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This is a great activity for building staff communication. Begin the activity by arranging your staff into teams, no team greater than eight people. Provide each team with a Hula hoop. Then follow the instructions below:
The hoop will sail away -- it seems to rise no matter how hard the participants work. This will create frustration and confusion... and laughter. Instruct participants to keep trying until they accomplish the challenge. Monitor the teams to ensure that all are following the rules and each is keeping his/her fingers on the hoop. Of course, being the competitive folks they are, teachers will not want to quit until they accomplish the task. It can be done -- only with extreme concentration and complete focus on the task, along with helpful coaching and guidance from the leader who will emerge from the group -- probably after some arguing and disagreeing about how to accomplish the mission. Sounds a lot like school, doesnt it?
At the end of the activity, allow for a debriefing period. Let teachers talk about their frustration, how difficult the task was, how they finally came together to accomplish the task, what this activity has to "say" about the importance of teamwork
Contributor:
Mark Lukert, principal (retired), Lakeside Elementary School, Coppell, Texas
If you would like to learn more about Mark or the workshops he conducts through his consulting company, Precision Team Building, contact him through his Web site, https://marklukert.com/.
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