AIM:

to learn how to make group decisions
to use different senses
 

HOW TO DO IT:

The task for the group: to find and stand in three hoolahoops whilst being blindfolded and without speaking.

The division of a group with 11 people goes like this:

15 minutes to decide a strategy

30 minutes to do the exercise (blindfolded, no speaking!)

The group is allowed to create three sounds to use during the exercise and it is up to the group to decide what they will use these sounds for.

The exercise takes place in a defined area.  The leaders ensure safety of the participants.  In order to do this, the leaders also use sounds:
- flute which means "you have gone too far, you are going in the wrong direction"
- pot and spoon which means "danger!!!!"

If a participant is in real danger (eg, of banging into a tree) the leaders stop the person.

We put beer and coke in the middle of the hulahoops to increase participant motivation and to make orientation easier.

(We also included 2 helmets in the equipment just for fun!)

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Rope (for making borders of the playing area)
3 hulahoops
Beer, coke, lemonade
Blindfolds for everyone
Flute, pot and spoon for making sounds (you can make different sounds)

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:

how did you feel?
did you like it?
was it difficult?
how was the process of decision-making?
what conclusions can we draw from this?

META REFLECTION:

what was wrong with this exercise?
what can be better?
how can we use this exercise when working with other groups?

CREATING & RUNNING THE EXERCISE AT BEBRUSAI

We were satisfied about our work in the team.  First of all we did brainstorming - we put all our ideas together and then we started to discuss.  We were thinking about very different exercises and about very easy exercises.  The somebody asked: what is really the AIM of our exercise.  We find out that the aim is group decision-making.  We also were thinking what material can we use.  When we realised that we have hulahoops, the brilliant idea arrived - to call our exercise "Hulala".

We shared responsibilities between us.  We agreed that Zilvinas should give the task to the group and explain the exercise.  Sarunas leads the reflection and Jos leads the meta reflection.  And all of us are responsible for safety during the exercise.

When the group had understood the task and began to discuss, we felt a bit confused, because it was clear from the beginning that they are going to try to find the hulahoops separately (not all together as we had thought).  We expected that the group will decide to go and find the hulahoops all together, we separated them only for starting the exercise.

During the 15 minutes the participants could have checked the playing area, count the steps between hulahoops, etc ,  but they did not do this!  They were very much involved in discussions, so that they didn't even think about this.

What we have learned:
To be very careful giving instructions.  Maybe the main thing is to write down on paper what you are going to say.  Also to be very careful using terms and other words, especially when you are working with an international group.  The language is very important.

We expected that the participants would create sounds for "I have found the hulahoop" or "I'm all alone, where are you?" or "how many people are in the circle?".
Instead they created a sound for each hulahoop: "be be be", "co co co" and "te te te".

There was a common mood in the group after the exercise.  Almost everyone felt safe and relaxed.  We think it was a goood exercise for ending the day's activities after all the hard group work.

What helped us to do it well?
- good understanding of each other
- flexibility
- focusing on the aim
- having fun
 

© Jos, Sarunas and Zilvinas