I learned this from Minami Yoshitaka, Yasuhara Kouhei, and Yamazaki Ryouta in an English class they taught at Meiji University. In this game people compete to create collaborative drawings that illustrate some thing or idea. It could lead very nicely into discussion, especially if the theme is one of relevance to people's lives.

The flow:

  • Form teams of three or four people.
  • The joker chooses a theme, for example, "job hunting" or "Freedom Rides."
  • One player from each team lines up before the whiteboard in a row, waiting for the signal.
  • When the joker says "go!" the players have ten seconds to draw pictures (one picture per team) that represents the theme. The players can only use one continuous line (the marker can't leave the surface).
  • When the ten seconds are up, the next player from each team approaches the whiteboard.
  • When the joker says "go!" the second set of players have ten seconds to add to their team's pictures, again using only one continuous line.
  • Repeat until all players have drawn.
  • When all have played, the joker chooses the drawing that s/he feels best illustrates the theme.

Variations:

  • Have the participants vote on the images, stepping out of their competitive roles. Joker asks people to explain their choices.
  • Have one person from each team choose the best picture and then have a mini-debate if there is a disagreement.
  • Forgo the selection of best picture and instead ask people to write about what they see in each drawing, what it includes, what it leaves out, etc.

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