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

Help me prepare and run the exercise below. First ask for my participant count, time, setting, access needs and intended result. Check these against the stated limits. Use the supplied rules and materials. Explain any proposed changes before using them, and label them as adaptations. Do not invent source claims or require personal disclosure. Give me one step at a time when I say start. I manage the people, physical activity and clock; do not claim to observe the room. Ask me what happened before choosing a next step.

Reference revision: 579459016c871e0902ed664b80432a8db44b2208747fdbf10c64d15503ff6648

# Moving Box

Participants form four lines to create a box around the facilitator, track their positions relative to the facilitator, and reform their exact formation whenever the facilitator moves and stops.

**Time:** 10 minutes. Source suggests a quick energizer; 10 minutes fits setup, practice rounds, and a brief debrief.
**People:** 8 to 24. Four equal or near-equal lines facing inward toward the facilitator

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Re-energize a group through active movement and spatial coordination.
**Use it when:** Use during a post-lunch slump or after prolonged sitting to get people on their feet.
**Skip it when:** Skip if the room lacks open floor space or if multiple participants prefer not to engage in rapid physical movement.

## Materials and tools

- None required; optional floor tape markers if boundaries are unclear

## Before participants arrive

1. Clear a large open space free of tripping hazards, chairs, and tables.

## Say this to open

We will divide into four teams to form a human box around me. Each side faces me and memorizes who is on their left and right. When I move, you freeze. When I stop, your team must race to rebuild your side of the box in the exact same orientation relative to me.

## How to run it

### 1. Form the box (2 minutes)

Count the room off by fours into four teams. Direct each team to pick a distinct completion signal (such as clapping twice or shouting a word). Position the four lines facing inward to form a square around you: one line facing your front, one facing your back, one to your left side, and one to your right side. Tell everyone to memorize their exact order and neighbors.

### 2. Explain rules and test signals (1 minutes)

Remind participants: while you are moving, they must freeze in place. When you come to a complete stop, all four teams must reposition themselves to recreate the box. If team 1 was facing your front, they must face your front again in the same line order. When a line is fully assembled, they perform their team signal.

### 3. Run movement rounds (5 minutes)

Move to a new spot in the room and stop. Teams scramble to reset their formation. Note which team sounds their signal first with their line correctly ordered. Run three to five quick variations: step far away, weave through the room, or pivot ninety degrees in place without moving your feet.

### 4. Debrief (2 minutes)

Bring the whole group to a stop. Ask two brief reflection questions and invite two or three volunteers to answer before returning to the main agenda.


## Debrief questions

- What helped your line stay in the correct order when everyone was moving?
- How did your team adjust when my orientation flipped?

**Finished output:** A fully energized group that has completed several rounds of spatial realignment.

## Remote

Moving Box relies entirely on shared physical space and body orientation relative to a central person. It cannot run effectively in standard video meetings without turning into an unrelated digital puzzle. For remote teams seeking a quick movement energizer, run a camera-based game like Simon Says or a rapid object scavenger hunt instead.

## Hybrid

Hybrid play is not recommended for this mechanic because remote participants cannot share the physical geometry or line ordering. If required, have an in-person facilitator run the movement game with room participants while a remote co-facilitator leads an off-screen stretch or rapid chat challenge for remote attendees.

## Access and participation choices

- Participants who prefer not to run can walk briskly or act as side judges who verify line order and signal speed.
- Anyone can opt out by taking the judge role or observing without needing to explain why.

## If the session gets stuck

**Participants collide while rushing across the room.**

Enforce a walking-only rule and remind everyone to watch their path before moving.

**Uneven team sizes leave one line with more people.**

Extra participants join any line; the line order rule remains the same as long as everyone stays next to their assigned neighbors.


## Sources and adaptation

Observed in Teampedia (entry 'Moving box', 2008).

Retained the core mechanic from Teampedia: four teams forming a box around the facilitator, freezing during motion, racing to realign upon stopping, and using team signals. Added explicit timing, group limits, walking safety rules, active judge roles for accessibility, and debrief questions.

[Teampedia](https://www.teampedia.net/wiki/Moving_box)

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/moving-box/