Gender Name Activity

This activity is intended to showcase the different ways that we refer to women and men, specifically by going to the very basics: what we call people. The activity is intended to facilitate discussion about the ways in which our language changes depending on a person’s gender. This activity works best if it is not initially introduced as a gender-specific activity.

Objective

In this activity, students will become aware of the different ways that we use language to describe men and women.

Estimated time

15-20 minutes

Group Size

This activity can either be done individually, followed by a whole group discussion or in small groups of  7-10 students

Instructions

Students begin by watching one of the three videos below. Instructors can decide on if they want to utilize just one of the video options or if they will have different groups of students watch different videos. Students will complete the discussion questions individually and then talk about their answers with their groups.

Materials:

• A device that can play videos
• Video 1: Photo recognition – focus on men known by last name alone and women known by first name alone.
• Video 2: Photo recognition – focus on men known by last name alone and women known by full name.
• Video 3: Short questions – focus on men known by last name alone and women known by full name.
• Discussion Questions