ENERGIZER MANUAL 2013/2014
ENERGIZERS 101 WHAT IS AN ENERGIZER? Energizers are a quick and creative way to boost the overall energy level of a group. Energizers are used throughout Right To Play s programs and offices around the world. They are effective in helping people get to know each other, re-focusing groups, and increasing the energy in activities. WHEN CAN I USE AN ENERGIZER? To liven up school assemblies, classes and workshops. To re-energize the group. To get people up and moving. To fill a short gap of time. To unite people and spark laughter and joy. WHY ARE ENERGIZERS SO IMPORTANT? Energizers help bring people together by breaking down barriers through silly songs, dancing and short games. There is no elimination aspect so everyone is included! Play energizes us and enlivens us. It renews our natural sense of optimism and opens us up to new possibilities. Stuart Brown
THE HAMMER Seidu Abu Project Assistant, Right To Play, Ghana Because of Right To Play, now I know that including every child is important. The Right To Play training has made me understand that we can always adjust games to suit the children and I am happy about it. 1. Ask the children to stand up with about an arm s length around them. This energizer has children forming hammers with different parts of their body so make sure the children have enough space to move. 2. Children will be forming 6 different hammers by mimicking the up and down motion of a hammer. 1 hammer with each arm, 1 hammer with each leg, 1 with their head, and 1 with their whole body. 3. To begin, you will lead the group with the following song that accompanies the energizer: I hammer with one hammer, I hammer with one, I hammer with one hammer and we all do the same 4. While signing this, start the hammer motion with your first hammer your right arm. 5. Continue the song with the following verse while adding in the second hammer your left arm: I hammer with two hammers, I hammer with two hammers, I hammer with two hammers and we all do the same 6. The energizer continues with this song. As you add more hammers, simply state in your song how many hammers you are hammering with. 7. The energizer ends when you have used all your hammers!
PEOPLE TO PEOPLE Anita Kolubah, Senior Project Assistant, Right To Play, Liberia Fast Facts Right To Play Liberia 40,250 children participate in Right To Play programs every week in Liberia. 40% - 50% female participation rate. 1,500 local coaches have been trained to run Right To Play programs. 1. This is a repeat after me energizer. The leader will call out a phrase and participants will repeat the same phrase back to the leader. 2. While participants respond, they will also be doing an action that will be changing throughout the energizer. 3. It is up to the leader to decide what action the participants will be doing. For example, if the leader yells Hand to Hand, participants must find someone to touch hands with. If the leader yells Knee to Knee, participants must find someone to touch their knees to. 4. The leader will start by calling out People to People ; which is then repeated by the participants. The leader will dance on the spot to the beat of the song so the participants mimic the motion. Repeat this for a couple more times until you have all the participants tuned in and moving on the spot. Note: Calling out People to People can be seen as your home base, it is what you start the energizer with and what you will end with. 5. Once you have everyone on the same page, change it up by calling out different body parts. If you yell out Hand to Hand, participants must repeat Hand to Hand while finding a partner to join hands with. Here are a few more suggestions: Shoulder to Shoulder, Elbow to Elbow, Head to Head, Ear to Ear, Foot to Foot, Knee to Knee. 6. After calling out a few more body parts, end the energizer by coming back to People to People. Right To Play programs run in 166 schools and 186 community centers.
ZAKEDE ZAKEDE Marcellin Dahoundji Coach & Trainer, Right To Play, Benin "Being a volunteer with Right To Play helped positively improve my own way of interacting with my neighbours, especially with my pupils' parents. They are more confident in me and ask for my support in their children's education. 1. Organize participants in a circle. The leader will also be part of the circle as they lead the energizer so make sure everyone can see the leader as participants will be following along. 2. Start by bringing your arms to the right side of your body in line with your waist and making a movement as if you are lifting something with your palms facing up. As you lift, bring your right leg up as though your leg is attached to your hands by a string. 3. As you do this, say Zakede. 4. Clap three times in unison. 5. Now do this on the left side of your body. 6. Repeat this 2 more times on each side of your body while pausing in between to clap three times. 7. Now lead the group by saying Ah juhn juhn repeatedly as you put your hands on your hip and slowly sway your hips from side to side while moving lower and lower to the ground and back up again. 8. At this point the energizer has ended.
D-O-W-N (THAT S THE WAY WE GET DOWN) University Club Leaders Right To Play, Canada I like this energizer a lot because it gets everyone moving and laughing. Callie Bowman, Mount Allison University 1. Organize participants in a circle so that everyone can see each other. The leader will stand in the middle of the circle. 2. The leader (L) will begin by calling on a participant (S) in the circle in the following manner: L: Hey (name)! P Hey what? L: Hey (name)! P: Hey what? L: Show us how you get down! P: No way! L: Show us how you get down! P: Ok! 3. At this point, the leader and the other participants in the circle will call out D-O-W-N, that s the way we get down! While the leader is calling this out, the participant will do a dance move for everyone in the circle to see. 4. One again, the leader and everyone in the circle will call out D- O-W-N, that s the way we get down! except this time, everybody will repeat the same dance move with the participant. 5. This is the end of one round. Next, the participant who was doing the dance move, can hop in the middle of the circle and is now the leader. 6. It is their job to call on someone new and the energizer repeats itself. 7. The energizer ends when everyone has had a chance to show off their dance moves and lead the energizer or at your own discretion.
SANTANA SANTANA Eugene Tetteh Volunteer Coach, Right To Play, Ghana Fast Facts Right To Play Ghana 1. This is a call and response energizer. 2. The leader will call out Santana! Santana! The participants will reply with Huso! Huso! 3. Participants must match the level of energy the leader has when they respond back. If a leader yells out Santana! Santana! at the top of their lungs, participants must match the same level of energy and excitement when they reply with Huso! Huso! 4. While the leader calls out Santana she/he will jump up and down in the same spot which matches the same amount of energy expressed while calling out Santana. The participants will do the same. For instance, if the leader softly whispers Santana, Santana she/he will softly jump up and down very low to the ground. As the volume of the call and response increases, so will the height of their jumping. 5. As a leader, you are also able to yell out Azim-zim!, in which case the participants respond Down, down, down, down as they put their hands on their hips and slowly sway from side to side while trying to get as low to the ground as possible. 6. The energizer ends at your discretion. 49,209 children participate in Right To Play programs every week in Ghana. 50% female participation rate. 1,075 local coaches have been trained to run Right To Play programs. Right To Play programs run in 171 schools and 8 community centers.
WELCOME Yves Rwibutso Project Assistant & Acting Area Coordinator, Right To Play, Rwanda You know, it is really impressive when you get to see what kind of changes are coming from Right To Play 1. This energizer has a dance that goes along with the words. 2. The leader will start by calling out Be-la-vo oh Bravo Welcome! 3. Next, everybody will clap 3 times and say Welcome! As you say welcome, sweep both your hands to the right side of your body and lift up your right leg. 4. Again, clap 3 times and say Welcome! but this time sweep your hands to the left side of your body while lifting up your left leg. 5. Repeat steps 3 and 4, first sweeping to the right and then to the left. 4. Next, move on to the final part of the energizer. The group will clap along to every word that they say. The final verse looks like this: Right, right, right, right, to, to, to, play! 5. End with a kiss by bringing both hands to your mouth, and making a big mwah! sound as you extend your hands to all your peers to blow them a kiss. 6. Once the leader has demonstrated it once, break it down step by step so the participants can participate with the leader.
HELLO (MY NAME IS) Natasha Andersen Regional Program Manager, Right To Play, Ghana. 1. This is a sing-a-long energizer that builds on itself as new verses are added. The leader will begin by teaching participants the following verse and then everyone will sing in unison while doing the actions: Hello, my name is (insert name here), and I work with Right To Play. One day, my boss came up to me, she said (name), are you busy? I said no! She said turn that handle with your right hand. 2. When you say turn that handle with your right hand, you begin to make a rotational movement with your right hand as if you were turning a handle. You will continue to do this action for the rest of the song and add more handles as the song goes on. 3. Now let s add the second verse! Hello, my name is (insert name here), and I work with Right To Play. One day, my came up to me, she said (name), are you busy? I said no! She said turn that handle with your left hand. 4. Just as in the previous verse, begin to turn the handle with your left hand. 5. Below is the rest of the song. As you move on, each verse will ask you to turn a handle with a different body part which you will continue to do for the duration of the song. At the end of the song, everyone should look pretty silly as they should be turning 6 handles with their bodies. Verse 3: Hello, my name is (insert name here), and I work with Right To Play. One day, my came up to me, she said (name), are you busy? I said no! She said turn that handle with your right leg. Verse 4: Hello, my name is (insert name here), and I work with Right To Play. One day, my boss came up to me, she said (name), are you busy? I said no! She said turn that handle with your left leg. Verse 5: Hello, my name is (insert name here), and I work with Right To Play. One day, my boss came up to me, she said (name), are you busy? I said no! She said turn that handle with your head. Verse 6: Hello, my name is (insert name here), and I work with Right To Play. One day, my boss came up to me, she said (name), are you busy? I said no! She said turn that handle with your tongue. Verse 7: Hello, my name is (insert name here), and I work with Right To Play. One day, my boss came up to me, she said (name), are you busy? And I said yes!
DO AS I DO Mardea T. Smith Project Assistant, Right To Play, Liberia 1. The leader will begin by calling out Do do do as I do, just do it! 2. When participants hear this, they too should start singing along so that the whole group is calling this out together. 3. As everyone is singing Do do do as I do, just do it, the leader starts to do different actions and the participants will begin to mimic the leader. 4. For example, if the leader starts jumping up and down while singing Do do do as I do, just do it, the participants will start to jump up and down as well all will calling out Do do do as I do just do it. 5. The energizer ends at your discretion. Play is our brain s favourite way of learning Diane Ackerman
CHICKERI Waiting on Kampala office** Fast Facts Right To Play Uganda 117,500 children participate in Right To Play programs every week in Uganda. 51% female participation rate. 1,589 local coaches have been trained to run Right To Play programs. 1. Form a circle with a leader in the middle. The leader will be calling out instructions for either the boys or the girls to turn around but it is tricky! The two phrases sound very similar so participants will have to listen closely. 2. The leader will start by tapping their hands on their knees to set the pace for the energizer. Everyone should follow doing the same thing. 3. Next, the leader will call out Chickeri! Chickeri! Participants will immediately follow with Iya. Repeat one more time. 4. Now it is time to mix it up. The leader can call out one of the phrases below to have either the girls or the boys turn around. 5. If the leader calls out Ibelokene esapat, it means that all the girls turn around and now have their backs facing the inside of the circle. 6. If the leader calls out Ibelokene asepe, it means that all the boys turn around and now have their backs facing the inside of the circle. 7. The leader is able to call out these two phrases as many times as they want, in whichever order they want. Just note that the leader must come back to Chickeri! Chickeri! with participants replying with Iya in between. 8. To end the energizer, the leader quickens the pace and starts to chant Airook aivak airook as they jump up and down very hard. The participants will follow and the energizer will end at the leader s discretion. Right To Play programs run in 186 schools and 61 community centers.
CRAZY EIGHTS Laura Thomas Coordinator of Educational Initiatives, Right To Play, Canada 1. This is a quick energizer in which you use your arms and legs to count down from 8, then 4, then 2, and then finally 1. 2. The leader should run through one round slowly so everyone can learn the energizer before you kick up the speed. 3. Start with your right arm above your head and move your hand quickly back and forth every time you say a number as you count down from 8. 4. Now do the same with your left arm. 5. Next, count down from 8 with your right leg, quickly shaking your foot back and forth every time you say a number. 6. Repeat with your left leg. 7. You have now completed 1 round! 8. Next, begin counting down from 4 in the same manner making sure to use all 4 limbs before you move on. 9. Once you have finished counting down from 4, move on to counting down from 2. 10. End by counting down from 1 and end with a big clap. This energizer is great because it is really high energy and it ends on such a high note. You almost feel the room vibrate when everyone comes together at the end.
TOSA TOSA Fanta Thera Coach Monitor, Right To Play, Mali Fast Facts Right To Play Mali 1. Organize participants into a circle. This is a name game so participants will be taking turns spelling their name during this energizer. 2. The leader begins by singing Ama tosa tosa tosa. Participants reply with: Tosa! 3. Once again the leader sings Ama tosa tosa tosa and the rest of the participants respond by saying Tosa! 4. Next, the leader will spell out their name (ex. Matt) in the following manner: I m a M I m a A I m a T I m a T ama tosa tosa tosa! Participants will respond by saying Tosa! 5. This is one run-through of the energizer. Participants will take turns being the leader and spelling their name out. 7. The game ends when all participants have had a chance to lead or at your discretion. Want To Change It Up? As the leader sings Ama tosa tosa tosa, they can also add a dance move that the participants will start to mimic until the next person takes the lead and starts the round again. 40, 721 children participate in Right To Play programs every week in Mali. 290 local coaches have been trained to run Right To Play programs Right To Play programs run in 226 schools and 26 community centers.
BOOM BOOM (DANS MA COEUR) Jean Adoho, Project Manager, Right To Play, Benin Fast Facts Right To Play Benin 1. This energizer will have participants moving along with the individual who leads the energizer. 2. The leader begins with Boom boom dans ma coeur. As they say this, the group brings their right hand in a fist to their chest beating like a heart. 3. Repeat this 3 more times, alternating the hand you bring to your chest each time. 4. Next, the leader says Vroom vroom dan ma hanche. As this is being said, the group puts their hands on their hips and rocks side to side. 5. Repeat this 3 more times. 6. You have now completed one round! 7. Run through steps 2 5 one more time to finish up the energizer. 109,394 children participate in Right To Play programs every week in Benin. 669 local coaches have been trained to run Right To Play programs. Right To Play programs run in 1,168 schools and youth centers.
I CATCH THE BALL Pacifique Niyibizi Country Monitoring, Evaluation and Training Officer, Right To Play, Rwanda Fast Facts Right To Play Rwanda 1. This energizer will have participants repeating after the leader. 2. Leaders start by saying I catch the ball and jumping to one side with their hands held high as if they were catching a ball. Participants then repeat the words and actions of the leader. 3. Next, the leader calls out I have the ball and lowers her/his hands as if they are holding a ball in front of their chest. Participants repeat the words and actions of the leader. 4. The leader then says I put it here as they bring the ball over to a part of their body (ie. shoulders, head, hips, etc.). Participants repeat and move their own ball to that part of their body. 5. Leaders then begin to roll that part of their body as they say I pépéta, I pépéta, I pépéta. Participants repeat the words and actions of the leader. 6. Leaders can choose to carry on with this energizer for as long as they would like, moving the ball to a different body part each time. 70,005 children participate in Right To Play programs every week in Rwanda. 1,082 local coaches have been trained to run Right To Play programs. Right To Play programs run in 88 schools and 8 community centers.
SHORT ON TIME? TRY THESE SPEEDY ENERGIZERS! BODY WRITING 1. Ask participants to write their names in the air with a specific part of their body. 2. The leader may choose to use for example, an elbow or a leg. 3. Continue in this manner until everyone has written his or her name with several body parts. HUCKLE-BUCKLE 1. Divide the group into 2 rows that stand facing each other with about 10 feet in between the two rows. 2. The person directly in front of you will be your partner. 3. A leader calls out two body parts, such hand to foot and the two partners must rush towards each other and join those 2 body parts. In this case, one partner would place their hand on their partner s foot. 4. If you yell out Switch!, the lines shuffle around and the participants now have new partners. 5. If you yell out Huckle-Buckle!, partners must stand back to back, lock arms, and sit down and stand up together. 6. The energizer ends at your discretion. WHAT HAS CHANGED? 1. Participants break into pairs. 2. Partners observe one another and try to memorize the appearance of the each other. 3. One partner turns their back while the other makes a single change to their appearance. For example, by removing one earring or untying a shoe lace. 4. Once the player has made the change, the partner turns back around and has 3 guesses to determine what changed. 5. The players then switch roles and repeat the game.
YELL OUT 1. Ask participants to form circles of 5-8 people. 2. Participants must all look at the ground as they count down as a group from 3. 3. When they reach 1, participants look up at eye level. If they look up and make eye contact with someone else, the two participants have a scream off. Usually more than one pair meets eyes so this game can get pretty loud and silly! 4. The winner of the scream off is determined by the one who can out last their partners yell using only one breath. 5. Once the scream off has ended, participants lower their heads and begin the game again. 6. The game ends at your discretion. ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS 1. Participants challenge one another to a game of rock, paper, scissors except there are a few changes to this traditional favourite that gets players up and moving. 2. When participants start a game, have them jump up as they call out rock, paper, scissors. 3. When it is time to show, have participants mime out their choice in the following manner: Rock: Bring one knee to your chest. Paper: Put your hands in the air and shake back and forth like a piece of paper blowing in the wind. Scissors: Put your arms out in front of you and move them together and apart as though they are a pair of scissors. 4. The loser of the round becomes part of their opponent s fan club and continues to follow around and cheer on that person. 5. If a person with a fan club loses, their opponent gains their support and their entire fan club. 6. The end result is 2 final opponents with groups of fans cheering them on to win it all. 7. This is when the game ends.
We are never more fully alive, more completely ourselves, or more deeply engrossed in anything than when we are playing. - Charles Schaefer