Wrong Gestures and Out
Wrong gestures is a thrilling, fast-paced elimination game to sharpen observation and concentration skills in large groups.
Invite your group to stand in a circle. Introduce and practice three different gestures with your group, each involving two fingers being extended and placed:
- Above one’s eyes (eyebrows)
- Above one’s mouth / below the nose (moustache)
- Under one’s chin / on neck (bowtie)
By way of demonstration, initiate a consistent beat by patting your thighs twice, then clapping twice, patting your thighs twice again before randomly displaying one of these two-finger gestures. Practice and repeat this slapping and clapping rhythm with your group for 10-20 seconds featuring the random display of any of the three gestures at the same time.
When ready, announce that you are ‘It’ which means that you will start the rhythm of the beat encouraging everyone to follow with you. Explain that on each occasion when you display your two-finger gesture, everyone who matches it (with their own two-finger gesture) will be eliminated from the game and be invited to step out of the circle.
As quickly as possible, resume the beat and continue to feature a series of random two-finger gestures eliminating more people with each round. Challenge each person to stay in the game for as long as possible.
Game continues until everyone is eliminated. Play several rounds and/or invite a new person to be ‘It.’
Moment of Reflection
- What did you notice during the activity?
- In what ways did this activity challenge you?
- If you were eliminated early and often, what did you make this mean? Why?
- How do you make sense of random events, eg those things you can’t control in your life? Example?
- How do you cope in a rapidly changing environment?
The topics of this publication: interactions, critical thinking, observation skills, adaptability skills
