Picture Tic-Tac-Toe is a higher-level thinking communication activity. I recently learned about this activity from Lisa Shepard at a conference I attended. I love the simplicity of this activity. Although it is simple to use and create, it allows for deep and meaningful conversations and ideas to happen once students are paired up.
What is Picture Tic-Tac-Toe?
Picture Tic-Tac-Toe is like a regular game of tic-tac-toe except it is communication-based. Students look at a 3 x 3 grid of images and try to make relationships between any three pictures in a row. Once students have been given time to think about the relationships, they are paired up or placed in small groups to discuss what they came up with.
How can I use Picture Tic-Tac-Toe?
Picture Tic-Tac-Toe can be used with almost any theme you are working on. If you are working on a food unit, use images of vegetables for students to discuss. The relationship can be all the vegetables are green in that row. Or all of the vegetables grow underground or on a vine. If you are discussing personality traits, use characters from cartoons and let students identify the characteristics the three characters share. Or you can use images of weather and have students analyze and identify their effect on the Earth.
How do I set up Picture Tic-Tac-Toe?
The setup for this activity is simple and takes no time at all. It is actually a very easy-to-prep activity that gives way to meaningful conversations in the classroom. Create a 3 x 3 grid and insert pictures that connect to your theme. Project the images on the board or assign the document in your LMS to go paperless. Allow students 5 – 10 minutes to analyze the images and determine the relationships between them. Pair students up or place them in small groups to discuss what they came up with. It is an excellent interpersonal activity. The teacher should circulate and help students when needed.
I hope you try this easy-to-use activity in your classroom.
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