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Wholebeing for Educators · Student sheet

Finding shape in a complicated situation

The skill of sense-making  ·  name: ______________  ·  date: ________

Some experiences arrive without a clear story: an unexpected result, a disagreement or information that does not fit. Sense-making helps us hold several parts together, recognise what we do not know and build a provisional understanding. It does not require every mess to become meaningful or every question to be resolved.

What we are practising

By the end of this lesson, you can map the parts, perspectives and open questions in a complex situation without forcing one quick explanation.

During the activity

The mess map: notes, noticings, or nothing at all. This sheet is yours.

Take it with you

How could someone map out the pieces and the different sides of a confusing situation, such as a headline or a mixed message, before deciding what it means?

Recipes for Wellbeing · CC BY-NC 4.0 · free for classroom use  ·  rfweducators.netlify.app/lessons/sense-making/

Exit ticket · Finding shape in a complicated situation

Why might a first explanation of a complicated situation be unreliable?

a) We always wait until we have every fact before deciding anything
b) It may be shaped by what we already expected, or by wanting to escape not knowing
c) We only make sense of things once someone else explains them to us
d) We rarely form an opinion about anything until much later

I can take a confusing, everyday situation and map out its parts, its different viewpoints and its open questions, instead of jumping straight to a single explanation.
□ more than before   □ about the same

How could someone map out the pieces and the different sides of a confusing situation, such as a headline or a mixed message, before deciding what it means?

Exit ticket · Finding shape in a complicated situation

Why might a first explanation of a complicated situation be unreliable?

a) We always wait until we have every fact before deciding anything
b) It may be shaped by what we already expected, or by wanting to escape not knowing
c) We only make sense of things once someone else explains them to us
d) We rarely form an opinion about anything until much later

I can take a confusing, everyday situation and map out its parts, its different viewpoints and its open questions, instead of jumping straight to a single explanation.
□ more than before   □ about the same

How could someone map out the pieces and the different sides of a confusing situation, such as a headline or a mixed message, before deciding what it means?

Exit ticket · Finding shape in a complicated situation

Why might a first explanation of a complicated situation be unreliable?

a) We always wait until we have every fact before deciding anything
b) It may be shaped by what we already expected, or by wanting to escape not knowing
c) We only make sense of things once someone else explains them to us
d) We rarely form an opinion about anything until much later

I can take a confusing, everyday situation and map out its parts, its different viewpoints and its open questions, instead of jumping straight to a single explanation.
□ more than before   □ about the same

How could someone map out the pieces and the different sides of a confusing situation, such as a headline or a mixed message, before deciding what it means?

Exit ticket · Finding shape in a complicated situation

Why might a first explanation of a complicated situation be unreliable?

a) We always wait until we have every fact before deciding anything
b) It may be shaped by what we already expected, or by wanting to escape not knowing
c) We only make sense of things once someone else explains them to us
d) We rarely form an opinion about anything until much later

I can take a confusing, everyday situation and map out its parts, its different viewpoints and its open questions, instead of jumping straight to a single explanation.
□ more than before   □ about the same

How could someone map out the pieces and the different sides of a confusing situation, such as a headline or a mixed message, before deciding what it means?