E-mail them to BPike@BobPikeGroup.com.

Please include your name, organization, title, address, phone number, and e-mail address. You’ll get full attribution for every idea we use.

She gives participants three to five minutes to think about what traits they share with their chosen creature. Then they take turns introducing themselves with the information.

The exercise is fun if you leave it at that. But there are other ways to use the animal theme through the day.

ü Talk about diversity. Compare nature to the classroom or workplace: Ants fill certain roles, bears others. Consider how an eagle, who likes to soar above things look­ing down, might work well with a dog, who likes to have friends and be loyal.

ü Form pairs with “animals” who are similar — or very unlike. The partners can talk about how their traits work together.

ü Arrange people from smallest animal to largest and form teams accordingly. Note that the largest animals aren’t neces­sarily the strongest in every respect. The smallest are not always the most timid. Every animal has strengths and challenges.

ü Design name tags or other classroom props around the theme. You may be able to find stickers rep­resenting many animals and use them in creative ways: Gina, you plunged into that assignment like a real dolphin!

Students who have just heard something in com­mon come forward, link arms with the speaker, introduce themselves and say what it is they have in common.

This continues until everyone in the classroom has come forward. The last person goes on speaking — until the presenter hears something she has in common with that student.

The exercise makes people feel included and creates networking links for later in the session.

After attending Kim Coleman’s courses, every trainee has one, too.

Coleman gives first-time students the rocker part of the toy and the first plastic ring as they complete their first course with her.

They get an additional donut — labeled with the course title after they complete other courses.

Participants try to earn all five rings to complete their toy. “We have Rock-A-Stacks all over our building,” says Coleman. “They are an excellent advertisement for our leadership series, and the participants enjoy the recognition.”

The toys — prominent on desks – may encourage competitive course-taking within departments, especially in self-paced or independent-study programs.

Workplace teams might share a single stacker if they take their cours­es together.

The game begins, under the rules, with the youngest player.  In Fouts, version, before drawing a card, the first player has to answer a review question.

A correct answer means the player draws a card and moves his or her play­ing piece to the indicated color space.  Wrong answer, no card. The next player repeats the process.

Whenever someone draws a “candy card,” that player selects a candy treat from a bucket.  (See game rules for “sticking spots.”)  At the end of the game, the winner gets a prize, and the candy bucket goes around the room for everyone.

The game works well with teams, Fouts says. It also lets everyone benefit from hearing all the ques­tions and all the answers.

You’ll need at least 100 questions — 150 is better.  If that sounds like too much prep, ask each of your 20 students to write six or eight questions.  Assign question-writing students course segments to ensure coverage and prevent duplication.

I went on a picnic and I brought an apple; a banana, a cabbage …

CTT member Carol Christensen uses that basic idea to build positive thinking around all kinds of course topics.

She chooses something she wants to reinforce: I love working here because …. Or The thing I learned today is ….

One student names an item, the next one repeats the statement and the item, then adds a new item to the list. This continues until everyone has had a turn.

The purpose of the game revolves around the question the trainer selects.

Affirmation: I’m ready to do my job because …

Revisit: An idea I’ll use right away on the job is …

Networking: I’ll contact (name) if I need help with …

Usually the kids’ versions of this game proceed alphabetically, with the first contributor offering an “A” item, the next offering a “B” item and so on. In classroom applications, that doesn’t always make sense. Don’t feel locked into it.

Christensen also cautions that the method won’t work with groups larger than 20. The list simply gets too long for most people to manage it.

It’s also not a good way to start the day, she says, because “cold” brains simply aren’t up to the challenge.

It is always fun to create the impression that you can read course participants’ minds. But beyond the fun, telepathy tricks are useful for making class­room points.

Here’s how to do a quick math trick I learned from my friend and colleague, Dave Arch.

It’s especially convenient if students are sitting at computers — they can pull up the required cal­culator on their monitors. (And of course most have a calculator on their smart phones now!)

• At the beginning of your session, ask a volunteer to get out a calculator (most cell phones have them). If no one has a calculator, pro­vide one yourself.

• Ask permission to read your volunteer’s mind. Treat this decision with some gravity. When you have permission, proceed.

• Standing so you can’t see the calculator or computer screen, instruct your volunteer to enter into the calculator any whole number from one to 700.

• Ask the student to divide that number by seven.

• Have your telepathy subject add together the first six digits that follow the decimal point in the answer. If there are no numbers following the decimal point, the num­ber was divisible by seven. Ask your volun­teer to try again with a new number.

• Now it’s time for the mind reading. Ask your volunteer to concentrate on the sum of the six decimals, as you try to “receive brain waves.” Make a show of concentrating.

• Turn to a whiteboard or flipchart. Write, in large numerals, “27.” You’ll beright every time

• Make the last step a bit more fun by appear­ing to struggle. Write the “7″ first, for example,then concentrate some more, and write the “2″ before it. Or write all the digits from 0 to 9, and cross them off, one by one, until only the digits “2″ and “7″ remain.

You can choose to explain the trick, or you can leave it a mystery for students who paid atten­tion to unravel on their own time. Either way, you can make several points:

• Sometimes things that look difficult are incredibly simple.

• Sometimes simple things are made to look difficult by the person

• Things may add up even if they don’t seem to. Maybe you just have more to learn!

• With computers we can do what seems like magic — and we’ll learn more about that throughout the session.

To stretch the illusion, do your best to get only one person to do the exercise. If several people do it simultaneously, they’ll realize that the number 27 is somehow always the answer.

Continuously expanding = vision of what is possible, stretching our souls, to see clearly and deeply, glistening to your intuition,

taking courageous risks and embracing challenges along the way.

We are on the path.

Exactly where we are meant to be right now.

And from here we can only go forward, shaping our life stories

Into a rnagnificent life of triumph, of healing,

of courage, beauty, wisdom,

power, dignity and love.

If you want to get fancy use a chart maker to copy a 360 circle onto 20” X 30” paper for them to stand on…have them work in pairs with one person rotating and their partner noting the degree of rotation.

Click HERE for a larger version of this diagram.

Next ask them to try the exercise again – and to try twisting just a little bit further.  Again ask them to note the results and have a conversation about those results.  Most will have improved significantly.

Finally, ask them to close their eyes and to visualize slowly twisting so that their bodies rotate even further.  Ask them to notice how easy it is and how flexible their bodies are.  Then with their eyes still closed ask them to slowly twist as far as they can to the left – opening their eyes to note the result in each direction.

This illustrates that we can always do more than we thing we can.  It also demonstrates the power of visualization.

In one of my classes, I concentrate on adult accelerated learning. In short, it’s a theory that takes advantage of all parts of the brain, of all learning styles, by incor­porating various teaching styles into every session.

In 1993 Howard Gardner wrote about multiple intelligences in “Frames of Mind”. He started with seven intelligences and later added an eight. Appealing to each of eight intelligences enhances students’ atten­tion and improves their absorption of materials.

I incorporate these approaches into my class, of course, but my session is intended to teach others how addressing various learning styles can enhance learning and retention.

Here are the eight intelligences – and ways to tap each:

• Bodily-Kinesthetic  I like to scramble people when they come into my room. This helps them meet new people and to network with new and old alike. It breaks up cliques and forces people who always sit in one part of the room to sit in another. Here are a few mixers:

1. Give every table a theme name. Participants draw a slip of paper out of a basket to determine their first group based on the theme written on their piece of paper.
2. Opener. Give each participant a sticky note. Ask them to write down one or two things they want to learn in class and one thing they have accomplished in their per­sonal lives. Next, partici­pants all stand up, walk to another table and intro­duce themselves to a per­son they don’t know, or don’t know well. Ask them to exchange their data. Have the pairs affix their notes on a “Capture the Question” board, so the trainer can look at the notes to evaluate class needs and expectations.
3. Snowball fight. Participants write down their questions — especial­ly questions they wouldn’t ask in class for fear of looking foolish. On the instructor’s cue, every­body wads and throws the papers. This continues for 20 seconds or so. Then everyone retrieves and unwads one sheet. Taking turns, participants read aloud the question they picked up.

• Intrapersonal  Early in the session, I have participants write what they want to learn from it, and post that information on a “Capture the Content” flipchart. I also give them minutes to list frustrations/distractions/concerns on an index (3X5) card: 

Training is hard to arrange with my work schedule. New proce­dures are a pain. I have a project deadline. My child is sick. 

I then have them place the card in an envelope which they seal and write their name on. I then tell them that there is no chance to forget any of these things, but that we’ll all learn more if we put them aside for a bit.  I promise to return the envelope at the end of class.  Then I collect them and later do just that!!

Later in the class, I invite them to reflect on what they’ve learned: How does the information apply to them? How can they use it right away? Who else might benefit from this information?

• Logical/Mathematical  People learn from num­bers in this mode. Break people into three groups and ask each group to make a seven-point list in three minutes. That’s using the math/logic learning style. Lists of any kind —six steps to success in sales — connect with this style.
• Linguistic is about the spoken or written word —writing on worksheets, the instructor talking, partici­pants discussing, group brainstorming and doing role-plays.
• Spatial/Visual includes displaying images or icons, but not words. It also includes use of patterns, pie charts and bar graphs. Also in the visual/spatial category are the plastic egg with learn­ing goals inside, name tents with personal infor­mation and the like.
• Musical  I play music many times in my classes, but the music I play has changed. Early in my training career I played tunes from the ’50s or the ’70s, soundtracks from movies and other upbeat melodies. This got people talking and in a good mood before and after class and during breaks. During “quiet time” or “thinking time,” I play relaxing music such as Kenny G, Enya or nature sounds with music.

Whether you’re trying to raise energy levels or ease nervous test-takers, music can help.  (This was before I learned about the need for a license to perform from BMI or ASCAP).

Then I read Steven Halpern’s book, “The Human Instrument” and realized that I wanted to use music, but I wanted it to enhance learning, not get in the way. So I worked with my music producer using Halpern’s research to create a variety of sound tracks that could be used for various moods I wanted to create in the classroom – upbeat for walking in and leaving, as well as breaks, music for discussion and reflection, as well as music when playing games. This has made all the difference in the world.

Participants have also composed raps and songs of key learning points, etc.

• Interpersonal  This kind of learning involves discussion in small groups, no larger than three or four mem­bers each. People will say things in this more intimate setting that they would never say during class discussion.
• Naturalistic  This intelligence involves nature.  Do you have a “green thumb” (things grow easily for you)? Then you have this intelligence as a strength. Any time you take your participants outdoors….even to simply read or interact with one another – you are engaging this intelligence.

By combining these intelligences, we multiply the effects of our teaching. Individually, each of these techniques is from 5% to 75% effective. Combine them all, and learning is nearly 100% certain.

You can remember these by taking the first let of each word – it spells out the acrostic – Bill’s Mind

B odily-Kinesthetic

I nterpersonal

L inguistic

L ogical-Mathematical

M usical

S patial

I ntrapersonal

N aturalistic

D This is blank, but I needed it to complete the acrostic!!

Click HERE for a handy chart with other ideas you can modify and adapt.