Home » Training Methods » Training Exercises

Gutter Ball

This is a group problem solving & communication exercise. It involves moving marbles or different sized balls or even water down lengths of half pipe or 1"/2"gutters. The trick? Each participant has only one short length of pipe each, and the start and finish points can be separated by an obstacle course!

Set Up

  • Frame the activity in terms of a new project, for example: a new client with specific needs; a tender to be put together by a deadline; or a marketing strategy idea that needs to be put into action.

  • Brief the participants on the objective, equipment, start and the finish points. Use a container as the finish point.

  • The rules you wish to use. This is a means of controlling the difficulty for instance, every person must carry the marble at least once; participants need to take turns in a certain order; both feet must remain on the floor at all times. Be creative to add challenge.

  • Give the group the pipes and the marble and 5 minutes planning time.

  • Allow the group several attempts if you have the time and they have the motivation, or keep it to one attempt and draw out the key points in the debrief.

Time

Total time ~50 minutes

  • ~5 minute briefing
  • ~5 minute planning
  • ~30 minutes of action
  • ~10 minutes discussion

Equipment

  • One piece of half pipe gutter about 60 cm long for each participant.
  • One or more small balls or marbles.

Group Size

4 to 6 is ideal. For larger groups, divide them into teams.

Facilitators Notes

  • As facilitator, you can control how hard or easy to make this task. You can take them over obstacles, down stairs, around trees, etc.

  • If, for example, the group is in the forming stage, put only one minor obstacle in the path and create opportunity for fairly instant experiential success of teamwork.

  • If the team is functioning cohesively, make the obstacle course longer and harder and more physically challenging in order to deepen their experience of what they can achieve together.

  • Increase the energy by challenging the group to see how fast they can get the marble through the obstacle course. Ask them to "tender" for a time - how fast they think they can complete the task. Be prepared to allow a second attempt.

How it Works

N/A

Variations

Introduce a height factor. Explain that the marble is stuck to a point on the wall with blue tack and their job is to 'rescue' it and bring it down safely to a container on the floor. They must use the gutters more like a ramp. Adjust the distance beyond the total length of the teams guttering to increase the difficulty.

Processing Ideas

  • What was the initial reaction of the group?
  • How well did the group cope with this challenge?
  • What skills did it take to be successful as a group?
  • What creative solutions were suggested and how were they received?
  • What would an outside observer have seen as the strengths and weaknesses of the group?
  • What roles did people play?
  • What did each group member learn about him/her self as an individual?
  • What real life situations are similar?

References

None Known

Acknowledgement

Adapted from material at http://wilderdom.com/games/InitiativeGames.html