10 Group Integration Dynamics for all ages

The dynamics of group integration They are methods used in groups to achieve a goal. They are activities that bring benefits, since they allow learning in a fun way and interacting with other people.

The purpose of each dynamic can change, but the essential thing is that they allow you to foster camaraderie while acquiring new knowledge or improving interpersonal relationships.

In this article we are going to talk about its main characteristics, in addition to explaining some examples of dynamics used in groups of varied ages.

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Characteristics of group integration dynamics

Group integration dynamics are carried out with the intention of offering a lesson, be it moral, educational or fellowship. Participants are offered to reflect on what they have done with the activity, and to explain how they feel.

Areas such as education and organizations are highly sought after., given that they make it possible to improve relations between students and workers, breaking down interpersonal barriers. In addition, they allow, in the educational case, to transfer theoretical knowledge to a more experiential field, favoring meaningful learning.

For a group integration dynamic to be carried out correctly, it is necessary to have one or more facilitators. These people are in charge of indicating the steps to follow, in addition to being the one who elaborates the dynamics after having studied the characteristics of the group where they are going to apply it.

Examples of group integration dynamics

These are several examples of group integration dynamics for adults, children or adolescents.

1. My name is and my likes are

It is ideal to be used on the first day of kindergarten. His goal is to introduce the children and get them to know each other. Groups of about 10 children are recommended.

The facilitator begins by saying “My name is Juan and I like to play with my dog”. In an orderly manner, and starting from the same example, each child will introduce themselves and say their tastes.

When all the children have spoken, the facilitator will ask if they remember the names of their classmates and will bring together those who have similar tastes.

2. shared tale

Children need motivation and practice their creativity. That is why this dynamic is perfect, since it implies creating a story all together.

The facilitator will start the story, telling a story in which he appears and also in which one of the children appears, whom he will point to. The indicated child will have to say her name and continue explaining the story. He will have to mention another child, he will point to it and so the story will continue.

It is highly recommended for kindergarten and primary school children. Ideally, the group should be about 8 or 10 people.

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3. murky river

The participants are seated in a circle. and in their hand they have bottle caps. A song is sung: “very cloudy, cloudy water passes through the river”. With the tapas they must follow the rhythm of what they sing. At each time the cap should be passed to the partner on the right.

The song gets faster and faster. Those who miss the beat are eliminated until only three remain. The last three participants will require very good coordination to continue doing the activity.

In this dynamic fellowship, coordination and synchronization are practiced.

4. dreams

Is a dynamic widely used with adolescents and young people to teach them the importance that, despite the difficulties, they should never stop pursuing their dreams.

It lasts about 15 to 25 minutes and it is recommended to do it with groups of between 10 and 20 participants. Balloons and chairs are needed, one for each participant.

At the beginning all the participants are sitting in a circle as close together as possible and must choose a dream. Each one inflates his balloon and pretends to introduce sleep into it..

They then stand up and turn their chairs around to form a very small circle, within which they stand. The balloon must go as high as possible. The facilitator has an object, such as a BB gun, to pop balloons that get out of the circle.

The idea of ​​this dynamic is understand that it is necessary to leave the comfort zone to achieve your dreams, but that there will always be someone who tries to destroy them.

5. backs together

This dynamic encourages teamwork and lasts approximately 10 to 25 minutes. The number of participants is very varied., being able to go from 2 to 40 people.

Two participants, for example, sit on the floor with their backs to each other and hold each other's arms without turning. The idea is that they stand up by forcing each other but without resting their hands on the ground.

It is important that, to get couples, their members have more or less the same physical complexion, height and that they do not have back problems.

The fundamental learning in this dynamic is that by joining efforts great milestones can be achieved.

6. sum of teams

It lasts about 20 minutes and between 10 and 20 people are required. Sheets with numbers marked from 0 to 9 are needed.

There must be at least two groups, in which each person receives one or two sheets with numbers.

The facilitator says a multi-digit number out loud and the groups have to form it with their sheets of paper. The group that makes the number first wins the point..

The numbers can be said directly (eg: 45) or say a mathematical formula (eg: 10x10:2-10+5).

Math skills are tested interactively and a sense of sportsmanship is promoted

7. Mirror

It is an ideal dynamic to improve confidence among children, in addition to helping them reflect on their emotions.

The facilitator forms pairs of children, who will face each other. One of them will make movements and the other will imitate it.

Empathy is promoted, since they are free to imitate their partner but they must do it in a way that is not humiliating. Synchronization, coordination and concentration are also tested.

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8. the wrong message

Ideal for teenagers and young adults. It is fun and allows one to reflect on the transmission of information in a chain of several interlocutors.

Participants line up. The first person in line is the one who receives the message directly from the facilitator. The first in line will tell the message to the second, and this to the third, and so on.

The last one must say aloud the message that has arrived. The facilitator will compare what she had said at the beginning with what has arrived at the end.

With this dynamic, the memory of the participants is put to the test, their attention span and your communication skills.

9. arming the word

This activity makes it easier for members to interact and get to know each other.

The facilitator will distribute sheets with pointed letters. Each participant will have a sheet and will not know what letters the others have.

The facilitator has chosen those letters to form a word, and it is the participants who must find out what it is. Besides, rules can be set, such as that they must introduce themselves every time they talk to someone.

10. The most inquisitive ball

It is ideal for working with small groups. It takes a ball and a music player.

The children form a circle and, by playing music, the ball goes from one to the other. When the music stops, the person with the ball must say her name and ask the others a short question.

The other classmates must answer before the music starts again. When the music starts again, the ball will be in motion again. The game will last until everyone has introduced themselves.

Bibliographic references:

• Backstrom, L.; Huttenlocher, D.; Kleinberg, J.; Lan, X. (2006). Group formation in large social networks. Proceedings of the 12th ACM SIGKDD international conference on Knowledge discovery and data mining - KDD '06. p. 44.