Fast Friends

Activity

Introductory activities

Maha Bali

This is a great warming-up activity that helps to build close connections between students.

ACTIVITY PURPOSE

This activity is inspired by Renee Hobbs, Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Rhode Island, USA. This is a great warming-up activity that helps to build close connections between students.

USEFUL FOR

This activity can be used at the beginning of the semester or to start off any class, to help people get to know each other more deeply than the usual intro questions we ask. Participants choose which question(s) to answer in small groups, and can go several rounds with the same or different partner(s).

PREPARATION

You can use the existing list of questions or select from them your favourite 5 or 6 for each round.

INSTRUCTIONS

Break students up into pairs or small groups and invite each of them to respond to one of the prompts below, a full list of prompts can be found here.

Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?
Would you like to be famous? In what way?
If you could wake up tomorrow having gained any one quality or ability, what would it be?
If you were able to live to the age of 90 and retain either the mind or body of a 30-year-old for the last 60 years of your life, which would you want?
What would constitute a “perfect” day for you?
Take four minutes and tell your partner your life story in as much detail as possible.

DURATION

About 8 or 10 minutes for a pair in one round, or 12-15 minutes in a trio.

ADAPTATIONS AND EXAMPLES

You can do this in pairs or trios, you can do it synchronously with breakout rooms or asynchronously on a discussion board or something like Slack or MS Team text. You can do one round or multiple rounds in one session, or you can do a different set of questions each class meeting.

TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

Breakout rooms if synchronous. Groups on discussion forum if using Learning Management System or Virtual Learning Environment.

USEFUL RESOURCES

Click here to view the original activity by Renee Hobbs.

ABOUT

Educator prep: None
Student prep: None
Synchronous, Asynchronous
Breakout rooms
Duration: 5-30 mins

This activity is one of a series of activities from Equity Unbound, focused on equitable online community building.

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