You initiated a quick “getting to know you” activity to start the group off… but later when you’re having a quick break people have gone quiet and they’re starting to talk about the weather. Again. “Warming up” a group up to work well together can be difficult! However, the benefits are worth the effort.
So called “ice breakers” are activities designed to “thaw” out communication barriers between the members of your group. They help the members of your group to feel comfortable and relaxed – and to work together as a team. … when they do that, they are more likely to enjoy your training or group and they will most likely get more from it. So, are you sold on why you should use them?
If you are, then it’s time for a bit of ice breaking! This fun tennis group ice breaker will do nicely. It’s a timed activity so it’s quick and it won’t run over-time to throw your schedule off. It’s ideal to use in group coaching sessions such as TennisXPress and Cardio Tennis. It can even work with junior players – and you could ask them to name their favourite ice-cream flavour, colour or tennis shot instead of their favourite tennis player.
Part 1: 60 seconds (1 minute)
Every group member needs to talk to everyone else in the group to find out 2 new pieces of information:
- Who is their favourite tennis player?
- What is their other (not tennis) favourite sport?
Part 2: 30 seconds
The group has 30 seconds to order themselves alphabetically in order of the surname of their favourite tennis player. Look out for the bulge on F for Federer!!!
Conclusion
It’s absolutely impossible for the group to line themselves up alphabetically without talking to other people in the group. So the ice breaker has served its purpose. You can see from our short clip how much fun the participants had in doing this.
For more on why ice breakers are a good training tool see this article Icebreakers: Why are They Important.
More ideas on Tennis(24/7)
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