Icebreaker Ideas
Relationship Builders For Life Groups
RESOURCE FROM CHI ALPHA AT PURDUE UNIVERSITY
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Every Life Group meeting should start with some kind of an icebreaker or other activity to get
people talking and connecting with each other. Instead of doing the same thing week after week, here
are a bunch of ideas for you to try.
Introductions
Introduce Yourself Variations:
• Introduce yourself as your mother would introduce you to the group.
• Introduce yourself as your childhood babysitter would introduce you.
• Introduce yourself as your best friend would introduce you.
• State your full name and the places you have lived. How did you get your middle name?
Information Gathering
Have people pair up and discover as much information as they can about each other in three minutes (full
name, where they are from, major/job, favorite class or aspect of job, hobbies/interests, family facts). Then, the
pairs introduce each other to the rest of group using all the information they have learned.
Shoes
Everyone takes off one of their shoes and puts it in a pile. Each person takes a random shoe and finds the
person that it belongs to. Once they have found their match, they tell each other about themselves. Then, join
the group and introduce each other with the information they’ve discovered.
Demographics
The group decides among themselves what information they would like to find out about the members of the
group (major, job, classes, hobbies, interests, birth place, etc.). Each member introduces themself according to
the demographics chosen by the group.
Name Games
Name Action
The leader says his first name and does an action that begins with the letter of his first name. The next person
repeats the leader’s name, does his action, and then adds his own. The third repeats the first, then the second,
and adds his own. Repeat around the group.
Name Game with Ball
Participants sit or stand in circle and one person has a ball. He throws it to another person while saying that
person’s name.
Department Store Item
Each person in the group chooses an item that might be found at a department store. The item should describe
something about the person: job, hobby, major, favorite food, sport, etc. The second person repeats the first
one’s name and object and adds his own name and object. The third person repeats the first, the second, and
adds his own name and object. Repeat around the group. Variation: Choose an item that starts with the same
letter as their first name and describes something about the person.
History Telling Activities
Two Truths and a Lie
Each person tells three facts about himself, but one is not true. The group tries to figure out which statement is
the lie. After the lie has been revealed, ask questions to find out the whole story behind the facts.
