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Name Salad

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Name Salad

Name Salad

This high-energy icebreaker is a fun way to help participants learn each other’s names — fast. It gets people moving, paying attention, and interacting early in the session. Ideal for new groups, especially in training programs where participants will be working together over multiple days.

What You’ll Need

  • Enough chairs for everyone — arranged in a circle with no extra seats
  • A bit of open space for movement

How to Play

  1. Have everyone sit in a circle. One person stands in the middle; there will be one empty chair.
  2. The person in the middle must try to sit in the empty chair, while the group keeps shifting to block them from getting there.
  3. To move, someone must call out the name of another person in the circle.
  4. The person whose name was called must quickly say another participant’s name — and that person must then say a third name, and so on.
  5. As this name chain continues, the group shifts seats, opening up a new empty one — and the person in the middle tries to sneak in and grab it.
  6. If the person in the middle manages to sit down, the last person to say a name becomes the new person in the center.

Example Round

Jane is in the middle. Mark calls “Sara!”

Sara says “Nina!” and Nina says “David!”

As names are called, seats shift and Jane tries to reach the new empty chair before David finishes calling another name.

Trainer Tips

  • Best for groups of 8–15. For larger groups, run two circles in parallel.
  • This game works well after a short break to refocus energy and attention.
  • Make sure everyone knows each other’s names before you begin. If not, do a name round first.
  • Be ready to pause and restart if things get too fast — the goal is connection, not chaos.

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