Deserted Island

NAME

Deserted Island

WHO

In-person and online participants. 

DURATION

10 - 15 minutes

DIRECTIONS

Set the scenario: 

Your cruise ship is sinking. In the chaos, you have just enough time to grab one single item before leaping into a lifeboat. You don’t have time to look at what others are grabbing, and no one mentions their choice during the frantic row to safety. You eventually reach a deserted, isolated island. As you step onto the sand, you finally meet your fellow survivors and reveal the items you saved. Now, you must work together to devise a survival plan using only your wits and the random assortment of items in your possession.

• Set the Stage: Read the scenario aloud to the class to establish the atmosphere.

• The Secret Selection: Ask each participant to write down their chosen item. Emphasize that they must not share or show their item to anyone yet.

• Form Groups: Divide the class into groups of 2–4 members. (For larger courses, use larger groups to streamline the sharing phase).

• Note: For online courses, move students into breakout rooms at this stage.

• The Reveal & Brainstorm: Have groups reveal their items to one another. Give them 5–10 minutes to negotiate a survival plan that incorporates every item mentioned.

• Presentations: Each group presents their survival strategy to the entire class.

ADAPTATIONS/TIPS

• Change scenario to another isolated location requiring a collaborative survival plan (wilderness, jungle, mountains, Antarctica expedition, etc). You can also pick something relevant to the participants.
• Keep it simple and avoid trauma triggering details in the scenario.
• For online and concurrent students, consider sharing a google doc with the directions. This way students can refer back to the expectations in isolated breakout rooms.