Game Map: Every Item Put Away Adds a Game to the Map

At the end of the traditional games unit, each student puts away one piece of equipment and, in return, writes a game from their family or the unit on a sticky note and places it on a world map drawn on butcher paper. It ends the class calmly, leaves equipment tidy and creates a mural of the group's diversity.

How to play

1. Hang a simple world map drawn on butcher paper on the wall (1 min).
2. Each student returns one piece of equipment, takes a sticky note and writes a game's name, who taught it to them and where it's from (3 min).
3. Stick the note on the right spot on the map; if the same game is already there under another name, place it alongside and connect them with an arrow (2 min).
4. Slow walk past the map: each student reads aloud a note that isn't theirs (2 min).

Rules

• You may write a game from the unit if you'd rather not share anything about your family.
• Nobody comments on or corrects someone else's note.
• Put the equipment away before posting your note, not after.
• The map stays up for future classes.

Variations

Adaptations

• Visual impairment: dictate the note to a partner, who guides their hand to place it on the map.
• Writing difficulties: draw the game instead of writing it.
• Limited mobility: hang the map at a height reachable from a wheelchair.

Learning goals

• Put equipment away in a calm, orderly way.
• Connect similar games from different cultures.
• Showcase the group's cultural diversity respectfully.

Equipment for a class of 25

• butcher paper: 1
• sticky notes: 30
• markers: 6

Teacher tip

Draw the map before class with simple outlines: accuracy doesn't matter. The arrows linking the same game under different names (tag, tula, roña, mancha) spark the most conversation.

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