Ex 6-16: The “Emotion Radar”

Focus: Active Listening & Empathy Decoding (20 Minutes Total)

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Phase 1: Setup & Role Assignment (3 Minutes)

📢 Instructor Script

“Welcome back, everyone. For this next exercise, we are exploring a major pillar of civility: showing emotional awareness toward others. In any community project, people rarely just share facts—they share their feelings through their tone, posture, and facial expressions. If we only listen to their words, we miss the real message, which often leads to unintended conflict.

We are going to test your ‘Emotion Radar.’ Please find a partner sitting next to you. Decide who will be Partner A and who will be Partner B.

Partner A, please raise your hand. (Wait for hands) I am walking around to hand each of you an index card face down. Do not look at it yet, and absolutely do not show it to Partner B.”

💡 Facilitator Tips

• The Cards: Pre-prepare index cards with one distinct emotion written on each. Use subtle, complex workplace/community emotions rather than simple ones. Good options: Overwhelmed, Defensive, Anxious about a deadline, Feeling unappreciated, Eager to please, Skeptical.
• Pairing: If there is an odd number of participants, create one group of three where two people share the “listener” role.

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Phase 2: The Scenario & Delivery (7 Minutes)

📢 Instructor Script

“Partner A, look at your card now. That is your hidden emotion.

Up on the screen, you will see a completely neutral sentence regarding a community center issue: ‘We need to change how volunteers are scheduled for the weekend shifts.’

Partner A, your job is to read this exact sentence out loud to your partner. However, you must deliver it while completely channeling the emotion on your card. Don’t say the emotion out loud, and don’t exaggerate it like a cartoon—act it out using realistic body language, pacing, and vocal tone. Partner B, your only job right now is to listen intently and observe.”

💡 Facilitator Tips

• Prompting the Speakers: Give Partner A about 30 seconds of quiet time to think about how they will deliver the line before telling the pairs to begin.
• Managing the Noise: The room will get loud quickly. Encourage partners to lean in close so they can hear the subtle shifts in inflection and pacing.

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Phase 3: The Reflection & Switch (5 Minutes)

📢 Instructor Script

“Speakers, hold there. Listeners (Partner B), it’s your turn to analyze.

Turn to your partner and tell them what emotion you detected. But here is the catch: you cannot just guess the word. You must state at least two specific clues that gave it away. For example: ‘I think you felt overwhelmed because you avoided eye contact and sighed heavily before speaking.’ Go ahead and discuss.”

💡 Facilitator Tips

• Mid-Way Switch: After 2 minutes, call time and reverse the roles. Hand out a fresh set of face-down cards to Partner B, have them read the same neutral script sentence with their new emotion, and give Partner A 2 minutes to decode.
• Keep them Focused on Clues: Walk the room and correct anyone who just says “You sounded mad.” Push them to identify the physical evidence: “What did their hands do? What happened to their vocal pitch?”

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Phase 4: Group Debrief (5 Minutes)

📢 Instructor Script

“Let’s bring it back to the main group. Raise your hand if your partner correctly guessed your exact emotion on the first try. (Note the show of hands)

For those who guessed right, what were the microscopic cues that gave it away?

(Allow 2–3 participants to share)

This is the heart of civility. In the real world, someone won’t walk into a community meeting and say, ‘I am feeling deeply unappreciated today.’ Instead, they will say something sharp about a schedule change. If we react only to the sharp words, we clash. If our ‘Emotion Radar’ is turned on, we see the hurt or stress underneath, and we can respond with empathy instead of defense. Let’s build on this as we look at how to verbally validate those emotions next.”

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Recommended 4-slide deck structure for The “Emotion Radar”.

Slide 1: Exercise Introduction

• Slide Title: Exercise: The “Emotion Radar”
• Visual Elements: A clean, minimal icon of a radar or an ear.
• Bullet Points:
  • Objective: Decode the unspoken feelings behind everyday words.
  • The Civility Connection: Uncivil clashes usually happen when we react to a person’s words while completely missing their feelings.
  • Goal: Turn up your relational awareness.

Slide 2: The Setup & Rules

• Slide Title: Step 1: Pair Up & Get Your Secret
• Visual Elements: A 2-column layout or two simple graphic boxes separating the roles.
• Bullet Points:
  • Find a Partner: Designate who is Partner A and who is Partner B.
  • The Secret Card: Partner A will receive a card with a hidden emotion. Keep it hidden!
  • The Rule: No cartoon acting. Deliver your line using realistic facial expressions, tone changes, and body language.

Slide 3: The Script (Keep this on screen during the activity)

• Slide Title: Step 2: The Delivery
• Visual Elements: Large, bold, centered text for the script line so it is easily readable from the back of the room.
• Main Text:

“We need to change how volunteers are scheduled for the weekend shifts.”

• Footer Prompt for Listeners: Partner B: Do not guess yet. Watch the eyes, the hands, the pauses, and the pitch.

Slide 4: The Analysis & Debrief

• Slide Title: Step 3: Decode the Radar
• Visual Elements: A simple checklist visual anchor.
• Bullet Points:
  • Name the Emotion: Partner B, share what emotion you think you detected.
  • Provide the Evidence: You must name at least 2 physical cues that tipped you off (e.g., pace of speech, eye contact, posture, sighs).
  • Reveal & Switch: Partner A reveals the card. Swap roles with a new emotion card!