Dominoes are small wood or plastic blocks that can be stacked on end to form long lines. When one domino is tipped over, it causes the next domino in line to tip over and so on until all of the dominoes topple over! This is what’s known as the “domino effect,” and it can create very complex–and sometimes dangerous–chain reactions.
Many people use dominoes to play games such as knocking over a long row of dominoes with a single touch or to set them up in intricate designs, such as a picture of a cat. Others use them for school projects or to create science experiments that demonstrate the domino effect.
The most common application of the domino effect, though, is when a person refers to a series of events that start with one small action and lead to much larger–and often catastrophic–consequences. This is also what’s meant when people use the expression, “the domino theory.”
When a domino falls, it can cause a chain reaction that changes the course of history and the lives of millions of people. These dominoes can be as simple as a person walking into a room or as complicated as a terrorist attack on the U.S. Capitol building. A person can even set up a domino effect in their own backyard by putting one small object on a sidewalk that is then pushed over by a passing vehicle.
Some learning challenges impact students like falling dominoes. They can have a devastating effect on student learning, causing the loss of basic skills and resulting in compensatory skills that prevent students from developing their true potential. Then when the compensated skill is no longer sufficient, the result can be a domino effect that causes the whole student to fail.
Dominoes can be a fun way to pass the time, especially for children. They can be used to make straight or curved lines, grids that form pictures when they fall, or 3D structures such as towers and pyramids. Many people also enjoy making domino art, where they create a design on paper and then figure out how to lay the pieces in order to make it come out right.
The word domino itself has a longer and more obscure history than the game of dominoes. It originally denoted a long, hooded cloak that was worn with a mask at carnival season or at a masquerade. The French form of the word, domino, also denoted a cape that was worn by a priest over his surplice.
When writing your story, think of each scene as a domino that must fall in the correct sequence to create the intended effect. Make sure that the scenes logically follow each other and the character’s emotional beats are progressing and shifting in the way that they should. Then, when you read your story again, check that all of the scenes have been properly positioned in the sequence. A proper placement can make all the difference in how your readers will perceive the story and whether they will find it believable or not.