Nurturing the team

This is a cooperative learning activity that challenges students in teamwork, communication, perseverance and group strategy planning.

Materials Needed: Plastic cups, rubber bands, string for each student tied to the rubber band.

In groups of 4, students need to create a tower with the plastic cups without touching the cups with their hands.

Extra Challenge: Students have to have one hand behind their back.

A link to guided instructions can be found here.

A video link is provided above.

Adapted from Reimers, P.

Online - Asynchronous

Prompt students with questions that ask them to choose one describing word. Possible questions could be:

Prompt: What word best describes yourself?

Prompt: Fast forward to the end of the year, what word do you want to describe your experience?

Using Poll Everything Word Cloud Platform, each student enters their one word to collectively generate a word cloud where the promenence of words is visually represented. The word cloud can then be used as a tool by the teacher to guide discussion on the various responses.

Online - Synchronous

In this activity, students are asked to reflect on questions and place themselves on a scale.

This activity can be facilitated through Jamboard, an interactive white board, where students can share their responses in relations to the responses of their classmates.

A link to a sample JamBoard can be found here.

From Tomlin, J., & Galay, L.

Face to Face

Materials Needed: Paper Straws

In groups for 5-6, students stand in a circle and make an X with their arms. Students hold a straw in between the index fingers with the two students standing on either sides. When all the straws are connecting the students in the circle, students need to travel together to cross a given line.

Extra Challenge: Try this activity with the entire class at the same time.

Reflection:

How did your movements and the movements of your team members impact each other?

How did your group work together?

Adapted from GUIDE, Inc.

Online Asynchronous

Student will collaborate on a reflective document about experiences of empathy in the classroom.

Prompt: Choose an image in the Google Slide that illustrates a time when you extended empathy to another person. Why did you choose that image? How did it make the other person feel when you extended empathy? How did it make you feel?

Prompt: Choose an image in the Google Slide that illustrates a time when you needed empathy, but did not feel it was given to you. Why did you choose that image? What could have made the difference?

A sample copy of the collaborative document is availble here.

From Tomlin, J., & Galay, L.

This activity aims to have students reflect on their learning, recognize their goals, and recognize the important factors and steps needed to achieve their goals.

Students will need to have a piece of paper and writing tool.

Prompt: Build a simple airplane. Students can support eachother with guidance and instructions.

Hold the plane up on screen to confirm creation.

Prompt: Thinking about our time together as a community so far:

Where the pilot is, write what direction or goal you have for the year?

On the top of the wings, write what will you keep doing in order to achieve your goals?

On the bottom of the plane, write what you want others to know about you while you are flying towards your goals?

Offer students an opportunity to share (if comfortable) their ideas/writings.

On the count of 3-2-1, we will let our planes soar and our learning take flight.

From Stetson, S.