Tip – How To Mix Large Groups
Last week, I facilitated two very large groups of teachers (approx 120 people). With each group, I chose to present one of my all-time favourite mixing activities, Categories (No Props, p31), and I quickly recalled a VITAL facilitation secret.
With small groups, it’s pretty easy for people to find others who match a particular category, eg similar colour top. But, as I quickly recalled, in large groups this ain’t so easy! Often, lots of little groups of the same category will form all over the place, either because they can’t see or hear each other, or they are simply too overwhelmed by the numbers and give up! Which doesn’t ordinarily add up to success.
Soooo… my suggestion is to direct large groups as they form to particular areas according to the category. For example, “… left-arm on top, stand over here, and right-arm on top, stand over there …” Or, if you introduce a category that has lots of possibilities, suggest that every ‘grouping’ forms at the outer edges of the room, or circle (so it’s easier to see and find others).
Anything you can do to cut down the confusion or to make it easy for folks, will go a long way to helping large groups of people interact more comfortably and, therefore, successfully.
Have FUNN 
How Not To Pick Partners
Your approach, or the manner in which you manage your group, is everything. And this couldn’t be more true than at the beginning of your program.
Consider that one of the most frightening things you could ask your group to do is the seemingly innouous command “pick a partner.” To some people, including yours truly, when I was young and asked to pick a partner, the words I heard were “find someone who likes you.”
Now, I’m not saying to never use these words to form pairs; I’m suggesting that this partnering technique may be less successful, or perhaps even awkward, at the beginning of your program, especially for some of the less confident, less able or less “included” members of your group.
To avoid the socially clumsy moments of “…you’ve only picked me because there was no one else,” or “… you wanted to hit on me,” or “…you had to,” etc, give people a reason to be with someone. A reason that you specify, for example, Find someone who has … “similar length of hair to you … same colour eyes as you … same size hand as you … similar looking knees … etc,” you get the idea. The more random and silly, the better.
It’ll rarely work out perfectly (that it is say, you may need to invite some folks to simply partner up with anyone because they can’t find a match), but it will provide an initial framework in which to search for a partner, and it will have little to do with ability, looks or gender.
For more ideas about how to divide groups up randomly, check out ‘Count Me In: Large Group Activities That Work.’
What do you think? Leave a comment here…
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Hi, I'm Mark Collard.
This blog shares some of the most successful group games, team-building activities & programming tips I know.
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