Unusual Round Robin

Game Designer / Creator

 * Created by Isaac Wade

Game Summary
Players sit in a circle and go around making creative associations about common objects. The game begins with one person saying an object and a creative use for that object. For example the first person might say something like “A cup can be used for shoveling snow.” The person to their left must make a statement based on the creative use the first person said, but with a different object. For example the second person might say, “In order to shovel snow, you could use a spoon.” The third person in the circle must then use the object that the second person said, for example the third person might say, “A spoon can be used for hitting drums.” This cycle of attaching together unusual uses and objects is repeated around the circle until someone fails to think of an association, and that person is given a strike.

Players / Moderators

 * Age range: 8 -12.
 * A whole class full of players.
 * A moderator helps organize the players in a circle, gets the game started, and oversees the correctness of the players’ contributions.

Game Set-up and Construction

 * A moderator arranges the players to sit in a circle. The moderator explains the rules and selects a person to go first.
 * No materials needed for this game.
 * No cost!

How to Play / Game Rules
The game begins with one person saying an object and a creative use for that object. For example the first person might say something like “A cup can be used for shoveling snow.” The person to their left, must make a statement using the creative use the first person said, but with a different object. For example the second person might say, “In order to shovel snow, you could use a spoon.” The third person in the circle must then use the object that the second person said, for example the third person might say, “A spoon can be used for hitting drums.”

This cycle of attaching together unusual uses and objects is repeated around the circle until someone fails to think of an association, and that person is given a strike. The game could be played so that each person given a strike is either instantly out of the game or is out of the game after three strikes.

Because the purpose of the game is to be fast and free flowing, each person should be given only a few seconds to think of their association before it is considered a strike. If available, a timer could be used for this purpose.

Templates / Diagrams

 * NA

Related Web Links

 * NA

Other Details
The purpose of this game is to exercise and accelerate people’s associative abilities. Players have to quickly think of unusual uses for objects.