Back to Back - Teaching Communication

His Lordship wishes everyone a pleasant 2011…

Back to ‘business’..

Reviewing my BUSS2 lessons today, I came across a cracker to help deliver communication. Back to back. A very simple activity but very effective.

The whole class is split into pairs and each pair must sit ‘back to back’. One of the ‘pair’ is given a sheet of A4 full of random shapes (pre-prepared by me). The other student is given a blank sheet of A4. The activity is simple.

The student with the shapes needs to get the other student to draw an exact replica of his/her A4 sheet by simply ‘communicating’. The student with the blank sheet needs to listen and draw the shapes according to the other students instructions. The shapes need to be the same size and in the same location.

This is a brilliant activity to demonstrate the importance of good communication. More often than not they look nothing like each other meaning you can draw out the consequences of poor communication. If the student manages to draw the shapes and their position exactly, then you can discuss why good communication is essential to a business.

To make this even easier for yourself, get the students to draw the shapes. This means zero preparation.

Enjoy….....