The teacher will tell the students that today they will have a new set of rules in addition to the classroom rules. The new rules will be in effect for 15 minutes.
Students will be divided into three groups. Each group will have a leader and the leader will give the students directives that are written on paper. The students in the groups are not to see the directives. The directives will have rules such as:
1. No one must say a word for five minutes
2. Everyone must state and believe that 2+2=5
3. Human emotions are not to be tolerated. You must mask your emotions
unless ordered otherwise.
4. Each person will clap in unison for 10 claps
The leader will read each directive.
A time-keeper will make sure that the group does everything in exactly the correct time.
A jokester will tell two jokes at the allotted time.
A record-keeper will list the names of the students who did not follow the directions.
A secret agent will report whether or not the record keeper, time, keeper, or any other person in the group did not do as told.
At the end of this lesson, the record-keeper and secret agent will deliver their reports. The teacher will ask the students, according to what they have learned, how much is 2+2?
The teacher will explain that all of the students were being watched, not only by the time keeper, but also by a secret agent. The teacher will explain that not only have the students had their freedom of speech revoked, but they have also been brain-washed to believe that something that is incorrect is incorrect, and they have had their right to privacy revoked. They were spied on without their knowledge.
This launch activity should take less than 30-minutes
. It is intended for a high school class, reading the novel,
1984. Teachers may want to show a video, or part of the movie
1984 after completing this preview activity.