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3.4 Collaboration In Action

Items Needed: 

 

Set the Stage:

Review Communication Bloopers that are ineffective communication strategies: interrupting, ignoring, controlling, withdrawing and  Communication Boosters that are effective communication strategies: listening, facilitating, negotiating, supporting.

Introduce the Collaboration in Action (CIA) activity.

Explain that communicating in groups can be very difficult, even for adults.

Tell students that practice in using Communication Boosters and staying away from Communication Bloopers makes communicating in groups easier.

Prepare students to play the Collaboration in Action (CIA) Game.

Place students into diverse groups of approximately six students.

In each group, assign two Communication Observers (one Blooper Observer and one Booster Observer). Designate the remaining students as Team Members.

  • If there are extra students available, assign extra Observers to teams.

 

 

Activity: 

Provide each team with one Collaboration in Action Record Sheet and an envelope containing the prepared word slips from the Collaboration in Action Word Sheet.

  • Optional: Replace or supplement the words from the Collaboration in Action Word Sheet with students’ weekly vocabulary words.

Provide each Observer with his or her respective Collaboration in Action Blooper and Booster Tickets.

Provide students with instructions on how to play the CIA Game.

The goal of the game is to create as many complete sentences as possible in 10 minutes.

Each word slip can be used only one time.

Assembled sentences should be kept intact so they can be counted at the end of the game.

As the Team Members work, the Observers place Blooper and Booster tickets on the table when they notice teammates using effective or ineffective communication strategies.

  • Have Observers stand on opposite sides of the table in a place that does not interfere with the team’s work, but allows them to place tickets within view of the team.

 

Play the CIA game.

Give teams 8 minutes to create as many sentences as possible, providing a 5-minute warning and 1-minute warning along the way.

Walk around the room and provide assistance as necessary.

  • Make note of some Bloopers and Boosters you hear while circulating.

When time is up, instruct teams to count the number of Booster and Blooper tickets they received and fill out the Collaboration in Action Record Sheet.

  • Each Booster ticket is worth one point, and each Blooper ticket deducts one point.

Have teams share their sentences.

Ask teams to add two bonus points per complete sentence to their record sheets, and then congratulate the winning team!

 

Allow Team Members and Observers to spend five minutes discussing this experience with one another.

  • What Communication Bloopers did your team’s Observer see? How can you avoid them in the future?
  • What Communication Boosters worked well for your team?
  • What strategies would you like to improve for the next time you work together?
  • Observers, what feedback can you provide to the team about how they worked together?