16: Messages

I heard you were making plans to cheer up an older person.  I think that is a great idea.  I called my grandmother and she was so glad to hear from me.  I could tell by her voice, that she felt happier when she heard my voice. 

Here is a game we used to play called Messages.

Ask all the members of your family to sit, one behind the next, in a straight line. Everyone is facing the same direction.  That will make each person looking at another person’s back.  Then you let them know that you have drawn a symbol on a piece of paper, and you are going to send that symbol as your message to the last person in the row, by drawing the symbol on their back with your finger.

A message should be simple with only one to three lines.  Start off with numbers or something like a tree or an aeroplane shape. Here is an example:     

23

The game is for each person to draw the symbol they feel on their back, onto the back of the person in front of them.  The message starts at the back and moves toward the front of the line. Each person can ask the person behind them to repeat the message only twice if they don’t get it the first time. 

The original message giver goes to the front of the line and waits for the message to the front person.  The front person draws the message they believe they received on a piece of paper. Now compare the two pictures. 

You can change places so that each person gets a chance to send a message.  It is fun to see how many of the messages received by the front of the line resemble what was originally sent.