Getting to know new people can sometimes be a real challenge. Fortunately for shy people, introverts and large groups alike, there are icebreaker games that make this task easy. Take a look at the best get-to-know-you games and icebreakers you can use with both adults and children.
If you are running a children’s camp or a team-building event for a larger company, it is a good idea to introduce the participants to each other right at the start. You can tell them, for example, that they don’t need to feel shy about talking to anyone at the event and that everyone is on first-name terms. In general, they will enjoy it more and the event will serve its purpose better.
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The best get-to-know-you games and icebreakers
Get-to-know-you games are made for breaking the ice, even with introverts. There are several different occasions for them. Teachers and educators will appreciate them at the start of the school year or at camps. But get-to-know-you games are not just for children.
Managers and leaders of large teams use them when team members first meet, and they also work well at one-off team-building events, where they can help bring a group together. Remembering names and basic information about people is also useful at all kinds of celebrations and social events, or at courses and training sessions attended by people who don’t know each other. Once people have talked to each other or shared an experience, they immediately start to form some kind of connection. They are then more likely to strike up a conversation over lunch, and the group won’t split into individuals or the little groups that arrived together. If you are looking for inspiration for the best get-to-know-you games, you are in the right place.
If you are the organiser, make sure you introduce yourself to every member and exchange a few words. If you have more time, feel free to introduce some people from the group and say a few words about them. All of this helps things run more smoothly. It is a good idea even with very extroverted groups.
Games bring people together at any age
As the English name icebreaker suggests, get-to-know-you games are meant to break the metaphorical ice between participants. The sooner the atmosphere thaws, the better for all the activities planned afterwards. The point of these games is to lighten the mood, help people relax and create a sense of trust and respect in which everyone can express themselves freely.
Every activity needs to be thought through carefully in advance, taking into account the participants’ age, how well they know each other and the purpose of the event. It is always good to have a backup option ready. Some games go down well with children, others with people in their thirties.
Icebreaker or energiser?
A short game can not only break down everyone’s initial inhibitions, but can also come in handy during your stay when you need to boost attention and keep people active. In the first case, choose an icebreaker; in the second, you definitely need an energiser. It is good to have an energiser in reserve, especially with groups of children, and teenagers in particular. Keeping their attention is a real challenge.
What all team games for breaking down inhibitions have in common
When choosing suitable activities, keep in mind the basic common features that will make it easier to pick games that suit your purpose. These are:
- Activity length: short games are best for a new group that doesn’t yet work well together, and for quickly grabbing attention.
- Simple rules: there is nothing worse than getting stuck explaining, so to speak. In other words, don’t overestimate your players. They also need a bit of a break so that the atmosphere can relax.
- No or minimal props: the aim is simplicity, and complicated props can just ruin everything.
- Can be played straight away: it is good to have activities in reserve for every situation. Especially with a group of children, a quick solution can come in handy in bad weather.
1. Let’s get acquainted!
- Recommended age of participants: anyone who can split words into syllables
- Group size: 5 to 30
- Energiser or icebreaker? icebreaker
- Props: none
- Notes: none
- Outdoor / indoor: anywhere you can sit in a circle
As the name suggests, this game guarantees that everyone gets to know everyone. It is suitable for both children and adults, and you don’t need any props. I recommend trying it at a camp or on the first day of school, for example.
Rules:
The players sit in a circle so that their hands and thighs are free. The first player starts introducing themselves, and everything they say must be accompanied by clapping their hands or slapping their thighs, depending on whether they are saying a short or a long syllable. A clap stands for a short syllable and a slap for a long one. If a player makes a mistake, they get a mark on their forehead or, for example, have to carry out a forfeit agreed in advance.
After introducing themselves, they ask the next person a question. Everyone must always answer in full sentences. Tricky questions that need a long answer are welcome, as they increase the chance that someone will slip up.
2. Macháček
- Recommended age of participants: adults
- Group size: 5 to 30
- Energiser or icebreaker? Energiser
- Props: 2 dice; with more people, two
- pairs of dice can go round
- Notes: a “pub” game, usually involves drinking alcohol
- Outdoor / indoor: indoor
Some of you may know Macháček as a party drinking game, but it has also proved to be a good icebreaker. It isn’t based on remembering names, but you will certainly get to know your fellow players better. I recommend playing Macháček with a group of adults.
Props:
- 2 dice; with more people, two pairs of dice can go round
Rules:
The players sit in a circle. The first player rolls the dice and covers the result with their hands so that nobody can see it. They combine the two numbers they rolled into one number, for example 4 and 2 make 42. They always go for the higher combination (so they would not choose 24). They can also make the number up and don’t have to tell the truth. Don’t worry, you will soon see why.
They tell this number to the player on their right, who replies whether they believe it or not. If YES, they have to beat it. So they take the dice and must roll a higher number than 42. The game goes round the whole circle like this, and of course you can’t keep beating the number forever, so logically someone will soon start lying. If you don’t believe a player, they must show you the dice. Depending on whether they lied or not, either they drink (as the liar) or you do (as the one who was fooled). Instead of drinking, you can answer funny, personal questions about yourself so that you get to know each other better. Showing the dice ends the round and a new one begins.
But the rules don’t end there. If someone rolls two identical numbers, they announce, for example, that they rolled “3 Indians” (two threes). Indians rank higher than all number combinations, so they can only be beaten by other, higher Indians. In this case, 4, 5 or 6 Indians.
The best combination of all is Macháček itself, that is, 2 and 1. If someone rolls these two numbers, they shout “Macháček!” for the whole circle to hear and everyone drinks. The round then starts again.
3. Never have I ever…
- Recommended age of participants: children over 8 (alcohol-free version) and adults
- Group size: 5 to 15
- Energiser or icebreaker? Energiser
- Props: example sentences prepared to get started
- Notes: suitable for groups without conflicts who know each other
- Outdoor / indoor: both
Never have I ever… is better suited to adults and is usually played with alcohol. However, if you are a fan of healthy eating and are cutting alcohol out of your diet, you can just as easily play this game with a healthy smoothie. After all, the point is to learn something about the others, and this game will certainly help you do that.
It is not a classic get-to-know-you game aimed at learning everyone’s names, but it will definitely strengthen your relationships within the group and you will learn something new.
Rules:
Settle in comfortably with a glass of something nice to drink and relax. It’s going to be quite a ride. You can set an order in which people speak, or whoever has an idea can speak. A player starts the sentence Never have I ever and adds something they have never done. The other players then drink depending on whether they have ever done that thing or not. Everyone who would be lying if they said the same sentence drinks, meaning they have done that thing at some point.
You can stick to light topics that won’t offend anyone or get into spicier ones. It depends on how strong and deep the relationships in your group are. However, you should never lie, and everything you learn within the group should remain a secret.
Example sentences:
- Never have I ever smoked cigarettes.
- Never have I ever had sex with my boss.
- Never have I ever eaten insects.
- Never have I ever stolen a friend’s partner.
- Never have I ever shoplifted anything.
- Never have I ever done a parachute jump.
4. Classified ads
- Recommended age of participants: children and adults
- Group size: with more than 20, it is best to split into groups
- Energiser or icebreaker? Icebreaker
- Equipment: pre-printed ads, paper and pencils, a box, a noticeboard
- Notes on running it: several rooms, preparation is important, more demanding to run
- Outdoor / indoor: indoor
This game needs more space, ideally several rooms, and good organisation. However, it also works for large groups, and children will enjoy it too.
Equipment:
- Pre-printed ads, paper and pencils, a box or container, a noticeboard
Rules:
Each player receives a pre-printed ad from the organisers with prepared questions and boxes to fill in. There are no fixed rules for the type of questions. They can be classics such as favourite music or film, or you can let your imagination run wild and ask for opinions on dinosaurs and so on. The player fills in the ad and signs it with a made-up pseudonym or symbol.
Everyone pins their ad on the noticeboard so that the others cannot guess who wrote which one. Then everyone can read all the ads at once and reply only to the ones that caught their interest.
They write their replies on a separate sheet of paper and take their message (ideally to another room) to the post office, which is simply a box or container. They must state who the reply is for and their own identifying symbol. Every so often, the organisers collect the post and deliver it to the recipients. This means a whole correspondence can develop between some of the participants.
In the final part, the letter writing ends and the players sit in a circle. The ads are read out loud one by one and the others guess who wrote each one. The author only reveals themselves at the very end.
5. What we have in common
- Recommended age of participants: children and adults
- Group size: 10 or more, played in small groups
- Energiser or icebreaker? both
- Equipment: paper, pencil
- Notes on running it: split the group into teams of 4-5
- Outdoor / indoor: both
“What we have in common” is one of the favourite games for adult groups. Its big advantage is that participants learn a lot about each other, which they can then use in further conversations.
You need paper, a pencil and to split the group into several teams. Ideally 4-5 people each.
The game is ideal for groups where people do not know each other at all. Children can play it too, but it is often less successful with them.
Each team gets paper and a pencil. Set a clear time limit for coming up with answers, ideally 15 minutes. The shared answers should not be too general, such as: we are people, we have two hands, we live in Europe. They should be more like: we live in Prague, we work in IT, we play football, we support Sparta, we like meatballs, we like getting up early. For a harder version of the game, you can choose a neutral person who should not match those traits.
The team with the most true statements wins. Afterwards, the whole group can discuss the individual points, the ways of thinking and how connected people are. In 35 minutes, the group will learn more about each other than in most getting-to-know-you games.
6. Getting-to-know-you BANG!
- Recommended age of participants: school-age children
- Group size: 5-15
- Energiser or icebreaker? Icebreaker
- Equipment: none
- Notes on running it: think carefully if the group has problems
- Outdoor / indoor: indoor
Bang has become a very popular card game, but in this case put the cards aside and get ready for a proper cowboy shootout. The game is better suited to children, who will have lots of fun with it. You will not need any equipment, just a spacious room and your hands.
Rules:
The players stand in a circle with one player in the middle. This player makes a pistol with their hands and starts turning round. As soon as they stop and point at a player, that person must crouch down as quickly as possible. The two players next to the crouching player then duel by pointing their hand pistols at each other and firing, or rather trying to say the correct name of the other person as fast as they can.
The player who says the name faster stays in the game, and the other is out and becomes a spectator. Some tricky situations can arise:
- The bullets collide (they say the name equally fast), bounce off each other and both players stay in.
- Someone gets the name wrong = they are always out, even if they were first.
- The player who should crouch is too slow and one of the players next to them says a name faster. Then both are out.
- The last two players remain. They have a duel, which means they stand back to back and the organiser calls out numbers. Whenever the number is a multiple of 2, both players must take a step forward. When it is any other number, they must turn round as fast as possible and say the other person’s name.
7. Identity swap
- Recommended age of participants: teenagers to adults
- Group size: 10-35
- Energiser or icebreaker? Icebreaker
- Equipment: none
- Notes on running it: suitable as an introduction to empathy training
- Outdoor / indoor: indoor
Identity swap can work not only as a getting-to-know-you game but also as an introduction to a programme on empathy or therapy, because the players have to put themselves in other people’s shoes. You do not need any equipment, and the effect is strongest with a larger group of people.
Rules:
People swap identities in pairs as follows: they place a hand on the other person’s forehead and tell each other their name and one thing they like. For example: “I’m Adam and I like reading interesting books.” With that, they have swapped bodies.
They then move on and swap identities with other players. Now, however, they no longer say their own name but the identity they have taken on. They keep going like this and should swap identities with as many people as possible. After a while, they should find their own identity again and leave the group, so that gradually everyone finds themselves.
The game can be followed by reflection using questions such as: Which identity suited you best? Who did you feel worst/best as?
8. Two faces
- Recommended age of participants: adults
- Group size: max 10
- Energiser or icebreaker? Energiser
- Equipment: paper and a pencil for everyone
- Notes on running it: the activity is similar to coaching, self-reflection
- Outdoor / indoor: indoor
The game Two faces can also be seen as a kind of self-reflection technique, and if you play it in a group you will certainly learn many interesting things about the others. However, you can also try it completely on your own. If you choose this approach, I recommend completing the task first and only then reading the second part with the questions.
Equipment:
- paper, pencil
Rules:
Everyone finds a quiet spot at a table and in just 10 minutes describes themselves from two points of view. One as positive as possible and the other, by contrast, as negative as possible. They can include everything that has gone well or badly for them, what they have or do not have, and all the qualities and characteristics that come to mind. They can focus on both the material and the spiritual side of their personality.
In the second part, the organiser (or the person themselves) asks some of the questions below or their own. They always wait until the participants have thought about their answer and then move on to the next question.
Questions:
- Which point of view was easier to write?
- Which face did you describe more on the basis of the past?
- Which face do you show the people around you? Do they know both?
- Do people notice a difference between your faces?
- In what setting did you place the descriptions of your faces? Was it the same setting or a different one each time? (for example school, work, personal life)
- Which face do you prefer and how do you work with them?
Then there can be a group reflection, where everyone says what they wrote down (not necessarily everything) and what they realised during the game.
Later in the evening at a team-building event, you can also play bolder games made up of spicy questions.
9. Two truths and a lie
- Recommended age of participants: children and adults
- Group size: 5-30
- Energiser or icebreaker? icebreaker
- Equipment: none
- Notes on running it: none
- Outdoor / indoor: anywhere you can sit in a circle
Two truths and a lie is a classic getting-to-know-you game, and not only for children. It can be played with the whole group or in small teams. It works like this:
- Each person in the class comes up with three statements about themselves: two true and one false.
- Each student presents their statements in turn, and the rest of the class decides which statement they think is false.
A few different ways to play this game:
Let the whole group vote on which statement they think is false.
Have everyone write down which statement they think is false, and see who has the most correct answers at the end. For this version, everyone will need a piece of paper and a pencil.
10. Name and Gesture
Everyone chooses a gesture or movement to present together with their name. The group then repeats the name and the gesture. This way, everyone remembers each other’s names more easily. It is super simple and effective, but it also involves a certain mental effort that may not suit everyone. It can easily happen that someone feels like an idiot during this game, which nobody wants.
If you know any great getting-to-know-you games or icebreakers that are missing from our list, do not hesitate to share them with us in the comments. Or tell us whether you have used any of them in practice and how well they worked for you.
