Perception exercices

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Perception Exercises

Objective
To show participants that not everyone sees the same thing when looking at words or images.

Props
The Perception Exercises Handout

Activity(s) F-Test
Distribute the handout. Use the following script to give the participants directions for the F-Test.1. “Answer the question, ‘How many F’s are there in the following sentence?’ Read the sentence in the rectangle and count the F’s in the sentence. Write the number in the blank following the question, ‘How many F’s are there in the following sentence?’” 2. Watch the participants and after a minute or two, ask the group, “How many F’s are there?” 3. Response will vary between 2 and 6 (generally).4. State, “Since we can’t seem to agree on a number, I’m going to read the sentence just to be sure we’re all reading the same sentence.” Read the sentence and ask, “Are we all reading the same sentence? Then let’s recount and change or leave the number the same.” 5. Give the participants 30 seconds or so. Watch their responses. Some will start helping others. Before this goes too far, state,“There are 6 F’s in the sentence. ______________ please do me a favor and read the words in order that contain the 6 F’s.” Select a participant that you know found the 6 F’s to identify the six words. 6. In order, the six words containing F’s are FINISHED, FILES, OF, OF, SCIENTIFIC, and OF.

Process Points
Use the following discussion/process points and questions to conclude the activity. a. Whichword did many of you miss? Why did you miss the word? (Some people miss the F in scientific because it isn’t the first letter of the word. Many people miss the f in the words of. It’s a small word and some people were taught to skip those words or naturally skip the little words when reading. Others who are auditory learners don’t see the F in of because it sounds like a V. Those people process whatthey hear not what they see.) b. Does the inability to see the 6 F’s mean that you don’t understand the meaning of the sentence? If yes, why? If no, why? c. Be sure that everyone understands that with proper instruction, people can find the 6 F’s. d. Point out that when a person is engaged in the communication process, the person needs to remember that s/he’s not communicating with his/her self.It is the person’s responsibility to send information in means other than that with which they are comfortable.
continued

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Perception Exercises continued

Activity(s) Count theSquares
1. “Answer the question, ‘How many squares are there?’ Remember that you can combine squares to make squares.” 2. Walk around the room and watch for numbers to be written in the answer blank. You’re looking for the person who finds 30 squares. Participants frequently announce the number that they find. Tell them if they are high or low. In general, participants don’t find enough and areusually low. When asked if the number of squares is correct and it’s low, simply respond, “There’s more than _____.” 3. After three to five minutes and after finding a participant who has found the 30 squares, stop the participants. Ask the person who’s found the thirty squares to tell the rest of the participants how to locate the 30 squares. You might want to use a script such as the followingto set this up: “There are 30 squares. Name of participant found the 30 squares. Name of participant, please do me a favor and give the rest of the participants verbal instructions to find the 30 squares. Listen to Name of participant and you too can find 30 squares.” 4. If the participant asks if s/he can show the others how to find the 30 squares, respond with “No, I need you to tell them how...