The Scumble: Grounding a Cohort in Shared Meaning

Called the “Scumble” this novel icebreaker invites introductions that transcend limits where learning about others can feel contrived in an environment that is purely transactional. Developed over two decades in management education, this simple visual exercise illuminates what acquaintance means when individuals feel truly connected with each other in a transformational environment. This enjoyable classroom encounter provides a safe framework using an art-based exercise that requires no special skills for participation or delivery. Step-by-step instructions, once familiar, are scalable and suitable for delivery face-to-face, or online. Variations may accommodate classrooms to theater-style settings. The pedagogical strength of this icebreaker’s effectiveness lies grounded in interactive work that shares a meaningful lived experience; the glue that generates group connectedness. Directing the attention of participants to this light-hearted “in-the-moment-journey” elicits a presence that reveals and builds on curiosity and the diversity of the human condition.