Graffiti

Graffiti (Gibbs, Tribes: a process for social development and cooperative learning) is a cooperative structure that facilitates brainstorming and also doubles as a group energizer.

Steps that lead to a Graffiti cooperative structure:

1. Create cooperative groups (ideally groups of 3 or 4)

2. Provide each group with a piece of paper and markers

3. Then each group is given a different question, topic, issue or statement to which they respond

4. Given a short period of time every group in the room writes their graffiti (words, phrases, graphics) related to their topics

5. Groups are then stopped, and pass their graffiti sheet to the next group which each group responding to the new topic

6. The process repeats until a group's original sheet returns to them

7. As a group, all 'new' comments are read

8. A discussion and summary follow

9. Comments may also be categorized in order to draw conclusions or present a brief summary presentation to the class

10. NOTE: IF THE CLASS IS LARGE: each topic could be repeated once, so instead of 8 topics, only 4 would be provided. Rotation would occur only to half the class (while the other half rotated through the same topics at the same time)

11. ANOTHER ALTERNATIVE IS TO ROTATE THE STUDENTS AND LEAVE THE GRAFFITI SHEETS AND MARKERS ON THE SAME SPOTS. - Over the next number of minutes, class members can go to any other graffiti sheet in the class and add their comments/visuals to it. They cannot return to any one graffiti sheet unless they have contributed to all the others. At the end of the designated given time, team members return to their original graffiti sheet to read, discuss, summarize, and possibly present it.

Graffiti works well as an anticipatory set or closure activity, or as an energizer during any lesson where generation of ideas is desired.