Friday, April 10, 2009

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Describing a Process: Mix 'n Mingle

Here's a funny mixer activity.

Step #1: Give everyone a slip of paper that has one of the following statements on it.
  • I want to learn how to find a boyfriend / girlfriend. What should I do first?
  • I want to learn how to clean my apartment. What should I do first?
  • I want to learn how to write an essay. What should I do first?
  • I want to learn how to pass the iBT TOEFL. What should I do first?
  • I want to learn how to get from University Village to the CLO. What should I do first?
  • I want to learn how to get to downtown Chicago. What should I do first?
  • I want to learn how to plan a party. What should I do first?
  • I want to learn how to be a good video game player. What should I do first?
  • I want to learn how to use a vending machine. What should I do first?
Step #2: Then, the student reads this sentence to a classmate and writes down the first step they're given.

Step #3: The student goes to another person for the second step. They use one of these phrases:
  • After I ___________, what should I do?
  • What’s the next step after I _____________________?
  • What should I do after I _____________________?
  • What do I need to do after ________________ing?
But they do not tell what the process is. (This makes it funny).

Phrases for giving instructions:
  • The first step, the next step…
  • After you…., you should….
  • After you…., you need to….
  • Next, you need to….
  • Second,


Step #4: Student goes to a third classmate for the third step. Again, they just ask for the next step. Continue until you have a series of steps.

Step #5: Share them together in small groups or as a class. Everyone will think this is really funny.

Example:

Student A: "I want to learn how to use a vending machine. What should I do first?"
Student B: "Okay, well, first, decide what kind of candy to buy."
Student A: "Thanks."

Student A: "What should I do after deciding what kind of candy to buy?"
Student C (not knowing what the process is): "Well, next, you need to take the candy bar to the cash register."
Student A: "Thanks." (Writes it down)

Student A: "After I pay for the candy bar, what should I do?"
Student D: "The next step is to take your spare change and deposit it back into your bank account."
Student A: "Oh, okay. Thanks."

As you can see, the more creative students are, they will distort them to purposely develop interesting, irrelevant, and humorous directions.