or passions. Give each participant a piece of paper or construction paper and

marker(s). Have them list the letters of their name in large print down one side of

the paper. For each letter, have them brainstorm adjectives that describe them.

SALLY would be S is for Social, A is for Athletic, L is for Lovable, L is for Laughs a

lot, Y is for Y Not – Always Willing to Try New Things. After people have

completed their chart, have them use it to introduce themselves. Have each person

post their chart.

What’s My Name? The object of this game is to figure out the names of the other players. This is an

excellent game to use to start the bonding process. To play, give each participant a

pen or pencil, a pin, and a few pieces of paper. Each player should write the first

letter of his/her first name on one of the papers and pin it to his/her shirt. Next

each of the players goes around trying to guess each player’s name using the first

letter as a hint. Each name guess should be written on a piece of paper and then

handed to the person whose name is being guessed. After each player has had a

chance to guess the names of the other players, they should read each of the name

guesses aloud to the group, then announce the correct name.

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Commonalities Games

Commonality Bingo Pass out a bingo card and a pen or pencil to each person as they arrive. The cards

should be set up like a bingo card, as a grid of blocks. Each block should have

either a skill, talent, or object written in it, such as “I own a dog” or “I can snap my

fingers.” When the signal is given, participants must find at least one person for

each square. The first four who have completed the card can either win a prize or

choose the next activity for the group. After the game is completed, take time out

to find out who does what (plays a sport, knows a great ice breaker, etc.).

Find Someone Who This is a great ice breaker that gets conversations going. One leader should be

picked from the group. That leader should yell out random phrases, such as, “I have

a younger brother,” or “I can snap my fingers.” When the phrase is called out, the

participants need to find someone who can do each item as it is yelled out and hold

onto that person.

Find That Tune This game is a good mixer, it facilitates group discussion and is also a good activity

for splitting the players into smaller groups. The goal of this activity is to find the

other players humming the same tune. To play, the leader of the activity should

give each player a well-known tune to hum. There should be several people humming

the same tune once the activity gets started. The players then walk around the

room humming their tune and listening for others with the same tune. Once the

groups have matched up, the game is over.

Life Boats or Scattergories This exercise can be used to define communities, identify commonalities, energize a

room, or to divide a group. Ask everyone to shout out their favorite thing in a given

category (such as ice cream flavors, sports, TV shows) and to form groups with

other people yelling the same thing. The facilitator can be very specific or can be

vague concerning the category. This gives the group a chance to self-select. Once

all the groups have been formed, have each one yell out their category in turn

attempting to see which is the loudest or most creative.

The San Francisco Youth Leadership Institute and Anya McMurray shared this activity. Match My Quote This game enables the players to get to know each other in a fun way. The goal of

this game is to find the people with pieces of the same quote or Bible passages as

12

you. To play, each person is given a piece pf paper with a section of a well-known

quote. The players are then supposed to find the people with the rest of the quote.

Once the individuals find each other, they should stay together until all the groups

are united. After everyone is paired up ask the players to learn at least one fun

fact about the other person.

Matchmaker Mixer This activity is a good way to get participants into smaller groups for later

activities and to facilitate kids getting to know each other. For this activity, the

only materials required are pens and paper. Each piece of paper should have the

name of one member of a famous duo or group (“Ringo” from the Beatles, or “Juliet”

from “Romeo and Juliet”). The papers should be randomly distributed to the group.

The goal of this game is to find the other members of your respective group

(“Juliet” would search for “Romeo” and “Ringo” for “John,” “Paul,” and “George”).

Plate Game As each person arrives give them a white paper plate and a pencil or pen. Give them

a time limit and have them meet as many people as possible. They need to get each

person to share something about themselves and sign the plate. The person with

the most names on their plate at the end of the predetermined time wins. Talk

about some of the interesting facts you have learned. Note: If the participants

know that the game is a race for the most signatures, they might skip the fact-

finding part of the activity. To ensure the getting to know you phase remains, tell

the participants before the beginning of the activity that they will be quizzed on

what they learned at the end of the game.

13

Energizers

Add an Action Have the participants stand in a circle. Ask for one volunteer to make a gesture

(waving, jumping, kicking, etc.). Any bodily movement is possible. The player next

to the first person now performs the first gesture as well as one of his/her own.

The object of the game is to repeat all of the gestures in order and for each player

to add their own. Play until all participants have added a gesture. One variation on

this activity is to not allow any gestures to be repeated.

Ah So Ko Have the group form a circle. Explain the rules of the game. The cycle is in three

parts. Demonstrate the three movements. The first movement is done as you say

“Ah.” The movement is a scooping motion made at waist level pointing either to the

right or left. The person being pointed at will need to say “So” as they make a

scooping gesture pointing over their head to either the left or right. The person

being pointed at needs to immediately say “Ko” as they place both palms together

and point across the circle. If someone is slow in responding or says the wrong

thing or does the wrong gesture, they are out. When someone is out, they run

around the circle and attempt to get the group members to goof up. The circle will

get smaller until only one person is remaining. Rules include people who are out can’t

go into the circle or touch anyone. This is a fast and furious game since people will

be yelling. You probably want to have the doors closed while playing it.

Thanks to Reeths Puffer High School in Michigan for this exercise. It energizes the room!

Alphabet Story Have the group sit in a circle and tell a story. The first person starts the story

with a word beginning with an A. When they stop, the next person must begin the

story with a B and so on through Z. You can also vary this by using three or four

volunteers in front of the group. If someone gets stuck, they can be switched with

a volunteer from the audience.

Bag Skits This is an activity that’s great for road trips, lock-ins, or rainy days. Fill bags with

miscellaneous items, such as balloons, straws, toilet paper, cotton balls, pens, or

stickers. Each group has to come up with a skit using all of the items in the bag and

share it with the rest of the group. This activity is very amusing and great

entertainment.

14

Balloon Stomp Pass out a balloon and a piece of string to each person. Have them blow up their

balloon and use the string to tie it around their ankle. Remember, some people may

need help getting their balloon blown up or tied or attached to their ankle, so

encourage everyone to assist each other. Make sure you provide enough string so

the balloon is away from the ankle – it saves on injuries. When you say GO,

everyone tries to stomp everyone else’s balloon while protecting their own balloon.

The last person with a balloon is the winner.

Clothes Pin Game This exercise is simply to energize the room and blow off excess steam. Pass out

five clothes pins to all participants. Instruct them to pin them on their clothes.

When you say go, they are to chase each other and attempt to clip the pins on

others. The first person with no pins wins. P.S. Dropping pins on the ground does

not count.

Clumping This exercise can be used to divide a group and/or energize the group. Instruct

participants that you will be calling out a number. They need to clump together in

an exact number – not one more or one less – or they are out. If they are short,

they need to figure out how to get the right number. The facilitator can add to the

confusion by telling people they are short or have one too many – when they have

the exact number. After they have kicked one person out, or recruited another,

tell them that they had the right number of people in the first place.

Cotton Throw Hand each participant a cotton ball. The object of this activity is to see who can

throw the cotton ball the farthest. This game is particularly entertaining for all

involved because it is nearly impossible for anyone to get a cotton ball any distance.

Dragons Divide the participants into groups of five or six. Give each person a piece of cloth

and instruct them to tuck it in the back of their pants, similar to flag football.

Advise the participants that the lead person is the head of the dragon and is the

only one who can snatch the flag off the last person of the dragon. If their flag is

taken, the person must join the other team. The game continues until there is one

big dragon.

Elbow Tag Form the group into a circle. Ask for two volunteers. Instruct the remaining folks

to get a partner and link arms at the elbows. One of the volunteers is the runner

and the other is the chaser. The chaser goes after the runner and attempts to tag

15

that person. When the runner is tagged, the people change roles. The runner also

has the option to link elbows with a person. When this happens, there is now a

group of three. In this case, the person on the end, the one who was not the runner

before, becomes the new runner.

Electricity Divide the group into two teams. Have each team line up and sit on the ground

facing each other. At one end of the line, place a ball or a Koosh ball in the middle

between the two rows. Everyone needs to hold hands, place them down at their

sides, bow their heads, and shut their eyes. The person at the beginning of each

line will be watching as a coin is tossed. If it’s heads, they squeeze the hand of the

next person. The squeezing goes all the way to the end and the last person grabs

the ball. The group getting the ball first moves the person at the end of the line up

to the front. The losing group moves one person back down to the end of the line.

If the coin comes up tails, the people don’t start squeezing hands. If they do, they

have to move one person back to the end of the line. This continues until one group

rotates everyone through the line once. As the facilitator, you will be flipping the

coin. Keep it moving and don’t wait too long if it’s coming up tails.

Elephant, Palm Tree, Energizer Bunny Form the group into a circle and begin to introduce the game. The group leader will

stand in front of a person and say elephant, palm tree, or energizer bunny. The

person and the people standing on either side must form the object. If it’s an

elephant, the center person will be the trunk of the elephant, and the other two

people will be the ears. If it’s a palm tree, the center person is the tree trunk, and

the side people are the leaves. If it’s an energizer bunny, the middle person puts

their two hands over their head to make the ears, and the other two people act like

they are beating the drum. Make up as many different configurations as you would

like. If any of the three people hesitate or mess up, they must take the center of

the circle.

Four Corner Scavenger Hunt Divide the participants into four groups and assign each to a different corner of

the room. Yell out an item and the group must find that item within their group and

bring it to the center of the room. The first two teams arriving get points (two for

first and one for second place). Have fun – pierced body part, least hair on head,

lipstick, marker, etc.

Fruit Basket This exercise is used as an energizer. Participants are seated in a circle (on chairs

– best without the desk attached) with the group leader standing. The group leader

will explain that they are going to make fruit salad by listing various fruits

16

suggested by members of the group. Make sure to tell them they can repeat a

fruit. After everyone has identified their fruit including the group leader, begin

the game. When the group leader says, “Bingo,” the members hearing their fruit

declared must go across the room and sit in an empty chair. The last person

standing will become the group leader. If the leader wants everyone to exchange

seats, then they will yell, “Upset the fruit basket!” The group leader asks each

person to state the their favorite fruit.

Thanks to the San Francisco Youth Leadership Institute for sharing this activity!!

Guess the Ending To play this game, have the entire group sit around and listen to one player read a

story (a mystery or detective story works best). Have the reader stop just before

the conclusion. Ask the rest of the group how they think the story will end. Keep

going until everyone who wants to speak has had a chance. After all of the endings

are guessed, have the reader finish the story. A variation on this activity is to use

stories other than mysteries and have the group create a more interesting ending

of their own.

Just Say HA! Everyone lies on the ground. The people need to lie down with their head on each

other’s stomach. Have the people lie at angles with their head in the center of the

other person’s stomach. One head per stomach. The first person must yell out,

“HA!” The next person must yell, “HA, HA!” The third must say, “HA, HA, HA” and

so on. Very soon everyone starts laughing since the heads start bouncing when the

stomach moves as you are saying HA.

Mummy Wrap Divide into teams of five. Have one to three people be mummies and the other one

to three folks wrap them with toilet paper. If you want to, you can give them a

time limit, and watch them wrap. NOTE: Bring lots of toilet paper.

Neighbors Who Participants are seated in a circle (on chairs – best without a desk attached) with

the group leader standing. The group leader will go up to a person and ask them

why they like their neighbor. The person will say like because they are wearing a

watch. Anyone in the group wearing a watch must leave their seat and go across the

circle and find another seat. The person remaining standing is the group leader and

repeats the process.

17

Orange Pass Make at lease two teams and have them stand in a line. Give the first person in

each line an orange. The orange must be passed down the line from one person’s

neck to the next WITHOUT USING ANY HANDS. The first team to do this wins.

People to People This activity can be used as an ice breaker or energizer. Have the group form a

standing circle. Have everyone find a partner. Stand in the middle of the circle

and introduce the directions. The group leader will be calling out a body part such

as toe to toe. People will need to place their toe in contact with their partner’s toe.

The group leader will then call out another body part and the group will change

contact. This isn’t like Twister so the members are only in contact with one body

part at a time. If the group leader says, “people to people,” the group must cross

the circle and find another partner. The last person without a partner is the group

leader.

Thanks to Clarence Small for sharing this activity.

Rhyme Race Have the group sit in a circle. Ask for one volunteer to sit in the middle of the

circle. This volunteer should think of a simple word and shout it out. After the

word is yelled, the volunteer should look around the circle and point to one of the

sitting participants. The person being pointed to has 5 seconds (less if you feel the

game is starting to lag) to come up with a word that rhymes. If the person does not

come up with a rhyming word in time, he/she will replace the person in the middle of

the circle. If he/she does come up with a word, the person in the middle should

point to another person for different word that rhymes the original word.

Sack Race Have each member of the group find a partner. Give each pair a burlap sack or a

trash bag. Have each member of the pair put one leg in the bag. Next have all of

the pairs (or depending on the size of your group, only a few) line up for a race.

When you say, “GO,” the pairs should race (using their three legs) to a

predetermined spot. The first pair to finish, wins. This activity is also a good one

for team work and cooperation.

Shoe Pick Up Relay Have everybody take off their shoes and place them in the middle of the room.

Divide the group into four teams and assign them to the four corners of the room.

When the group leader gives the signal, the first person runs up from each line,

runs up to the shoes, and finds the second person in line’s shoes. When they are

found, they must bring them back and place them on that person’s feet. As soon as

they are finished putting the shoes on the person, the first person goes to the

18

back of the line. The newly shod person must run up and find the next person in

line’s shoes and take them back and get them on their feet. This process is

repeated until everyone has their shoes.

Stories in Action This is a great activity for an active group. This activity gets kids up and moving

while being creative and listening to the story being told. The goal of this game is

to listen and act out the story being told. To begin, the leader or one of the

participants tells a story, pausing every sentence or two to enable the kids to act

the story out. Stories can either be made up or read aloud from a book.

Suck and Blow Make two lines of participants. Give the first person of each line a card. The goal

of this game is to get the card passed down through the line of people faster than

the other line. This person sucks on the card and the next person tries to suck it

off. The secret to making this work is that as the second person sucks, the first

person begins to blow. If a card drops on the ground, the group must start over.

NO HANDS ARE ALLOWED!!!!

Ultimate Frisbee Group the participants into equal teams. To begin the game, you have a kickoff (just

like football). Whoever catches the Frisbee CANNOT RUN AFTER THEY HAVE

POSSESSION. They must pass it to another person on his/her team. If a member

of the opposing team intercepts the Frisbee, they will take possession. The team

without the Frisbee will gain possession if the pass is dropped by the other team.

To score points, a team must pass the Frisbee into their end zone and the Frisbee

must be caught by a member of their team. A completion scores five points. If the

opposing team catches the Frisbee in the end zone, they receive three points and

possession. You can make time limits, play quarters or halves, and you can even have

the coin toss.

Water Balloon Volleyball Divide the group into two teams. You may want to have several courts if you have

lots of participants. Have members find a partner. Each pair will have a towel.

Place a water balloon in one of the towels for that pair to serve the balloon. The

water balloon is lobbed over to the other side where a pair will catch the balloon.

If the balloon falls and breaks, it is a point for the other side.

What Leader? Have everyone sit in a circle except one person who leaves the room. One that

person is gone, choose a leader. This person will demonstrate a simple movement

such as clapping, snapping fingers, rolling shoulders, or tapping their nose. The

19

group follows the group leader’s gestures without being too obvious about who they

are following. The person who is in the all re-enters the room and stands in the

center of the circle. The must guess who the leader is. The leader must change

their motion at least every thirty seconds. When the leader is guessed, they must

leave the room and the process is repeated. Variation: the person guessing only has

three opportunities.

Wizards, Dwarfs, Giants Divide the group into two teams. Set boundaries with a line on the floor equally in

between the two teams and a “safe” zone for each team on each side (e.g. in the

basement two opposite walls would be the safe zone for each team and you can

make a line with masking tape on the floor in the middle). Each team does a team

huddle prior to each round. In the huddle, they decide whether they want to be

“wizards, dwarfs, or giants.” This is played like Rock, Paper, Scissors. Wizards

overcome Giants. Giants beat Dwarfs, and the Dwarfs are greater than the

Wizards. When the team decides their identity, they approach the middle line.

When the group leader yells out, “Dwarfs, Wizards, and Giants,” the members of

the team begin acting their role. Dwarfs squat near the ground. Wizards throw

out their arms like they are casting a spell. Giants stand on their toes and act

really big with their hands stretched overhead. Once you see what the other team

is doing, you either run into your team’s safety zone or you run after the other

team’s members and try to tag them before they reach their safety. Whoever is

tagged joins the opposing team! The team with the most people at the end of time,

wins!

20

Team Building

52 Card Put Down Shuffle a deck of cards. Pass it out so that each member gets several cards.

Advise the group that you are going to time them. They must start by placing the

ace of spades on the ground and move through the spades until they have places the

king on the pile. Then move from the diamonds to the clubs and end up with the

hearts. Have them talk about how they can get a faster time and repeat the

process.

Adore/Detest This exercise can be used as an exercise to begin to build consensus or as an ice

breaker. Divide the group into small groups and advise them that they will need to

come to consensus on six things their group absolutely adores and another six

things they absolutely detest. Everything on each list must be adored or detested

by everyone in the group. Also advise them you will be timing them.

If you have the time, combine groups and have them develop a list. Continue

combining groups until the entire group comes to a consensus.

Sometimes the group gets stuck on the detest list – use one of the following

examples: zits, rats, or cockroaches.

Bucket Game This exercise can be used to build a team, introduce decision making or problem

solving, break the ice, or energize the room. Have the group sit on the floor in a

circle. They will need to pass the bucket you are holding in your hands around the

circle using only their feet. They cannot touch the bucket with their hands, nor can

it touch the floor. If it does, the bucket will be returned to the original person and

must be passed around again.

Thanks to the folks at Youth Force in New York City for showing us this activity!!! Electric Fence Choose an area that is “soft” like the ground, tumbling mats, or pillows. Have two

people hold a string or broom handle to form a fence. Have all of the participants

stand on one side of the string or fence, and put any cushions on the other side.

Explain to the group that they must figure out how to send each member of the

team over to the other side of the fence through team work. Set a time limit.

Make sure that it is long enough for them to reach their goal, but not so long that

the game gets boring – 10 minutes is a good time limit. Explain there is NO

TALKING ALLOWED by ANYONE once the game has begun. If anyone talks during

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the game, the entire group must GO BACK to the other side and begin again. So

before they start, they need to make sure they have asked all their questions.

TIPS ON SUCCEEDING: Build a pyramid on one side and have people walk up and

jump over, use some people as stabilizers to help the person from falling; once you

have some people over, you can do a people pass from one side to the other, make

the person being passed lay stiff and on the ground, now have the team on one side

pass them over to the other side. Keep in mind that it is probably smart to get

some of the bigger people over to the other side before too long. A big mistake is

to send the lighter, smaller folks over first.

Human Machine Divide your group into teams of three. Each group is told to devise a machine that

can move a prescribed distance (15-20ft). The catch: only two legs and two arms of

the three persons may touch the ground. Also, once a machine has covered the

prescribed course, that team has a patent on their methods of movement and no

other group can duplicate it. Only one group can go at a time. Give the groups time

to strategize at the beginning. Consideration: requires space for moving and

members need to be comfortable with personal touch.

M&M Challenge This activity can be used as an ice breaker, to energize a room, develop

collaboration, or to break people into pairs for small group work. Ask people to pair

up and shake hands. While continuing to hold the other’s hand, ask them to get

down on their hands and knees. (The idea is that they will be o the floor facing

each other as if they might arm wrestle. You should not, however, mention arm

wrestling.) Tell them that for every time player A touches the back of player B’s

hand on the floor, she will get an M&M or vice versa. When you say, “Ready, Set,

Go,” you will find that almost all of the groups start out fighting each other rather

than working together to get the most M&Ms.

Musical Bags This activity can be used as an ice breaker, energizer, and to build collaboration

skills. (This activity needs two extra people – one as the group leader, and one to

operate the music.) Place a series of paper bags (large grocery bag size) on the

floor. There needs to be more bags than people. Explain the rules of the exercise.

Ask people if they have ever played musical chairs. Ask someone who has to explain

the concept. Explain that this game is different. As the music plays, people will

walk around the room, but can’t step on the bags. When the music stops, they must

quickly get on a bag. If there is not a bag available, they must yell, “Help me, help

me” and people need to get them on a bag with them. Begin playing the music, stop

it and watch everyone find a bag. Then begin the music, this time begin picking up

bags. Keep picking up additional bags each round.

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Pictionary Divide the group into teams. You can use chalk boards, paper, flip chart paper, dry

erase board, or index cards as the paper. Markers, chalk or pens need to be

provided for each team. Have one member from each team come up and view the

word. They need to go back, and on the starting signal, they must begin to draw

something representing the word, a clue. The artist should draw something that

symbolizes the word and helps the team guess what the word could be. The first

team to guess the word being drawn by their team member wins a point. The final

round always contains enough points for the team in last place to sweep.

Repeat After Me This is a good activity for a rainy day. To play this game, have the participants sit

around and watch the leader. The object of this game is to complete the broom

trick correctly. The leader begins the trick by wiping his hands on his shirt and

brushing the broom across the floor. He then says, “What a nice day to clean the

house, I think that’s what I’ll do.” The leader then passes the broom on to the next

person who attempts to do the trick. As participants attempt the trick, the leader

corrects them by telling them “right” or “wrong.” The broom is then passed to the

next person, and so on around the group. The activity continues until everyone has

completed the trick correctly. The key to doing the trick right is to wipe your

hands on your shirt before sweeping with the broom and saying the phrase. As the

trick goes on, more and more people will pick up on the correct way to do it. For

players who may be slow to catch on, an exaggerated hand wiping may help. The

game works best with participants who have not played the game before.

The Shrinking Ship Use a 6-8 foot rope to make a circle big enough for your group to stand inside.

Everyone’s feet must be inside the perimeter for fifteen seconds. Once they have

succeeded with this task, ask the group if they would be willing to make the circle

smaller. Have them decide on the actual size. If they succeed again, ask them to

consider an even smaller circle. Continue this as long as the group is willing.

Encourage them to use team work and cooperation to get the smallest circle

possible.

Trust Creature To begin, have the participants go around and say what some of the aspects are of a

trustworthy person. Next, give each group some items with which they can draw

and have the group create their own creature using all of the aforementioned traits

(big ears for a good listener, a dog’s head for loyalty, etc.). Once the trust

creature has been created, have the group come up with a name for it. When it is

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finished, hang the picture of the creature in the room to remind each member of

the trustworthy traits.

Depending on the size of your entire group, you could split into smaller groups and

have each create a trust creature. After all the groups are finished have each

group share their creature with all of the other participants. Then hang all of the

creatures in the room.

Thanks to the book 100 Ways to Build Teams by Carole Scearce for this activity.

Vowel Choral This activity can be used to energize a room, break the ice, build a team, or break

up a group. Each person sings the first vowel of their name while wandering around

the room trying to find others singing the same letter. Once five groups have been

formed (A, E, I O, U), a conductor is selected to lead the vowel choral (as he/she

points to each group, they sing their letter).

Zip Lock Water Bag Toss Each team of two (or more, if you want) gets a zip lock bag. They fill it half full of

water. You play this game just like a water balloon toss. Have each participant pick

a partner. Give each team one water bag/balloon. Have the participants start out

by standing across from their partners with only 4 feet between them. Next toss

the bag/balloon to the partner. Each time the bag/balloon is caught successfully,

have the partners take one step further apart from each other. The goal of this

game is to be the team with the farthest distance between you and your partner

without breaking the bag/balloon. The great part about this game is the bags

rarely break, so once they explode, they can just be refilled. Variations include

throwing to a partner while standing back to back, or people can use only one hand

to catch the bag, or the thrower must strike a pose until the balloon is tossed back.

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Trust Building

Push Me – Pull Me Have the group form a tight circle and hook elbows. One person at a time will keep

his/her feet in the same spot and remain still while he/she leans forward. As the

person leans forward, the people making up the edge of the circle should slightly

push the person in the middle to keep him/her upright. Before this game can take

place, the people in the group must be very trusting of one another. As the person

in the middle falls into an edge of the circle, the circle should react and push the

person back up. The whole group will feel the weight and therefore need to assist

at all times.

Trust Walk Everyone needs one partner. One person is blindfolded. The seeing person guides

the blindfolded person on a walk within boundaries you have established. After a

specified time, they must return, switch places, and repeat the process.

Afterwards, talk about what worked and what didn’t. You might want to repeat the

process as another time. For some groups it is helpful to provide tips on how to

guide the other person so they feel secure. Also, make sure participants don’t

treat this as a joke.

Wind in the Willows Have four to seven people in a circle with one person standing in the middle. This

person should cross his/her arms across his/her chest and remain stiff. He/she

should keep his/her feet in the same spot while falling towards someone – with

his/her eyes closed. The people in the circle should keep their hands in front of

them and gently push the person around the circle. It is helpful to place one foot in

front of the other to help support the person as they fall.

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Checking In

Feelings Have the group sit in a circle. Ask each person as he/she takes the Koosh ball to

express the feeling they are currently experiencing. Take some time to discuss

why they are feeling that way.

More Of/Less Of/Just Right Ask the group members to take a sheet of paper and divide it into three columns.

Title one column “More Of.” The next “Just Right,” and the third “Less Of.” In

each of the respective columns, put ideas that the group decides it needs more of,

less of, or is just right. For example, if the group is feeling low on group trust, in

the “more of” column, they might put, “whole group activities,” as they want more

whole group activities to increase the level of trust in the group. Discuss which

areas can be adapted in the group and which may need to be discussed with others.

This is also a great time to think about the consequences of proposed changes as

well as the interest based bargaining.

The Circle Provide each person with a slip of paper. Ask them to draw a circle and place a dot

in the center of the circle. Explain this circle represents this group and ask each

person to place an X on their circle according to how much he/she feels included.

They do not have to sign the sheet. Ask them to turn them in at the end of the

group meeting.

Weather Report Ask one person to provide a weather report concerning how they are feeling or

what has happened to them since the last meeting. Examples might include “sunny

weather with no clouds in sight” or “storm clouds are appearing on the horizon.”

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Disclosure/Values

Alone in Space Have the group sit in a circle. Explain that space technology is far enough advanced

that we are sending one-manned shuttles into space which stay there for an entire

year. Each member of the group will be sent up the next morning. The participants

are allowed to take a limited number of personal items. Each member should list

what he/she will take. They are each allowed to have three items. After everyone

has decided on their items, share the choices and discuss why these items were

chosen.

Birthday Line This exercise can be used to establish commonalities, break the ice, energize a

room, or divide the room. Have the group form a straight single-file line according

to their birthday and month beginning the line with January 1, and ending the line

with December 31. The catch is that this line needs to be formed without talking.

Community Finders Bingo This exercise can be used as an ice breaker, to identify resources in the room, or

to energize the room. Identify 13-15 items, skills, or resources you need in the

group. Develop a Community Finder Bingo Card which includes a space for their

name and telephone number. Give everyone a Bingo Card (face down). When you say

go, everyone needs to move around, introduce themselves, and get their card

signed. People can only sign one square. There should be additional time for people

to identify all the resources/skills they possess. You may hand out another card

for people to complete, sign, include their telephone numbers, and turn in to be

compiled into a Resource Book.

Easy/Difficult Seat a group in a circle and ask, “What makes it easy/difficult” for them to be

here. People can either volunteer to speak or you can use a ball. It helps get the

group going if one of the leaders goes first.

Feelings Charade Have the group compile a list of different feelings. Write each feeling in a

separate slip of paper. Place the slips in a paper bag. Have everyone sit in a circle.

One at a time, each member draws a slip of paper and acts out the feeling while the

group members guess. When the feeling is identified, the person guessing

correctly draws a slip of paper. If they are quite good at this you might want to

simply circulate the paper bag around the circle. During the second round, you can

add a verbal clause.

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Friends This session aids group members to realize what they hope for and expect in a

friend, as well as what they have to offer as a friend. Participants brainstorm a list

of ten qualities they want in a friend. The facilitator writes the ten qualities down.

The group members will then list the ten qualities on their own paper in their OWN

order of importance, the most important (number 1) to the least important (number

10). The group then shares their lists with each other. Allow some time for the

group to discuss why they value these qualities in this order and what they can do

to possess these qualities.

Guess Who? This is an exercise that can be used as an ice breaker, an energizer, or an

enticement back from break. Have people seated so they face each other (circle,

hollow square, etc) and pass out strips of paper. Have people write down something

the group does not know about them on the strip of paper. Instruct them not to

sign it. Place all the strips in a brown paper bag. Shake up the bag. Hand a person

the bag. Ask them to draw a strip and read the information aloud. They will have

two opportunities to guess who the person is. If they don’t guess correctly, the

rest of the group is allowed to guess. Continue around the circle until the exercise

is complete or use it to get people back from break.

How I Got My Name Form a circle and have each person share how they got their name. This is a great

way to hear family stories and to find out about cultures. It is also a wonderful way

to remember names.

M&Ms Place M&Ms into a bowl. Ask each person to take some. After each person has

taken their M&Ms, explain that they will need to share one fact or idea for each

M&M they took. This might be personal items or information concerning a topic of

choice. Variation: Since many people have seen this, you might want to place

numbers on index cards. Have each person draw a card during their turn and

subtract the number of M&Ms from the total.

Story Time The object of this game is for the players to get to know each other better. Each

participant is to share a story about a certain universal experience (scary story,

childhood experience, etc.) to share with the group. After the players have

received their story cues, they should be given a few minutes to think. The activity

is finished when everyone had had the opportunity to share a story. This activity is

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a great way for players to learn how to listen to each other and for them to learn

more about each other.

Three Truths and a Lie This activity can be used as an ice breaker and/or to increase personal awareness.

Have the group break into groups of two, three, or four. Ask them to get with

people they have not traditionally worked with before. Ask each person to take a

moment and identify three truths and a lie they are willing to share with the group.

Instruct the small groups to have one person at a time share their information and

the other members of the group will guess what is the truth and what is fiction.

Toilet Paper Place people in a circle and hand a roll of toilet paper to someone. Ask them to take

some and pass it along. After everyone has their paper, explain that they will be

playing an introduction game. Each person will need to state their name and share

one thing with the group for each toilet paper square they have.

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Affirming

Appreciation Circle The group stands in a circle with arms around each other’s shoulders. Each member

voluntarily shares something they appreciate about the group. For example, “Jim, I

appreciate you sharing that story about your friend because I’ve had the same

thing happen to me and it helped to hear you talk about it.” Or, “I appreciate you

guys give me, it helps a lot.”

Koosh Game Ask the group a question about the group or event such as one thing you value about

the group or event. Toss the Koosh and have each person share their thoughts.

Secret Pal Have participants write their name on a slip of paper and place it in a brown paper

bag. Each person draws a name and is that person’s secret pal for the duration of

the event. Each day they send their pal a note, thought, little trinket, or poem to

let them know they are special.

One Thing I Admire About You Provide each person with a large sheet of paper. Ask them to decorate the borders

(if time permits) and write their name on the top of the sheet. When they have

finished writing, ask them to tape their paper to the wall. With music playing, have

members circulate and write comments about one thing they admire about the

person. Ask the members to initial their comments. When you are finished writing,

please sit down and wait for the group to complete the task. Ask the members to

retrieve their own sheet. Give people the opportunity to ask other members for

clarification. Allow the group to discuss how the activity made them feel.

Picture People The name of each member of the group should be written on individual slips of

paper. The object of this activity is to create a collage, representing the person

whose name was drawn, using cut-outs from old magazines. Each player should sort

through magazines looking for images which represent the person whose name was

drawn. The pictures should be cut out and pasted to a piece of construction paper.

When the group has finished their collages, have participants present them to the

group, explaining what images they picked and why.

Value Circle Have the group stand in a circle. Ask for a volunteer to hold the Koosh. Have three

volunteers share something they value about the person holding the Koosh. After

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three ideas are shared, toss the Koosh to another person. If time is available, have

each person share an appreciation.

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Coping Skills

Helping Others Building on the answers generated in the Personal Coping exercise, ask the group to

generate a list of ways we can help others. Record the group’s ideas on a large

piece of paper. Post and tell members to add to the list. This list could be made

into a bookmark and distributed to the club or it could remain posted on the wall

for a period of time allowing the group members to periodically add coping ideas to

it.

Personal Coping Ask the group members to think about the questions you are going to ask them and

to write down their answers. Give them the following instructions, allowing enough

time between each instruction for them to think and answer.

- Think about a time in your life when you experienced a problem or

stressor.

Give examples of kinds of stress – moving, friend’s death, divorce, an

award or athletic accomplishment, etc.

- What feelings did you experience?

- What did you do to cope with this problem or stressor?

- Did anyone support you and help you get through this period? How?

- How did you grow from this experience?

Ask the group to generate a list of coping techniques that they might use when

they encounter another stressful situation.

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Listening

Group Interview Share with the group members three helpful listening skills.

- Focusing is giving your attention to the person who is speaking. Not only

should you be listening to what they are saying, but also your body

language should show that you are paying attention to what the person is

saying. If a person should enter the room and could not hear the

conversation, they should be able to tell by just looking at he group who

is “on focus.”

- Accepting means not making a judgment. We accept what other people

say as true for them. We do not necessarily have to think or feel the

same way, but we do not criticize another person for their thoughts or

actions. This skill can be extremely difficult if you are talking with a

person who is very vocal on an issue about which you feel the exact

opposite.

- Drawing out means asking questions that clarify, gain for information, or

lend support. This valuable tool used in a conversation includes types of

questions that make people think about how they feel and act. Drawing

out statements can also be perceived as an invasion of privacy.

Therefore, be thoughtful and allow people the right to pass.

Divide the participants into groups of no more than four or five. In each small

group, one person volunteers to be the “focus person” for five minutes. Another

volunteer is needed to keep time and tell the group when five minutes is up. During

the allotted time, the group is to ask questions of the “focus person” then spends

one minute giving feedback to the group members on how well they used the three

skills. Ask the “focus person” to be as specific as possible when giving the

feedback. When the feedback session is finished, new people volunteer to be the

“focus person” and timekeeper. Always remind members that they have the right

to pass. You may want to demonstrate, as the leader, in a mini-session.

Listening Exercise This is an exercise to aid participants in separating feelings, the content (facts or

thoughts), and values. The group will be divided into teams of four. The first

person talks about an upsetting situation or people who annoy them. The second

person listens carefully for feelings; the third person listens for content; and the

fourth listens carefully for any values expressed or inherent in the sharing. After

the first person speaks for three minutes, the others, in succession paraphrase and

check for accuracy.

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Telephone Have the group form a circle or line. Whisper a message into the first person’s ear.

They have the option to ask for the operator to repeat the message. When they

think they have heard the message correctly, the message is passed on to the next

person in line. The last person to get the message repeats it aloud to the group.

Notice how the message changed from its original form by the end of the activity.

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Reflection

Circles Form a circle and ask people to respond to a question or statement. The group can

either go around the circle or volunteer randomly.

Drawing Provide participants with paper and markers, paint, or crayons. Ask them to draw

how they are feeling, where they will be in a year, or what a crime free community

would look like. The drawings can be shared or kept private.

Gratitude Journal Provide participants with journals and encourage them to keep a gratitude journal

over the training and beyond. They need to include five things they are grateful

for each day or entry.

Journals Daily journals can be an effective method to get to know group members and find

out what they are thinking. Pass out five to seven questions on a single page and

have participants complete the journal page. Make comments and return them to

participants the next day.

Reflection Questions Have the participants go around and answer the following questions. In doing so,

they will be able to reflect on their participation and what their involvement meant

to them.

- How did you feel about being a member of this group?

- What was the worst thing that happened to you today?

- What was the best thing that happened to you today?

- How do you feel about sharing your thoughts and feelings with other

members of this group?

- What did you learn about the group (yourself) through this activity?

- Name one thing you learned today and how you plan to use it.

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Teaching Games

Discussion Wheel/Concentric Circles This exercise can be used as an ice breaker, to energize the room, to introduce a

topic, or to process things learned. Have the group form two circles – an inner

circle and an outer circle. The inner circle members are turned so they are facing

the outer circle, and the outer circle should be facing in to the inner circle. Advise

the groups that they will have a time limit to share certain information. At the end

of this time, announce that the inner circle must move X spaces to the right and

discuss the following question or statement. At the end of the discussion, instruct

the outer circle to move X spaces and discuss the following question or statement.

Sample Questions

- Introduce yourself and tell why you came to this group.

- Introduce yourself and tell the other person about your Youth Crime

Watch program.

- What is the biggest problem facing young people today?

- How are young people solving community problems?

- How do adults help or hinder young activists?

- Have you persuaded a decision maker to change something?

Three Things/Thirteen Things Have people find a partner. Ask them to observe the partner and then instruct

them to turn their backs to each other. Ask them to change three things about

their appearance. Next, have the participants turn back to facing their partners.

Have each person observe the other and try to come up with what has changed.

Then give everyone a chance to turn around again and change thirteen things.

After the participants have changed, have them face their partners again and try

to guess the thirteen changes.

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Closure

Brown Bagging It Sometime during the time together give participants an opportunity to decorate

and place their name on a small brown paper bag. Make sure each person has a bag.

Distribute strips of paper and have participants write a note to each person and

place it in the appropriate bag. Participants can’t read the contents of the bag until

they are en route home.

Full Plate Pass paper plates out to everyone with a strip of masking tape. Ask each person to

take out a pencil or pen. Have participants help each other in attaching the paper

plates to each other’s backs. Allow people time to circulate and write positive

affirmations, observations, or feedback on each plate. This is a positive activity

which laves the participants feeling good about themselves after ready what was

written on their plates. It is often helpful to play music during this activity.

Letter to a Key Decision Maker Pass out paper and a pen or pencil to each member of the group. Ask each member

to write a key decision maker about what he/she learned during the group meeting.

He/she can also explain how they will further use the knowledge gained from the

group outside of the meeting. The writer also might include ideas for additional

activities or meetings that would be helpful. Variations include writing to a friend,

parent, or sibling.

Letter to Self Give each participant an envelope and ask him or her to self-address it. Ask them

to write a letter that will be mailed to themselves in the next six months. Tell

them that they can write about anything; it might be a goal, something they

learned, or what they value about themselves. When everyone is finished, gather

the letters and mail them after six months.

Letter to Pal Have participants write their name on a slip of paper and place them in a bag. Have

each person draw a name from the bag. Tell the group to write their pal a letter

that will be mailed in 60 days. Use this letter to tell the person how much you

appreciate them. After the letters are finished, collect them and mail them after

60 days. A variation on this activity is to have the participants write to the pal

after they leave the group.

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Look Magazine This activity allows participants an opportunity to identify how they are planning to

take action. Divide the group into teams – wherever possible use pre-existing

teams. Tell the participants to imagine that it is one year later. Their action plan

was so successful that the community has totally changed for the better. In fact,

their favorite magazine has decided to devote an entire issue to their work. Tell

the participants to create the cover for the magazine including information on the

proposed project, how they plan to implement it, who will be involved, and how they

think the community will change.

My Cup Runneth Over Give each participant a cup and have them write their name on the cup. Provide

slips of paper for each person to write notes to individual participants to be placed

in their cups. The notes should all be positive and affirming.

The Name Exchange This activity works best early on the last day of a conference, summer program, or

something similar. Doing the activity early in the day will provide enough time for

the sheets to be reproduced. It also might be helpful to announce this activity

ahead of time so participants have time to formulate their answers. It is also

helpful to prepare copies of information or you can simply write the headings on a

flipchart. Include space for name, address, phone numbers, and e-mail addresses.

Other headings might include:

- Remember Me As/For: Participants write down what they would like to

be remembered for…

- I Need: Write down some resource or are that needs resolving. Later

on, a participant may come across an idea or resource that can be sent

to the person in need.

- I Can Give: List skills, resources, or talents that would help others.

Allow time for participants to complete the form. You also might want to include

time for a discussion.

Spider Web Have the group form a circle. Hand someone in the circle a ball of yarn and ask

them to answer the question posed. After they answer the question, tell them to

toss the yarn to another person in the circle. Remind them to hold onto the yarn as

they toss the ball around. This exercise will form a web. Talk about how each

person here can support the others. After everyone has spoken, have the group

place the web on the ground and cut it into pieces to distribute to each member.

Questions might be “During the last week I learned…” or “During the last week I

changed…” or “I plan to take this information and…”

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Action ProjectsAction ProjectsAction ProjectsAction Projects

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Action Projects

For those groups with extra periods of time in which to complete an activity, an on-

going project is a perfect thing to do. Service learning, or action projects enable

students, over a longer period of time, to get to know each other and help out the

community in the process. Longer projects and activities are perfect for long

breaks from school such as summer, spring break, and winter/Christmas vacation.

The purpose of each project is to help out the community in some way. Youth Crime

Watchers are already helping the community by watching and helping out, but action

projects provide a more hands on approach. The projects can range from anything

from a canned food drive to benefit the less fortunate, to a playground restoration

day.

When beginning an action project, there are a few steps to take before starting.

The first thing the group needs to do is to assess the needs within the community. In this step, students should first identify the community and select a problem

within the community they wish to address. The best way to do this is to figure out

how much time you have to complete the project (one day off from school is not

enough time to plan and complete a community wide trash pick-up day). Once the

time available has been established, look around your community and see where your

help would be most effective. Is the neighborhood littered with trash? Is there a

local family in need of assistance? Once a project has been decided upon, you

should move on to the next phase.

In the next phase of the action project, the YCW group should plan the project. What are the goals of the project? Who do you plan to help in completing the

project? What strategies will you use to complete the project? Try to answer all

of the questions as specifically as possible. The more detailed your plan for

completion is, the easier it will be to follow. Once most questions have been

answered and a plan of action (or a road map) has been created, the group can move

on the next phase of the action project, utilizing resources.

In the utilizing resources phase of the action project, the action group should figure out how to attain resources from the community. One of the most valuable

resources a community can provide is volunteers. In recruiting volunteers, one of

the best things to keep in mind is that volunteers should represent a cross-section

of the community. A good way to accomplish this goal of diversity is to advertise

the project in wide range of places and languages in order to reach the entire

community population.

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In addition to human resources, the group should attain support from community

organizations such a local government, law enforcement, and cultural centers. To

address the funding needs of accomplishing an action project, financial resources

can be attained. Community centers listed above may also be great places to solicit

donations for your project. Fundraising for the project can take many shapes and

forms from a bake sale or magazine subscription drive, to an event or grant. How

your group decides to raise money is up to you, just be creative and plan the project

well. Be sure that when you are trying to get funding, that you are very organized

in presenting your project and plan. Be ready to answer any questions the

organization might gave about where their donation will go and how it will be used.

Once the group has received all of the necessary resources for the action project,

the next step is action. In this phase, all of the participants in the project should

be trained and prepared for the event. Try to make sure that all of your volunteers

know what to expect from the event and know what is expected of them. Make

sure that everyone’s roles are clearly defined and that everyone feels comfortable

with the project before action begins.

The leader of the group has a special responsibility in this phase of the project. As

the leader, this person is responsible for encouraging, motivating, and putting

confidence in every project participant. Once participants feel comfortable with

the upcoming project, you might want to get a little publicity for the action project.

In getting publicity, the there are many different types of publicity available. The

Action Project Manual published by YCW has some good suggestions for attaining

the publicity your group wants. Public Service Announcements (PSAs) describe

upcoming events, contacts, and requests for volunteers/donations on radio and

television stations. Announcements don’t need to be on TV to be effective; in fact,

many people can be reached by using your school’s PA system or by making

announcements in class.

Once a bit of publicity is out in the community, it is time to go to action with your

project. This is the part of the project when all the planning and resource securing

pays off. Be sure to confirm the logistics of the event and provide a sign-in

location for volunteers upon arrival. Be sure to provide support and encouragement

for all volunteers and be sure to pair new volunteers with experienced persons

whenever possible. See the Action Projects Manual published by Youth Crime Watch of America for more detailed information on dealing with volunteers.

After the completion of the project, the next and final phase of the action project

experience is review and evaluation. This phase may actually be one of the most important as it allows the group to wind down and give feedback to the leaders and

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organizers of the project. The evaluation also lets group members focus on the

positive and negative aspect of the event and to figure out how to better execute a

future action project.

Another aspect of this phase of the project is the event review. Who did the

project benefit? How was the project received by the community? How did the

project go over with the volunteers? Did the project follow the original road map,

or did the event go astray? Did you succeed in accomplishing your project goals?

If not, what would you do differently?

After the entire group has discussed the action project, be sure to thank all

volunteers and supporters. Then congratulate yourselves on a job well done! For

further information on action projects, see the Action Projects Manual published by Youth Crime Watch of America or contact your local YCW site advisor.

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For further information contact:

Youth Crime Watch of America 9200 South Dadeland Blvd., Suite 417

Miami, FL 33156 305-670-2409 (tel) 305-670-3805 (fax)

ycwa@ycwa.org www.ycwa.org