At the beginning of a course the interview "breaks the ice" and makes talking easier.

Preparation

You write the questions for the interview on a big sheet of paper. Wrapping paper is quite good for it. The questions should be personal, but not too private, like these for example:

Interview

The students are sitting in a circle; the sheet with the questions is put in the middle. Everybody takes a partner; if possible somebody they don´t know yet. The partners introduce themselves to each other, then one partner starts with asking two of the questions from the sheet. When the other has answered, it is her turn to ask. When all students have asked and answered the questions, they introduce their partner to the group: "This is Carina. She likes hearing Shakira; her favourite meal is..."

If one of the girls doesn´t want to answer a question, because she does not like to talk about her favourite music for example, the interviewer just asks a different question.