How to Categorize Ice Breaker Questions

Ice breaker questions work for any social situation.

Ice breaker questions are a great way to get to know people and liven up the atmosphere. You can use them in a variety of situations, including school and business meetings, social gatherings and parties. Questions can range from funny and obscure to serious and factual. They can center around hypothetical or real situations. You can categorize ice breaker questions in numerous ways, including by age groups, location, participants' familiarity with each other and purpose of the event.

Instructions

1. Split the questions into suitable situations. For example, "Have you ever been arrested?" might be appropriate for a party, but not for a business situation.

2. Decide whether you would ask the question to someone you are meeting for the first time. For example, while it might be funny to ask a friend, "If you had to, what family member would you kill off and why?" but this might be offensive to a stranger.

3. Group questions into suitability for age groups. For example, children might find it interesting to ask "What's your favorite food?" while adults are more likely to enjoy questions such as "What is your favorite way to waste time at work without being caught?"

4. Decide if questions simply are more for fun or have an intended outcome. Children at school can use questions to practice descriptive language, such as thinking of adjectives to explain their choices. In spiritual groups, people can use ice breaker questions to share experiences, such as "Who has been the greatest influence on your religious life?" In some social groups, members can use the questions to begin conversation on a particular topic.

5. Divide questions into real and hypothetical situations. Real life questions could relate to the past, such as "What is the strangest thing you've ever done?"; the present: "What are you passionate about?"; or the future: "Where do you see yourself in 10 years?"

6. Categorize the questions by whether they are serious or funny. A serious question could be "What do you think has been the greatest invention of your lifetime?" while a funny question could be "What punctuation mark best describes your personality?"

7. Group the questions into those that are personal, and those that discuss a broader outlook of the world. The former might be about life experiences, work and childhood, while the latter could refer to current affairs, politics and business.

References

• Jim's World: CF "Ice Breaker" Questions
• Funny Icebreaker Questions: Welcome to Funny Icebreaker Questions
• Funny Icebreaker Questions: Party Questions
• Funny Icebreaker Questions: Funny Icebreaker Questions for Vacations
• Funny Icebreaker Questions: Funny Icebreaker Questions for Team Building in Meetings
• Funny Icebreaker Questions: Funny Icebreaker Questions for Church