Fortunately, Unfortunately

This activity requires that you have a few story starters that are age-appropriate for the students. This can be done in one large group or several smaller ones depending on the size of the class and the time allowed. Read the story starter to the group or groups. The first person in the group must supply the next sentence in the story, but it must start with the word, Fortunately. The next person supplies the next sentence, but it starts with Unfortunately. For example, your story starter could be, “Sam went to the grocery store to get items for a party.” The first person could then say, “Fortunately, the store was having a sale.” The next person would add, “Unfortunately, it was on toothpaste.” You continue going back and forth until everyone has had a turn. Small groups may want to go around again.

To process the activity, ask these or similar questions:

• Was that fun to tell a story that way?
• If someone struggled to think of something, why was it okay to help them out?
• Can you appreciate how everyone (in your group) contributed to the story? How different it was than if you did the whole story yourself?
  

Final thought: We all contribute to the community of this (classroom/organization) and we all have a vital role to play in being ourselves as a part of the whole (class/team).