The flying egg. A team-building game

From the book "Spielbar" by Axel Rachow

The goal

• Clarification and practical experience of the success factors of goal-oriented teamwork.
• Sensitization for different roles in teams.
• Recognizing individual strengths, potentials and deficits of team members.
• Lots of fun.

The course

• The moderator explains the objective, the rules and the course of the game to the participants.
• Teams of four to seven members are formed at random.
• Each team receives a sheet of paper with the instructions and the prepared work materials.
• The teams are physically separated from each other so that they do not have the opportunity to observe the work of their "competitors".
• The game leader monitors compliance with the rules.
• After 90 minutes, the "construction phase" is over and the teams present their products in plenary.
• This is followed by the "air show": two members of each group send their aircraft on its "maiden flight".
• Ideally, the objects are "thrown" from the top floor of the training center. The remaining participants watch the action from the courtyard.
• The individual objects are assessed by a jury according to various criteria.

The task

• Construct a flying device for a raw egg as a team.

The time

• You have 90 minutes to plan and implement the project.

The specifications

• You may only use the materials provided (2 pairs of scissors, 1 ruler, 1 A4 piece of cardboard, 2 sheets of flipchart paper, 1 tube of glue, 1 raw egg). The paper and cardboard must be cut into strips no wider than 3 cm.
• The egg must not be glued. Manipulations such as boiling or blowing are prohibited and will result in immediate disqualification of the team.
• The flying device should be given a name that can be painted on the device. No other colors may be used.
• At the end of the 90 minutes, the teams present their aircraft in plenary. The presentation may last a maximum of 5 minutes and will be assessed.

The assessment

• Professionalism and originality of the product presentation
• Aesthetics of the flying device
• Flight behavior of the device
• Condition of the egg after landing

The individual criteria are rated on a points scale from 1 to 10. Each team evaluates the products of the "competition". The team members agree on how many points are awarded for each criterion. The team with the most points wins. The focus is on having fun and not on winning. For this reason, the points should be awarded in a relaxed atmosphere. It is interesting to follow up with key questions.
What did we learn about teamwork? How did I experience my role? What were the strengths of our team?
The game is taken from the book "Spielbar": 51 trainers present 77 top games from their seminar practice. 5th edition 2014.