California Career and Technical Education Standards

• HSMT.B.B4.2 Use active listening skills (e.g., reflection, restatement, and clarification te...

California Academic Content Standards (Reinforced)

• ELA.9-10.LS.2.3b Apply appropriate interviewing techniques that make notes of responses.

• How well do you communicate? - Hooks / Set

  After students enter the classroom and are settled as the following question-

  What does it mean to be a good communicator?  Call on several students for their answers.

  Next, show the following video clip

  • watch [ Go to Site ] Abbott and Costello
• "You don't say" - Demo / Modeling

    At this point you will demonstrate the next activity.  

  1. Pass out plain paper to each student
  2. Explain to class that you will be giving the class directions and they will be drawing according to what you say.   However, you can no use the words    circle, square, rectangle, triangle, box or ball. 
  3. Now describe the picture of the birdhouse (see attachment below).  *Suggestion -You might ask the students to make 2 L shapes, one right side up and the other upside down and make the corners of each L shape connect to make a box or rectangle.
  4. When you have finished describing your picture, have the class hold up their drawing and you show the students what you have just described
  • birdhouse.jpg [ View Image ] [ Download Original ] image for teacher to describe to students
• Student Communicators - Group Work

     Ask the class for communicator volunteers.  Students will now take turns describing  the attached drawings.  

  * Make sure that students do not use the words  circle square, rectangle, triangle box or ball and they may not use hand gestures to describe or communicate the shape.

         

  I would suggest that you limit student communicators to 3 or 4 pictures.

  • design [ View Image ] [ Download Original ] picture for student communicator
  • car [ View Image ] [ Download Original ] picture for student communicator
  • wagon drawing [ View Image ] [ Download Original ] picture for student communicator
• Giant Puzzle - Group Work

  This is an additional activity that will require preparation/creation.

  Materials that you will need:

  1. 2 Large posters ( I asked the video store for posters that they were getting ready to discard)
  2. 2 pieces of foam board
  3. Exacto knife or sharp object to cut through foam board and poster
  4. glue or spray adhesive
  5. Material to make blindfolds 

   

  Directions for making giant puzzle

  1. Spray back of poster and adhere to foam board.
  2. draw out puzzle design on back of foam board.  Make your pieces big (8 to 10 shapes per puzzle)
  3. cut out your puzzle shapes

  Cut fabric into strips for blindfolds

  Activity

  Divide students into 2 groups.  Each group will chose a person to be blindfolded.  The blindfolded student will be assembling the puzzle with the direction of group members.  The group members that are not blindfolded my not touch the puzzle pieces.  The first group that assembles the puzzle first is the best communicator.

  This activity may be repeated several times.

   
• Communication Quiz - Closure

  Ask students to return to their seats.  At this time pass out the attached quiz.  

  Instructions:

  Students are to answer the 10 questions as honestly as possible.  Tell students that their is no right or wrong answers.

  When students finish with the quiz, give them the answer key to score their responses.

  After the entire class has finished scoring their quizzes read the descriptions of the point scores to the class.

  • Communication Quiz [ Download ] Ten communication questions and answer key