Peer Tutoring in Schools
Social skills development activities
Summary
These activities are designed to help students build trust and improve social skills.
The quality of peer tutoring outcomes is affected by the quality of relationships between students in classes. Peer relationships can be aided by teachers using activities and experiences to help students develop a positive sense of themselves and constructive relationships with others.
The activities are presented as a resource available to teachers to help pairs who are struggling to work effectively for social reasons. Use activities targeted at pairs (or groups of pairs).
Note: these activities have been adapted from formats used in previous projects including SCOTSPRING, Group Work Transition, Fife Peer Learning and Peer Tutor Status and Outcomes in Primary Mathematics. As such the input of the following grant holders must be acknowledged in terms of their provenance: Donald Christie (University of Strathclyde), Keith Topping (University of Dundee), Christine Howe (University of Cambridge), Andrew Tolmie (Institute of Education, London) and Kay Livingston (University of the West of Scotland).
This resource pack is to provide teachers with information and guidance on how to set up and successfully run a ‘Paired Reading’ programme.
© The Queen’s University of Belfast 2017
Fifth Edition
No parts of this pack may be reproduced without permission.
For permissions and enquires please contact:
Professor Allen Thurston
Centre for Effective Education
School of Education
Queen’s University Belfast
69-71 University Street
Belfast
BT7 1HL
Tel: +44 (0) 28 9097 5491
Fax: +44 (0) 28 9097 5066
Email:
Permission is granted for schools and staff involved in the collaborative projects between The Queen’s University of Belfast and schools in the UK and Ireland to reproduce and copy the pack for use within their classrooms. The pack must only be used for teaching purposes and no changes should be made to the layout or text of the pack. It must not be passed to any third party and authorship and copyright must be acknowledged.
Written by Professor Allen Thurston
To cite this manual please use: Thurston, A. (2017). Peer Tutoring in Schools (5th Edition): Social Skills Development. Belfast, UK: Queen’s University Belfast.
Social skills activities
Contents
- I was frightened when….
- ‘If I were a ….’
- Tell the truth
- Can you guess?
- What would you do?
1. I was frightened when…
Group size: pairs
Resources: none
Time: about 20 minutes
Learning intentions:
- to promote self awareness
- to foster openness between students in communicating emotions
Activity: pairs of students take it in turns to finish the sentences
‘I was frightened when…’. Issues that arise are discussed between paired students.
Pairs reverse the order of who goes first and exchange sentences of
‘I was happy when…’.
‘I was worried when…’
‘I was excited when…’
Staring the lesson:
Introduce the lesson with one activity. Ask students to take turns answering each question. Remind them that if there are things that they don’t feel safe talking about, there is no need to tell anyone.
Finishing the lesson:Ask the following questions. Get students to think, share their ideas with their partner and then share them with the rest of the class.
Was it easier happy or sad?
What listening skills did they use?
2. ‘If I were a……’
Group size: pairs, then fours
Resources: paper and pencil if response is to be written rather than oral
Time: 30 minutes but could be shorter if only one question is addressed.
Learning intentions:
- to help student get to know each other
- to express aspects of their personality in an alternative format
Activity:Ask pupils to think about the question
‘If I were an animal I would be…’ and why.
In pairs students take turns to reply to this and the following questions
‘If I were a flower, I would be…’ and
‘If I were a car I would be..’
The listener should ask questions to explore the answer that their partner has given.
Pairs feedback another pair about their partner’s answers and fours to the whole class.
Starting the lesson:Tell the students to explore their partner’s answers and try to find WHY they have described themselves in the manner that they have.
Finishing the lesson:Ask students to reflect on the following questions:
What did you learn about your partner?
What did your partner learn about you?
Do you know your partner any better after this activity?
Were you kind no matter what your partner’s answer was?
How could you be more kind if someone says something more unexpected in the future?
3. Tell the truth
Group size:Students should work in groups of four (two pairs together)
Resources: Prepared cards. Photocopy and cut up sheets.
Time: 20 minutes or more depending on how long you want it to go on for.
Learning intentions:
- to work together co-operatively in a group
- to build up trust, respect and sensitivity as a group
- to engage in a group discussion
Activity:The group cuts out the cards and places them face down on the table. The first player picks up a card and reads it. They say what they would do in that circumstance. It is ok to PASS if you would rather not say.
Starting the lesson:Ask the group to think about:
How to make sure everyone participates.
How to make sure that each group member feels ‘safe’ when answering responding to the cards.
Finishing the lesson:Ask students to reflect on the following questions:
Were there questions that were more likely to remain unanswered?
Sample questions for Truth game
What do you do best? / When was the last time you cried?What sort of TV programmes do you like to watch? / What do you think your peer partner needs to do better?
If you won the lottery, what would you spend it on? / What upset you the most in the last week?
What makes you laugh the most? / What lie have you told recently?
Who do you like most in this group? / What scares you the most?
What was your happiest moment? / What makes you embarrassed?
If you were someone else, who would you be? / Which band would you most like to see?
What has pleased you most today? / What will you be doing in twenty years time?
What will you do when you ‘grow-up’? / What is your favourite meal?
4. Can you guess what sport I’m doing?
Group size: Use groups of six (three pairs)
Resources: none
Time: 20 to 30 minutes in total
Learning intentions:
- to engage in a group activitythat involves co-operation
Activity:The group form a circle. Each thinks of a ‘sporting mime’. They take turns to say their mime and perform it. The group must learn what each person’s mime is.
One person is picked to start. They perform their mime. Then they say the mime of a person and point to them. If they have remembered the person’s mime correctly then this person performs their mime, names someone else’s mime and points to that person. If the ‘pointer’ has remembered their mime correctly, then that person performs their mime and the sequence repeats.
Starting the lesson:Ask the students to think about the following:
Think about a sport that will be quick and easy to mime. Will it be confused with another sport? How can you make it clear?
Finishing the lesson:Ask the students to think about the following:
Was it easy to remember everybody’s mime?
Which aspect of the game could you improve?
5. What would you do?
Group size: Groups of four(two pairs)
Resources: Prepared cards cut from following sheet
Time: 20 minutes
Learning intentions:
- To encourage openness between students
- To encourage student to share their opinions
Activity: Students cut the cards out and place them face down in the centre of their table. Students take turns to pick a card. They read it out loud and the other group members take turns to give their response. Continue until everyone has read out a card.
Starting the lesson: Encourage students to say what they would do. It is ok for them to ‘pass’ if they feel uncomfortable answering the question.
Finishing the lesson: Ask the students to think about the following:
How did people answer the question about the homeless person?
Were they always honest?
Would they really behave like that?
What did they learn about themselves and other group members?
What would you do?
You are accused of stealing money by the teacher.You did not do it, but you saw who it was… / You see a classmate steal someone’s lunch money from their bag.
A friend offers you a stolen iPhone… / You see a strange man in the school playground acting suspiciously..
Your house is set on fire, you can only collect two things before you escape…. / A friend is spreading untrue rumours about you….
Someone keeps picking on your little brother/sister… / You see a strange looking man looking around a neighbour’s back door….
You see a homeless person lying on a busy pavement.
She is not moving.
Other people are ignoring her…. / While in a supermarket you knock a bottle of tomato ketchup off the shelf and it smashes….