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Collaborate! Lessons Home Resources Standards Inspiration About the Author |
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Lessons for Developing Collaboration Skills |
The following are sample lessons that can be used to teach specific collaboration skills. They utilize the workshop model, but can be adapted to suit the needs of learners. They are also available in PDF form. More lessons will be added.
Whole-Body Listening
Materials Needed: Chart paper and markers for poster (see model/teach)
Gush (compliment them on something they are doing well)
Connection:
Boys and girls, I have to tell you a little secret. I know as a teacher, I’m supposed to be really good at multi-tasking, but I actually have a really hard time listening if I am in the middle of doing something else. Just last night I was on the phone with my mom and she was telling me about the difficult day she had at work. While I was on the phone with her, I was also cooking dinner. I was trying to measure out the ingredients so that I had just the right amount. I was also monitoring the water boiling on the stove so that it didn’t overflow. On my computer, I heard my email go off, so of course I went over to check that out. But, I quickly ran back because I heard the oven timer go off. Then, I heard my mom say, “What do you think?” “Huh? What do I think about what?” I responded. I realized that I had no clue what she had been talking about for the last few minutes. She was trying to tell me something, and because I wasn’t focused in on what she was saying, I missed it. Not only did I not hear what she said, I also wasn’t being a very good daughter because I wasn’t showing her that I cared about her thoughts.
Model/Teach:
I’m telling you this story because when you are collaborating with your classmates, it’s important that you are using really good listening skills so that you hear what they say and also show them that you respect what they are saying too. When we listen to someone speak, it is important that we are listening with our whole body. Let me show you what I mean.
Watch me while I demonstrate good listening skills while I talk to (choose a student to help demo).
“(Student’s name), I see that you’re reading (book title), can you tell me about it?”
Have student tell you about his/her book. As you listen, show students how you are listening with your whole body. Model good eye contact, turn body towards student, hands and feet still, voice off, and nod in agreement to show you are thinking about what he/she is saying.
“Boys and girls, did you see what I did as (student) was talking? Let’s make a chart of what whole body listening looks like.” (Make this together on large chart paper).
Active Engagement:
Now it’s your turn to try this. Partner A, you go first. Tell your partner about a book that you are reading right now. Partner B, be sure to practice whole body listening as you’re partner is speaking. Then, switch roles. Go ahead!
Link:
“Today and every time you are working with someone, or even just having a conversation, remember to practice whole body listening to hear what the person is saying and to show him/her that you care.”
Independent Practice:
Have students continue to work on their collaborative project, focusing on whole-body listening.
Gush (compliment them on something they are doing well)
Connection:
Boys and girls, I have to tell you a little secret. I know as a teacher, I’m supposed to be really good at multi-tasking, but I actually have a really hard time listening if I am in the middle of doing something else. Just last night I was on the phone with my mom and she was telling me about the difficult day she had at work. While I was on the phone with her, I was also cooking dinner. I was trying to measure out the ingredients so that I had just the right amount. I was also monitoring the water boiling on the stove so that it didn’t overflow. On my computer, I heard my email go off, so of course I went over to check that out. But, I quickly ran back because I heard the oven timer go off. Then, I heard my mom say, “What do you think?” “Huh? What do I think about what?” I responded. I realized that I had no clue what she had been talking about for the last few minutes. She was trying to tell me something, and because I wasn’t focused in on what she was saying, I missed it. Not only did I not hear what she said, I also wasn’t being a very good daughter because I wasn’t showing her that I cared about her thoughts.
Model/Teach:
I’m telling you this story because when you are collaborating with your classmates, it’s important that you are using really good listening skills so that you hear what they say and also show them that you respect what they are saying too. When we listen to someone speak, it is important that we are listening with our whole body. Let me show you what I mean.
Watch me while I demonstrate good listening skills while I talk to (choose a student to help demo).
“(Student’s name), I see that you’re reading (book title), can you tell me about it?”
Have student tell you about his/her book. As you listen, show students how you are listening with your whole body. Model good eye contact, turn body towards student, hands and feet still, voice off, and nod in agreement to show you are thinking about what he/she is saying.
“Boys and girls, did you see what I did as (student) was talking? Let’s make a chart of what whole body listening looks like.” (Make this together on large chart paper).
Active Engagement:
Now it’s your turn to try this. Partner A, you go first. Tell your partner about a book that you are reading right now. Partner B, be sure to practice whole body listening as you’re partner is speaking. Then, switch roles. Go ahead!
Link:
“Today and every time you are working with someone, or even just having a conversation, remember to practice whole body listening to hear what the person is saying and to show him/her that you care.”
Independent Practice:
Have students continue to work on their collaborative project, focusing on whole-body listening.
Respectful Listening
Materials Needed: The Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Klein
Gush (compliment them on something they are doing well)
Connection:
Boys and girls, this morning I went to Starbucks before school to get a coffee. While I was waiting in line, I observed the woman in the front of the line interacting with the cashier. She was giving her order when the guy in line behind her began to interrupt the person ordering and starting talking to the cashier. I was appalled! It really was not respectful for him for interrupt. It got me thinking about how we sometimes do this in our lives too. Quite often, I have observed members of teams interrupt each other during collaborative work.
Model/Teach:
Today I want to teach you why it’s very important not to interrupt others when they are speaking and how it is better to demonstrate respectful listening. We are going to read a book called The Interrupting Chicken. As I read it, I want you to pay attention to the chicken’s behavior. Think about whether or not chicken is being a respectful listener.
Active Engagement:
Discuss what students noticed about Chicken’s behavior. Have partners turn and talk about why it’s important not to interrupt.
“Boys and girls, I want to give you some time to practice using respectful listening. Will you turn towards your partner now? Partner B, you go first. Tell partner A about your favorite part from the story while he/she demonstrates respectful listening. Then switch roles.”
Link:
Today and every time you are working with someone, or even just having a conversation, remember to practice respectful listening in order to hear what the person is saying and to show him/her that you care. Even when we are excited to share our own thoughts, it’s important to listen to others.
Independent Practice:
Have students continue to work on their collaborative project, reminding them to be respectful listeners by taking turns to talk, rather than interrupt.
Gush (compliment them on something they are doing well)
Connection:
Boys and girls, this morning I went to Starbucks before school to get a coffee. While I was waiting in line, I observed the woman in the front of the line interacting with the cashier. She was giving her order when the guy in line behind her began to interrupt the person ordering and starting talking to the cashier. I was appalled! It really was not respectful for him for interrupt. It got me thinking about how we sometimes do this in our lives too. Quite often, I have observed members of teams interrupt each other during collaborative work.
Model/Teach:
Today I want to teach you why it’s very important not to interrupt others when they are speaking and how it is better to demonstrate respectful listening. We are going to read a book called The Interrupting Chicken. As I read it, I want you to pay attention to the chicken’s behavior. Think about whether or not chicken is being a respectful listener.
Active Engagement:
Discuss what students noticed about Chicken’s behavior. Have partners turn and talk about why it’s important not to interrupt.
“Boys and girls, I want to give you some time to practice using respectful listening. Will you turn towards your partner now? Partner B, you go first. Tell partner A about your favorite part from the story while he/she demonstrates respectful listening. Then switch roles.”
Link:
Today and every time you are working with someone, or even just having a conversation, remember to practice respectful listening in order to hear what the person is saying and to show him/her that you care. Even when we are excited to share our own thoughts, it’s important to listen to others.
Independent Practice:
Have students continue to work on their collaborative project, reminding them to be respectful listeners by taking turns to talk, rather than interrupt.
Team Roles
Materials Needed: Small cards with each role and description of duties (1 set for each team)
Gush (compliment them on something they are doing well)
Connection:
Boys and girls, I was watching one of my favorite shows this weekend called The Amazing Race. In this show, teams of two travel all over the world, completing tasks together in a competition for one million dollars. In order for teams to win the challenges, it is really important for them to listen to each other and work together. In this particular episode that I was watching, one team really had a hard time working together. One member of the team completed part of the task and then the other member came along and did the same thing that his team member already did. They ended up doing double the work because they didn’t communicate well about who was going to do what. If they had established each one’s role and responsibility in the beginning, they probably would have finished the challenge quicker. Instead, they fell behind the other teams and were eliminated. This reminds me of the work that you all complete together in class.
Model/Teach:
Today I am going to teach you that, when working as part of a team, it is important to establish roles and responsibilities for each member. When teams do this, they ensure that each member of the team is actively participating, and that each important task is being completed.
Watch me and (3 students) as we show you how we can have separate jobs, but still work together. (Student 1) you will be the Materials Manager, responsible for getting and maintaining any supplies and materials we need for our project. (Student 2) will be our Record Keeper and will write down any information we collect. (Student 3) is our Time Keeper. You will watch the clock and make sure we are using our time wisely, letting us know when it’s time to move on or start to wrap up for the day. My role will be the Captain. I am in charge of getting everyone together and making sure we stay on task.
“Okay guys, it’s time to get going on our fossil research. Let’s gather in our meeting area.” (Student 1) should go and get the binder or materials. (Student 2) should demonstrate writing down notes, while (Student 3) shows how to check the time. “Okay, is everyone ready? (Student 2) can you check the notes from yesterday an tell us where we left off?” Have (student 2) demonstrate this. “Great, (student 3) can you tell us how much time we have left and how long we should spend on this task?” Have (student 3) demonstrate. Then do the same thing, but pretend that it’s time to clean up.
Active Engagement:
“Boys and girls, do you see how we each had different jobs to do, but we still worked together as a group? Did you notice that we didn’t argue over who was going to do what because we had already established that before we began our project?”
“Partners, I want you to turn to another partnership and practice establishing groups and role playing the responsibilities of the different roles.”
Watch as students practice. Have students practice all the different roles if there is time.
Link:
“Today and every time you work as a team, try establishing roles and responsibilities before you start a project. This will help make sure that everyone is participating and the task is getting done.”
Independent Practice:
Assign roles to students, or allow them to decide on the roles. You may want to provide them with cards and a description of each role. You could also have them create badges or some way to identify who is doing what role.
Have students continue to work on their projects while using these new team roles.
Gush (compliment them on something they are doing well)
Connection:
Boys and girls, I was watching one of my favorite shows this weekend called The Amazing Race. In this show, teams of two travel all over the world, completing tasks together in a competition for one million dollars. In order for teams to win the challenges, it is really important for them to listen to each other and work together. In this particular episode that I was watching, one team really had a hard time working together. One member of the team completed part of the task and then the other member came along and did the same thing that his team member already did. They ended up doing double the work because they didn’t communicate well about who was going to do what. If they had established each one’s role and responsibility in the beginning, they probably would have finished the challenge quicker. Instead, they fell behind the other teams and were eliminated. This reminds me of the work that you all complete together in class.
Model/Teach:
Today I am going to teach you that, when working as part of a team, it is important to establish roles and responsibilities for each member. When teams do this, they ensure that each member of the team is actively participating, and that each important task is being completed.
Watch me and (3 students) as we show you how we can have separate jobs, but still work together. (Student 1) you will be the Materials Manager, responsible for getting and maintaining any supplies and materials we need for our project. (Student 2) will be our Record Keeper and will write down any information we collect. (Student 3) is our Time Keeper. You will watch the clock and make sure we are using our time wisely, letting us know when it’s time to move on or start to wrap up for the day. My role will be the Captain. I am in charge of getting everyone together and making sure we stay on task.
“Okay guys, it’s time to get going on our fossil research. Let’s gather in our meeting area.” (Student 1) should go and get the binder or materials. (Student 2) should demonstrate writing down notes, while (Student 3) shows how to check the time. “Okay, is everyone ready? (Student 2) can you check the notes from yesterday an tell us where we left off?” Have (student 2) demonstrate this. “Great, (student 3) can you tell us how much time we have left and how long we should spend on this task?” Have (student 3) demonstrate. Then do the same thing, but pretend that it’s time to clean up.
Active Engagement:
“Boys and girls, do you see how we each had different jobs to do, but we still worked together as a group? Did you notice that we didn’t argue over who was going to do what because we had already established that before we began our project?”
“Partners, I want you to turn to another partnership and practice establishing groups and role playing the responsibilities of the different roles.”
Watch as students practice. Have students practice all the different roles if there is time.
Link:
“Today and every time you work as a team, try establishing roles and responsibilities before you start a project. This will help make sure that everyone is participating and the task is getting done.”
Independent Practice:
Assign roles to students, or allow them to decide on the roles. You may want to provide them with cards and a description of each role. You could also have them create badges or some way to identify who is doing what role.
Have students continue to work on their projects while using these new team roles.
PDF version of lessons:
| collaboration_lessons.pdf |