Group Size: 26 to 51+
Time Needed: 10 to 30 minutes, depending on size of group
Goal: discuss leadership and taking risks, facilitate group bonding
Audience: Couples, Parents, Teens, Children, Singles
Special Considerations: It is extremely important that you go into this activity with confidence that it will happen, even if you have to sing along, too.
Resources Needed: None
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Divide the larger group into equal smaller groups. It is best to have between 5 and 15 people in a small group. However, if your main group is very large, your smaller groups can be a little bit bigger.
- Pick a word that has relevance to what you are teaching and is somewhat easy to find in a song. Choose common words like “magic,” “believe,” and “love.”
- Instruct groups to think of songs that contain the chosen word and then pick one as a group.
- Give the groups 10 minutes to make sure everyone in their group knows at least one verse of the song. Facilitators should check in on groups separately.
- Have the small groups sing at least one verse of their song to the entire group.
Tips for Discussion and Processing
Groups usually love this activity. Every small group is likely to have at least one “performer,” while some may have many. This activity gets very loud and is a great deal of fun. You can use this as an introduction to other topics by discussing the word you chose and how it relates to your class. For example, if you pick the word “believe,” talk about how a person’s beliefs greatly impact outcomes. You can even talk about the ways in which the different songs that were sung use the word “believe.” This is also a great way to talk to groups about taking risks by discussing how challenging it is for some people to stand up and sing. A great focus here is to talk about why it is easier to sing as a group.
Note: These activities can be modified to reflect a variety of skills.