Getting in Synch​
Synchronized Swimming Blog, Games & Coaching Tips for New Coaches
Team Building Games
Team building games are great for any age group from AquaSquirts to Senior level athletes to Masters teams. Try some of these games to create a positive team dynamic and healthy relationships.
Very few of these activities are specific to synchro so feel free to use them in any other sport, classroom or work setting!
Always make sure to debrief after a team building exersise so that the group knows why they did it. This is a great opportunity to talk about effective communication or working as a team. Make sure to talk about how this can apply to the pool.
Human Knot
All Ages, 5+ People
Land Activity
No Equipment
A oldie but a goodie! Have your group stand in a circle shoulder to shoulder. Everyone has to put their hands in the center of the circle and hold hands with some one ACROSS the circle from them. Try to grab two differnt peoples hands.
After everyone is connected have the group work together to 'detangle' the knot until they are in one big circle (or the BIG twist, 2+ circles!).
Variations:
-Have the team do this without talking OR with only one person able to talk
-Blindfold half of the group
-Split the group into smaller groups to make the activity easier or make the group larger to make the activity more difficult
Human Chair
Ages 8+, 6+ People
Land Activity
No Equpment
Have group get in a circle and all put either their left or right shoulder into the middle of the circle. Make sure the circle is close together. On the count of 3 have the whole group sit down at the same time.
The Island Take 2
All ages, 4+ people
Land Activity
Towel or Blanket
Have whole group fit on to a towel or blanket. They cannot touch the ground as it is 'lava' or shark infested waters. Have group try to completely flip over towel or blanket without touching the ground.
Variations:
-No talking during the exercise to increase difficulty
-Only 1 or 2 people are allowed to talk
-Split the group into 2 groups to make it easier
-Time the group to see how fast they can do it
Cars
All Ages, 4+ People
Land Activity
No Equipment
This is a simple trust game. Have group partner up. One partner becomes the 'Car' and the other becomes the 'Driver'. The driver holds stands behind the car and holds on to their shoulders. The cars eyes need to remain closed (I have a hard time with this and usually have to cover my eyes with my hands). The driver has to drive the car around guiding them through traffic. The coach can call out directions like "Faster, slower, zig-zag, stop...". Make sure to switch partners when you are done so they both get a chance to be the car!
Variations:
-Increase or decrease the play area to make the game easier or more difficult
30
All Ages, 4+ People
Land Activity
No Equipment
This is a very simple game. The group sits in a circle with their eyes closed. The group counts from 1-30 by yelling out a number. If more then one person yells a number (lets say two people yell the number 7 for example) then the group has to start again from number 1. The object is to get from 1-30 without more then one person yelling out a number at the same time.
Variations:
-Count to a higher or lower number to make the task easier or harder
-Do the task to music and have it so that a number has to be called out on every beat or every phrase so that the pause between numbers is consistant.
Telephone +
All ages, 4+ People
Land Activity
No equipment OR pads of paper and pens
Everyone knows the basic telephone game but here is a quick review:
Sitting in a line, the first person picks a word or phrase and whispers it to the person next to them. That person whispers it to the person beside them and so on and so forth until it gets to the end of the line. The person at the end says what they heard outloud. The goal is to get the first word or phrase as close to the final product as possible however it is always funny when it ends up completely different and outrageous. This is a great game, especially for a younger audince.
Ok so lets make it a little harder. Have the group sitting in a line, front to back. The person at the very back DRAWS an image (an apple, the letter X, a spider, a house, etc) on the person infont thems back. That person draws what they think the image was on the person infront of thems back and so on an so forth until it reaches the front of the line. The person in the front announces what they think the image was.
In both of these variations make sure to switch up the order and who is starting / finishing!
The final variation requires pads of paper and pens. You can use cards as well from a game like Taboo or Pictionary but that is not required.
1.The team sits in a circle and every player starts with a pad of paper and pen (and a car with a word on it if you want).
2. Each player has to draw a picture something (or the word on their card).
3.Once everyone is done drawing (you can set a time limit if you want) then they pass their pad of paper clockwise one person.
4. Now each member has a person has a new pad of paper with a picture drawn on it. All players flip the page and WRITE the word of what they thought the picture was of.
5. Again everyone passes the pads of paper clockwise one person. Now they have a pad of paper with a word on it. They flip the paper again and DRAW a picture of the word the just read.
6. Pad of paper gets passes again, page gets flipped and everyone now writes down a word for the picture they saw.
7. This keeps going until every player has their original pad of paper. See how far the first Picture came from the final word or final picture!
Sit down, Stand up
Ages 6+, 2+ People
Land Activity
No Equipment
This is an easy and quick activity. Have the participants sit down back to back and link arms. Now they have to try to stand up while staying attached.
Variations:
-No talking
-Change up partners
-Do in larger groups (3 people, 4 people, etc)
Team Skits
Ages 6+, 2+ People
Land Activity
Various Props
This activity will also be more time consuming so better to use at a team outing!
Divide the group into groups of at least 2. Give each of the groups a private space to work in and 2+ Props. Give the groups a certian amount of time and have each group create a skit using all of their props. Once the time is up then have the groups present to eachother!
Highlights
Silent Organizer
All Ages, 6+ People
Land Activity
No Equipment
Without talking, have group organize themselfes into a line in order by ages, birthdates, alphabetically by first, last or middle name, height etc.
The possibilities are endless.
Variations:
-Have one person who is more shy be the only one able to talk
-For larger groups, split them in half and have them race against eachother
The Island
All Ages, 4+ People
Land Activity
Need Towel or Blanket
Again another classic. Have whole group fit on to a towel or blanket. They cannot touch the ground as it is 'lava' or shark infested waters. Once they are all on and well balanced, have them step off and fold the towel or blanket in half. Have the whole team get on it again. Continue to make the island smaller and make sure you give them time to problem solve and work together as the task gets more difficult.
Variations:
-No talking during the exercise to increase difficulty
-Only 1 or 2 people are allowed to talk
-Split the group into 2 groups to make it easier
The Island Take 3
All Ages, 4+ People
Land Activity
2 Towels or 2 Small Blankets or 2 Mats
Give group 2 towels, small blankets or mats. Have group get across playing area without touching the ground by using the 2 surfaces.
Variations:
-No talking during the exercise to increase difficulty
-Only 1 or 2 people are allowed to talk
-Split the group into 2 groups to make it easier
-Only use one towel / blanket / mat
-Give them smaller Towels / Blankets / Mats
-Time them to see how quickly they can do it
Minefield
All Ages, 4+ People
Land or Water Activity
Markers for boundrys & Shoes / objects, scarfs or blindfolds
Mark a clear start and finish line as well as side boundries of the play area. Scatter shoes and other objects around the play area. Have the group pair up and one partner becomes blindfolded. The other partner is the caller.
Have the blind folded partner spin around 5 times. The caller has to direct the blindfolded partner from the start line to the finish line without the blindfolded partner stepping on any objects! The caller has to stay in one spot (usually the start line but you can do from the side line or different area). Make sure you switch up the partners!
Variations:
-Do this in the water! Have blindfolded partner pull cap down over eyes and then replace goggles over top of cap to secure it OR create your own set of blacked out goggles by painting the inside of old goggles with nail polish or a sharpie!
-Have blindfolded partner have to touch an object to be finished
-Have blindfolded partner have to go to finish line and come back
-Have blindfolded partner have to touch objects on either side of playing field before crossing finish line
-Divide into groups and have one caller for multiple blindfolded people OR many callers for one person who is blindfolded
-Have blindfolded participants have to walk across area and find their shoes out of a pile and come back in a relay form (either in teams or in partners)
Moon Landing
Ages 10+, 4+ People
Land Activity
Print out sheets, Pens / Pencils
This game is a little more complicated and a little more time consuming. I would save this for if there was a pool fouling or a long car / bus ride.
This game also really focuses not only on team building skills but on problem solving skills.
You can do this in groups or pairs or even individually, but I would encourage you to do it in groups.
Basically, you have landed on the moon and you are 200m away from where you need to be. You have 15 items with you that are intacted and you need to determine which items are the most important ones to keep with you from 1-15.
Click here to get the full instructions, activity sheet and answer key!
Lost at Sea
Ages 10+, 4+ People
Land Activity
Print out sheets, Pens / Pencils
This is essentially the same game as Moon Landing. The main difference is that now you are lost at sea rather then on the moon.
Again, this game is a little more complicated and a little more time consuming. I would save this for if there was a pool fouling or a long car / bus ride.
You again have 15 items and have to rank their importance in the situation, however this activity gives the participants space to do it on their own first, and then with a group.
Click here to get the full instructions, activity sheet and answer key!
Egg Drop
Ages 8+, 2+ People
Land Activity
1 Egg Per group, an assortment of supplies
This activity is always a fun one but again very time consuming so I would save it for a team bonding day outside of the pool.
Divide your group into pairs or groups and give them an Egg and whatever supplies you want. So examples are:
-Toilet / paper towel roles
-Plastic bags
-old yogurt containers
-Newspaper
-Old socks
-Sissors
-Cardboard
-Styrofome cups
-Bubble wrap
-Tape (scotch, duct, hockey)
-Glue
The options are endless! Anyways, give the group and certain amount of time to create something that will keep their egg safe if dropped of X height. If you are going to drop it indoors I would suggest giving the groups hardboild egg.
You can either give the groups the same amount of supplies each and that is all they get, let them have a free for all, or give the groups 'money' and they have to buy the supplies while staying in their budget. If you are giving the groups money and budgets then remember to have different prices for different supplies!
There are endless variations with this. You don't even have to use an egg you are dropping. You can have them build a structure that has to support something, or even just a house that they can all fit in!
Although Relays are not my faviorite, they can be fun team building exercises.