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Three Changes is a strategy where students simultaneously make imaginative changes to their appearance while using close observation skills to figure out what changes have been made in their partner’s appearance. This activity can be done with a large or small group and it encourages students to notice visual details.
Begin by counting the group off into two lines facing one another, two to three feet apart so that each person has partner: line A and line B. All students take a full minute to observe the person they are facing, noting clothing, hair, accessories, and so on. Partners then turn their backs on each other and each makes three changes in personal appearance; for example, they might change the part in their hair, untie a shoelace, switch a watch to other arm, etc. After a minute, partners face each other and try to identify the three changes the other has made. Ask students who guessed all three changes to raise their hands. Then, line A steps sideways so that each person is facing a new partner, while the person on the end of line A moves to the front of the line. Repeat, each person makes three more changes. The game continues for three or four more rounds, or until the first person in line A has returned to his original partner. Students are encouraged to be creative as they work to discover different ways to make changes.
- What did you notice about the changes we made in the beginning compared to the end of the activity? How did you come up with new ideas for changes?
- What strategies did you use to be successful in this activity?
- How do the skills required in this game relate to everyday life or our larger inquiry?
- Once a change is made it may not be altered.
- Think outside of the box; find new ways to make changes.
- Find a new use for your accessories, shoes may become hats and belts can be headbands. Have fun!
- Math: Ask students to determine how many changes they each made during the game. What is the mathematical equation needed to answer this question? How many changes did the entire class make during the game? Explore probability, percentages, fractions, graphs, etc.
- Reading/Writing: Connect this activity to a character from a book. Has this character made big choices or small, safe choices or dangerous ones? Have students write about a time when they had to make a big change.
Kat Koppett