Activity Communication Strategies Course Name and Title Activity Communication Strategies

Purpose of this Activity Identify strategies for effective communication through various media Written instructions only E.g. instructions to fill out a claim form Verbal instructions only E.g. on the telephone Intermediary communication E.g. giving information to a financial advisor or broker to tell their customers

Phase 1 Each person has a Lego structure made of 5 pieces Write instructions for your partner to assemble it Your partner’s pieces may be different colours, but they have the right pieces You may not draw pictures and your partner may not ask for clarification; your instructions need to be complete in themselves You do not know the identity of your partner yet You have 15 minutes

Phase 1 Follow-Up Take apart your structure and build your partner’s structure according to their written instructions only (5 minutes) Class discussion (15 min): What do you notice? What strategies were helpful? What was not helpful? How was it different following instructions compared to writing them?

Phase 2 Sit back to back with your partner One partner is the Designer and one is the Assembler The Designer creates a simple structure with their 5 pieces The Assembler must create the same structure with their pieces, with only verbal instruction from the Designer You can ask questions and clarify but you may not look at each others’ pieces or use pictures or hand gestures (i.e. pretend you are on the phone) Once you finish, compare and switch roles if time (15 min)

Phase 2 Follow-Up Class discussion (15 min): Was that harder or easier? Does knowing who your partner is make a difference? What strategies from Phase 1 still worked? What didn’t work?

Phase 3 Groups of 3: a Designer, an Assembler, and a Runner The Designer may see the structure at the front of the room and give verbal instructions (including gestures) on how to build it The Assembler may build with the pieces according to the instructions they receive The Runner relays the instructions back and forth but may not touch the pieces or see the structure You have 15 minutes

Phase 3 Follow-Up Class discussion (15 min): How similar are the structures? What did you find helpful as a Runner? Designer? Assembler? What strategies worked or didn’t work? How do these roles relate to how you might interact in a group or team setting?

Final Follow-Up and Task In what situations might you use these communication strategies? What differences did you notice about the three phases? Task: write a personal reflection on some interesting things you learned (and might use) from doing this activity (~250 words, about one page double spaced) Can be informal but must have good grammar/structure/flow Submit in your portfolio on Monday at noon (please print it ahead of time)