Millersville University

Wellness and Sport Sciences

EDW 705.01

Developing Student Leaders through High and Low Ropes Facilitation (K-12)


Cross Cultural Simulation

Low prop fun by Chris Cavert

 

Equipment


Instruction sheets for each culture

Deck of cards for each culture
 

Objective


Introduce people to the dynamics of going in to another culture.
 

Instructions

One group will resemble a western culture (typically a trading/competitive culture where possessions are important).  Some guidelines for this culture: 1. You each start with 4 cards, 2. Divide the deck of cards up between the number of group members, 3. Your goal is to get Four of a Kind, 4. When you trade cards, you must give with the right hand and receive with the left, 5. The person with the lowest value cards at the end will be an outcast, 6. Aces are high, Twos are the lowest, 7. If anyone breaks the rules they must sit on the ground until 3 people sing them "Happy Birthday," then they can rejoin.


One group will resemble a People first culture.  Some guidelines for the people culture: 1. You are a culture where people are the first priority, 2. Whenever you speak to someone, you must first touch them on the left shoulder and give them a compliment, 3. To finish a conversation you must touch them on the right shoulder and say the name of a fruit or vegetable, 4. Everyone is excited about the up and coming festival (someone very important is coming to visit) 5. You need to choose this very important person from your group and have them sit on the throne, 6. If any visitor looks at the important person they must do 3 push-ups, 7. Divide the playing cards between the number of group members so that everyone has a similar amount of cards, 8. The cards should be traded every time you interact with someone but the values are not important.

Let the groups add to their list of guidelines and have them begin interacting with each other to get a feel for their culture.  Remind them not to leave the guidelines laying around.

Ask a small delegation (about one third) of each culture to come and watch the other group for 5 minutes - no interaction between the delegates and the other culture.  During this 5 minutes the cultures should interact with each other.  After 5 minutes the delegation goes back and reports to their own culture what they have witnessed.

After some discussion each group sends another delegation back to interact with the other culture.  After 10 - 15 minutes of interaction the delegates go back and report to their own culture what they encountered.

Each culture should develop some new guidelines without sharing them with the other culture.  Send the remaining delegates to interact with the other culuture.

After 10 - 15 minutes process with the entire group.


Culture Directions:

Western Culture

Some guidelines for this culture: 1. You each start with 4 cards, 2. Divide the deck of cards up between the number of group members, 3. Your goal is to get Four of a Kind, 4. When you trade cards, you must give with the right hand and receive with the left, 5. The person with the lowest value cards at the end will be an outcast, 6. Aces are high, Twos are the lowest, 7. If anyone breaks the rules they must sit on the ground until 3 people sing them "Happy Birthday," then they can rejoin.


People Culture

Some guidelines for the people culture: 1. You are a culture where people are the first priority, 2. Whenever you speak to someone, you must first touch them on the left shoulder and give them a compliment, 3. To finish a conversation you must touch them on the right shoulder and say the name of a fruit or vegetable, 4. Everyone is excited about the up and coming festival (someone very important is coming to visit) 5. You need to choose this very important person from your group and have them sit on the throne, 6. If any visitor looks at the important person they must do 3 push-ups, 7. Divide the playing cards between the number of group members so that everyone has a similar amount of cards, 8. The cards should be traded every time you interact with someone but the values are not important.