1. The goal is for the group to rescue to ball from the center of the circle.

2. No person or prop may touch the ground inside the circle. If this happens, a person becomes mute and a prop lost from play. No one may sacrifice himself or herself for the cause.

3. The ball itself can never touch the ground inside the circle. Should the ball fall during an attempt to lift it from the pedestal and outside the circle to safety, the activity ends (or starts over if you choose).

4. The pedestal the ball rests on must remain in the center of the circle. The group may not use any props other than the ones provided.
 

NOTE: The next three rules should be delivered only at the point where participants begin to explore tying the webbing around the body or lifting anyone in the air:

5. Everyone must participate, either supporting weight by holding the webbing or by properly spotting.When someone is being lowered into the middle or lifted off the ground, DO NOT allow him or her to proceed until everyone is helping!

6. Webbing cannot be tied around any soft parts of the body. If the webbing is to be tied around or positioned on a person, it must be positioned on stable parts of the body such as directly underneath the armpits or over the shins.

7. Any knot that is tied must be inspected by each member of the group and by you for safety. If there is any question regarding the soundness of the knot it must be retied.


Facilitator's Note: This activity has three common solutions: the chopstick, fly-in, and the drawbridge. If any solution is accomplished quickly, congratulate your group and challenge them to creatively implement a new method. For example, if they retrieved the ball from the circle by means other than a hand physically removing it, put the ball back on the pedestal and challenge them to remove it by hand.