| Activity Identification | Dimension | Number of Participants | Duration (minutes) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 Perceptions | TRANSITIONAL SKILLS | 8 - 12 | 30 |
The aim of the Activity
To increase the participants’ perception and awareness of themselves and others perceptions and to enhance tolerance to differences in other people.
Communication skills and the ability to create good relations improve when one is highly aware and accept different perceptions to a given situation, a task and an event and accept that every person’s perception can differ from ones own.
Preparation
Print out the Perceptions handout 16A Understanding Myself and Others with images. One for each participant.
Print out the images to work with perceptions and Handout 16B The Story about the Cookie Thief. One for each participant.
Requirements
Show the images to the group using a projector.
Instructions
- Introduce the participants to the basic idea of perceptions.
- Hand out the sheet and introduce the different images one at the time. Ask the participants what they see, and find out whether they see the same or different things, e.g.:
- Ask open-ended questions
- Make sure that it is the participants who are telling you what they see and not vice-versa
- Let the participants discover that the other participants might be seeing a different image
- Encourage the participants to be curious, and find out what the others are seeing and why
- Do this activity for more than one image
- Discuss what the participants discovered during this activity and how they can relate this to their lives and situations, g. working in teams, in their family
Relate this exercise to perception as the source of our different attitudes and beliefs, and that these factors influence the way we interact with other people. This can be done by telling the story in the supporting sheet or by another example similar to it.
When looking at the images, it is a good idea to let the participants start by telling you what they see. Participants may all say that they see a woman. By asking leading questions, the facilitator can create “AHA Moments”. You can ask open-ended questions, such as:
- What do you see? And if they can see a person, the ask:
- How old do you think the person is?
- How can you tell that the person is old/young?
- What is the person wearing?
- What else do you see?
During this discussion and exchange of viewpoints, the participants will start to realise that although they are looking at the same picture, they see different images. They may even start to see what the others are seeing. The discussions will highlight, that even if our perceptions are different, they can still be true, and increase awareness of the importance of listening to and considering, the viewpoints of others.
If you have not already completed the activity; Understanding Myself and Others, introduce the basic idea of perceptions to the participants. See Supporting Information Sheet – Understanding myself and Others, for more details.
If you have already completed the activity; Understanding Myself and Others, sum up the main points of the basic ideas of perceptions to the participants.
You may choose to ask the participants to read the story themselves, or you can read the story out loud.
Alternatively, you can ask the participants to listen to a similar story by following this link. https://live2work.eu/go/perceptions-video/
When you have completed the activity “images, the cookie thief or /and showing the video dealing with the same theme as the Cookie thief, then sum up the main points of the basic ideas of perceptions to the participants.
Observations / Suggestions
Print and read “The Cookie Thief” either before or as an extension to this exercise.
Any object can replace the pictures used in this toolbox. E.g., place the object in the middle of the group and have the participants, tell what they see from their individual angle.