Our past experiences greatly influence and shape us – we wouldn't be who we are or where we are today without them. When you understand a person's history, you come to respect and appreciate them more, and you can deepen your relationship with them, leading to greater collaboration, creativity, friendship, and success.

The Shaped by Our Past Thumball helps groups talk about past experiences in a fun and engaging way. It's perfect for use at work, school, or home to break the ice and create an inviting environment where everyone feels invited to share. It’s one of the best collaboration team-building activities for helping participants connect through personal stories and shared experiences.

This Thumball is a fun way to get participants talking about school, friends, family, hobbies, challenges, and more.

Conversation topics include:

• High school regrets
• Mistakes or failures you learned from
• If non-family members had an impact on your life
• Proud childhood moments

Start your next meeting by sharing the goal of using the Shaped by Our Past Thumball, and explain how we each have different past experiences that shape our personalities and our worldview. When we can understand each other better by knowing personal experiences, we can work together better and create more harmony. This makes it a great tool for collaboration team-building activities in workplaces, classrooms, and social groups.

Talking about past experiences can be fun, but it can also bring up difficulties and some unwanted memories. Here are some ways you can effectively use the Shaped by Our Past Thumball:

Tip 1: Take a Pass
If a question feels hard for someone to answer, invite them to take a pass, trade questions with another player, or even toss the ball again for a new question.

Tip 2: Connect the Prompt to Current Experiences
Have the player discuss how their answer to the prompt and their experiences shape who they are and influence their current experiences for some deeper introspection.

Tip 3: Focus on One Question
Before you start tossing the ball, select one question for players to answer when the ball is tossed to them in that round.

By playing in teams, participants will do the following:

• Reflect on past experiences that shaped personal growth
• Share meaningful stories to build connections with others
• Develop a greater understanding of personal and group history

¿Buscas una forma divertida y sencilla de romper el hielo y generar conversaciones significativas? Los Thumballs son una de las mejores actividades de colaboración para equipos. Simplemente lanza, atrapa y responde a la indicación que tienes debajo del pulgar: así de simple. Con temas atractivos e intuitivos, los Thumballs crean un ambiente relajado y sin estrés que dinamiza cualquier sesión de capacitación, fomenta la participación y hace que el aprendizaje sea más interactivo. Prepárate para convertir cada lanzamiento en una oportunidad para conectar, aprender y divertirse.

Mary Miller Pembleton, logopeda, creó Thumball™ para involucrar a sus estudiantes con dificultades de aprendizaje combinando actividades de habla con juegos de pelota. Tras un sueño que la inspiró a comercializar el producto, ella y su esposo Gregg desarrollaron y patentaron Thumball™, que ahora se utiliza para mejorar la comunicación y las habilidades sociales en diversos entornos. Su empresa, Answers In Motion, también personaliza Thumballs para HRDQ y otras empresas. El éxito del producto ha crecido con el aumento de la publicidad y las ventas, cumpliendo su visión de convertir Thumball™ en una marca reconocida.