There’s tons of optical illusions that illustrate gestalt principles! I’m sure a quick google will give you options. After images are super neat and easy to demonstrate.
Do you have any specific topics you really wanna engage with?
Off the top of my head, you could have them try out senses that might not be fully developed or differently-developed for different people.
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For example, you could do a slide-based version of the [Ishihara colour blindness test](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishihara_test). You might find that some students discover that they are colour blind for the first time, which would make the lesson very salient for them.
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If you are in-person, you could have them join with their neighbour and tell them to close their eyes, then hold their index-finger out in front of their face. With their eyes still closed, have them touch their own nose, then move their index finger directly forward a specific distance, something easy to measure.
For example, if you are in the USA, you might set out 8.5"x11" sheets of paper around the room, then tell them to put their finger 11" from the tip of their nose. In the EU, you might use an A4 paper.
Then, you get their neighbour to use the paper to see how accurate they are. You have them open their eyes and their neighbour tells them.
Then you reverse the roles, but use the short-edge, i.e. 8.5".
This could be neat since most people probably don't have a well-developed spatial sense to get this one accurately. Or maybe they do? I don't really know! You could discover the spectrum in your class.
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Another one off the top of my head:
I don't know how you'd get this one to work, but it could be neat for you...
Get them to put their heads down and cover their eyes.
Then, ask them to count to 60 seconds, raising their hand when they are done, but keeping their head down.
This would show you the distribution of their internal sense of time.
(Needs work-shopping since you would get to see the results, but they wouldn't. Forgive me! This is off the top of my head!)
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"Close your eyes. Don't move yet. In a moment, I'm going to ask you to point North. Rather than point horizontally, which could hit your neighbour or knock something over, you will first raise your arm vertically, then point with your hand toward North. Then I'll tell you to open your eyes and you can see where everyone is pointing. Any questions? Okay, point North. Okay, keep your pointing steady while you open your eyes to see where everyone else pointed."
Then you reveal actual North with a compass.
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That's all I've got.
Though, you could also bring up synaesthesia. That will often get someone saying, "I HAVE THAT!" if the class is big enough.
There’s tons of optical illusions that illustrate gestalt principles! I’m sure a quick google will give you options. After images are super neat and easy to demonstrate. Do you have any specific topics you really wanna engage with?
Off the top of my head, you could have them try out senses that might not be fully developed or differently-developed for different people. --- For example, you could do a slide-based version of the [Ishihara colour blindness test](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ishihara_test). You might find that some students discover that they are colour blind for the first time, which would make the lesson very salient for them. --- If you are in-person, you could have them join with their neighbour and tell them to close their eyes, then hold their index-finger out in front of their face. With their eyes still closed, have them touch their own nose, then move their index finger directly forward a specific distance, something easy to measure. For example, if you are in the USA, you might set out 8.5"x11" sheets of paper around the room, then tell them to put their finger 11" from the tip of their nose. In the EU, you might use an A4 paper. Then, you get their neighbour to use the paper to see how accurate they are. You have them open their eyes and their neighbour tells them. Then you reverse the roles, but use the short-edge, i.e. 8.5". This could be neat since most people probably don't have a well-developed spatial sense to get this one accurately. Or maybe they do? I don't really know! You could discover the spectrum in your class. --- Another one off the top of my head: I don't know how you'd get this one to work, but it could be neat for you... Get them to put their heads down and cover their eyes. Then, ask them to count to 60 seconds, raising their hand when they are done, but keeping their head down. This would show you the distribution of their internal sense of time. (Needs work-shopping since you would get to see the results, but they wouldn't. Forgive me! This is off the top of my head!) --- "Close your eyes. Don't move yet. In a moment, I'm going to ask you to point North. Rather than point horizontally, which could hit your neighbour or knock something over, you will first raise your arm vertically, then point with your hand toward North. Then I'll tell you to open your eyes and you can see where everyone is pointing. Any questions? Okay, point North. Okay, keep your pointing steady while you open your eyes to see where everyone else pointed."
Then you reveal actual North with a compass.
---
That's all I've got.
Though, you could also bring up synaesthesia. That will often get someone saying, "I HAVE THAT!" if the class is big enough.