A lesson in teamwork – with 7 feet, 4 hands and 2 bums

Today I joined ‘Speaking Out’ volunteer, Beca, at Merthyr Tydfil College to talk to a group of Welsh Baccalaureate students about Save the Children. This inspiring group of young people, with the support of their wonderful tutor, have recently designed and sold a calendar to raise funds for Save the Children.

The calendar features photographs from their local area and highlights Save the Children’s achievements of the past year.

To wake us all up (it was 9am and we were all struggling) Beca began with a game to show how similar we all are, despite our initial differences.  For the game an individual stands in the middle of a circle and says something true of themselves.

Then anyone in the group who shares this truth has to change seats (those who were Scouts or Guides will recognise this game as similar to ‘Fruit Salad’ featuring mad dashes to the nearest available chair).

The game proved very informative.  I learned that more young people in Merthyr Tydfil blame their farts on others than you would think, and that you must be very careful playing a seat swapping game when said chairs have wheels!

Beca then talked about the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and the group also learnt about Save the Children’s key programme themes of health, hunger, education, and protection.

The young people also took part in an online treasure hunt finding out information about Save the Children from the website and visiting our interactive Kroo Bay site.

The session finished with a team building game.  The young people were asked to form a human structure  with all parties interlinked.  BUT they were only allowed to have 7 feet, 4 hands, and 2 bums in contact with the floor!

And they could not use chairs, tables or any other props to help.  They had 5 minutes and the ensuing chaos was highly entertaining with one young man finding himself sandwiched upside down between 2 of his classmates – a position he probably didn’t expect to find himself in when he woke up today.

The thing about the 7 feet, 4 hands and 2 bums game is that it demonstrates the equal importance of every team member in achieving success.

And that is true of the wider Save the Children team – staff and supporters alike.  Without the dedicated campaigning, fundraising, and volunteering of our supporters worldwide we would not be able to deliver life saving aid to children.

So, a big thank you to everyone who helps to make a difference to children, and a special thank you to Merthyr Tydfil College Welsh Baccalaureate students.