Personification

Material Needed: Flip chart or butcher paper (one per group), markers
Time Required: 15-20 minutes
Group Size: 6-25
Purpose:  Team building

• Organize participants into groups of 3-6

• Explain to participants that personification is taking an inanimate object or abstraction and giving it a persona. Simple examples include calling a boat a she or a hurricane a she or a he. Explain that the group will now be using personification to describe what you have chosen (e.g. your organization, qualities important for team members, exec board positions, etc.)

• Explain that their group task is to sketch and then write descriptions of their personification.

• Give each group a sheet of paper and markers and tell them they have 5 minutes to sketch and personify

• When they are finished, have groups share their sketches and descriptions.

Note:
If you use this at the beginning or in the middle of a session, refer back to it when you can.

Source:
West, E. (1997). 201 Icebreakers. New York: McGraw Hill. P 404-405.