Taxi
Call a number. That many people have to be in a taxi together, right now.
You call a number and everyone has to be in a group of exactly that size immediately. It sorts and resorts a room in seconds and the scramble is the whole thing — nobody wants to be the one left over, so a room of strangers grabs each other quite happily.
Everybody moving. When I call a number, get into a group of exactly that many people as fast as you can — that's your taxi. Anyone left over waits for the next one. Nobody is ever out.
A room needs mixing fast and you will want groups of a particular size at the end anyway.
Props: None
Run this when…
If none of these is your room, pick another.Mixing a room before splitting it into teams
A high-energy opener with space to move
Any session where you need groups of four later
How to run it
Written to be glanced at mid-room, not memorised.
- Everyone up and moving around the space.
- Call a number. Groups of exactly that size form immediately.
- Anyone left over waits for the next call — say clearly they are not out.
- Call again quickly with a different number and keep them moving between.
- Use awkward numbers — three, seven, five — so the groups genuinely have to break up.
- Finish on the group size you actually need for the next activity.
Running it well
Only the host sees these. Participants never do.
- Finishing on the size you need is the trick. The room does not notice it has just been split into teams, and you have saved yourself two minutes of counting off.
- Say the leftovers are not out before the first call. Otherwise the person left over on round one stops trying.
- Awkward numbers force real breakups. Calling four then eight lets the same people stay together the whole time.
Watch out for
Space, safety and the traps worth knowing before you start.
- People grab each other by the arm in the scramble. Say link arms or stand close rather than pulling anyone.
- It needs floor space to move. In a tight room, run it as groups formed by standing rather than walking.
- Being left over repeatedly is miserable. Watch for it and fix the numbers rather than letting it happen twice to the same person.
Seated version
“Everybody stand up” is not a neutral instruction. Offer this alongside, not instead.
Groups form by turning chairs together rather than walking. Slower, but the sorting works and nobody has to stand.
Run it yourself
Free for thirty days, no card. Put it on the projector and step through it — nobody in the room needs a phone.
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- Where
- Needs a room
- Props
- None
- Big screen
- Required
- Teams
- Individual only