This game is picked right from your favorite old-school game shows. Teams compete against each other to move balls from one bucket to another…without using their hands or arms.
This limitation and the timed nature of the game creates a lot of opportunities for fun mishaps. Plus, to win, players will have to work together as a team and delegate responsibilities.
Number of participants: 8-24 people
Duration: 20 minutes
Objective: Learn teamwork, task management and leadership
How to play
1. Set up your field of play. Use masking tape, chalk or cones to create separate “Start” and “Finish” lines about 10-12 feet apart. Place buckets for each team at either end of these start/finish lines. Fill the buckets behind the finish line with tennis balls.
2. Divide players into equally-sized teams. Each team must choose a “handler”. Handlers are the only people who can touch the balls with their hands.
3. Ask the teams to take their place behind the start line. Handlers must stay behind the start line at all times. Team members must retrieve balls from the finish line bucket and get them to their team’s handler without using their hands or arms.
4. The handler can then drop the balls into the team’s empty bucket. If anyone apart from the handler touches the ball, he/she is immediately disqualified and must leave the field.
5. Start the game with a 5-minute time limit. All teams play at the same time (which creates additional chaos and makes communication even more important). Team members have to work with each other to somehow pick up balls from one bucket and get them to their handlers.
6. The team that has the most balls at the end of 5 minutes wins.
Strategy
The “no hands, no arms” rule makes this simple game much more difficult and emphasizes the need for teamwork. The introduction of handlers also forces teams to delegate authority.
