People, Place, Thing Cards

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This activity uses “third point objects” that help students think critically and creatively about a work.  When students are faced with physical and abstract juxtapositions, they rely on their flexible thinking skills to establish connections and formulate justifications for their comparative claims. 

Preparation

  • Select a range of images that correspond to the work or body of work being studied.  The images can be of concrete people, places, and things; but they could also be of more abstract ideas and meanings that are represented through images (e.g., an artistic photograph, a heart, a cross, a butterfly, or even a color). 
  • Decide how you want to conduct the protocol based on the group size.  In a large group, you may want to divide the group into 6 or so and offer 8 images for people to choose.  In a medium size group, you may decide to offer as many images as there are people (but always try to include two more so that everyone at least has some choice). 

Process

  1. Lay the images on the table or floor and instruct each person to choose one image they feel connects to the work or body of work.
  2. Give people 3-5 minutes to free write or free think about their ideas and connections:  Why did you choose this image?  How does it relate to the work?  In this time, they want to find as many connections as possible, but also consider their justifications.
  3. Have students share as a small or full group.  If it is a large group, students might first share in their small groups and then go meet the other people in the room who chose the same image to hear their reasons for choosing that particular image.  This helps students see the various ways that people connect to works, and it helps them appreciate the different concepts and ideas a work can develop within a body of readers.
  4. Ask students to reflect in pairs, small group, as a class, or in their portfolios:  In what ways did this activity stretch your thinking about the work?  What did you notice about your own connections to the work compared to others?

Credits

Adapted from: “The Adaptive School:  Strategies and Moves for Facilitating Groups”.  Thinking Collaborative, https://www.thinkingcollaborative.com/as-resources

Photo by Benjamin Radley on Unsplash