Brainteasers

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• LISTENING TEST: RIDDLES
• COUNT THE F’S
• GOLF BALL IN THE BAG
• THE “IX” EXERCISE
• HOW SHARP ARE YOU?
• PLEASE PASS THE PROBLEMS
• BASKET
• HIDDEN BIRDS

LISTENING TEST: RIDDLES

Objective:

• To introduce a session on listening or on communications by showing that few of us really are good listeners.  By the use of a humourous, light exercise such as these riddles, the participants are quickly shown that their own skills in listening can be improved.

Ask the group to take a sheet of paper and number from 1-10 on it.  Tell them you are going to ask them a series of questions, all of which have short answers.  They are to simply jot down their responses on their sheets.  Read each question only ONCE.

Now check their answers (see key below).  Ask, “How many said ‘yes’ for #1?  How many said ‘no’?”  (A few chuckles will prompt the group that something may be wrong.)  Then read the questions again, providing them with the appropriate commentary.  Repeat the process for the nine other questions.

1. There’s no law against a man’s marrying is widow’s sister, but it would be the neatest trick of the week.  To have a widow, he would have to be dead.

2. You’d get one hour’s sleep.  Alarm clocks don’t know the difference between morning and night.

3. Oh, yes.  They have a 4th of July in England.  They also have a 5th and a 6th and so on.

4. First of all, you’d light a match.

5. Moses took no animals at all.  It was Noah who took two of each.

6. Who said the Yankees and the Tigers were playing against each other in those games!

7. The average man has one birthday!  So does the average woman.  All the rest are birthday anniversaries.  In fact, in France “birthdays” are known as “anniversaries”.

8. You can’t bury survivors under any law – especially if they still have enough strength to object!

9. The archeologist is a liar because B.C., of course, means “Before Christ,” and who could have guessed in advance when Christ was born?

10. The bear who rang the doorbell would have to be a white bear.  The only place you could build a house with four southern exposures is the North Pole, where every direction is South.

Discussion Questions:

• How many did you get right/wrong?
• Why didn’t you get  a perfect score?
• Why is listening called an active process?

Riddles to read to the group

Approximate Time Required:

10 minutes

1. Is there any federal law against a man’s marrying his widow’s sister?

2. If you went to bed at eight o’clock at night and set the clock to wake you up at nine, how many hours of sleep would you
    get?

3. Do they have a 4th of July in England?

4. If you only had one match and entered a cold room that had a kerosene lamp, an oil heater, and a wood stove, which would
    you light first for maximum heat?

5. How many animals of each species did Moses take aboard the Ark with him during the great flood?

6. The Yankees and the Tigers play 5 baseball games.  They each win 3 games.  No ties or disputed games are involved.
    How come?

7. How many birthdays does the average man have?  The average woman?

8. According to International Law, if an airplane should crash on the exact border between two countries, would unidentified
    survivors be buried in the country they were traveling to, or the country they were traveling from?

9. An archaeologist claims he has dug up a coin that is clearly dated 46 B.C.  Why is he a liar?

10. A man builds an ordinary house with four sides, except that each side has a southern exposure.  A bear comes to the door
      and rings the doorbell.  What colour is the bear?

SOURCE:
Newstrom, John W. and Scannell, Edward E.  (1980)  Games Trainers Play
New York: McGraw Hill Book Company  pp.219

COUNT THE F’S

Objective:

• To illustrate that people see what they want to see; items of prominence catch our attention while seemingly less important items may pass by.

Pass out face-down copies of the following page to the group.  When everyone is ready, ask them to turn the paper over and simply count how many times the letter “f” appears on their sheet.  Allow only a minute, and then ask, “How many of you have the sheet with the 3 F’s?”  (Roughly half the group can be expected to so indicate.)  “Who has 4 F’s on their sheet? … How about 5? … Does anyone have 6?”   (About 50% of the group will only see 3 F’s, and approximately 10% will see all 6 F’s.  The rest see either 4 or 5 on the sheet.)

Ask those with 4, 5. or 6 F’s on their sheets to raise their hands and let those with 3 F’s exchange papers so they can “see” all 6 F’s.  Most will still have a difficult time identifying all 6 of the F’s.

Discussion Questions:
 

• Why couldn’t all of us initially see all 6 F’s?  (The F in the word  “of” sounds like a “V”.)
• Have you observed situations where only the important things get attention?  Who decides what’s important?
• How can we persuade people to pay attention to detail?  Is  it always important?

Materials Required:

Paper with the count the F’s exercise on it (see below).

Approximate Time Required:

5 – 10 minutes

Exercise:
 

COUNT THE F’S

FEATURE FILMS ARE THE RE-
SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTI-
FIC STUDY COMBINED WITH
THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS.

SOURCE:
Newstrom, John W. and Scannell, Edward E.  (1980)  Games Trainers Play
New York: McGraw Hill Book Company  pp.233

GOLF BALL IN THE BAG

Objective:

• To stimulate participants to learn new ways of thinking.

Taking  a reverse perspective from the ordinary (standing the problem on its head).

Procedure:

Relate the following incident to the participants:

It was the 16th hole in the annual Bob Hope Desert Classic, and the tall, handsome newcomer had an excellent chance of winning.  His iron shot fell just short of the green, giving him a good chance for a birdie.  Smiling broadly, he strode down the fairway only to stop in dismay.  His ball had rolled into a small paper bag carelessly tossed on the ground by someone in the gallery.

If he removed the ball from the bag, it would cost him a penalty stroke.  If he tried to hit the ball and the bag, he would lose control over the shot.  What should he do?

• What are the ways in which we would try to solve the problem?
• What is the common element in our approaches?  (Ask them to state the problem.  It will probably be to “get the ball out of the bag.”)
• What is an alternative way to state the problem (get the bag away from the ball)?  Disclose the answer (set fire to the bag).
• What are some areas in which such a principle (reversing the typical approach) could help us solve problems?

None, although a golf ball, paper sack, and matches would add realism to the illustration.

Approximate Time Required:

10 minutes

SOURCE:
Newstrom, John W. and Scannell, Edward E.  (1980)  Games Trainers Play
New York: McGraw Hill Book Company  pp.251

THE “IX” EXERCISE

Objective:

• To illustrate that problem-solving may not be as difficult as it initially may seem.

Draw the symbol “IX” on the chalkboard or flipchart .  Ask the group members to make a 6 (six) out of the symbol with the use of only one line.

The correct answer is SIX.

Most people will assume the answer would be more difficult and are surprised to see such a simple solution.  Further, most in the audience will assume the answer would have to do with the Roman numeral IX (9) and therefore will find it difficult to see another kind of solution.

• How many interpreted the IX to be the Roman numeral for “9”?
• What is the impact of our assumption about the nature of a problem?
• What lessons for problem-solving and creativity can we draw from this exercise?

Chalkboard, flipchart, or handout using a large “IX” figure on the page.

Time Required:

5 minutes

SOURCE:
Newstrom, John W. and Scannell, Edward E.  (1980)  Games Trainers Play
New York: McGraw Hill Book Company  pp.255

HOW SHARP ARE YOU?

Objectives:

• To encourage participants to read carefully, and to search for hidden wrinkles that disguise simplistic answers; to stimulate participants to be alert to tiny details and assumptions that hold the key to success.

Present the How Sharp Are You? quiz to the group, allowing a very tight time limit (e.g., 3 minutes).  See quiz below.

Before you present the correct answers to them, ask how many had the (most likely) incorrect answer for each one (e.g., 4 [September, April, June, and November] for #2; 11 for #3). Then present the answers to them, and lead a discussion.

1. 1 hour, 45 minutes.

2. 11 months (all but February).

3. 7 pigs lived.

4. 157 (3 x 50, +7).

5. 10 (9 fielders + 1 batter); 13 (9 + 1 batter + 3 base runners). Add 1 if you count the on-deck batter.

6. "In God We Trust," or "United States of America.

7. Two hours (now, + 4 half-hours).

8. The match.

9. They aren't playing each other.

10. "Mispelled" is misspelled.

Discussion Questions:

• What factors caused you to err?
• How might those factors affect your work performance?
• What can you do to control such factors?

Transparency or handout of the How Sharp Are You? quiz.

Approximate Time Needed:

10-15 minutes.
 
 

QUIZ - How Sharp Are You?

1. Being very tired, a child went to bed at 7:00 o'clock at night. The child
had a morning piano lesson, and therefore wound and set the alarm clock
to ring at 8:45. How many hours and minutes of sleep could the child get?

2. Some months (like October) have 31 days. Only February has precisely
28 (except in a leap year). How many months have 30 days?

3. A farmer had 18 pigs, and all but 7 died. How many were left?

4. Divide 50 by 1/3, and add 7. What is the answer?

5. What is the minimum number of active baseball players on the playing
field during any part of an inning? Maximum?

6. What four words appear on every denomination of U.S. currency?

7. If a physician gave you 5 pills and told you to take 1 every half-hour,
how long would your supply last?

8. If you had only one match and entered a cold, dimly-lit room where
there was a kerosene lamp, an oil heater, and a wood-burning stove, which
would you light first?

9. Two women play checkers. They play five games without a draw game
and each woman wins the same number of games. How can this be?

10. What word is mispelled in this test?

 SOURCE:
McGraw-Hill Trainer’s Toolchest.  Date online not available
Internet.  Accessed date: July 17, 2000
Available URL: http://www.pbg.mcgraw-hill.com/training/toolchest/games.html

PLEASE PASS THE PROBLEMS

Objective:

• To obtain several possible solutions or suggestions for the participants' current challenges or problems.

Ask the participants to form groups of 6-8 people in a circle or around tables. Each person is asked to think about a current job-related problem or concern. Each person writes his or her problem on a blank sheet of paper or on a notepad. Examples might be, "How can I get more group involvement?" or, "How can I get my staff to be more punctual?"

After allowing a few minutes to think about and write out their problems, ask each person to pass his or her problem to the right. That person reads the problem just received and jots down the first thought(s) that come to mind in addressing that problem. Allow 30 seconds to respond to that individual sheet.

Repeat this process every 30 seconds, and keep the process going until each person gets his or her own sheet back. Time permitting, participants can then discuss some of the more practical solutions offered.

• Did anyone discover novel solutions that you had not previously considered?
• Can you see any value in trying some of these suggestions?
• Do some of these suggestions trigger other ideas or solutions for you?
• What lesson does this teach us about reaching out to others for their assistance?

Paper, notepads, and pencils.

Approximate Time Needed:

10-15 minutes.

SOURCE:
McGraw-Hill Trainer’s Toolchest.  Date online not available
Internet.  Accessed date: July 17, 2000
Available URL: http://www.pbg.mcgraw-hill.com/training/toolchest/games.html

BASKET

Activity Summary:

• This exercise asks the participants to create words that begin and end with specific letters.  This icebreaker is effective at any time during the learning program.

Approximately 10 to 15 minutes.

Group Size:

Unlimited

Space Required:

A room that provides adequate writing space for all participants.  The area must be large enough to accommodate the comfortable seating of  the group members.

Material Needed:

For each participant a pencil and a piece of paper with the word “basket” written on it in both correct and reverse orders.

B        T
A        E
S        K
K        S
E        A
T        B

The group leader then explains that the participants are to form words that begin and end  with the letters that are across from each other.  For example: The first letters across are “B” and “T: so a word might be “BeeT.”  The longer the word the better.  For example: “BeeT” is better than “BaT”.

When group members have all formed  words from each of the letter combinations across, the trainer solicits a volunteer to share his or her words with the entire group.

The exercise continues until all of the participants have shared their words.

The participant who uses the most letters in creating his or her words is declared the winner.

The trainer may request that the participants form pairs.  The partners then compete against each other, with one point awarded to the person who forms the longest word for each letter.

The group leader may divide the participants into two teams that are to compete against each other to form the longest word for each letter combination.

SOURCE:

Forbess-Greene, Sue.  (1983)  The Encyclopedia of Icebreakers
San Diego, CA: University Associates Inc.   pp. 139

HIDDEN BIRDS

Activity Summary:

• This exercise asks the participants to find birds’ names that have been hidden in sentences.  This icebreaker is effective at any time during the learning program.

Approximately 5 to 10 minutes.

Group Size:

Unlimited

Space Required:

A room that is large enough to accommodate the comfortable seating of participants.

Material Needed:

For each participant, a pencil and a copy of the Hidden Birds list (see below)

Trainer Administration:

The trainer gives each group member a pencil and a copy of the Hidden Birds List.

The group leader then explains that the participants will be playing a game that requires a sharp eye.  Buried in each of the sentences is the name of a bird.  The letters of the birds’ name appear in order of the sentences.  However, the birds’ names can be composed of letters in more than one word.  For example:  We have high enrollment (hen).

The participants are then given five minutes in which to find all of the hidden birds they can.

When the allotted time has elapsed, the participant who has discovered the most hidden birds in the least amount of time is declared the winner.

The trainer may create sentences that contain hidden flowers, trees, or animals.

The group leader may ask each participant to create hidden-word sentences to share with the rest of the group.

SOURCE:

Forbess-Greene, Sue.  (1983)  The Encyclopedia of Icebreakers
San Diego, CA: University Associates Inc.   pp. 161