In the Last Lesson, Students Did a Great Job Role-Playing Resilient Behavior

ROOTS AND WINGS

FIFTH GRADE

LESSON FOUR

Rev. 9/03

Review (1 min.)

In the last lesson, students did a great job role-playing resilient behavior.

Overview (1 min.)

Tell students that this year they will have lots of opportunities to do group role-plays and other group activities. Tell them that you hope that they enjoy learning new skills this way. Learning by doing is one of the best ways to learn. Working as a team or group isn't always easy though. Today they will work with you to come up with the guidelines for working as a team that they will follow this year.

Program (25 min.)

Ask students for examples that make working on a team difficult - remind them not to use names. (Someone doesn't want to do what the group decides, someone thinks they are the "boss", someone doesn't do their share of the work, people don't listen to what you have to say, etc.).

Tell students that they are going to perform an experiment. Break them up into 6 teams of 5 students each and assign a group leader for each. You will have anywhere from 1-3 more students that you will not put on a team. They will be observers along with yourself and the other adult parent facilitators and teacher.

Give each team leader an envelope marked with a team letter (Teams are A, B, C, D, E & F). Inside each of these envelopes will be 5 smaller envelopes marked with the numbers Puzzle #1-#5; these hold puzzle pieces. Ask each team leader to give a numbered envelope to each of their team members. Give each team leader a set of puzzle starters (a set will contain one copy of each of the 5 different starters). Ask the team leaders to hand out the puzzle starter to their teammates so that the puzzle starter number corresponds to the number on the puzzle piece envelopes (I.e. puzzle starter #1 should go to the team member that receives the puzzle piece envelope marked #1, etc.).

Tell the teams that that each of their team members has one puzzle piece for each of the 5 different puzzle starters given to their team (5 pieces total). Like BINGO, they all have a "Freebie" and that is the upper left corner of their puzzle starter (they will not find a puzzle piece that fits there since this is a "Freebie"). Their team goal is to work together to put their 5 different puzzles together. When they are done, each team will have 5 completed puzzles.

Tell them the rules:

They may not speak to each other.
They may not signal with their hands to each other (i.e. may not point to a puzzle piece that they want).
They may not take a puzzle piece from another player.
They may use facial expressions and nodding (yes/no).
They may give their puzzle pieces to other players.
They have up to 10 minutes to complete the task or until one team is able to finish all 5 of their puzzles.

Assign an observer for each team to ensure that these rules are followed and to take notes on what they observed about the members of the teams. When a team has completed all their puzzles, the observer should verify that the puzzles are put together correctly, and then signal you to do a final check.

After 7-8 min., the time is up (or it is up as soon as one of the teams has completed all five of their puzzle pieces). Ask the following questions and write their responses on a piece of chart paper or on the board under the headings "Worked" and "Didn't Work":

Was it easy to put the 5 puzzles together?

If any teams said that it was hard, ask them what made it hard? (Write responses under "Didn't Work").

The expectation is that it was difficult because they knew what they had to do, but couldn't communicate with each other. It was difficult to get the pieces they needed to make their puzzle.

Ask these team members if they were thinking only about what they needed or if they were also thinking about what their teammates needed? (Write responses under "Didn't Work").

The expectation is that most of the students were thinking about what they needed and not what the other members of their team needed.

If any teams said that it was easy, ask them what made it easy? (Write responses under "Worked").

The expectation is that those teams who found it easier watched each other's facial expressions, or looked at their teammates' puzzle starters and gave them pieces they thought might fit.

Ask the teams what their team goal was? (To make the 5 different puzzles).

Ask the teams who said they did not think about what their teammates needed what their REAL working goals were (To make their own puzzles).

Ask if they think that if they had worked together on the team goal instead of their individual goals that it would have been easier to finish the puzzles? (Yes). Working on your individual parts to meeting a group goal is okay. Not considering or prioritizing the team goal does not work though. It is everyone's responsibility to make everyone else on the team successful.

Write under "Didn't Work": worked on individual goals. Write under "Worked": worked on team goal.

Ask teams what would have happened if you didn't tell them that the team goal was to put all 5 puzzles together?

The expectation is that it would have been harder if not impossible. Team members would have been trying to work on their individual puzzles without knowing that they had to finish all 5 puzzles to meet the goal. Not knowing the team goal would have made it impossible to effectively work as a team.

How did you feel during the experiment? Did you feel like you knew what you were doing? Where you confident that you could figure out the 5 puzzles in the time allowed (or before another team finished)?

The expectation is that they did not feel confident, and did not feel like they were going to necessarily finish their puzzles.

Ask the observers for their inputs. What did they see? Where team members cooperating with each other? Did team members look happy? Did they look stressed?

The expectation is that the observers will report that the teams seemed chaotic, unorganized, and stressed. No one really seemed to know what he or she was doing.

Tell students that "not knowing" will cause stress in most human beings. Stress makes it hard for human beings to learn. We don't use the part of the brain we need to use for long-term learning. As I said in the beginning of this class, we are doing these group activities to learn. Therefore, we need to do it "right" in order to minimize the stress and accomplish our goal of learning.

Evaluation (15 min.)

Tell students that this experiment was an extreme example of teams working very hard, but definitely not working effectively. Knowing what we did that made it so hard though (i.e. what didn't work helps us to figure out how to do it right.

Review the students comments about what worked and what didn't work and ask them to come up with some Teamwork guidelines they are willing to follow to work successfully in groups this year. Write these on a different sheet of chart paper. Ask leading questions if necessary to ensure that their guidelines include the following:

I will communicate with my teammates using words.

(Example of leading question: "what made it hard to get the job done?")

I will tell my teammates what I feel and what I need.

(Example of leading question: " what will you tell them? What does it mean to assertively communicate?")

I will listen to what my teammates have to say with words and with body language.

(Examples of leading question: "How would you make sure that you know what other people need?" We couldn't talk in this exercise; how could we "listen" in this case?)

I will agree on the team goal with my teammates.

(Example of leading question: "How would you make sure that you are all working on the same goal?")

I will prioritize our team goal over my individual goal(s).

(Example of leading question: "What happens when teammates are only looking at their own goals or objectives?")

I will cooperate with my other teammates in order to achieve the team goal.

(Example of leading question: "What happens when one person does not cooperate with the team on meeting the team goal? Will you have a better chance or worse chance of being successful as a team?"

Summary (2 min.)

Thank students for helping you to define and for agreeing to a set of teamwork guidelines that they will follow during the course of the year. Ask them, based on their experiences, do they think that if everyone follows these guidelines, working in teams will be much more productive and much more fun? (Yes). If anyone says no, ask him or her why and then ask the rest of the class to help explain how following the guidelines will address their issue. However, if the guidelines really do not support his or her concern, brainstorm with students on how to make sure they do and add new guidelines as necessary.

Tell students that you will type up their Guidelines to put in their Roots and Wings Booklets during the next lesson (use the "Teamwork Pledge" master at the back of this lesson). Keep the chart paper with the guidelines to hang up every time you have a lesson with group or team breakouts. Collect the puzzle pieces and put back into binder. Please make sure that the pieces are put back in their proper envelopes before returning to the Roots and Wings office.

Lesson Purpose

Students will agree to a set of teamwork guidelines that will help enhance their learning experience.

Objectives

Students will verbally state behaviors that make working in teams difficult.
Students will experience working in an ineffective or dysfunctional team.
Students will verbally state the behaviors that make up an ineffective or dysfunctional team.
Students will acknowledge that they do not like working on an ineffective or dysfunctional team.
Students will come up with and agree to follow a set of guidelines for working on a team that addresses their concerns.

PF Lesson Prep

Pick up chart paper (at least 2-3 sheets) and masking tape from the Roots and Wings office.
Pick up marker from the R&W office.
Pick up the Puzzle Pieces from the R&W office.
Make 6 copies of each of the 5 different puzzle starters found in the back of this lesson (you will make 30 copies total). Divide these up into 6 sets with each set containing one copy of each of the 5 different puzzle starters.
Make up 6 teams and choose a team leader for each.

Lesson Materials Required

Chart paper, masking tape and marker.
6 copies of each of the 5 different puzzle starters (30 copies total)
Puzzle pieces from the Roots and Wings office.

"Teamwork Pledge" master which you will fill out AFTER the lesson is over. You will bring this to the next lesson (Lesson #5). You will 3-hole punch this worksheet after you have written the guidelines and made student copies to be handed out during the review section of Lesson #5.
PF's solution for puzzles #1 through #5.