LOOK UP – LOOK DOWN

Location:  INDOOR

Minutes:  BELOW 5

Formation  CIRCLE

Activity Level MEDIUM

Age levels YOUTH-ADULT, OLDER, INTERGENERATIONAL

People 20-200

Supplies NONE

Instructions:  Have your group form one large circle.   Begin by telling everyone to Look Down at his or her own shoes.  Now tell them to Look Up at anyone in the circle.  The words Look Down begin each round of the game. While they are looking down, they find another pair of shoes and that is the person they will look at when you say Look Up.   When ANY two people in the circle make eye contact with each other, they quickly trade places in the circle.  Keep repeating Look Down, Look Up - give people just a few seconds to trade places before continuing.

Leader's Hints:  There are numerous variations to this game.  For example, after teaching the game, make multiple circles of about 8-12 people in each circle.  When two people make eye contact, they leave their circle and go find any other circle to join they do not have to move together.  You can add a verbal element to the game that when two people make eye contact that they let out a short scream AHHH! and then trade places or move to another circle.  This game can be played seated in a circle and used to separate a group of people who might be disrupting an activity.  You as the leader get the chance to separate the two or three people without ever having to call them down in front of others and they will never know that you were intentionally separating them.