Team Building Activities and Games in Kenya: 40 Ideas

Most communication problems at work are not about people refusing to talk. They come from assumptions: I thought you knew, I thought you meant the other file. The 40 activities and games below make those assumptions visible in a low-stakes way, so a team can laugh about them on a Friday and fix them on Monday. They are sorted so you can pick by space, group size, energy and the time you have.

What makes a team building activity work?

A good team building activity splits information so nobody has the full picture, fails if people do not check their understanding, and is short enough to run twice. The second round, after a debrief, is where behaviour changes.

That second round is where the change shows. Teams that rushed the first attempt usually slow down, agree on words, and repeat instructions back. That is exactly the habit you want them to carry into the office.

One activity we do not use is the trust fall. The physical risk is real, it excludes people with injuries, and it says very little about how a team shares information.

Quick picker: which activity suits your group?

Use this table to filter by space, group size, energy and time. “Low” energy means seated or standing work; “high” means running or physical contact, so always offer a non-physical role.

Communication activities (1 to 8): how to run them

These eight are the core exercises for teams that need to share information better. Each takes 15 to 40 minutes and works best run twice, with a short debrief in between.

1. Back-to-back drawing

Pairs sit back to back. One holds a simple picture made of shapes; the other has a pen and blank paper. The describer explains the picture without naming what it is, and the drawer cannot speak in the first round. In round two, the drawer may ask questions. Compare the drawings. The gap between rounds one and two is the lesson about feedback.

2. Minefield

Lay out cones, cups or crumpled paper across an open area. One person is blindfolded and must cross without touching anything, guided only by a partner’s voice from the edge. Run it with several pairs at once so voices compete. Teams quickly learn to agree on signals and to use names.

3. Build the copy

Hide a small model built from blocks or craft materials behind a screen. Each team gets an identical set of pieces. Only one “runner” per team may look at the model, and only the builders may touch the pieces. The runner goes back and forth describing. After ten minutes, compare. Then let teams change roles and strategy and try again.

4. Spaghetti tower

Each team gets dry spaghetti, a metre of tape, a metre of string and a marshmallow. The goal is the tallest free-standing tower with the marshmallow on top, in 18 minutes. It shows who plans, who builds, and whether quieter people get heard. It also shows the cost of testing too late.

5. Blind square

The whole group is blindfolded and given a long rope. Without looking, they must form a perfect square. Someone has to take charge, and the group has to agree how to check corners. It works well for groups of eight to fifteen.

6. Broken instructions

A twist on broken telephone. Give the first person a written set of five practical steps, such as how to submit an expense claim. They whisper it to the next person, and so on down a line of eight. The last person writes down what they heard. Then compare it with the original and talk about how messages get lost between departments.

7. Survival ranking

Teams imagine their vehicle has broken down far from help, in dry bush country, with a list of 12 items. First, each person ranks the items alone. Then the team agrees a single ranking. Compare individual and team scores. Teams usually do better together, but only when people are allowed to argue their point.

8. Human knot

Groups of eight to ten stand in a circle, reach across and take two different hands, then untangle without letting go. It is physical and close, so make it optional and offer a role as observer. Observers often give the best feedback afterwards.

Lighter games for team bonding (9 to 12)

Bonding games give people a shared story and remind them that colleagues are people. Use them between the focused exercises, or as the main event for a reward day.

• 9. Sports day staples. Tug of war, sack races, three-legged races and relay races. Mix departments in every team so you are not just replaying office rivalries.
• 10. Cook-off. Teams get a basket of ingredients and a budget and prepare a dish for judging. Planning, delegation and time pressure come naturally.
• 11. Treasure hunt. Clues spread around the venue that need different skills to solve: a riddle, a quick calculation, a photo task.
• 12. Talent slot. Ten minutes per team after lunch for a song, sketch or dance. Optional, and never forced on individuals.

Which team building games work indoors? (13 to 24)

Indoor games suit office sessions, conference breaks and rainy days. Most need only tables, a meeting room and cheap materials, and run in 10 to 45 minutes.

• 13. Two truths and a lie. Each person shares three statements about themselves; the group guesses the lie. A gentle opener for new teams.
• 14. Team quiz. Rounds on general knowledge, the company and the industry, with mixed-department tables. Add a picture round so it is not all about memory.
• 15. Puzzle box escape. A locked box, three or four padlocks and a chain of clues hidden around the room. Teams must share findings to open it within 40 minutes.
• 16. Egg drop. With straws, tape and paper, teams build a cradle that protects a raw egg dropped from a set height. Fun, messy and good for planning under limits.
• 17. Pitch it. Each team invents a product from a random object and pitches it in two minutes to a panel. It brings out quieter creative people.
• 18. Paper bridge. Using only paper and tape, build a bridge between two chairs that holds the most coins. Simple, and it shows who tests early.
• 19. Murder mystery. A scripted game over lunch or dinner where each guest plays a character and teams solve the case. Works well at a retreat evening.
• 20. Pictionary relay. Teams send one drawer at a time to sketch a word while the rest guess. Fast rotation keeps everyone involved.
• 21. Common ground. In ten minutes, each table finds five things everyone shares that are not about work. A good warm-up before harder exercises.
• 22. Drum circle. A facilitator leads the group from chaos to rhythm on hand drums. Loud, physical without contact, and memorable for large groups.
• 23. Group mural. Each team paints one panel of a larger picture that only makes sense when combined. The finished piece can hang in the office.
• 24. Cross-team speed meetings. Three-minute conversations with rotating partners from other departments, with one question card per round.

Our separate guide to indoor team building activities has more ideas for office sessions.

Which outdoor team building activities work best? (25 to 34)

Outdoor activities suit full days at a venue with open, flat ground and shade. They need more setup and a wet-weather plan, but give teams more energy and shared stories.

• 25. Amazing race. Teams move between checkpoints around the venue, each with a challenge to complete before getting the next clue.
• 26. Pipeline. Each person holds a short open channel; together the team rolls a ball from start to finish without it touching the ground or moving backwards.
• 27. Tarp flip. The whole team stands on a tarpaulin and must turn it over without anyone stepping off. It forces planning and close coordination.
• 28. Leaky bucket relay. Teams carry water in cups with holes to fill a bucket. Best on a hot afternoon, with dry clothes on hand.
• 29. Tree planting or community project. Planting, painting a school or cleaning a market, agreed in advance with local leaders. Good for purpose-led teams.
• 30. Guided hike with challenge stops. A trail walk with short team problems at each stop. Use a guide and set a pace everyone can manage.
• 31. Archery or paintball. Run by activity venues with trained staff and safety gear. Check age, health and insurance rules before you book.
• 32. Mixed-department tournament. Football, volleyball or netball with mixed teams and short games so everyone plays.
• 33. Giant games. Large stacking blocks, giant four-in-a-row and lawn games set out for drop-in play during breaks.
• 34. Orienteering. Teams use a map and compass to find markers across the grounds. Map reading, role division and pace all come into play.

Outdoor plans need a fallback for the long rains (roughly March to May) and short rains (roughly October to December). For places with space for these, see our guide to team building venues around Nairobi.

What are good quick games for large groups? (35 to 40)

For 50 people or more, use short energisers that need no equipment and no teams of exactly the right size. They take 10 to 30 minutes and work after lunch or before a session.

• 35. Rock-paper-scissors tournament. Losers become the cheering section of the winner, until two huge crowds cheer the final. Loud and quick.
• 36. Silent line-up. Line up by birthday month and day without speaking. Then debrief how people communicated anyway.
• 37. Live phone quiz. A quiz on a screen that everyone answers on their phones, with a live leaderboard. Ideal before a keynote.
• 38. Learn a dance. An instructor teaches a short routine in 20 minutes. Popular at end-of-year events; keep it optional.
• 39. Group juggle. A circle throws balls in a fixed pattern while learning names, adding balls as they improve.
• 40. Appreciation wall. Everyone writes one specific thank-you to a colleague on sticky notes. A good way to close any day.

Putting a day together

A workable half day mixes one energiser, two communication exercises with debriefs, a tea break, one team challenge and a short wrap-up. That is about four hours for 40 to 80 people.

Start with a quick icebreaker (our guide to icebreakers for planning sessions has some that work). Run two communication exercises with a debrief after each. Break for tea. Move to a team challenge such as the treasure hunt or cook-off. Close with lunch and the appreciation wall, and ask each team to name one thing they will do differently.

If you need someone to run the day, our guide to choosing a team building facilitator covers what to ask, and our breakdown of how much team building costs in Kenya helps with the budget. At Red Giant Media we design and facilitate these days for corporate teams; see our team building page.

Debrief questions that work

After each exercise, sit each team down for five to ten minutes and ask open questions about what happened and where it happens at work. The last question matters most.

1. What did you think the goal was at the start? Did everyone have the same answer?
2. When did things go wrong, and what was being said at that moment?
3. Who had information that others did not hear? Why?
4. What changed in the second round?
5. Where does this happen at work, and what would we do differently?

Write the answers on a flip chart and send a photo to the team manager afterwards.

Quick answers