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Exercises/Relationship Mapping/Around the World
Relationship Mapping

Around the World

Around the World is a relationship mapping exercise that helps participants build useful connections and understand how people, roles, or ideas relate.

5 to 15 minutesTIME
Pairs, Small group (4-8)GROUP SIZE
ActiveENERGY
In person, RemoteSETTING
High cognitive loadCOGNITIVE LOAD
Strengthens Network Design This relationship mapping exercise strengthens Network Design, one of the eight Gathering Effectiveness pillars.

How to run it

  1. Line players up behind first cone/chalk mark.
  2. After this player misses, s/he rebounds the ball, passes it to the next player in line, and goes to the end of the line.
  3. On each player's second, third, etc. turn, that player returns to the last place s/he attempted a basket and continues as before from that spot.
  4. A player is finished when s/he has successfully made baskets all the way around the court. This player may begin again from the first spot.
  5. 1+20-40 mins Map (Optional) ← Back to all Activities Setup If possible, prepare a map that you can project/stick on the board.
  6. This can be used to help students plan and for illustration purposes during presentations.
  7. In class, divide the students into groups of two or three.
  8. Optionally, you could introduce the activity with a video clip/trailer from the movie ‘Around The World in Eighty Days‘.
Live facilitator

Run this exercise live

The facilitator console stays in this browser. Its QR handoff is a short-lived participant snapshot containing only public exercise instructions, phase, prompt, and timer state.

Prompts to use +

On each player's second, third, etc. turn, that player returns to the last place s/he attempted a basket and continues as before from that spot.

A player is finished when s/he has successfully made baskets all the way around the court. This player may begin again from the first spot.

1+20-40 mins Map (Optional) ← Back to all Activities Setup If possible, prepare a map that you can project/stick on the board.

Run this with your AI assistant +

Works with Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, or your own local model: paste this prompt and your AI will co-facilitate this exercise with you.

Adapt this exercise for my exact room. Exercise: Around the World. Readiness: Publishable Draft. Core moves: On each player's second, third, etc. turn, that player returns to the last place s/he attempted a basket and continues as before from that spot.; A player is finished when s/he has successfully made baskets all the way around the court. This player may begin again from the first spot.; 1+20-40 mins Map (Optional) ← Back to all Activities Setup If possible, prepare a map that you can project/stick on the board.. Return a concise facilitator script with timing, wording, safety notes, and remote/in-person adjustments.

Origin unverified

  • Where we observed it: The strongest current observations come from Playworks; aggregators are listed as additional observations, not origin proof. (2 sources observed, including Playworks, ESL Active.)
  • What that means: we track where an exercise has been observed in public sources. We do not claim to know who created it, or how popular it is.
  • No efficacy claims: appearing in this library is not a claim that the exercise is proven effective. Facilitator judgment and context decide whether it works for a given room.
  • Corrections: if you have evidence of an earlier or more accurate source, read our methodology and trust boundary and tell us.

Pairs well with