Suggestions for Discussion and Essay Activities
EACH STORY in this resource is accompanied by an interactive reflection tool that allows learners to take notes on their impressions and thoughts regarding that story. On this page, you will find some suggestions for activity prompts that can help engage learners more deeply with each story, or several stories taken together. These prompts can be used for in-class discussions, online discussions, or as the basis of essay questions or other writing assignments. Getting your learners talking and thinking more deeply about the aging process is a great way to leverage this resource in your class or training.
Activity 1: Reflection Questions
Ask your learners to watch, read, or listen to one or more of the stories in this resource, and complete the embedded reflection activity at the bottom of the story page. Ask them to export their responses to the reflection activity and share these in a discussion, or use them as the basis of a formal or informal written assignment.
Your learners’ responses to these prompts can also help them form the basis of a response to the below activity prompts.
Activity 2: Policy Questions
For this activity, ask your learners to watch, read, or listen to a selected story. Next ask them in a discussion or writing assignment to do the following:
- based on this story, identify a topic/goal for a policy change to improve the lives of older adults, and
- offer some insights on how this policy can be implemented into the real life.
Activity 3: Supports and Programs
Based on the participant’s story, ask learners what existing or hypothetical supports and programs could have supported this individual across their life course.
Activity 4: Compare and Contrast
For this activity prompt, ask learners to select two of the stories from this resource. Then in a discussion or written assignment ask them to:
- compare and contrast these stories, discussing how they are similar/different, and
- discuss what socio-cultural/historical factors can explain some of these similarities/differences.
Activity 5: Field Notes
For this prompt, ask learners to watch, read, or listen to one of the stories. Then ask them to:
- develop field notes from the video, and
- list some further interview guide questions that they would ask.
Activity 6: Culture and Immigration
For this prompt, ask students to watch, read, or listen to three or more of the stories. Then, in a discussion or written assignment ask them to respond to the following prompt: What roles do culture and immigration play in the aging process?
