This poster reminded me of Dr. Bruce Tobin‘s art therapy lesson “Magic Shop.” Last year I improvised the lesson with my students and couldn’t believe the positive long term effects.
The lesson is simple. Provide students with three cue cards. Have them write down three qualities/virtues they admire about themselves: caring, friendliness, happiness, patience, kindness, loving, organization, courage, honesty, etc.
While students are writing their virtues, create several of your own cards with the following labels: anger, ambition, efficiency, commitment, enthusiasm, disappointment, happiness, kindness, patience, thoughtfulness, empathy.
Once students have written down their virtues, demonstrate the way the roll-play “game” works. Explain to them that you run a shop outside of teaching hours. It is a special shop that specializes in trading feelings and virtues. No money is ever exchanged; people simply come to your shop and trade one of their feelings for another they might be in need of.
Ask a student to volunteer to demonstrate. The student will come with their cards to your “shop” and look at the ones that you have on display. Once they have decided on a virtue they would like to trade, they will give you one of their cards in exchange for one of yours. Before they do, however, ask them to explain their reason for the trade (they do not have to get too personal here!). An example: “I have a lot of happiness in my life, but feel like I need more patience.”
Be sure to ask one of the student’s who enters your shop if they are sure they don’t want any ambition or frustration. Explain that too much of something is a bad thing, but sometimes it is helpful to get frustrated instead of pretending everything is okay. Explain that it is also okay to get angry, as long as there is not too much of the emotion. for example, if someone is being treated badly or being taken advantage of, they may need anger instead of complacency to take action.
Optional: allow students to fill out one more cue card with a feeling they might have TOO much of (so called negative feelings *in this exercise there is no such thing as a negative feeling, only an excess of…)
Once the trade is complete, the student’s card becomes a part of your display and the next student comes to make the trade. Once you have demonstrated for the class at least three times, explain that you are having an open house where people can come and swap cards one their own. The only condition is that they explain the swap.
Students will mingle for 10-15 minutes. During this time, circle the room and encourage students. (*One student approached me and said “I would like to create a gift certificate.” She handed me her “kindness” card and asked me to give it to another student. The student smiled happily when she received the card and was really grateful for the gesture!)
At the end of the lesson, allow for a reflection time. What worked well? What did students struggle with? What surprised them? What would they do differently next time? How will they use their new cards?
A few months later, when students were doing a locker clean up, I noticed that most of them had taped these cards inside their locker. It was a good reminder, I think, to build new virtues and to share the ones we have.
A few years ago, I was teaching a lesson and asked the students to get into small groups. As I walked around the room, I could see that things were not as productive as I thought they would be. Some students were disengaged, others were spacing out, and some where practicing future autocrat roles. I couldn’t understand what was happening; I had assigned “group roles” and everything: time keeper, information seeker, presenter, scribe.
A few days later I was having dinner with a friend who used to teach Psych at collage. Her sage advice changed everything! It was simple: teach group skills before you use groups to teach skills.
Like so many teachers, I was so anxious about the curriculum that I forgot about the social aspects of learning. Using a textbook recommended by my friend, I began to structure several lessons that would help my students to work as team members.
There are six primary goals for group work:
1. to use different approaches to a problem/ question
2. to facilitate communication
3. to use expertise to increase mutual goals
4. to encourage leadership opportunities
5. to face conflicts and resolve them constructively
6. to practice group interactions for the real world (work, friends, family, etc)
When you are introducing group skills to your students, you may want to explain these goals and create a classroom poster as a reminder. “A knowledge of group dynamics is central to the long-term maintenance of psychological health” (Joining Together, Johnson & Johnson, 2003).
When you are building these skills, the process is fairly simple: provide problem-solving opportunities; allow for reflection/ introspection, provide feedback; develop sequential stages of engagement; establish trust; and practice, practice, practice.
I. PROVIDE PROBLEM-SOLVING OPPORTUNITIES:
Use ice-breaker activities to engage students in problem-solving exercises. The first exercise should simply be diagnostic. In other words, no judgement or goals are necessary. Just allow students to work with each other. Once the task is complete, however, it will be essential for students to evaluate themselves and their team. This activity will be their baseline for their growth: “What kind of group member am I now?”
The following activities are designed to establish problem-solving skills:
1. Plane Wreck: students form groups of three. One student it blind-folded and hands are tied behind their back (A), the second is not allowed to speak (B), and the third is the “observer” who takes notes (C). Each group receives some scraps of cardboard, a blindfold, a rope and masking tape. Set up the scenario: the groups were in a plane crash and landed on a small island. There is no fresh water, but there are some clouds in the distance. You are certain that in 20 minutes, these rain clouds will reach your island. You have 20 minutes to construct a container to catch the rain water. Student A and B must work together to build the container, keeping in mind that one is blindfolded and hands are tied and the other cannot speak. Student C is taking notes during the activity: how are students cooperating? What are they doing effectively? What are some areas of difficulty? When I did this activity I actually filmed it, and we played it back after to observe. The results were incredible! Students kept saying, “I don’t remember getting mad!”, “Why am I yelling at him?” Once the activity is complete, allow student C to provide feedback to the group, and then allow the class to come together and discuss their group work.
An opportunity for reflection is essential for personal growth. While group discussion is a great way to kick off reflection, it is also important for students to be introspective. Provide journals or worksheets that will help students track their group skills progress.
Other styles might include a simple checklist or scoring sheet:
Once students have tried several activities, they might want to generate their own rubric.
III. PROVIDE FEEDBACK:
While students are busy reflecting on their group skills, as well as those around them, it is important for them to see and hear from others as well. One of the things I like about Joining Together is that the activities usually require a third group member to observe. This person is as important as those “participating.” I found that students struggled with this role at first. While the activity was happening, I walked around the room and prompted them: “how are they working well, are they communicating effectively,” etc.
Also provide your own feedback. Be sure to point out excellent communication, positive behaviour (encouraging others), and personal growth: “last time you struggled with… but this time I saw you really try to …”
Video feedback was the most effective tool I have used so far. Students were amazed to see themselves working. Even when they thought they were being productive or positive, they could see ways to improve; we soon discovered that “group leader” does not mean “bossiest”, but rather, someone who can help keep things on track and find each person’s strength. Sometimes the group leader is the person taking the back seat! Instead of “leader” my students prefer the word “manager” or “director” which conjures the image of people doing their own jobs, with one person at the helm.
IV. DEVELOP STAGES OF ENGAGEMENT:
It may take months, it may takes years! Learning to work as a group is an ongoing personal journey. The best you can do is provide a strong foundation. Part of the process, I am afraid to say, is messy: deterioration. It is important for students to see that “group skills” is not just about working well with another person, it is about working through inevitable difficulties. This is the hard part, for sure.
Group dynamics basically follow the following sequence:
initial attraction “I like you, let’s work on this together”
building a relationship “you sure are good at that!”
continuation “we are getting so much done”
deterioration “let me do some of that too!
end of relationship “see ya!”
Have you ever been asked to do an activity and found yourself groaning. You might even have opted out once or twice, feeling too uncomfortable or frustrated with the request.
During the initial stages of group work, there will be a lot of nervous energy and also some resistance. Some students will say that the activity is stupid; they will try to rebel against the task. No worries! So often, the trouble at the beginning of a task comes from anxiety: where do I fit in, what if it doesn’t work, last time that didn’t work…
Begin by establishing group norms and by laying out the task: what is the purpose of the group/ what are the roles? Instructions must be CLEAR, CLEAR, CLEAR.
One of the reasons students rebel against an activity is that they want to assert their independence. Rather than tightening control, try to negotiate/ teach others within the group to negotiate and reason.
* * *
Student: “I don’t want to work with so and so”
Teacher: “You are used to working with someone familiar, and you might be thinking about all the things that could go wrong. Try to remember that this is a process. You will not be held personally accountable if things fall apart. In fact, there can only be a positive outcome: you will have tried something new, and now you know what works for you.
Student: This activity is stupid
Teacher: It probably feels pretty strange to do something like this. Maybe we need to establish the instructions/rules a bit better. Can you think of a better way to start this activity?
* * *
Many students will feel anxious about the “active” approach they will have to take. Perhaps they are used to sitting back during group activities. Work side-by-side with shy or passive students; help them to see that each person’s participation is needed for total group success.
If (when!) things deteriorate in the middle of an activity or long-term project, help students work through the problem. Several factors may be at play: communication breakdown, autonomy, productivity, maturity. This stage is one of the most important because a negative outcome can have a life-long impact on an individual. Moreover, when students go into the work force, they will be afraid of confrontation and see conflict as a negative thing, rather than part of the group process.
In my experience, the only thing that fixes a serious group meltdown is communication.
acknowledge other person’s concerns and feelings
set aside emotions
agree on a plan
“Differences of opinion leads to inquiry, and inquiry leads to truth.” Thomas Jefferson
Conflict is a GOOD THING. It is one of the best places to learn. Most students have so few opportunities to state their opinion and even fewer chances to advocate for themselves. Encourage them to share their feelings and opinions; ensure that they are heard by reflecting back what they have said. Model this for students, and help the person they are having a conflict with to reflect back as well. Advocating leads to increased understanding. Often the person who learns the most is the person speaking! They might not even know what they are mad about until they talk about it.
V. ESTABLISH TRUST
Some of the challenges that arise from group conflict have to do with trust. I often find that a lot of work is done at the beginning of the school year, or workshop, or activity, to establish trust. Classic “fall on me’, “blindfold leader” activities are supposed to be a declaration of ongoing trust. The problem is, unless trust is continually built and created, it is an empty promise.
I once participated in a team building trust activity that involved harnesses. Yay, we go to the top. We helped each other out. Trust was established. Two days later I was sick and missed class. I emailed a friend from class to update me on any important news. Well, the next day I showed up to class and NO ONE was there. They were all at a local school on an observation. I felt totally betrayed. Trust was definitely not established.
Trust looks like: openness, sharing, support, acceptance, cooperation. Trust is also a two-way street: you must be trustworthy and you must be trusting.
The basic elements of cooperation are:
We instead of Me: when students see their efforts as essential to the group’s success, they will increase their efforts. Establish the group’s goals, tasks, resources and roles clearly. Before students begin, have them each reflect back their understanding. This can be done within the group as a check list, or independently. This will help with the classic “what are we doing right now” students. Have you ever noticed that when there is a prize at stake, students seem to see things with absolute clarity. It might be worth it to start students off with a “Reward” for procedure: a physical prize or even as assessment (tally chart as part of their mark) once they show you their understanding of the task ahead: verbal, written or checklist.
Face-to-face interaction: encourage students to provide regular feedback and assistance. Often, when students get going on a group activity or project, they get into their individual spaces and don’t come together until the end. This is fine for many assignments, so long as the work is equatable, and they are communicating throughout the process. Use check-in worksheets, teacher-group interviews, or a group check-up.
Social Skills: before students can succeed as a group, they must know and trust each other first. It is important to spend the time to chat before the activity is even established. Rather than handing out the assignment and getting students into groups, it might be more effective to provide 5 minutes and a question: “get into your groups and find out who in your group has traveled the farthest.” Once students get to know one another (yes, even half way through the year!), ask them to assign specific group roles and responsibilities. This will help students to cooperate right of the bat. You may want to say “those who were group director last time must choose a different role, and so forth” to help students establish different roles.
Group Processing: this stage asks students to think about their effectiveness within the group. Provide opportunities for students to tell their group what they did effectively and what skills they can improve on. Individual feedback is more productive than group feedback; in other words, peer-editing forms or peer feedback forms.
One of the most important tools for teaching students group skills is to provide LOTS of opportunities to practice, and to practice often! If you do the initial leg work at the beginning of the school year, the rest of the year will be sure to run more smoothly, and that the results of group work and assignments are better than you could ever have imagined.
1. Explain to students the back story of Harris Burdick: the mysterious artist who submitted the images with captions to his publisher, but was never seen again! Students are now the only hope of unraveling the mystery behind these images…
2. Clarify that you will make groups and hand them a picture. At the top is a caption and title. They must incorporate these into their story. They will have 10 minutes to complete their stories. (I give a narrow timeline because it helps the students to focus, and it provides time for them to share, edit, etc.)
3. Hand out images (upside down; don’t look!). Set the timer and GO!
4. Students write for ten minutes. Circulate the room, encouraging students to write with detail.
5. At the end of the writing session, provide two or five minutes for edits and revisions, or time to practice readings.
6. Students share their work.
Here are some of the masterpieces my students have come up with:
While students are writing their virtues, create several of your own cards with the following labels: anger, ambition, efficiency, commitment, enthusiasm, disappointment, happiness, kindness, patience, thoughtfulness, empathy.
Multiple Intelligences in the Everyday Classroom 