Hot potato problems

The Scout leader starts by deciding on a question related to a specific problem or challenge. They then pass a ball or object to a Scout, who has 10 seconds to come up with an idea to address the question. The Scout passes the ball to another Scout, who has to find another answer. The process continues, generating rapid-fire ideas within the time limit.

Ideas of questions for scouts, with various difficulty level:

• My patrol lost its map during a hike, what can we do?
• I forgot the poles of my tent and it is almost time to go to sleep, what can I do?
• We only have one ball, but some of our groups want to play football and others want to play volleyball, what can we do?

You can use our Wheel of problems (link below) for random ideas.

Ideas do not necessarily have to be completely realistic. Scouts should not suggest nonsense, but creativity often rides the line between realistic and unrealistic.

VARIATION FOR ACTIVITY ONLINE OR INDIVIDUALLY:

• Find a group of participants who would like to do this activity.
• Go to our Wheel of problems (link below), and one person spins the wheel to find a problem. Then, that person will give a solution to that problem.
• After that person has given a solution, they mention someone else whose turn it will be to give another solution, and so on.

It can also be a challenge to take by yourself:

• When you are alone, there is no time constraint to make you rush to find ideas. Instead, you can add constraints yourself: for example, start by finding a solution that starts with the letter A, then the letter B, and so on for the whole alphabet.