Crack the Code

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Description

A teamwork and problem-solving activity where young people create picture-based codes to represent part of a story, then work together to decode other teams' messages and reconstruct the full story.

Resources

Paper
Pens or pencils
Leader-prepared story parts (one per team)

Instructions

Before the activity, write each of the following story parts onto separate pieces of paper and number them:
-There were 3 Beavers hiking to a forest.
-There was a mermaid in the lake.
- She gave the Beavers a shell with a pearl in it.
- The Beavers sang and the pearl turned into a lion.
- The three Beavers rode the lion back to their unit.

Create the code
1. Split the group into small teams.
2. Give each team one numbered section of the story.
3. Teams create a coded version of their section using only drawings, symbols, arrows or simple pictures. No words should be used.
4. Allow around 3-5 minutes for teams to create their code.

Crack the code
1. Move each team to another team's coded message.
2. Teams attempt to work out:
- Which part of the story the code represents.
- What is happening in that part of the story.
3. Teams write down their guesses.
4. Continue until everyone has attempted several codes.

Reveal the mystery
1. Bring everyone back together.
2. Ask teams to share their guesses.
3. Read out the original story parts and compare them to the decoded versions.
4. Discuss which codes were easiest and hardest to understand.

Extension
1. Challenge teams to create their own short story and convert it into a code.
2. Swap codes with another team and attempt to solve them.

Adapt:
If younger sections struggle, allow simple labels or hints.
For older sections, make the challenge harder by restricting codes to symbols only.

Crack the Code

Description

Resources

Instructions

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