Workshops - 1: Group Warm up

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Workshops always begin in a circle.

The group hears 3 pieces of music, each from a different country. The first task is to guess which country the music comes from. Examples: Cigany Szinek (Romania); The Chieftains (Ireland); The Bhundu Boys (Zimbabwe). Participants are asked to decide for themselves which is their favourite, second favourite and worst one. The favourite gets two votes, second best one vote and worst one thumbs down. The piece that gets the most votes is used for the warm up. Workshops leaders start with simple warm up movements, gently encouraging participants to take over and "be the teacher for twenty seconds". Any contribution is encouraged, the only restriction is that movements have to be ones that everyone in the group can do (ie: no splits, multiple pirouettes, back flips etc).

Key Phrase when working in a foreign language:

Three songs from different countries
Which country?
Yes/No, Correct/Incorrect
Vote for your favourite
Good, brilliant, excellent, etc.

Useful variation

When working with a mixed group of adults and children, a guaranteed ice breaker is to use the first, guessing part of the exercise as a competition between children and adults. This can also work in a school with teachers joining in ("beat the teacher"), in a theatre with parents watching ("beat the grown ups") or when your workshop is being assessed ("beat the funding officer"). Always fix the game so that the children win.

Especially suitable for:

Groups with broad ethnic/cultural/nation mixture
Integrated groups (disabled/non-disabled; children/adults)
Children with learning difficulties (Down's Syndrome)

Less suitable for:

Children with visual or hearing impairments.

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