Thursday, October 25, 2012

Learning how to be Bully Free: Middle school communication skills lesson plans



To help promote students learning anti-bullying techniques, here are five (5) communication skills lesson plans appropriate for grades five to eight.

Each lesson includes nine sections:

Section 1: Lesson Objectives
Section 2: K-W-L MODEL discussion (‘K’ and ‘W’ questions)
Section 3: Vocabulary
Section 4: Story
Section 5: Popcorn Review
Section 6: Role-Play
Section 7: Bloom’s Taxonomy discussion questions
Section 8: Writing assignment
Section 9: K-W-L MODEL discussion (‘L’ questions)

These field-tested lessons are totally self-contained. They come with teaching posters and role-play downloads – all for FREE. Everything you need is there for you simply by clicking on the links. Feel free to copy and paste them onto your computer so that you can use them with your classroom students.

One of the ways students learn about character education techniques, conflict resolution strategies, and anti-bullying processes is to try them on for size. Through the use of engaging stories and fun role-plays about realistic middle school students, young people start to incorporate the concepts taught in each lesson.

These lessons were all utilized in a class called ‘Communication Skills’. The author, Debbie Dunn, taught over 500 middle school students (Grades 5-8) a year for five years until a budget-cut eliminated many of the school’s special extracurricular programs. During that time period, she created over 3000 pages of curriculum based on real middle school conflict resolution and anti-bullying issues.

For the benefit of middle school students, middle school teachers, guidance counselors, and concerned parents, the author posts many of these lesson plans on Examiner.com. Feel free to subscribe to Debbie Dunn’s school conflict resolution Examiner page should you wish to keep abreast of each lesson as it gets posted.
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Communication skills Lesson Plan (Grades 5-8): Dennis Learns about Responsible Reporting
Story Description: Here is a story scenario you can use to help teach about the need for using good communication skills in the classroom. This story called “Dennis Learns about Responsible Reporting Versus Tattling” illustrates the importance of following class rules, being respectful to the teacher and your fellow classmates, maintaining your classroom as a safe zone from put-downs, and learning the difference between responsible reporting versus tattling or snitching.
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Communication skills Lesson Plan (Grades 5-8): Fred learns to make Good Observations
Story Description: Here is a story scenario you can use to help teach about the need for using good communication skills when interacting with other people. This story called “Fred learns to make Good Observations” illustrates the importance of making good observations about when it is your turn to talk and when you should be simply listening or keeping quiet.

Additional Note: Making good observations of when it is a good time for you to talk to others and when you should be simply listening is an extremely good character trait to have. That is part of having good Self Control. It also demonstrates a lot of Respect for others when you wait your turn to talk and only speak on related topics
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Communication skills Lesson Plan (Grades 5-8): Goofy Jane
Story Description: Here is a story scenario you can use to help teach about the need for using good communication skills when interacting with other people. This comic story called “Goofy Jane” demonstrates the pitfalls that can happen when you do not follow the simple rules of being a good communicator. Eighteen-year-old Jane is training to be a singer, dancer, and actress so she can become a Hollywood movie star. She nearly blows her chance to fulfill her dream as she breaks every communication skill rule with a Hollywood agent by the name of Mr. Headworthy. Read the role-play called “Goofy Jane” to find out what happens.
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Communication skills Lesson Plan (Grades 5-8): Josh Takes a Risk
Story Description: Imagine your teacher expects each student in the room to give a speech or perform a story. You, however, are feeling nervous or reluctant to perform. That’s the way that a boy named Josh felt.

Here is a story scenario you can use to help teach about importance of making eye contact with others when you do public speaking.

As you may be aware, many students would rather eat nails than get up in front of their classmates to do any kind of public speaking. Making eye contact with your teacher and the other students in the room is one technique that really helps build your comfort level in the long run. A boy named Josh did not believe that making eye contact could actually help him build his comfort level; however, when he finally took the risk to try it out, he found it actually worked for him as well.

This story called “Josh Takes a Risk” illustrates the importance of making eye contact with your teacher and your classmates when you give a public speaking speech or performance.
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Communication skills Lesson Plan (Grades 5-8): Little Red-Riding-Hood and Omega Wolf Bert
Story Description: Here is a modern version of an old favorite called “Little Red-Riding-Hood and Omega Wolf Bert.” The story teaches the importance of finding common ground between two opposing forces, empathy, using your survival instincts to help you through dangerous situations, the unpleasantness of name-calling, and the importance of making sincere apologies for wrong intentions and wrong-doing.

Frequently, other kids call Connie Blake by the name of Little Red-Riding-Hood because she regularly wears a red cloak. On her way to bringing muffins to her sick granny, she met an Omega Wolf by the name of Bert. Hoping to be more popular with his wolf pack, Bert hatches a plan to capture Connie. Will Connie survive?
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Resources
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