# Pairs Compass Walk

Partners take turns picking a distant landmark, closing their eyes or using a soft downward gaze, and walking toward it while a sighted partner spots. Pairs observe natural directional drift and discuss orientation cues.

**Time:** 15 minutes. UWT facilitation plan based on the 5 to 15 minute band in source records
**People:** 4 to 24. Pairs (or one trio with one walker and two spotters if total attendance is odd)

## Choose this exercise

**Purpose:** Observe directional drift when walking without visual landmarks while maintaining partner safety.
**Use it when:** Outdoor sessions or large open indoor halls where participants examine sensory awareness, perception, and partner support.
**Skip it when:** Small or cluttered rooms, uneven outdoor surfaces with trip hazards, or groups where ambulatory navigation without sight causes discomfort.

## Materials and tools

- Optional blindfolds or sleep masks (1 per pair)
- 4 field cones or boundary markers

## Before participants arrive

1. Identify a level, open area at least 50 meters long free of holes, curbs, low branches, and traffic.
2. Place 4 cones to designate the safe outer boundary rectangle.

## Say this to open

Find a partner. One person chooses a distant object roughly 50 meters away, closes their eyes, and attempts to walk in a straight line toward it. The other person acts as spotter, walking alongside silently to monitor safety. If you see immediate danger or a boundary, call 'Stop'. Do not steer your partner out of harmless drift, because observing that drift is the point. Closing your eyes is optional; looking down at your feet works too.

## How to run it

### 1. Pair Up and Set Rules (3 minutes)

Form pairs. With an odd total, form one trio with one walker and two spotters. Partners decide who walks first. Agree on a firm stop word, such as 'Stop'. Touch is never used for steering. Verbal stops or physical halts happen only to prevent collisions with obstacles or boundaries, allowing all safe drift to happen naturally.

### 2. Walk Toward Landmark (4 minutes)

Walker 1 picks an object roughly 50 meters away, squares their shoulders, and closes their eyes or watches their shoes. Walker 1 steps forward at a steady pace. The spotter walks silently alongside to track the path. The spotter calls 'Stop' only if Walker 1 nears an obstacle or perimeter. Walker 1 halts upon feeling they arrived, then opens their eyes to check their location.

### 3. Swap Roles and Walk (4 minutes)

Partners swap roles. For a trio, the next person walks while the others spot. Walker 2 chooses a new target across the space. Walker 2 closes their eyes or looks downward and steps forward. The new spotter tracks them silently, speaking only for actual hazards. Walker 2 halts when they believe they have arrived, then opens their eyes to view their drift.

### 4. Debrief Drift Observations (4 minutes)

Reconvene the full group at the center line. Ask 2 or 3 volunteers to describe their drift pattern and what physical cues caused them to veer. Review how spotters balanced safety intervention with letting their partner experience drift.


## Debrief questions

- When you opened your eyes, how far was your stopping point from your intended target?
- What physical sensations or environment cues made you think you were walking straight?
- How did it feel as a spotter to stay silent and allow your partner to veer off course safely?

**Finished output:** Completed walking trials with observed drift patterns and partner feedback.

## Remote

This physical locomotion exercise cannot run identically online. For a labeled digital alternative on motor drift called Blind Cursor Navigation: share a whiteboard screen featuring a single centered bullseye icon. Participants memorize the icon location, close their eyes, move their mouse cursor toward where they believe the bullseye sits, click once to drop a sticky note or mark, and open their eyes to inspect their cursor drift.

## Hybrid

In-person participants complete the outdoor compass walk in pairs. Remote participants run the Blind Cursor Navigation alternative on a shared digital whiteboard. Both groups reconvene in the main virtual meeting room for the final 4-minute debrief to compare sensory drift results.

## Access and participation choices

- Participants may look straight down at their shoes instead of wearing a blindfold or closing their eyes.
- Anyone preferring not to walk can serve as a static perimeter spotter or drift recorder without giving a reason.

## If the session gets stuck

**Walkers drift quickly toward neighboring pairs or safety boundaries.**

Spotters say 'Stop' firmly to freeze motion, confirm clear space, and prompt the walker to resume their line.

**A walker feels dizzy or loses equilibrium with closed eyes.**

Remind walkers to pause, open their eyes, regain footing, and proceed using a soft downward gaze focused on the turf.


## Terms used here

- Directional drift: The natural tendency of a human body to veer to the left or right when moving without visual reference points.
- Spotter: A sighted partner who stays beside a moving person to ensure physical safety and prevent collisions.

## Sources and adaptation

Observed in Playmeo catalog where it is attributed to Mark Collard.

Preserved the Playmeo mechanic of walking 50 meters toward an object with closed eyes under sighted peer supervision. UWT structured standard 15-minute pacing, established boundary marker usage, added an explicit prohibition on non-safety steering so drift can be observed, provided clear rules for odd-numbered groups, and added a labeled digital alternative for remote settings.

[Playmeo](https://www.playmeo.com/activities/team-building-problem-solving-activities/pairs-compass-walk/)

[Playmeo](https://www.playmeo.com/activities/team-building-problem-solving-activities/pairs-compass-walk)

Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/partner-trust-building-activity-for-teams-pairs-compass-walk/