Category: Assignments

Rich and Poor (low-stakes writing assignment)

Faculty: This is a quick writing exercise that can get students thinking about social class divisions. I like to use this as a way into discussing sociological theories of social class division (Marx, Weber, and Moore and Davis’s functionalist theory). For in person classes, students can free write on paper; for online synchronous classes students can put their responses into a Google Doc or Google form.

Instructions for students: Free write for five minutes a response to this question.

Why are some people rich and some people poor?

Sociological Imagination Essay

This is an essay that I assign early in the semester to encourage students to start to use their sociological imagination by thinking about how a daily activity they do is influenced by society and history. The questions/prompts below the assignment can also be adapted for an in-class exercise for students to do in small groups.

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Ice Breaker Bingo

This is a fun ice breaker I do with all my SOC 100 students on the first day of class. Each student must try to complete the bingo sheet by speaking to people in class. Students should find someone who fits the category, introduce themselves, and write their name in the square. They have to fill the whole board. The professor also plays the game. The first student to fill in the entire board wins a KitKat bar. I insist that all the students get up from their chairs and walk around the room to interact with their classmates.

The bingo game gently touches on many of the key themes of the course, such as race, class, gender, religion, the media, politics, economics, culture, family, criminal justice, and the environment. I have found that this bingo game is terrific in breaking the ice and helps establish a sense of connection and fun in the class on the very first day.

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Ice-Breaker-Bingo