Key date

8 May
World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day

49 Practical Activities and Methods for Human Rights Education > Rights Bingo!

Rights Bingo!

What do we know about human rights?
Themes General human rights, Children, Human Security
Complexity Level 1
Group size 8+
Time 40 minutes
Overview This is a simple quiz and variation of the game, Bingo!, in which people share their knowledge and experiences of human rights.
Related rights Any human rights
Objectives
  • To know that human rights are relevant for everyone everywhere
  • To develop listening skills
  • To encourage respect for other people and their opinions
Materials
  • One copy of the quiz sheet and pencil per person
  • Flipchart paper and markers
Preparation

Instructions

  1. Hand out the quiz sheets and pencils
  2. Explain that people should find a partner and ask them one of the questions on the sheet. The key words of the answer should be noted down in the relevant box.
  3. The pairs then split and find others to pair up with.
  4. The aim of the game is not only to get an answer in each box but also to get a different person to answer each question.
  5. Whoever gets an answer in every box first shouts out "Bingo!". They win.
  6. Move on to the discussion. Take the question in the first box and ask people in turn to share the answers they received. List the key words on the flipchart. Allow short comments at this stage
  7. When the chart is complete, go back and discuss the answers in each box more fully.

Debriefing and evaluation

  • Were all the questions related to human rights? Which rights?
  • Which questions were the hardest to answer? Why?
  • Which questions were the most controversial? Why are rights controversial?
  • How did people know about human rights and human rights violations? Do they trust the sources of the information?

Tips for facilitators

Feel free to change any of the questions to tailor the activity to the interests and level of your group.

When recording people's answers to each question, only put down key words. The point of the chart is to help with the discussion later. After each round, deal briefly with any questions of clarification or differences in interpretation. Highlight any points that require more in-depth discussion and agree to return to these at the end.

It is likely that people will give examples that you yourself may not know about, either because they are obscure or because they are personal. This should not matter. No one can be expected to know everything! You can ask people how they know a certain piece of information and discuss its authenticity and reliability. Indeed, it is a good opportunity to encourage people to think critically about information as a matter of principle.

Some of the answers will be controversial. For example, someone might say that abortion is a denial of the right to life. Some people in the group may hold this view very strongly; others may disagree equally strongly. The first learning point is that it is important to try to understand any issue from all perspectives: try to establish why people hold the view they do. There are always conflicts of interests and rights (in this case between the interests and rights of the mother and the unborn child). Whatever the difference of opinion or interpretation of rights people should always treat others whose opinion differs from their own with respect. They may disagree with their point of view, but they should respect the person.

The second learning point is that we should know about human rights because they are controversial. It is not clear-cut and decided once and for all how they should be interpreted and applied; they need to be reassessed and developed continually. It is therefore everyone's responsibility to be part of the process of promoting and protecting human rights.

Suggestions for follow-up

Take one or two of the answers that provoked controversy and discuss the real life dilemmas that there are when trying to develop a culture of respect for human rights.

Another way of exploring human rights is through images. Find out how people see human rights with the activity "What do you see?". The activity can lead on to many discussions, for instance, about stereotypes, how we build up our images of the world and about discrimination.

You may like to go on and consider the ways events are reported in the media and how the human rights aspects could be given a higher profile. Try "Making the news" in the all different all equal education pack.

 Handouts
 
Quiz sheet
 
The name of a document that proclaims human rights A special right all children should have The sister organisation of the Red Cross
A right denied to some people in your country A human right that has been denied to you personally An organisation that fights for human rights
A duty we all have in relation to our human rights An example of discrimination A right sometimes denied to women
Someone who fights for human rights A violation of the right to life An example of how someone's right to privacy may be violated