Listening Games for Adults
Listening is one of the key quotients of effective communication. In this following article, we will concentrate on some of the most effective listening games for adults that can be used for learning this important skill.
Without the ability to listen, and listen well, a successful communication process can never take place. In any communication process, the stress is usually laid on the way in which we talk and in honing that to perfection – in the clarity, innovation and the style of speaking. But most forget that listening is just as, if not more important than talking. Listening works on many levels to perfect the communication process. Listening allows for a person to understand what the other is saying and therefore there are lesser chances of miscommunication taking place. It also allows the speaker to feel confident and sure of what he’s speaking because he’s getting the right kind of feedback through words and gestures. If there is no ‘listening’ being done, the communication process is more than flawed. Thus it becomes important that we learn the ‘how’ of listening and perfect that skill.
While there are varied methods which work to get this into order, probably the most interesting of them all is to make use of listening games. In this following article, we will take you through some of the best listening games for adults that you can apply and learn from.
Fun Listening Games for Adults Some of the most effective listening games for adults are those that combine learning through fun activities. This takes the pressure off the learning process and inculcates the skill of listening quite naturally. Let’s take a closer look at some of these active listening games
in the next section.
Listen, then Draw
This game requires complete concentration and focuses on highlighting the importance of listening. Take up a group of people and hand them a piece of paper and some pens or pencils. Then an instructor comes forth and gives simple instructions about a particular object that the group has to draw. For example:
- Draw a square, measuring 5 inches.
- Draw a circle in the square such that it fits exactly in the middle of the square.
- Intersect 2 lines through the circle so that the circle gets divided into 4 equal parts.
The exercise can become progressively more difficult with every instruction. And unless the group has listened to the instructions carefully, there can be no hopes of completing the exercise successfully.
Clap and Follow
This active listening game for adults requires complete concentration and a keen ear to understand exactly what is going on. A leader comes forth and relates the instructions which go like this, for example:
- 1 clap = Stand
- 2 claps = Hop on place
- 3 claps = Rub your belly
And so on. The leader then starts alternating between 1 clap, 2 claps and so on. The group has to be able to listen with complete concentration and follow through. You could even include the elimination round. The person who fails to come through with the action is eliminated. This continues till there is one clear winner.
Listen and Record
In this game, a person comes forth and narrates a story while the others have to listen to it carefully. At the end of the exercise, the group is handed a paper that has a set of questions that range from very simple to very difficult. The group has to answer them based on what they’ve heard. This highlights just how well a person listens and tries to understand what the others are saying. The other way of playing this one is to play a CD that has a story on it and then get the group to write the story in as much detail as possible.
All these active listening activities highlight the importance of listening for the success of any communication process. A good way to reinforce this fact is to discuss each game after it has been completed and then talk about how it could have been improved upon. This will drive the point home well enough. And since it is done through the medium of games, it becomes easier to understand and thereby adapt to.
