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Playing games is a great way for teams to bond- you laugh, you communicate, you learn how to work together in an atmosphere of friendly competition. Here is a list of 10 games that you can play just about any where and require little to no preparation.

1. Captain’s Coming

One of those milling about games.  The facilitator will tell the participants certain groups that might be called out, such as “lifeboat” (3 people linking arms in a circle), Lookout (one person kneels on the ground with one leg up, the other with their foot up on the leg of the other, looking out), rowboat (6 people in two rows, rowing), captain’s coming (everyone freezes individually while people get them to laugh).  This is an elimination game and if you don’t find yourself in a group or laugh during Captain’s Coming, then you’re out and try to get others to laugh when CC is called.

2. Evolution

This is another fun variation on Rock Paper Scissors.  Everyone starts out as an egg (squatting and hands above the heads) and then plays one another in Rock Paper Scissors.  The winner of the game will “evolve” to become a Chicken (arms flapping).  They find another Chicken to play and then evolve to a Robot, Big Fluffy Cloud (arms waving), Dinosaur (arms making a giant mouth), Super Hero (hand on hip, other fist in air) and a Supreme Being a.k.a. a Nature’s Classroom teacher if you happen to be in that fantastic role.  If you lose to a Supreme Being, you would go back to being an egg, etc.

3. Go

An improv game that is simple and fun. In a circle, you say a person’s name and move to take their space in the circle.  They have to say someone’s name before you take their place.  Maximum fun time is short.

4. Human Bingo

Requires a bit of preparation, just a warning.  You can take this in two directions. 1) You ask everyone to write down a fact about them that others might not know and then compile the list into a bingo sheet or 2) Just make up your own human bingo sheet with items like “I am scared of spiders” “I have red hair” “I can’t stand snow” whatever.  The idea is that then you set the group loose, and they have to either get someone to write their name in all spaces, or in a traditional bingo pattern.

5. Person to Person

Best for a big, big group.  You have the group wander around and then you call out two body parts, like “Knee to knee” or “Elbow to ankle.”  Everyone has to find a pair in that particular configuration and then share a deep personal piece of information such as their favorite cereal.

6. The Great Wind Blows

Everyone stands in a circle and then one person goes in the middle.  The person in the middle says that “The great wind blows for anyone who….” Enjoys fishing, pizza, is wearing jeans, etc.  If the last bit applies to you, you have to find a new space.   If you are caught without the space, you go in the middle and raise a topic.  Beware the wise-ass kid who will not find a space on purpose to monopolize the game!

7. Pigeon’s in the Park

Everyone mills around and there are a few “pigeons.”  When the leader calls “Pigeons in the Park” everyone freezes with their eyes open and the pigeons are to go around and try to get the statue-like children to laugh without touching them.  If they laugh, they become pigeons for the next round.  Hilarity ensues.

8. Each One Teach One

Based on a South African principle about how to educate a nation with limited resources.  The idea was that one person teaches one other person some skill they have and knowledge spreads.  So, a great activity for a large group is to have people pair off with someone they don’t know, or whoever and they take about 4 or 5 minutes to teach each other a skill they have.  I’ve seen anything from how to fall asleep on public transport without getting your wallet stolen to tortilla-making.

9. Rock Paper Scissors Cheerleaders

Very fun and simple and it has a definite end, which can be great.  People mill about and play each other in Rock Paper Scissors.  The loser then becomes the winner’s cheerleader in their next game and it kind of snowballs until there’s a huge championship.

10. Will’s Song Game

This game is super fun.  Divide the group up into maybe four equal groups.  Then, the object is for each group to sing a line from a song that has a certain word like “love” in it.  If they repeat or hesitate too long, then their group is out and you keep going til there’s a champion.  Other fun words to use: “sad” “sun” “happy” “rain”

Learning each others name is an important step in getting groups acquainted with one another. But it doesn’t need to be boring! We’ve compiled a list of 5 great games to play as an icebreaker to help everyone loosen up and get familiar.

1. Fart Gun

A GREAT one for anyone that can handle a fart joke!  Everyone stands in a circle, and a person in the middle picks someone on the outside of the circle.  They “shoot” someone by saying their name and then making a fart noise.  The shot person has to duck and the people on either side of that ducking person has to say the other person’s name and then a farting noise before the other can get to them.  An elimination game that ends in a Fart Gun Draw, wild west style, ten paces in all.

2. Ball toss

Everyone stands in a circle and the facilitator tosses a ball or other fun object around the circle and saying the name of the person you are tossing to.  Then you have the group repeat the same pattern and time it.  Then try to get faster each time, and maybe even one of the smarties will realize they should reorder themselves so they are just passing it around and make better tosses.

3. Whomp ‘Em

Another great one.  Have everyone sit in a circle.  The person who is “it” has a foam noodle in their hand and says their name and the name of someone in the circle, let’s say “Fred.” Fred has to say his name and the name of another person in the circle before he can be tagged, like “Fred, Khadija.”  The “it” person has to race to Khadija before she can say her name and the name of someone else.  If tagged, or saying the name of the “it” person, you then become “it.”

4. Blanket Game

Divide the group in half and have them seated on the ground and then you hold up a tarp or blanket between the group.  Each group sends one person to the front by the blanket and the person in front has to say the other person’s name first. Everyone loves this game, I personally think it is lame-o because it makes everyone point to the quiet kid and say “hey, no one knows YOUR name!”  But it can also give them a weird kind of status.

5. Name Baseball

Divide the group into two “teams.”  The group that is batting gets a tennis ball to throw as far as they can.  The team that is “fielding” has to line up behind the ball wherever it lands and pass it over/under style til it gets to the end of the line and then they yell “done!”  The batting team, meanwhile, says the name of each person in the group, and each time around they score another “run.”  Then they switch.  Strategies will form and the competitive nature is good.  Feel free to change the name if you want.

“We don’t learn from experience. We learn from reflecting on experience.” -John Dewey

Reflection is an important part of team building. Reflection activities play an important role in helping groups understand, analyze, and gain meaning from the experiences. Here are 5 reflection oriented games you can play.

1. Ship Drawing

Draw a picture of a ship and people in different roles on the ship: Captain, Lookout, People rowing in the lower part, and someone in a life raft.  Then have people look at the poster and decide where on the poster they feel they are in terms of the group dynamics.  Then, once everyone has silently written their name next to a role, have them discuss why they put themselves there.  Ask them if the current situation is working, or if they would move someone from their place and why.  Make sure the conversation stays constructive, with people using positive language.  This is helpful in seeing where people really view themselves in terms of how the group functions.

2. Blindfolded Appreciation

This is a favorite of everyone.  Someone even turned it into a weird kissing game.  But hey, it IS a nice way of showing love.  Everyone in the group comes to the activity with a sort of blindfold and sits with some space between them.  Once everyone is settled, ask people to raise their hands if they haven’t gone yet, then pick a small number of the group.  Then, tell them to “tap the shoulder of someone who….” And have a list of interesting things people could appreciate others for.  For example, touch the shoulder of someone you consider a great leader, someone you can trust, someone who always makes you smile, etc.  The activity should be silent except for facilitator.  Each round, people should get about 5 or 6 questions.  There are lots of fun opportunities for reflection here.  How did it feel when someone touched your shoulder? How did it feel if you knew you had that quality and weren’t recognized for it?  Did you realize that someone might have thought that about you, but it wasn’t their turn to tap?  What things do you think you need to work on because of this?  What topic surprised you when someone tapped you for.  Fun, warm and fuzzy.

3. Cross the Line

If you have a bullying situation, this can be powerful, but its powerful anyway.  Have a list of questions such as “Cross the Line if you like sports, if you have ever felt left out, if you have ever been on a boat, if you are etc.”  The activity is silent and set up in a quiet area with a long line drawn in the center.  After each round, ask people to cross back over the line.  The questions can be whatever you want, and a way for people to express themselves without having to talk.  I have never lead the debrief of this for adults.  It can get really intense.

4. Star Moments

Give everyone a star and ask each person to share a star moment they saw in someone else, when their “gifts were shining through” and have them place the star on the person after they tell them.  Make sure everyone gets a star.

5. Action Steps

Place footprints or markers on the ground.  Ask the group what is one thing they personally commit to do in the next session to help the group function better.  When they do, they take a step forward until everyone has gone.

Cooking classes are a super popular idea for Team Building in NYC. It’s easy to see why, you and your team learn some new skills, drink a bit of wine, and share some great homemade food!

Luckily for us, since they are so popular, there are more then a handful to choose from. From learning how to build the perfect New York Style Pizza, to an instructor that specializes in serenading your team as they cook pasta- there is something for every kind of team in the city.

Here are our Top Ten Cooking Class Picks:

1. My Cooking Party

All about fun! They want to make this a party- it is not just about skills, it is really about having a great time together.

2. Cooking by the Book

Cooking by the Book look specifically at your teams needs, and not just inside the kitchen. Their focus is really on working on your teams strengths and weaknesses, helping your team become stronger and better knit.

3. Rustico Cooking Class 

Oh let’s go Italian! These guys specialize in superb Italian food and wine, and the skills it takes to make tasty meals.

4. Brooklyn Wineries

Wine, wine, and more….wine! This is a classy spot, where your team can learn about blending, tasting and wine making, while getting a bit merry with each other.

5. Brooklyn Kitchen

Brooklyn Kitchen is all about fresh and local. High quality, local ingredients drive this cooking course- you won’t find anything else quite like this in the world!

6. ICE

Learn to do it like the the professionals. Institute of Culinary Education’s Cooking course are super diverse, and for people who are serious about learning how to cook well.

7. Natural Gourmet

Is your team a bit on the health conscious side? Natural Gourmet will teach you how to make wholesome, well balanced meals, and can cater to loads of dietary requirements.

8. Pizza School

New York Style Pizza is the best pizza in the world. We believe it, and so does A Casa Pizza School! They will teach you the art of dough making, topping and cooking a perfect pie.

9. Cooking A Cappella

Is your team up for some singing? The charismatic instructor Lawrence Rush creates a truly different cooking course, an evening full of music and good food, for the teams that love to be thoroughly entertained.

10. Food Fix Kitchen

For something more family and home oriented, you can either visit their kitchen in New Jersey, or they will come to you and create an easy, comfortable course for you and your staff.

There are a lot of choices, depending on the preferences and needs of your team, but either way combining some fun and finger-licking food is always a great way to bring people together!

What They Do: Chef Rachel works with your team in a more family, homey type of environment, teaching your team easy, but fantastic kitchen skills!

How They Do it: You and your team can either go to their fabulous and friendly kitchen space in New Jersey, or if that is too far a trek, they will come to your space and set up the cooking course for you and your team there!

What makes them Special: Chef Rachel is really family oriented, creating a real personable and comfortable building environment for team building.

Quotes from the Website:

“My teaching style is all about honesty, laughter, spontaneity and being at ease in the kitchen. I love cooking because you have to focus on the here and now—after all, knives and fire are involved! Whether peeling vegetables or stirring a pot or salting to taste you must tune into your instincts and senses pushing everything else you have to worry to the back burner. Pun intended!”

“We’ve developed some popular classes that are both challenging and delicious and fit a wide-range of skill levels. We can design a custom menu for your event, or  I’ll send you a selection of menus to see which whets your appetite, and then once you choose one, we can “tweek” it a bit to fit your’s or your guest’s food likes, dislikes, or allergens.”

What They Do: They offer cooking classes that will suit a variety of different tastes and needs, but with a bit of twist!

How They Do it: Lawrence Rush is a one man show, who will create a menu for you and your team, and then teach you how to make the meal, while being a humorous entertainer, ensuring it is a fun and fantastic event.

What makes them Special: This is no ordinary cooking class, this is a sing-a-long, kitchen cabaret!

Quotes from the Website:

“Learn skills that will lift your meals out of the ordinary! We bring everything and do all of the clean up…you just learn, eat and enjoy!”

“Cooking classes, especially ours, are a great way to get people working together to arrive at a common goal.The addition of singing in our classes adds another level of community building, as well. Stress-reducing and smile-inducing, our cooking classes and cheese tastings bring people together, creating team spirit and happy stomachs at the same time!”

Video:

How to cook Chilla with Lawrence Rush, The Singing Chef from Blue Bliss on Vimeo.

Who should you contact: http://foodielovefood.com/contact-us/

Visit the website here:http://foodielovefood.com/

What They Do: A really fun and fresh cooking class based around one of America’s all time favourite foods- the New York Pizza!

How They Do it:  From making the dough to eating the goods, they will teach your team the fine art of pizza-creation.

What makes them Special: Pizza is what they do. That is all they will do. They don’t get distracted by popular food trends and they don’t overcomplicate things. They teach your team how to make fantastic New York Style pizza, simple, fun and effective!

Quotes from the Website:

“Pizza a Casa Pizza School provides a thoroughly entertaining education paired with a gourmet bonding experience that your group will delight in attending and be buzzing about for a long time to come”

“Simply translated from Italian, “pizza a casa” means “pizza at home”.  But it’s so much more than that — it’s a social happening that brings people closer together, united in the love of creating and sharing good food. At Pizza a Casa Pizza School, fostering this spirit of culinary camaraderie has been our mission since day one.”

Who should you contact:

[email protected]

Pizza A Casa Pizza School

371 Grand Street, New York, NY 10002

Visit their website here: http://www.pizzaschool.com/private

What They Do: They offer clean, fresh cooking classes for the more health conscious crowd, hosting events to teach your team how to prepare healthy, natural food.

How They Do it: They have a few set menus for groups sized 10-18 people. They offer a three course meal, and an atmospheric candle lit space to eat a healthy meal the team has prepared.

What makes them Special: They focus on whole, unprocessed, nutritionally well balanced meals- and can cater to lots of different dietary needs, depending on what your team is looking for. It’s great if you are looking for a deliciously healthy option!

Quotes from the Website:

“Our hands-on cooking parties are carefully orchestrated by a team of professionals who will work with you each step of the way to create your most memorable culinary experience.  Choose from a wide variety of menu themes, such as Italian, Mexican, Thai, Mediterranean, Indian, and many more; or create a customized seasonal menu with one of our chef instructors.  Your menu can also be tailored to any dietary restrictions (e.g, vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free.) Whatever you choose, your menu will always include the finest ingredients: fresh, natural, seasonal, and organic as much as possible.”

“We believe that what we eat significantly affects our physical, mental and spiritual well being. We all have different body types, ethnic backgrounds, medical histories, stress levels, caloric needs and physiological responses to food; therefore, no one philosophy is right for everyone. Our approach empowers people to tailor their eating style to support their individual health needs.”

Who should you contact:

Mollie Berliss, Events Manager

212-645-5170, ext 106

e-mail [email protected]

What They Do:  They offer professional cooking classes, where you learn from the experts. Cooking is 100% the focus, but enjoying good food and drinking some lovely wine almost always makes for a fun event.

How They Do it:  They can teach classes from 12-60 in size. They have over 200 classes to offer, so there is no shortage of finding one that suits your teams preferences and desires.

What makes them Special: The Institute of Culinary Education’s cooking classes are for groups that want to learn the insider culinary tricks and tips. They are professional, and can host large teams, something not all the other cooking classes can offer. They also offer some special things, like a mixology course, celebrity chef classes, and an open bar!

Quotes from the Website:

“Our Chef-Instructors are experienced professionals, and have a comprehensive knowledge of virtually all cuisines, along with the experience to make cooking fun and entertaining. As one of the leading culinary education centers in America, the school’s atmosphere and professionalism are geared for a fun learning experience. These events are ideal for corporate team building and entertaining, as well as personal celebrations including birthdays, showers, or dinner with special friends!”

“The Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) in New York City is home to the largest program of hands-on recreational cooking classes, baking classes and wine classes in the world. Over 26,000 people a year enjoy 1,500 classes learning techniques, skills and experiencing flavors from every corner of the culinary world. Our recreational cooking classes are offered day and night, 355 days a year. Located in the heart of Manhattan, ICE has 14 state-of-the-art kitchens – the same as the pros use -filled each day with cooking, learning, tasting, and fun.”

Who should you contact: http://www.ice.edu/serequests/serequests.aspx

phone at (800) 543-8834

email: [email protected]

Visit their website here: http://www.ice.edu/special-events/hands-on-cooking-events

What They Do: They offer fresh and localized cooking classes for groups up to 12, in three fantastic locations in New York.

How They Do it: Brooklyn Kitchen uses fresh, local ingredients, high quality cooking equipment, and technique based training.  They have a very large range of interesting classes, depending on what you and your team is looking for.

What makes them Special: The focus on local, they are truly a unique cooking course for New York City. Also, they can customize an event based on your needs, and will work closely with you to create an event that will really suit your team.

Quote from the Website:

“Our menus focus on delicious, sustainable, seasonal foods that show off the best of Brooklyn’s farm-fresh, community-inspired cuisine. The Meat Hook’s meats and charcuterie, beers from Brooklyn Brewery, chocolate from Mast Brothers, house made vinegars, and produce from NY, NJ, and PA are just some of the local products we use in our everyday cooking here at the Brooklyn Kitchen.”

“We offer a variety of classes aimed at home cooks and ranging from basic knife skills to pig butchering to vegan tamales to mini cupcakes to Persian dinners. We also host several classes in DIY food skills, such as canning and brewing beer at home. Taught by skilled professionals in their respective fields, we aim for a diverse mix of regularly scheduled and seasonally appropriate classes.”

“Are you hosting a PR event, leading a brainstorming session, or just have a vision for a totally unique event? Our event staff can help you plan out the details of your event…just let us know what you’re thinking!  Contact us to tell us more about your event.”

Who should you contact: [email protected]