Ice Breakers
Ice Breakers
An icebreaker is an activity that is used to help people ease into a group setting. Some icebreakers involve a group while others are individual, others can be physical or purely mental.
The “Me Shield” is an activity based on the focus on strengths and self-acceptance among the group participants. It encourages them to examine their inner resources and boost their attitudes and behaviours while empowering them and increasing their confidence. The activity focuses on questions such as “Who am I?” and “What can I become?” (Erikson, 1968) and helps address the developmental crisis that adolescents develop in the course of growth.
This activity takes about 15 minutes in which the group is gathered in a circle of chairs surrounding a table. The group leaders set coloured pens and markers on the table for members to easily access them as needed. The leaders write the headings for each of the five quadrants of the ‘Me Shield’ on a whiteboard and then sit across from each other in the circle. Also, they can write the questions in the five quadrants before distributing them to the students. The leaders proceed to review the regulations and set an appropriately warm, supportive, engaging, and passionate mood. One leader will then introduce the activity, describing to the students what is required of them. In the first quadrant, participants will explore “what I do well in school”, in the second quadrant “what I like to do”, in the third “what makes me happy”, the fourth “what makes me feel safe”, and finally “what I like most about my family”. The participants will have four minutes to complete all the five quadrants and are allowed to use words or any form of art (drawings, doodles, symbols), or a combination of all. After filling the “Me Shield”, the group will spend around ten minutes processing the activities and share them. Participants can pick one section that they want to share with the panel.
The “Me Shied” can be used with small or large groups, young and older age groups, and schools and other social settings. It also works well with the working class and can be used to integrate and enhance cohesion, honesty, freedom of expression, and acceptance.
Reference
Erickson, E. H. (1968). Identity, youth, and crisis. New York: Norton.
