Climate Reading

• Build self, group, and situational awareness
• Improve the stickiness of a learning outcome
• Get people out of their seats and moving around

1. Choose a continuum or polarity that has meaning to the group (note: in an effective polarity, neither side is considered "better" since both are important in context).
2. Invite participants to stand along the continuum. Depending on what you chose as the facilitator, it may be helpful to contextualize with a story or scenario. The goal is for each person to act on their instinct, not second guess or over-analyze because of interpretation.
3. Leave space for participants to see where they fall on the continuum in relation to others in the room. Invite neighboring people to converse and elevate why they are collectively standing in that location.
4. Lead a share-out from each cluster along the continuum, validating the importance of each perspective and leaving space for others to internalize.
5. Now comes the choose your own adventure part. As the facilitator, you have the ability to restart with a new continuum question or reorganize the group as you transition to the next part of the agenda. Consider what would make for the richest learning outcome. For shared perspective, keep the clusters together at tables and use future share-outs to further drive home different ways people feel/think/act. For diverse perspective, count the group off from one side to the other to ensure each table has the full continuum represented. For a blend, come up with a system (i.e. elect captains) that allows people to decide who they want at their table based on the continuum.

At Barometer XP, we specialize in gauging team pressure points and setting up play-based learning for success. Every activity or game has mechanics and dynamics that make it more or less appropriate for a particular group or scenario. Effective facilitators understand those factors and know how to leverage them in real time. Climate Reading is a simple opener that offers clarity on different perspectives, ideas, and styles in the room. It's all about asking a meaningful continuum question.