Gather your kids around you in a group. Explain that you’re going to say a word, and you want them to shout the first related thing that comes to mind when they hear that word. For example, when you say “airplane” they might think of “airport” or “fly” or “vacation.” When they hear the word “Mom,” maybe they think “love” or “warm” or “parent.” There are no right or wrong answers; it’s just whatever happens to come to mind when they hear that word.
After each word, invite the kids to briefly elaborate on why that association came to mind. If you want to have a bit of fun, challenge them with nonsensical associations: “How come when I said grandpa nobody thought turnip?” or “How come when I said snake nobody said french fry?”
Here are some sample words to get you started:
- Mom
- Dad
- Airplane
- Duck
- Snake
- Unicorn
- Broken bone
- Nighttime
- School
- Brother
- Sister
- Gun
- Bad
- Elderly
- Bed
- Dog
- Home
- Pet
- Kiss
- Criminal
- Party
- Broccoli
- Grandma
- Love
Once you’ve exhausted this activity with as many words as you can handle in a session, have a discussion about what just took place: When you said each word, their mind automatically brought up mental associations. Hearing the different words triggered a different collection of thoughts. These related thoughts came from their memory and are based on everything from past experiences to what you read and watch on TV.
When you hear the word “grandpa,” you might think of “cookies” because you have a fond memory of baking cookies with your grandma. Or maybe the word “old” came to mind because you think of grandmas as being old. Perhaps when you hear the word “brother” or “sister” you think “annoying” based on your experiences with a sibling annoying you. Or maybe the word “love” comes to mind because you have a good relationship with your sibling and get along most of the time.
Aside from being a demonstration of how their mind works, there are two important lessons you want kids to come away with:
l. Everyone’s perception is different
This activity is basically a verbal Rorschach test. As you went along you probably noticed that different people had different answers for each word. That’s because everyone’s mind is different. Everyone has had different experiences and different things programmed into their brain. We need to remember this whenever others do things that are strange or puzzling. Instead of getting upset, we should try to understand the thoughts behind what they see or do.
2. Challenge your associations!
Unfortunately, this process of forming thoughts and associations can also lead to prejudice. For example, we might think of grandmas as elderly and frail, but there are also grandmas who skydive and hike mountains! You might be fearful at the thought of a snake, but how do you know these feelings are accurate? It’s important to make a habit of re-examining the things we think or feel, because whenever we’re making broad assumptions about things, we’re usually wrong.
Alternate variation:
You can also do a variation of this activity by asking kids to name a specific feeling or emotion that each word brings to mind rather than a related word. For example, mom = love, snake = afraid, brother = grumpy, party = excited, and so on.
See also: