Speech Bubbles

Choose this exercise

Purpose: Collect and review participant reactions to key training takeaways using prompt stations around the room.

Use it when: Use at the end of a training session or workshop module to review core concepts and get participants on their feet.

Skip it when: Skip when the meeting room lacks sufficient wall perimeter or walking space for people to circulate comfortably.

Group arrangement: Individual note-taking, open browsing, followed by whole-room discussion

Timing: Suggested 15-minute UWT duration fits the 5 to 15 minute band from source records.

Materials and tools

• 3 flipchart pages, each with a large hand-drawn speech bubble and a written prompt
• Wall-safe tape or adhesive putty
• 1 pad of sticky notes (3x3 inch) per 4 participants
• 1 medium-point marker per participant
• Digital whiteboard tool (such as Miro, Mural, or Google Slides) if running remote or hybrid sessions
• Room projector and laptop if running hybrid sessions

Before participants arrive

1. Prepare 3 course-relevant prompts in advance, one for each speech bubble.
2. Draw a large speech bubble outline on each of the 3 flipchart pages.
3. Write one clear prompt inside each bubble (for example: 'The most useful technique today was...', 'One practical challenge I anticipate is...', 'A rule of thumb I will apply immediately is...').
4. Tape the 3 charts on the walls at standing height with ample walking space between them.
5. Place pads of sticky notes and markers at participant tables.

Say this to open

Around the room, you will see 3 speech bubbles with statements about the topics we covered today. Take a pad of sticky notes and a pen. Write down your reactions, questions, or examples, and stick them directly onto the matching bubbles.

How to run it

1. Explain task 2 minutes

   Introduce the activity using the opening script. Direct attention to the 3 speech bubble posters positioned around the room. Distribute sticky notes and markers.

2. Write and post 4 minutes

   Participants independently write brief reactions, takeaways, or answers to the statements on sticky notes. For example, on a bubble stating 'A rule of thumb I will apply immediately is...', a participant might write 'Check assumptions before replying'. Participants walk to the posters and press their notes onto the relevant charts. Anyone who prefers to stay seated may hand notes to a neighbor to post.

3. Review posters 6 minutes

   Invite everyone to stand and walk as a whole room to the first speech bubble poster. Spend exactly 2 minutes at each of the 3 posters. At each stop, read a sample of two or three sticky notes out loud. Invite one or two volunteers to explain their note or share a quick reaction, then move together to the next poster.

4. Debrief learning 3 minutes

   Ask the debrief questions to close the session while standing near the final poster or after returning to seats. Take up to 2 brief responses per question.

Debrief questions

• Which responses showed the most agreement across the room?
• What is one practical habit from these charts you want to use next week?

Finished output: 3 prompt charts covered in participant sticky notes summarizing course takeaways and reflections

Remote

Set up a shared digital whiteboard with 3 speech bubble frames containing the prompt statements. Give participants 4 minutes to type digital sticky notes onto the frames, 2 minutes to read silently, and 6 minutes total for the facilitator to review all 3 frames on the call, reading two sample notes and hearing one volunteer per frame. Finish with the 3-minute debrief.

Hybrid

In-room participants write on physical sticky notes while remote participants type onto matching frames on a shared digital whiteboard. A designated co-facilitator copies remote notes onto physical sticky notes, and projects the shared digital whiteboard in the room. In-room and remote participants take turns sharing during the poster review.

Access and participation choices

• Participants may write notes while seated and have a neighbor post them, or simply read the charts from their seat.
• Writing and posting are optional; participants may observe quietly or share verbally during the gallery walk.

If the session gets stuck

Participants bunch up at one speech bubble poster, creating a bottleneck.

Remind people that they do not have to visit posters in sequential order; direct individuals to open stations.

Notes are written too small to read during the whole-room review.

Read the notes aloud yourself rather than expecting people in the back to read small handwriting from a distance.

Terms used here

• gallery walk: A brief, structured review where the whole room walks together to look at posted work on walls.