Tell Your Story: Part 2

2 More Steps To Sharing and Bonding!

Stage 3: Finding Commonalities while Looking at Diversity (5 minutes prep time, 30 secs/person, plus 15 minutes debriefing)  [Excellent to use with a group that thinks they know each other. Also works with strangers. This has the potential to be very powerful.]

Hand out one note card and pencil to every person. Ask them to think about one moment or experience that changed them and made them unique/different.  It should be something that absolutely no one in the room knows about them.  It can be something that happened to them or something that they chose to do.  It can be something sad or something joyful.  It can be something that makes them angry, nervous, and frightened or something that makes them happy, hopeful, or excited.  They are to write one or two sentences describing the event/experience.  They are not to identify themselves on the cards.  Be sure to tell them in advance that the cards will be collected and redistributed and read out loud (although they will NOT be identified).  This will allow them to really think about whether they want to write something on the card to share with the entire group. Each person will then read the card out loud that they are given.  Debrief by asking people to describe, analyze and apply what they discovered from the experience of hearing the other stories.  Most likely you will hear people say things like: “Wow, I was surprised that there are so many people in the room who have experienced something tragic.” Or “I will be more careful in the future about how I speak about XYZ because I never thought there would be someone right here that experienced XYZ.”  Or “I wrote ABC on my card… that was me.  And I was so surprised that two other people also wrote about ABC.  I thought I was alone, but now I know I am not alone.”

Stage 4:  A Place at the Table (1-2 hours) [Excellent for building a deeper sense of community while discussing uncomfortable issues.]

This activity is based on the notion that not everyone in our society has a place at the metaphoric table of democracy.  Participants and tables are numbered.  For example, if you have 20 participants (no. 1-20) and four tables/sessions (no. 1-4), you will want to make up a session chart placing different people at each table for each session.  This chart should be arranged thoughtfully; mixing participants as much as possible.  Each table/session is given a topic (race, differing abilities, gender, GBLTIQQA, socio-economic, etc.).  Provide general information based on the knowledge level of participants at each table (e.g. barriers, demographic information, struggles, stereotypes, etc.).  Ask participants to discuss accordingly at each table.  Allow them 15-20 minutes at each table. Make sure there is a symbolic empty chair at each table to represent the voice(s) that may or may not be represented by the table’s topic.  Encourage each table to dig deeply and honestly into their own perceptions, stereotypes, prejudices, etc.  Allow time at the end to debrief this activity:  What did you learn from this experience?  How can the table be more inviting and accepting for our diverse brothers and sisters?  What can you do to make this happen in your school, community, family?


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