Party Ice Breakers
From LoveToKnow Party
Party ice breakers are a fun way to get people moving-around and mingling. Ice breakers loosen people up and help them to start to get to know each other. Learning one another’s names is a common theme among ice breakers and at times provides further information to stimulate conversation once the party ice breakers are over.
Introductions
When people first walk through the door to attend a party where they know few people, it can be daunting to be introduced to 20 people or so with the realization that you’ll never remember all the names. Party ice breakers can eliminate that fear and make learning names fun and meaningful.
Give Away Ice Breakers
Give-away party ice breakers are one way to get people talking to one another. When hosting a dinner party, or any sit-down affair, you can give away the centerpiece to one individual at each table. Place a sticker under one of the chairs before the party starts. It will get party-goers on their feet to check underneath their seat for the winning sticker and usually generates conversation between participants.
Another fun give-away game that gets partiers involved by asking them to produce various items from purses and pockets. The first person or group to produce the item wins the prize. This game is best played by breaking guests into 3 or 4 groups. You can also use a point system. If playing in groups, the first group to produce the item gets the point and at the end of the game, the group with most points wins.
Sample list of things to ask for:
- Key chain with 10 keys or more
- Bookmark
- Pen with a chewed cap
- Coin with a specific date
- Family picture
- Man wearing lipstick
- Store receipt
- Two people with shoelaces tied together
- Pen with chewed cap
- Stamp
- Paperclip
- A smelly shoe
When planning your party, put together your list of items, include a few that will get people interacting and laughing. It not only puts people at ease, but gives them something to talk about even after the game is over.
Getting to Know You Ice Breaker
A "Getting to Know You" ice breaker list is given to each guest. Then with a time limit, they are sent to mill and mingle about in search of names to fill in the blanks. For example, if one of the items on the list is “Born in Iowa,” when a guest born in Iowa is located their name is filled in next to that list item. A variety of Getting to Know You party ice breakers can be found online for just about any group.
Sentence Starters
Sentence starters give everyone at the party a chance to share something about themselves and lets personalities shine through. Sample starters include:
- I have never…
- I am…
- What makes me laugh is…
- The most important decision of my life was…
- The superhero I’d like to be is…
- If I was a piece of furniture I'd be a...
Secret Word
Secret word party ice breakers have to do with a word chosen before the party begins. This one is great for encouraging mingling at cocktail parties. Give each guest a sticker when they arrive, and let them know the secret word. The goal is not to use the word, but notice if another guest does. When a guest uses the secret word, the guest who notices gets his sticker. The person with the most stickers at the end of the game is the winner. This can be fun as a person tries to get others to use the secret word without using it themselves.
Workplace Party Ice Breakers
People often dread office parties because they don’t really have relationships with co-workers beyond the office. To get the party rolling, choose two people who work together in some capacity. Put them back to back and ask work related questions like:
- Whose desk is messiest?
- Who is usually late?
- Who has more food in their desk?
These kinds of questions get laughs and stimulate conversation between coworkers.
Another ice breaker for the work place is the string game. You’ll need a spool of string or yarn for this one. Have each person answer a question while they have the string and then after they answer have them toss the ball or spool to another co-worker to answer the next question. Eventually the string creates a web. In the end, describe how the web parallels the group in that they work well together and play a part in creating the web. If one person was missing, the web would turn out differently and how important every person is in the work place.
Plan More Games Than You Need
As you plan ice breakers for your party, plan more than you need just in case one of them falls flat with your guests. The idea is to keep it fun and help your guests get to know one another.
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