1-2-4-All
Engage everyone at once in generating ideas — silent reflection, then pairs, then foursomes, then a whole-group harvest. Adapted from Liberating Structures (https://www.liberatingstructures.com/1-2-4-all), licensed CC BY-NC 3.0.
4 parts · 7 phases
First, silent self-reflection — before anyone speaks.
- Reflect on the question on your own
Given the shared question or challenge, generate your own ideas silently and jot them down.
Now share and build in pairs, each person taking a turn.
- Build on your ideas together
Share the ideas from your own reflection, and build on what you hear.
Two pairs join into a foursome. You keep your original partner with you.
- Notice what stands out
Share the ideas from your pairs. Notice what is similar and what is different, and pick the one idea that stands out most.
- What's the one idea that stood out?
Each group shares the single idea that stood out in their conversation. As a whole group, notice the patterns and insights across everything shared.