Three things

Topic
- Society
- Citizenship & human rights
- Transport & mobility
Learning skills
- Self-awareness
- Empathy & social awareness
- Critical & reflective thinking
- Communication & expression
Activity type
- Group discussion
Materials
- Basic
Age
- 15 - 17 years
- 18+ years
>15 minutes
+5 players
Difficult
Calm
Small (office, pavement)

Contributors

ARSIS- Association for the Social Support of Youth

View profile

Everything you need to play this game

Post-its or small squares of paper, 3 per player
Pens or pencils, one per player
Piece of paper
Chalk

A step-by-step guide to play the game

Introduce the topic of migration by brainstorming the reasons why people decide to live elsewhere. If possible, let them wright down the answers on a piece of paper or on the floor with chalk.

Explain that in the activity they are going to imagine that they are being forced to flee their homes (be carefull to not trigger possible trauma for children who really had to flee their homes). Refer to the brainstorm and point out the “push factors” that cause people to flee, for instance war, natural disasters, persecution or terrorism, religion, identity, education, sexual orientation, political reasons, freedom of speech etc.

Now ask them to get into small groups, and hand out the small pieces of paper and pencils.

Ask everyone to imagine that they have to flee their home suddenly for a particular reason and that they can only take three things with them. Which three things would they take? They should write one thing on each piece of paper.

Then ask each in turn to present their choice and explain the reasons for their choice.

Now tell the players to work together to discuss the different choices and reasons, to try to reach a consensus, and to prioritise the items using a diamond order (see images).

Finally, have them review the results of each group's work and gather the players for a group discussion (see additional game information).

Extra game information

Discussion

Start by considering how each group ranked the items and then discuss what the players learned and what the implications are for children's/human rights.

Were there any surprising items that people wanted to include?
Was it easy to rank the items? What differences of opinion were there within the groups?
How similar or how different were the rankings of the different groups?
How practical were people? Were they thinking mainly about their physical survival or were they also thinking about their emotional or spiritual needs?
What would people miss most if they had to flee?
Do they know anyone who has fled their home?
Is the activity realistic? Can people always choose what to take with them? Why?
What about children and young people? Are their specific needs likely to be taken into account when their parents pack?
Which children's rights specifically protect refugees? Take the poster 'General overview of children's rights (see images) to look at together.

Tips for the facilitator (youth worker)

What items players choose and how practical they are depends on the maturity of the players. What people bring also depends on many factors, for example the weather, the time of year and the reason why they are fleeing. For example, if there are floods and they cannot swim, they may bring something to use as a raft.
It is important to stress that there are no right or wrong answers when it comes to personal choice and preference, although some choices may be more sensible and practical than others.

This game is part of the 'All Children, All Right(s)!' toolkit, which focuses on promoting the right to survival.

Variations

This method can be used to explore people's attitudes towards aspects of all themes. For example,

Migration: If you had to flee your country, which 3 countries would you most want to live in?
Poverty: Which 3 steps / actions would be most successful in eliminating poverty?
War and terrorism: There is now an international agreement on banning landmines; which 3 weapons should be banned next?

What people said about this game

Be the first to write a review

If you have played this game please help inform other people by giving a review.

Have you played Three things game?

Don’t hesitate, share your feedback and help others to pick the right games. Tell us how it was and how the children reacted? Or do you have any advice for other players, a fun variation, a possible improvement?