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3.2 The Communicator

Items Needed: 

 

Set the Stage: 

Explore the challenges involved when working in cooperative groups.

Discuss how Communication Bloopers (ignoring, interrupting, controlling, and withdrawing) can make working in groups difficult.

Explain that when people use effective communication strategies, working in cooperative groups becomes a more positive experience.

Have students brainstorm what it means to effectively communicate.

  • Listening to and answering group members’ questions; praising group members; compromising with group members; offering ideas for a group task; helping group members when they get stuck.

Introduce the concept of Communication Boosters.

Point out that most of the ideas students brainstormed boost people’s ability to work together, so they’re called Communication Boosters.

Write the four Communication Boosters (listening, facilitating, negotiating, and supporting) on the board.

Define the terms and provide examples from the Communication Bloopers and Boosters Reference Guide.

  • LISTENING means listening and responding to group members’ ideas and questions.
  • FACILITATING is providing the group with leadership that takes into consideration other group members’ needs and perspectives.
  • NEGOTIATING means to engage in problem-solving or compromising when there is a conflict or disagreement within the group.
  • SUPPORTING is encouraging and supporting group members when they need help or become discouraged.

Review the effective communication strategies students brainstormed and have them identify which Communication Booster describes each.

 

Activity: 

Have students perform the Communicator play.

Recruit six volunteers to act out the play for the class. Characters are Narrator, teacher (Mrs. Cooper), and four students (Molly, Ashley, Joey, Zach).

  • Distribute The Communicator Scripts – Student Copy to the actors and assign a role to each.
  • Give actors a chance to silently read over the script, and let them know they will perform it exactly as written.

Divide the remainder of the class into four teams and have each select a captain.

Have students arrange their chairs so they are near their team members and facing the actors.


Instruct the actors to read the script out loud as the rest of the students observe. Make sure the audience knows which character each actor is portraying.

After the script has been read through once, provide each team with a Communication Booster Game Board.

Play the Name That Communication Booster game.
Have the actors perform the play a second time.

Using The Communicator Script – Teacher Copy, stop the action by ringing a bell/ noisemaker and saying “Name that Communication Booster!” or “Name two Communication Boosters!” when each Booster occurs.

Allow team members to confer for 20 seconds to choose the correct Booster.

  • Don’t yell out the answer or you’ll be helping the other teams!

Have team captains share their team’s answers, and award one point to each group that answers correctly.

At the end, congratulate the winning team!