'Get To Know You' games

each person says 2 truths and a lie....others have to guess the lie. Nice since you share only the truths you want to share which is nice for private people and the lie can be mundane or outrageous!
Some people share 'I have 2 cats, 3 siblings and 4 cars'. Some share adventures...'climbed 8 mountains, have been to 6 countries, have never been in a plane'. I like that you learn more about people but only as much as they want!

The last thing the atmosphere usually is when 'get to know you' games are introduced is fun!

You could also pass out a piece of paper and have people write three things about themselves. Have them fold up the paper and you take up the papers and put them in a bowl. Mix them up really well and pass them back out. The first person takes their paper and reads it aloud. They then try and guess who that person is.

Good luck!

split the people in half and make 2 circles (inner and outer) or two lines. Now, this is assuming that you have a fairly large group.

Each person faces another person..so each person has a partner. Now, you can do anything basically...either 30 sec/1 minute where one person shares and one listens. It could be talk about yourself or what you did over the summer professionally, or any topic. Then the other partner has 30sec/1 minute to tell back to the original partner what they just said. Then repeat with partner 2 sharing etc.

then have the inner circle (or outer) move say 5 people clockwise and do it again. Repeat as much as you want.

Another one that I did once was they gave us notecards/small paper piece and told us to write about a topic for example "a time that you got in trouble in school as a kid" or "a meaningful time as a teacher/worker" or "the funniest thing that happened to you this summer" It could be anything depending on your group.

So after everyone wrote, we folded them (no name) and everyone got up and and traded cards with people over and over for like a minute or so..and we all ended up with some anonymous card. Then they randomly called on people somehow to share the card they had. It was fun and since it was anonymous..well, that made it more interesting in a way.

These aren't the best ideas but something else to think about. Good luck!

Cut out several sets of shapes: say a set of circles, a set of squares, a set of triangles. Also quickly sketch each shape on a sheet of flip chart paper ahead of time (or you can draw them on a white board during the discussion)

Hand out the shapes at random, or clip them to the agendas so each person gets one when they arrive.

Ask each person to write one fact about themselves on their shape (eg "I am a mother", "I love broccoli", or "I have been to China")

When everyone has their facts written, have the participants form small groups based on their shapes. (So now all the circles are together).

Give each small group a chance to introduce themselves to each other. Now give each group the larger sketch of their shape. Have them write on the shape: their first names, and ONE THING THEY HAVE IN COMMON. (If different people had written the 3 facts above, the result might be "We have eaten beef and broccoli with our mothers at a Chinese restaurant"   Or it might be something completely different from their first statements, like "We are NOT hockey fans", or "We have been to New York".

They can then post their shape and do a quick intro to the large group.

Divide them into groups and instruct each group to line up by their birth dates without speaking. They can use hand signals and move themselves where they think they should be by watching others.

Put the names of some familiar songs such as "Happy Birthday" and "America" on cards so that there will be five or six groups. Pass out the cards. People should hum their song and listen to others humming the same song to find which group is theirs.