Whether you are welcoming a new member to your chapter or meeting with your current chapter members, icebreakers are a great way to start your meeting or conversations off on the right foot. Icebreakers lighten the mood and open the door for discussion. They create an atmosphere that is both friendly and welcoming for new members and allow everyone to get to know each other while being just the right amount of silly. Here are some fun icebreakers to try at your next meeting, study group, or even in a chapter newsletter/email.
- Paper Planes
Paper planes is a fun icebreaker to use at regular chapter meetings, especially those where you are welcoming new members. Here’s what you do- give everyone a piece of paper (you can use colored paper for more fun) and ask them to write a fun fact about themselves on it. Then the airplanes take flight around the room. Take turns reading the paper plane you pick up and guessing who the plane belongs to. This icebreaker is another great way to get to know everyone and also test out your members paper plane building skills.
A variation of this icebreaker was used at the Chapter Leadership Summit held this past May. It was called “Snowballs” and participants were asked to write down what the biggest challenge was for their chapter. It was a great way to get to gauge the situation for APA’s Local Chapters. And it was learned that many chapters were facing the same challenge. This is a good option if you want to take the pulse of your chapter.
- One Word
A great option to kickstart a discussion in a study group is “One Word”. Use when starting a new chapter or unit. Then have each attendee come up with one word to describe X (which can relate to the topic for the chapter). One Word not only brings attention to the topic of the discussion but also can aide in pairing people up to work together and further get to know each other.
- Two Truths and a Lie
Two Truths and a Lie is a meeting classic and a great option for introducing new chapter leadership. Participants share three things about themselves: two that are true and one that is not. Then everyone must guess which was the lie. This is a quick and fun activity and can be easily adapted into a fun interactive segment of a newsletter or email. especially when welcoming new members or showcasing new leadership, as it allows everyone to get to know each other on a more personal level.
Next time you are hosting a meeting or study group try out one of the above icebreakers and see the difference it makes in the engagement of your members and the energy of the meeting. For more ideas check out Science of People and Hubspot.
Share with us below any fun icebreakers you have used at chapter functions.
