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Nice lesson…I just have one thing to add. I heard once that you should build groups such that everyone has a role (discussion leader, record-keeper, etc), which depends on the nature of the activity. Even shy students will contribute if they know they have a specific role that is assigned to them and only them:)

I believe most everything should be created for groups of 3 or 4. I teach language and I can never be sure on any given day how many students will be in class. If I can put students in groups of either of these sizes then the ONLY number I cannot work with is a class of 2 students.

jinius — your comment is very valid and is a great idea for managing team activity. As you said, it helps the more shy and insecure student as they then have a specific task. As well, assigning roles keeps the dominator from taking over. The Johnsons have 5 basic elements in their model of Cooperative Learning. One of these elements is positive interdependence. There are 9 types-one being roles. For further info please read the lesson"Introduction to Cooperative Learning. Please feel free to blog back with any questions or further insights. Thanks for your comments.

MikeB you sound like a really practical person and a good problem solver. Absenteeism is such a problem-especially with older and unmotivated students. your ideas re numbers are well taken.
Another way to handle the “Away” problem is to have 4 preparatory tasks, with 1/4 of the class having each one. Form the groups on the day of the activity, taking 1 from each task. If the numbers are uneven, create some twins that will confer and act as one.
Thanks for your comments.

Great lesson! Interesting how the number of people working in a group can affect the dynamics so greatly! I never thought about it that much until this lesson. Groups of 2 can be a bit difficult sometimes, especially if both are shy and hesitant to share their ideas. I think the better you know your groupmate though, the less of a problem this would be.

Babceo you make some very valid points. You are very correct in saying that the set up of the groups and making the guidelines transparent and understandable is really crucial. The whole heterogeneity/homogeneity issue is huge and there is not one good answer. It depends on the age of the students, the level of their soft skills, the academic task, the time that you have and so on. I absolutely agree with your concluding statements!! Just because you put people in a group does not mean that they will work as a team. Sometimes, initially, when you do not know your students or their skill level well, you need to use random groups, and careful observation. As well, you need to, with the class, prioritize and make visible the cladd rules and accepted behaviour. When my husband and I start training with teachers in new instructional strategies we always say, “Start small and think build.” There is training and a continuum of skill building needed before groups work efficiently. Thanks for your comments. Obviously from a seasoned teacher. Maybe you would care to share some specifics as to how you begin with a new group-some activities that you use and like:)

Lucyinthesky-you are very correct that shy students have trouble sharing in groups-sometimes even in a pair. My experience has been that they are more likely to share in a pair than in a larger group. It is hard to get left out of a pair. As well, there are several things that you can do to give the student more confidence. If the student is old enough to write(pictures are great for the younger ones), Allow them to prepare for the conversation by thinkong and writing befor pairing up to share(Think-Write-Pair-Share) This individual time to think and write allows all students to get ready-provbiding more confidence. Even having a prop(the piece of paper in their hand) helps, As they can look at the paper when speaking if eye contact is a real challenge. Thanks for your very valid comments-you are obviously sensitive to those who do not like public speaking. That is a very valid comment as it is cited as one of the most feared things in the world.

KathyGreen asked me tho share activities for new groups. A great beginning exercise is to have the class develop rules for the class. Here is a simple outline of the activity. I am not going to include the handouts as each teacher designs their handout differently depending on the population.

1. Introduce rule making, what makes a good rule, vocabulary if a language learning group, decision making, how to take turns and how to agree and disagree. I always start wit basic manners for taking part in the exercise. I introduce handouts and how to use it.

2. Ask for volunteer(s) to write the suggested rules giving each rule a number on the board. (If you are going to use part of the exercise as homework have everyone copy each of the suggested rules using the same numbering system as given on the board.- This part of the activity help teachers find the more confident, sometimes the more skilled and the risk-takers in your class.

2. Make suggested some rules and set the climate for creating rules, set time line, explain the activities again and let the class at random make suggestions- Use this as a warm-up exercise.

3. Before you ask each member of the class to make a suggested rule repeat things related to this exercise from ‘1.’ This activity to make sure each member of the class is valued and can make a suggestion or say passed to reduce stress, etc. I always start at one side of the room and make sure each class member is included. – This activity helps me determine skill levels, risk levels, shyness, etc. i always try to take notes.

3 i allow class members to suggested rules until everyone is passing or time runs out. I then again open the floor to anyone who has a rule that they have not suggested. (Set time for his as well.) This ends making rule suggestions. If you are limited on time, you can ask students to review the rules and determine if they don’t agree with any of the rules and why as homework.

4. Assignment: Ask each student agree or disagree with each rule and state why. Then prioritize the rules based on how much you dislike the rules. Please write the number(s) down. ( If used as homework, then have each student prioritize which rules they disagree with most. Make sure that they give their reason why they disagree with each of the rules they name. Ask that parents do not take part in this exercise. For younger students give a time limited for the exercise and include the time and no parent interaction with this assignment.)

4. Then I ask everyone who wrote number 1 as their most disagreed rule to stand-up and go to a particular area in the classroom. I provide a tent card for each student to put their name on so that the group knows everyone’s name and so do I. I explain that once they stand up with a group they may not change groups. I continue through the numbers until I have most of the class in one group. These groups are given a handout to work through to determine if the rule should be removed.

5. The group left I give a different job- They are to go to an assigned group(s) and see how the group are doing. I give them a name tag to put their name on and wear. I have also created a worksheet for these students to use in determining how the groups are doing so that they have guidelines and activities they need to do. (This provides me with the group that I need to determine why they did not disagree with any of the rules.) It give me a chance to work individually with this group as well as it frees me up to monitor each group and how they interact.
This will give me a really good overview of each individual in my class and help me determine who should be grouped with whom.

6. Before the groups that disagreed with a rule get started, I again explain the rules for making a good rule, which is also on everyones’ worksheet. I then set the time clock and let the rule groups get started.

7. During the first few minutes the rule groups are getting started, I work with the monitoring group telling them what I expect from them and how their information is going to be shared. I then assign their group(s) and send them off.

8. My main job is to foster good learning and monitor activities to make sure the activities are being done in as prescribed.

9. As a group, the rules are discussed and decisions are made whether a rule should be keep, re-wrote or thrown out. The group monitor adds any information that was not given by the group and can state how the group made their decision if (s)he wants. The teacher should be an active member of the decision making and guide the students in making good rules that are necessary and monitor able.

This activity is great as when the rules are discussed, you as a teacher can make sure all the school and his/her rules are included. Students are more likely to obey and self monitor the rules as they feel they have had an input. While as the teacher, you have learned a lot about the group as a whole and some information about each of the members. It is a good ground breaker and a wonderful way of getting students to participate as they will have to abide by the class rules.

I am sure that this exercise can work with even younger groups with some modifications but I know I have used this technique with fourth graders through adults changing language and responsibilities depending on the age group. It is a great good opening activity. I have used this with troubled teenager, run-away youth, and drop-out adults, and it worked like a charm.

I hope this is helpful. I have lots of other lessons for language learners but I haven’t used them in years. I would have to think about other activities and dig around in my notes to find others. I have been developing oral/aural English tests for over 15 years.

The experience in sharing what we are learning in class or in each lesson helps the student to develop and memorize the central idea of the lesson and doing their task.

Thanks very much for this lesson. It will help me very much