Doug Fields - Would You Rather . . . ?: 465 Provocative Questions to Get Teenagers Talking

Challenge and encourage their responses. Keeping some basic concepts in mind will help you better use these questions. Use the Right Question at the Right Time Some of the Would You Rather ? questions have no significant value. They will receive quick answers requiring little to no thought, such as #101 ( get caught picking your nose or pulling your underwear out?). This type of question is intended to warm up your group and doesnt necessarily need much follow-up discussion. Other questions require more serious, indepth responsessuch as #247 ( have no values or no friends?).

Save these questions for times when you want to draw kids out on their deep-seated opinions and beliefs. Create Your Own Rules Some of the questions will require you to provide additional information and/or boundaries. For example: Leader: Would you rather be rich or famous?
Student: Thats easy. Famousbecause if I were famous Id automatically be rich.
Leader: Okay, let me rephrase the question. Would you rather be rich without ever having any fame or famous without ever being rich? When you provide additional elements to the question, you force the student to do more thinking that will give you some indication of his or her values. I might follow up with a question about a students desire to be wealthy.

In this answer he or she is most likely to enlighten me about his or her value-system. Push a Little Some of your students will answer neither to your Would You Rather ? questions, such as #302 ( dress like your parents or act like them?). The neither answer is an easy out. Challenge your students to give you an answer anyway. Usually, any type of answer can lead to more discussion or provide some insight into their thinking. Be Sensitive Be wise when deciding which questions to ask.

If I have a student with a bad case of acne, I wouldnt ask #94 ( have terrible acne or be bald?) Questions having to do with appearance need to be thought through for the potential impact on a given student. Code Your Favorites As you read through the book, create codes for your favorite questions. For example, I put an F next to the questions that I think are funny and know will get a laugh. I write DD next to the questions that I know will cause us to dig deeper in our conversation. A hot topic that will create some heated debate gets an HT. be rich or famous? die by fire or by drowning? have your friends think that youre stuck on yourself or that youre a wimp? steal from an old lady or laugh out loud at a funeral? drink Coke or Pepsi? be male or female? go on a camping vacation or vacation at a resort? sweat because of exercise or because of humidity? watch television or read a book? be the President of the United States or the worlds richest person? ride a roller coaster or a mechanical bull? be told you have a booger hanging from your nose or told you have bad breath? have the power to fly or the power to disappear? step in dog poop barefoot or have a bird-dropping hit you on the head? dress casually or fancy? have blistered lips or paper cuts on each finger? have diarrhea or be constipated? be caught cutting classes or have almost everyone believe wrongly that you were drunk at a school event? be thrown off a horse or body-slammed by a wrestler? give up your favorite food forever or television for two years? be healthy and homeless or have the AIDS virus and live in luxury? fail in business and end up bankrupt or fail in marriage and end up divorced? live in Los Angeles or in New York City? eat Mexican food or Chinese food? be bald or have no toes? have a small tattoo on your neck or wear jewelry through your nose? have one romantic date with someone youre attracted to or briefly meet your hero? hang wallpaper or scrub floors? be addicted to drugs or alcohol? eat too little and be hungry or too much and be sick? be ugly and have 10 good friends or attractive and have only one good friend? die without warning or die slowly, surrounded by family and friends? be bitten by a shark or by a pit bull dog? be a famous athlete or a famous rock musician? be obese or emaciated? have straight hair or curly hair? be known as a bad kisser or someone with bad breath? be embarrassed in front of friends or in front of strangers? receive daily encouragement from your boss or a five percent pay raise? buy an American car or a foreign car? be woken up by music or by an alarm? travel with the circus or a minor-league baseball team? be a movie star or a television star? live in the city or in the country? travel by train or by plane? walk on hot sand while barefoot or have sand thrown in your face? be kicked in the groin or hit in the mouth? have your leg amputated or your arm amputated? be grossed-out or frightened? fall off your bicycle or run into a tree while jogging? roller skate or ice skate? drive a $30,000 car you dont own or keep the interest from the $30,000? listen to a news station or a music station? eat pie or ice cream? be a baby again or a 50-year-old? pay for a $100 traffic ticket or lose $100? use an Apple computer or an IBM? drive a Ford or a Chevy? be hot or cold? wake up early or sleep in late? drink from a bottle or from a can? wear Nikes or Reeboks? be considered rich and live in Haiti or poor and live in the United States? own a dog or a cat? watch a drama or a comedy? be Michael Jordan or Mother Teresa? have labor pains or dry heaves? explore under the sea or outer space? be sick at home for a week or in the hospital for two days? swim in the ocean or in a pool? eat a burrito or a piece of pizza? be 7 6 tall or 4 2? go to an opera or a county fair? talk to your best friend who lives 2,000 miles away from home over the phone for one hour or see this friend in person for five minutes? eat yogurt or ice cream? water ski or snow ski? own a cabin in the mountains or a home on the beach? lie to your friend or have your friend lie to you? scrape your knee or pick off a scab? eat ice cream from a cone or from a cup? go blind or deaf? get poked in the eye with a sharp stick or have your hand nibbled on by a cannibal? be known for your looks or for your personality? shop for clothes during a crowded sale or pay regular price with personal service? see an R-rated movie or a G-rated one? have a big rear or a big nose? be trapped in an elevator or caught in bumper-to-bumper traffic? die of cancer or of AIDS? have the chills or a fever? eat chocolate ice cream or vanilla? have sextuplets (6) or be infertile? be a doctor or a lawyer? be verbally abused or slapped in the face? have terrible acne or be bald? go to Disneyland or visit a friend you havent seen in five years? have a housekeeper or a chauffeur? be blonde or brunette? be a student or an employee? win $10,000 or earn $1,000,000? take a nap in a hammock or on the beach? get caught picking your nose or pulling your underwear out? read the book or see the movie? be known for your intelligence or your personality? eat liver or sushi? have excessive nose hair or excessive ear hair? find someones hair on your plate or see a cockroach on your food? be gossiped about or lied to? take risks with your money or make safe investments? tell the host the food is terrible and not eat it or eat the food and pretend to like it? be in jail and allowed visitors or deserted on an island in total isolation? watch a sunset or a sunrise? browse through a bookstore or a record store? watch a soap opera or make fun of one? talk to everyone at a crowded party for a short time or have a significant conversation with two people? be spanked or put on restriction? have more money than time or more time than money? eat a bad meal in a restaurant or a good meal in your home? be remembered as a good parent or a good child? be an artist or a musician? be highly educated or highly successful? go to war or be a conscientious objector? be friends with Muhammad Ali or Hank Aaron? read fiction or nonfiction? laugh really hard one day a week or laugh a little every day? make a child cry or kick a puppy? watch one hundred hours of Sesame Street or a boring documentary? look stupid or be stupid? walk on the moon or be President of the United States for a week? hit the winning home run in a World Series game or score a touchdown in the Super Bowl? watch a situation comedy or a made-for-TV movie? write a best seller or be a cover model for a national magazine? faint during your wedding ceremony and recover an hour later or throw up during your ceremony and continue right away? crash your parents car or your siblings car? be known as a generous giver or someone who is full of joy? sky dive or hang glide? crack your head open or have minor hemorrhoid surgery? ruin your favorite shirt or spill coffee on a strangers outfit? eat a bar of soap or drink a bottle of dishwasher liquid? get hit by a car going 60 miles an hour and live, or fall from a 10-story building and live? drink coffee in the middle of a scorching desert or drink a Slurpee in the middle of a snow storm? purchase a car without any assistance or buy one from a knowledgeable but pushy salesperson? eat a shark sandwich after scuba diving or eat a hamburger after branding a wild steer? eat a cookie or cookie dough? have a stupid-looking haircut or a fat lip? give money to a religious cult or to an abortion clinic? go hiking or watch television? be inside the house on a sunny day or outside on a rainy day? eat a hamburger in front of a starving child or destroy a childs self-image? clean out a garage or assemble a swing set? give a speech in front of 10,000 people or be arrested while on national television? smuggle cocaine into the U.S. or Mexican citizens across the border? have a life full of good memories or a life full of exciting adventures you couldnt remember? be known as someone who is arrogant or someone who is untrustworthy? be a half hour early to a party or an hour-and-a-half late? lose all of your photo albums or all of your savings account? have a stomachache or a headache? eat only chicken or only red meat? eat thick crust pizza or thin crust pizza? watch professional football or college football? get shot from a cannon or walk the high wire? go swimming or shopping? drink diet or regular soft drinks? know the sex of your unborn child or be surprised? cheat on a test and receive an A or not cheat and get a D? be captured by a ghost or by an alien? wear really tight pants or really loose pants? die lonely with no enemies or die hated by many? get a shot from a doctor or get a filling by the dentist? die before your spouse or have your spouse die before you? be a famous national hero or discover a cure for cancer and receive no recognition? swim like a fish or fly like a bird? be a police officer or a firefighter? have a great body or a great mind? know you only have one year to live or die unexpectedly? betray your spouse or be betrayed by your spouse? eat squid or chocolate-covered ants? run a 26-mile marathon or swim five miles? get a flat tire or run out of gas? go to jail for life without the possibility of parole or die in the gas chamber? read 500 pages from the Bible or 100 pages about medieval politics? have a runny nose or itchy eyes? have your date tell you that you have really bad breath or endure your dates horrid breath? eat a candy bar or a piece of fruit? be thirsty or have a full bladder and not be able to relieve yourself for an hour? wear uncomfortable shoes or a hat thats too tight? confront someone about lying or let it slide and try to forget about it? pick out your wedding ring or be surprised by your fianc? be booed by 50,000 fans watching you play a sport or be booed at your high school reunion? play a sport or be a spectator? be yelled at by a friend or by a stranger? be afraid of the dark or be claustrophobic? have compulsive behaviors or be apathetic? spend your life in a wheelchair or on crutches? be anorexic and starve yourself or be bulimic and throw your food up? be a liberal or a fundamentalist? read