Sneak a Peak

This problem solving activity requires little more than a couple of sets of children’s building blocks or duplicate lego. The aim of the challenge is for each group to try and build an exact copy of a pre-built sculpture – the catch is only one person in each group can look at the model at a time and for only ten seconds. They then return back to their team and describe what they see.

Equipment Required: Enough Children’s building blocks or duplicate lego for each group
Space Required: Small. Indoors or outdoors.
Group Size: Minimum of 4

Total Time: 25 minutes

• 5 minutes to brief and set up
• 15 minutes to achieve outcome
• 5 minutes to review

Sneak a Peak Team Building Activity Instructions

• Before the challenge begins you will need to build a small sculpture with some of the building blocks and hide it from the group.
• Next up, divide the participants into small teams of four (or similar). Each team should be given enough building material so that they can duplicate the structure you’ve already created.
• Place the sculpture in an area that is an equal distance from all the groups.
  One member from each team can come up at the same time to look at the sculpture for ten seconds and try to memorize it before returning to their team.
• After they return to their teams, they have twenty-five seconds to instruct their teams about how to build an exact replica of your sculpture.
  After one minute of trying to recreate the sculpture, another member from each team can come up for a “sneak a peek” before returning to their team and trying to recreate the sculpture.
• The challenge should be continued in this pattern until one of the team’s successfully duplicates the original sculpture.

Suggested Learning Outcomes

• Problem Solving
• Communication
• Memory
• Strategy

Suggested questions to ask in the review:

Did you have a strategy before attempting the challenge?
How did you decide who would go first?
Did anyone in your group struggle to memorise the sculpture and how did you help them?
How well did you communicate as a team? How could you improve?
Was everyone involved in the build?
What skills can you take away from the challenge and how can you apply these to (insert subject) in the future?