Snowball Toss

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Collect and share anonymous reflections on a specific topic without personal attribution.

Use it when: Use during retrospectives, debriefs, or mid-workshop reviews when you need honest perspectives or stressors brought into the room without putting individuals on the spot.

Skip it when: Skip when physical mobility or spatial limits make movement unsafe, or when tossing paper creates sensory overload or distress.

Group arrangement: Individual writing, whole-room movement and toss, followed by plenary reading and discussion

Timing: 15 minutes suggested by UWT to fit the source 5 to 15 minute band

Materials and tools

• One sheet of standard blank paper per participant
• One pen or pencil per participant
• One central collection basket or bin
• One visual countdown timer
• One whiteboard or flip chart and markers
• Digital whiteboard platform and participant devices (hybrid and remote only)

Before participants arrive

1. Clear a central floor space free of chairs, bags, and tripping hazards.
2. Place one sheet of paper and one pen at each seat.
3. Position a collection basket near the edge of the room.
4. For remote or hybrid sessions, configure an anonymous digital board column and test sharing permissions.

Say this to open

Take a sheet of paper and a pen. I will give you a single reflection prompt. Write one honest thought without adding your name. When you finish, crumple your sheet into a paper snowball.

How to run it

1. Write anonymous prompt response 3 minutes

   State the focus prompt clearly (for example: 'What is one recurring frustration you face on this project?'). Ask everyone to write one or two sentences without adding names or identifiable phrasing. Participants who prefer not to disclose anything may leave the paper blank or write 'pass'. When finished, participants crumple their paper into a compact ball.

2. Crumple and toss snowballs 2 minutes

   Invite everyone to stand facing the open center space. Anyone preferring not to throw or dodge can place their snowball into the central basket. Signal the start of the toss. Participants toss paper snowballs gently across the room, pick up any landing nearby, and toss them again for 20 to 30 seconds. Call time and direct each participant to pick up exactly one snowball from the floor or from the basket.

3. Unfurl and read aloud 6 minutes

   Participants return to their seats, smooth out their retrieved paper, and read it silently. If anyone picked up their own note, they may silently trade with a neighbor. In groups of 12 or fewer, go around the circle so each person reads the retrieved note aloud. In groups larger than 12, ask for 8 to 10 volunteers to read the note in their hands. Anyone holding a blank sheet or wishing to pass simply says 'pass' or hands the sheet to the facilitator to read.

4. Reflect on patterns 4 minutes

   Facilitate a brief whole-room reflection using the debrief questions. Record recurring themes and common patterns on the whiteboard or flip chart to guide next steps.

Debrief questions

• What common patterns or shared challenges showed up across the notes?
• What surprised you about the range of perspectives read aloud?
• What is one concrete change or next step we can make based on these shared thoughts?

Finished output: A spoken inventory of anonymous participant reflections and a whiteboard list of common group themes.

Remote

Set up an anonymous digital board where author names do not attach to notes. Each person posts one note onto the board. The facilitator scrambles the card positions and places a number on each card. For groups up to 12, call roll for each participant to select an unread number to read aloud from the screen. For groups over 12, invite 8 to 10 volunteers to pick numbers. Anyone who prefers not to read aloud may pass, or type a card number in chat for the facilitator to read.

Hybrid

To ensure equal anonymity across locations, use a digital whiteboard for all submissions. In-person and remote participants both enter their responses anonymously from their devices, bypassing physical paper tossing. The facilitator displays the board on the room screen and video feed, scrambles the cards, and numbers them. For the reading phase, alternate between in-person and remote volunteers who call out an unread number and read that card from the screen. The facilitator reads any card requested by participants who prefer to pass on speaking.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may leave their paper completely blank or write 'pass' to decline disclosing thoughts.
• Anyone who prefers not to throw or dodge paper may drop their snowball into the central basket and draw one out after the toss ends.
• Any participant may pass on reading aloud without explanation or ask the facilitator to read the note for them.

If the session gets stuck

A participant retrieves their own note from the floor.

Remind participants before opening notes that anyone who receives their own writing can silently trade with a neighbor.

The paper toss becomes excessively aggressive or chaotic.

Direct participants in advance to toss gently below shoulder level. Stop the round immediately if throws become reckless, and collect the snowballs into the central bin for blind drawing.

Terms used here

• Snowball: A single sheet of paper crumpled into a ball for physical randomization.