Be Fair!

Five groups:

Group 1 - 7 - 8 people

Group 2 - 2 - 3 people

Group 3 -9 - 10 people

Group 4 - 3 - 4 people

Group 5 -2 – 8 people (left over numbers)

Object: To, as fairly as possible, divide the 9 bags of M & M’s among groups by voting.

Rules of the game:

1)The bags must stay sealed until the final vote is taken. The final vote will determine how many bags that each group gets. Once the final vote is taken, the way you decided to divide the bags cannot be changed.

2)There will be five rounds of negotiations. During these negotiations, you represent your group. You do not represent yourself as an individual. After each round, your group will get a chance to meet and strategize.

  • The first round will be an entire class discussion where one class leader will be chosen. This person’s job is to move the negotiations along and to make sure everyone is heard in the entire class discussions to follow. They will not belong to any group. The chosen leader gets a bag of M & M’s to themselves if at the end of the game a majority of the class feels they deserve it. This will be decided by vote. After this has been accomplished, each group will get a five minute strategy session to determine their plan for getting as many bags of M & M’s for their group.
  • The second round will be time for group negotiations. This is where you get to bounce ideas off of each other and speak up for your group to the other groups. A system of appointments may help to keep the discussions orderly.
  • The third round will be another entire class meeting led by the class leader. It will be a time to present possible solutions. Each group will get a chance to announce their proposal to the class. After each group presents their proposal, the rest of the class will ask questions and discuss whether it is fair or not.
  • The fourth round will be for finalizing and making small changes to the proposals while again meeting with the other groups.
  • The fifth and final round will be an entire class meeting to present proposals from each group. Two questions need to be determined:
  • How will the class determine which proposal will be put forward for the final vote?
  • How will the class determine whether the proposal passes or not?
  • These issues can be determined by group vote or by individual vote. The class leader will lead the discussion on whether these issues will be determined by an individual or group vote. This discussion should take no more than five minutes. If a compromise is on the table, more time will be allowed.

3)After the fifth round is completed, it is time for the vote. Vote first on which proposal will make the final vote. Vote next on whether to approve the final proposal. If the class has decided on voting by groups, each group will meet to determine how their group will vote. If it is an individual vote, the voting can take place immediately. In a group vote, in order to distribute the M & M’s to the groups, the proposal must have at least three of the five votes. If the individual vote was decided on, it takes 51% to pass the proposal.

4)If the class does not pass the final proposal, either because they voted it down or ran out of time, the M & M’s will not be distributed to anyone.

5)Lastly, students will vote individually whether or not the class leader deserves the bag of M & M’s set aside for him/her.

To the Teacher:

This lesson is designed to get students to think about how rules are made and organized. It can be used for many different classes and ages. It can be chaotic, but your students will learn. It is a study in group dynamics, government, sociology, economics or any other area. It can be used to introduce the writing of The Constitution, the premise for needing government vs. anarchy, to demonstrate Adam Smith’s theories of economics, to begin a discussion about capitalism, socialism or communism, or to prove that your classroom needs leadership and rules to operate smoothly. I really have used this simulation in all of these ways.

Some notes to help it run smoothly:

Keep the M & M’s in front of the room. Do not let the students touch them…

You can “help” choose the leader.

After the 1st round, suggest that students set up appointments with the other groups. Things will run much better this way.

Continually remind students that they are negotiating for their group, not themselves as individuals. This could help in a later discussion…

Continually remind students that if they can’t come up with a fair decision, no one will get any M & M’s.

If this is a sociology class, have a couple of students be “sociologists to watch and chart the group dynamics. What techniques were used to convince? Humor? Anger? Intimidation?

Some possible discussion questions (the possibilities are endless):

Did anyone surprise you?

What techniques did people use to try to convince?

Did hard work matter?

Was the final vote fair?

Did some people “take one for the team?”

What happened to people who didn’t care that much?

Did you care more about yourself or the group?

Is it human nature to take care of our individual needs?