Overview For Teachers

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION: The ability to display appropriate listening, nonverbal, verbal, interpersonal, and written skills; send a consistent, clear, concise, and courteous message that is easily understood by the receiving party; ask questions, clarify or summarize, and provide feedback to ensure the message has been understood; the ability to read and interpret documents and instructions clearly and correctly; the ability to give and receive information and convey ideas and opinions with others.

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PURPOSE: Upon completion of this module, the student will understand the importance of effective communication in the classroom as well as the workplace. In addition, the objectives listed below should be met.

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OBJECTIVES:

 The ability to demonstrate appropriate verbal and non-verbal communication skills

 The ability to ask relevant questions as well as answer questions thoughtfully

 The ability to communicate effectively through writing

 The ability to read and follow directions correctly and in a timely manner

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OVERVIEW:

This module focuses on teaching students the importance of being an effective communicator in all types of settings . Students will work to improve both their verbal and non-verbal communication skills . This module will discuss different types of communication and how each one plays an important role in being successful at school and at work.

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TEACHERS: WHAT ARE YOU OBSERVING?

What does effective communication look like in the classroom or in school in general? A great way to answer this and get things going is through engagement with the students. Ask your students these questions:

1. What does effective communication look like in class?

2. How does your ability to communicate affect others? Example: teachers, classmates, group projects, etc.

3. What does effective communication look like within your learning?

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RELEVANCY OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION:

Employers have expressed that the ability to effectively communicate is crucial to an employee’s long -term success.

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LESSON:

Non-Verbal Communication
Time Allocation: 20  minutes
Materials/Resources: whiteboard, markers, computers/tablets/smartphones (students - optional), small pieces of paper with
different emotions written on them (Afraid, Angry, Bored, Confused, Excited, Frustrated, Happy, Stressed, Shy, Sad,
Proud, Surprised, Ashamed, Nervous)

ANTICIPATORY SET IDEA:

Split the class into 3-4 groups and have each group find some space within the classroom.
 Instruct the students that you need to form a straight line from tallest to shortest.
 Give each group a few minutes to accomplish this task and when they are finished, have everyone in the group
    raise their hand so you can check their work.
 If they are arranged correctly, they get one point but if they are incorrect, the other teams get a point.
 Now, instruct students to line up according to birthday but this time, they MAY NOT talk.
 When groups are finished, they all must raise their hand silently and you will check their work.
 If they are correct, they receive a point but if they are incorrect, the other teams will get a point.
 When the activity is finished, ask the class the following questions for a short class discussion.
  o How difficult was it to arrange your group correctly without being able to talk?
  o Did it take your group longer to get arranged when you couldn’t talk? What does that imply about our
     ability to speak and communicate?

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WATCH THE VIDEO:

DIRECT INSTRUCTION:

Ask the class to list all the different types of communication – write this list on the whiteboard.
  o Verbal
  o Non-Verbal
  o Written
  o Interpersonal
 Ask students which one they believe is used most often.
  o They should say “Verbal” or “Written” – such as emailing or texting.
 Inform students that today they are going to focus on non-verbal communication. Ask students to list the different ways to communicate non-verbally. Write this list on the whiteboard.
  o Facial expressions
  o Body language
  o Hand gestures
  o Eye contact

GUIDED ACTIVITY:

Put students in groups of 3-4 and give each group a few pieces of paper that have the emotions written on them. Students will take turns choosing a piece of paper and acting out the emotion non-verbally (no talking allowed). Their group members will attempt to guess what emotion they are acting out.
 After each student has had at least 1-2 turns, come back together as a class for a short discussion using the following questions:
  o How easy was it to guess the emotion being acted out?
  o What was challenging about this activity?
  o What would have changed about the game if you could have talked? Would it have been easier or harder?
  o What type of body language should you portray at work? At school?
  o Why is important for your verbal and non-verbal communication to match?

CHECK FOR UNDERSTANDING:

 Technology Use: Students will create a post/exit slip on Spark Post to sum up their thoughts about the lesson and to ask any questions that they still have.
o Link: https://spark.adobe.com/

 Non-Technology: Students will pair up with another student to share their thoughts on the lesson. Then, they will report out to the class during the discussion one thing they learned from their partner about the lesson.

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ETHICAL SCENARIO--Optional (if not using, skip  to "review and closing")

The Ethical Choice Scenarios have been developed to provide teachers with the ability to make the material applicable to real-life and relevant to the students. Within this guide, directions and prompts for the teacher will be in BLUE for ease of facilitation.

 

READ THE FOLLOWING SCENARIO OUT LOUD TO THE STUDENTS: 

BREAK UPS ARE NEVER EASY
You just started dating someone new a month ago and things have been going great. You get along really well, you enjoy
a lot of the same hobbies and you even have a lot of the same friends, but you are starting to get bored. You guys always
do the same things, and never anything new. You’ve made multiple suggestions to try new things with her but she isn’t
interested – she would rather stick to what she normally does because that’s just how she is. You can’t spend another
evening at her parent’s house, binge-watching Stranger Things and eating popcorn or you will go crazy! You decide that
you are going to break up with her on Monday morning at school – it’s the best option. You both obviously want
different things and have different personalities so it’s the best for both of you. You decide to call your best friend for
some advice and your friend totally agrees with you but tells you not to wait until Monday and to break up with her right
now. Your friend tells you just to send a quick text, no need for a phone call or a face-to-face conversation; texting is
easier for everyone. You finally get off the phone with your friend and start wondering if this is the right thing to do.
Should you really send a text rather than make a phone call? You try to think of the situation in reverse, what if she were
the one breaking up with you? How would you feel about receiving a text? You also worry because phone calls and face-
to-face conversations are so nerve-racking when it comes to giving bad news. What if she starts crying and gets really
upset? What if she begs you not to do it and makes a huge scene at school? What do you do?

ASK THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS: (display them to the class if necessary)

1. How many of you have already been faced with this scenario in real life?

2. What are the possible outcomes of this situation?
3. What are possible positive or negative consequences for the person you are dating?
4. What are possible positive or negative consequences for you, depending on your decision?

GUIDED DISCUSSION: ASK STUDENTS TO SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS ON THE SITUATION AND HOW THEY
ANSWERED THE QUESTIONS.

NOTE 1 : To help facilitate discussion, share any personal experiences you may have encountered with this same sort of issue.

NOTE 2 : Another option to foster further critical thinking is to then ask students ,“ How can your nerves impact your ability to effectively communicate with others?”

NOTE 3 : Another option to foster further critical thinking is to then ask students , “ What values do you think are in tension here, why is it an ethical dilemma?”

CLOSING DISCUSSION: ASK THE STUDENTS , “WHAT DOES IT SAY ABOUT YOU AS A PERSON IF YOU BREAK UP WITH SOMEONE USING A TEXT MESSAGE?”

REVIEW AND CLOSING:

Show students this short clip on non-verbal communication.
 Have them share their thoughts with the class when the video is over.

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CORRELATION TO OBSERVATION TOOL: The Frequency Observation Tool (FOT) has a category where students will be observed and rated on their communication skills. This lesson will help them understand that being an effective listener plays a big part in being an effective communicator.

DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION IDEAS:

-Visual: Visual learners will benefit from having a printed copy of the article. They would also benefit from having the definitions and the questions written on the whiteboard.

-Auditory: Auditory learners will benefit from the group and class discussions.

-Kinesthetic: To benefit kinesthetic learners, you could allow them to move around the room as they read the article. They will also benefit from writing down the steps and the brainstorming ideas in the Guided Activity

-ESL: It might be helpful for the ESL students to partner up with another student in class in case they need further clarification but they will also benefit from the group and class discussion as well as interacting with their peers.

-At-risk: At -risk students will benefit from the constant engagement in this lesson that will encourage them to stay on task.

-Advanced: Advanced learners could benefit from helping other students write down their schedules, or by assisting ESL or At -risk students who may need additional help .