Musical Poverty Chairs

This Friday, April 3rd the class did an activity that was very similar to musical chairs. A row of chairs was set and and a number of students greater than the amount of chairs lined up around it. As the music started everyone circled the chairs as the music played in the background. Andy went around and placed different names on chairs and then stopped the music. Everyone scrambled to find a chair and sit in it. After all the seats were filled he went around and looked to see if there was a name on the chair, if there wasn't a name then the person could stay. If someone Else's name was already on the chair and the corresponding person wasn't sitting in it then it would have to be vacated and the person whose name was on it would sit there. Some people had more than one chair, so even if they would get their own chair someone who sat in their chair would have to get up anyway. As the game progressed more of the same names were added and there were less and less available chairs as well as less and less people who didn't have a chair with their name on it. At the end of the simulation all of those who had their names on chairs were leisurely sitting while other who had no chairs competed to get the last chair.


This was actually a very good way of understanding this concept of poverty. Those who are rich in society don't have to put any effort into it because they are already well off. They have their own " seat" in society and no one can take that away from them. The more money the have the higher up they are, and the less other will have. The chairs with the names were symbolic for the amount of riches that one person had, the more seats the better off they were. They could just sit down and relax while other ran to get chairs, the game was easy for them the same way life is easier for those whom have a large percent of money. The people who didn't have any chairs continued to search for chairs, and in society today that is what poor people are forced to do. they have to compete for jobs, benefits, whatever they can to make ends meet. its sad though because at the end of the day more and more rich people are getting more money than those who need it.