Perspective Detectives

We are going to play a game that helps us get to know each other better and understand how another person’s feelings, point of view, or thoughts differ from our own. These games will help us build our empathy and perspective-taking skills, which is the ability to understand another person’s viewpoint, opinion, and/or feelings.

1. Provide students with a real or imaginary line that acts as an agreement continuum. “Agree” will be on one end, “neutral” will be in the middle, and “disagree” will be on the opposite end.
2. Present an issue, give them some time to think about how they feel, and then have them choose somewhere to stand on the continuum. Ask students to explain their choices, and highlight similarities and differences.
3. As you play, periodically ask volunteers to explain why they chose the answer they did. Make sure you choose volunteers who represent a variety of feelings, points of view, and thoughts.
4. Highlight both similar and contrasting points of view to help students understand what it’s like to be “in someone else’s shoes.” Explain that these differences are part of what helps us define our identities and make us special. Help students understand it’s important to respect others’ perspectives, even if you don’t agree or have a hard time understanding why they feel that way.

• How were your perspectives similar or different to your classmates or partners?
• What surprised you?
• What did you learn today?
• How could we play this game differently next time?

For primary school students:

• For younger students, present fewer options along the continuum and pre-teach vocabulary for sharing opinions (e.g, agree and disagree).
• Encourage students to share their ideas for situations or scenarios. Remind students to choose scenarios which may have a range of perspectives.

For students in grades 5-6:

• Extend the activity to allow older students to discuss their opinions with someone at the opposite end of the continuum. Encourage students to notice how it feels to have a different perspective than someone else.
• For an added perspective-taking challenge, students choose an option on the continuum which is the opposite of their opinion. Students can share how someone with this opinion might feel.