Debriefing Tool: Hands & Feet

Submitted by Annisa, a high school sophomore.

My favorite team building props are these small plastic hands and feet we use for debriefs during our Adventure classes. We use these as anchor tools the students can take away and be reminded of their experiences or a specific achievement they made during the semester.

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An example of how I have used this debrief anchor tool is in a group initiative we call Maui Kauai. The students are presented with 3 different sized boards and 3 different sized platforms. The implied challenge is for them to get their entire team onto the last platform with the help of only each other and the boards. In this group initiative, the hand and feet anchor tool are perfect for a debrief because the team needs to work together to physically and emotionally help each other across the different platforms.
 
When using the hands and feet to debrief, I ask the students to pick a person who gave them a helping hand (hands) or who helped ground them during the activity (feet) and exchange hands/feet with them. Then they would be able to keep their hand or foot that they received from another person in the class to help remember their achievement of completing the challenge and the teamwork that they used during the activity itself.