Hog Call

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Locate a partner across an active, noisy room using only acoustic signals and directional listening.

Use it when: Use in a spacious, unobstructed room during team retreats or active warmups to examine how pairs maintain communication amid background noise.

Skip it when: Skip if the room has trip hazards, steps, or hard furniture that cannot be moved, or if participants need a quiet, low-stimulus environment.

Group arrangement: Pairs; if an odd number is present, three people form a trio or one person serves as safety spotter.

Timing: Based on the 5 to 15 minute range in source records, set to 15 minutes to allow setup, safety briefing, paired runs, and debrief.

Materials and tools

• Floor tape or cones to mark opposite boundary lines
• A countdown timer or stopwatch

Before participants arrive

1. Clear all chairs, bags, and obstacles from the center of the room to provide a flat, open space.
2. Mark two parallel starting lines on opposite sides of the room with floor tape or cones.

Say this to open

Find a partner. Together, pick an animal and the exact sound it makes, like a cow's moo or a sheep's baa. Make sure no other pair picks the same sound. Then you will stand on opposite sides of the room, close your eyes, raise your hands as bumpers, and navigate toward each other using only your calls.

How to run it

1. Select animals and assign sounds 3 minutes

   Ask participants to form pairs. If one person is left over, they can form a trio sharing the same sound or volunteer as a sighted safety spotter. Each team chooses a unique animal and tests their call out loud. The facilitator goes around the room to confirm that no two pairs share the same sound.

2. Set boundaries and position players 3 minutes

   Direct one partner from each pair to Line A and the other to Line B on the opposite side of the room. Review the safety posture: elbows bent, palms facing forward at chest level (bumpers up) to cushion contact. Instruct players to turn their backs, take three steps sideways along their line to mix their positions, close their eyes or keep a soft downward gaze, and wait for the start cue.

3. Call and reunite 5 minutes

   Call out 'Go.' Participants turn toward the center of the room with eyes closed and begin walking slowly while repeating their animal call. Sighted spotters and the facilitator watch for potential collisions. When partners meet and make gentle hand contact, they open their eyes, step to the boundary line, and watch remaining pairs finish.

4. Debrief listening and signal recognition 4 minutes

   Gather the full group to discuss how pairs picked out their partner's voice against the surrounding room noise. Invite two to three participants to share responses to the reflection questions.

Debrief questions

• How did you isolate your partner's specific call once everyone started making noise at the same time?
• What adjustments did you make to your tempo, volume, or pauses when you lost track of the sound?
• How did removing visual cues change how quickly you trusted your direction?

Finished output: Every pair successfully reunites at the center of the room using audio cues, or identifies when to pause and request visual orientation.

Remote

This physical locating activity cannot run directly in video conferencing because physical navigation is the core mechanic. For an analogous remote listening challenge labeled as a separate exercise, run 'Audio Echo': all participants turn off cameras and mute microphones. One pair unmutes. Partner A makes a short vocal pattern (rhythm or animal call) every three seconds. Partner B matches the pitch and cadence until both reach sync, after which the next pair takes a turn.

Hybrid

In hybrid settings, run Hog Call only among the in-person group. Remote participants act as sighted spotters via high-angle room webcams, calling out 'Freeze' if any in-person pair heads toward a wall or hazard.

Access and participation choices

• Participants uncomfortable closing their eyes may keep eyes open with a direct downward gaze at their own shoes.
• Participants uncomfortable making animal sounds may use a clapping pattern, snapped fingers, or spoken numbers.
• Anyone may opt out of moving and serve as a designated room spotter.

If the session gets stuck

Two pairs pick the same sound, creating confusion in the middle.

During the initial sound check in Step 1, require the second pair to pick a distinct animal or change their vocal inflection.

Participants walk too quickly with eyes closed and risk colliding.

Remind the room before starting that movement must be at a deliberate shuffling pace. Call 'Pause' to halt the room if speed gets unsafe, then resume.

Terms used here

• Bumpers up: A physical safety stance where forearms are raised vertically at chest height with open palms facing outward to absorb contact before body impact.