Entry Ticket

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Collect immediate baseline thoughts or recall from participants at arrival to direct the opening discussion.

Use it when: Use at the start of a session or workshop module to review prior material, check preparation, or connect the upcoming topic to personal experience.

Skip it when: Skip when the session start requires open social mingling, spontaneous physical movement, or when participants arrive at widely staggered times.

Group arrangement: Individual writing followed by whole-group sharing

Timing: Based on the 5 to 15 minute range observed in classroom warm-up techniques.

Materials and tools

• One printed entry slip per participant (or index cards)
• Pens or pencils for all participants
• A visible whiteboard, flip chart, or slide displaying the prompt
• A collection basket or tray placed near the entrance

Before participants arrive

1. Print or write out entry slips and place them by the entrance in a consistent spot.
2. Display the prompt clearly on the board or screen before doors open.

Say this to open

Welcome in. Grab a slip from the table by the door, take a seat, and write down your answer to the prompt on the screen. You have four minutes to capture your thoughts before we open up.

How to run it

1. Pick up and write 4 minutes

   Participants collect their entry ticket upon entering, sit down, and write their response to the prompt individually. Example prompt: 'Name one key obstacle your team faces when adopting new tools, and why.' The facilitator tracks time and gives a one-minute warning.

2. Collect or swap 1 minutes

   Participants finish writing. Depending on chosen debrief format, they either keep their slip on the desk, place it in the collection basket, or turn to a neighbor.

3. Share initial samples 3 minutes

   Facilitator calls on two to three volunteers to share what they wrote, or reads three random anonymous cards from the collection basket aloud to sample the room's starting point.

4. Debrief and bridge 2 minutes

   Facilitator asks one debrief question to link common themes from the tickets to the agenda for the day, then transitions into the main session.

Debrief questions

• What common theme did you hear across the responses shared?
• How does your response connect to our goal for today?

Finished output: Completed entry slips detailing individual starting baselines and a shared verbal summary of room trends.

Remote

Display the prompt on the title slide as people join the video call. Ask participants to type their answers into a private direct message to the facilitator or submit via an anonymous digital form. The facilitator reads two or three responses aloud to start.

Hybrid

In-person attendees fill out paper slips or use a shared online form. Remote attendees submit through the same online form. The facilitator reads one contribution from each group to maintain balance.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may write bullet points, sketch diagrams, or dictate their answer verbally to a partner.
• Anyone may mark their paper slip as private or decline to share aloud without explanation.

If the session gets stuck

Late arrivals enter after the writing time has started.

Direct them to take a slip, read the board, and write down their immediate reaction in the remaining time without interrupting the room.

Participants write lengthy essays and run out of time.

Specify a constraint on the prompt, such as 'limit your answer to one or two complete sentences.'

Terms used here

• Bell Ringer: An educational term for a short activity completed immediately when entering the classroom before direct instruction begins.