SAMPLE LESSON PLAN
Lesson 9: Yeah Teamwork!

Lesson Overview

Purpose
To help students be able to recognize teamwork; to provide students with the opportunity to practice using teamwork.

Indicators/Outcomes
By the end of this lesson, students will:

• Identify words that are associated with teamwork
• Demonstrate understanding of teamwork through a cooperative activity
• Identify ways in which teamwork can help make our classroom a more peaceful place

Agenda
Opening (10 minutes)
- Coin Jar Update
- Review

Focus (30 minutes)
- Brainstorm: What is Teamwork?
- Squiggles

Closing (20 minutes)
- Cooperative Game: Hula Hoop Game
- Safe School Web

Supplies

• Large newsprint or chalkboard (enough for one brainstorm)
• A large sheet of paper (18” x 24” or larger) with a large squiggle drawn on it (you will need one for each small group)
• Crayons or markers
• Hula Hoop(s)
• Safe School Web

Key Vocabulary Words

• Teamwork: two or more people overcoming their differences to work together towards a common goal
• Cooperation: to work together for a common purpose

Before You Teach

• Make an example of a squiggle picture to show students
• Figure out the small groups that you will have students in for the Squiggles activity
• Make a point to remind students that next week is your last lesson

Reference:
“Squiggles” adapted from Elementary Perspectives by William Kriedler.

Lesson Plan

Opening (10 minutes)

1. Coin Jar Update (5 minutes)
Goal: Students will report on and add to the Friendship Coin Jar to acknowledge acts of friendship from the past week

a. Greet the class and let them know how happy you are to be back.
b. Look over at the Coin Jar to see if any new coins have been added.
c. If there are new coins, read them aloud and congratulate the students on their friendly acts. If no new coins have been added, remind students that they should try to add coins during this week. Challenge them to add 3 new coins by the time you come in next week.
d. Then, ask students if they have any other acts of friendship that they would like to report. (Try to focus this week’s acts on including people.) If there are, add new coins to the Coin Jar.
e. Congratulate students for all new coins and remind them of the goal of filling the Coin Jar with friendly acts.

2. Review (5 minutes)
Goal: To have a conversation to help remind students about what they have been learning and to lead into a discussion about teamwork

a. Quickly review last week’s lesson with students. Focus on the following:

• Friends/Friendship
• Friendship Coins
• Inclusion
• Exclusion
• Chester ’s Way
• Get into the Game!
• Safe Schools Web

b. Then, quickly review the semester with students. Here are some suggested talking points:

• For the past few weeks, we have been talking about some really difficult topics. We have discussed that not everyone is friends and that it is okay to not be friends with everybody. What are some reasons why people are sometimes not friends with other people?
• Also, we have talked about how friends sometimes do not get along with each other and how they sometimes get into fights. Who can tell me a few reasons why friends sometimes argue?
• Last week, we talked about how it is important to include people into our group who may be different from us or with whom we do not get along. Why would we want to include people into our groups?
• Remember how Chester and Wilson were at first afraid to include Lily into their friendship because she was different from them? However, Chester and Wilson learned a lot from Lily, and Lily learned a lot from them. We can learn a lot from people who are different than us.

c. Quickly preview today’s agenda. It is a good idea to have a copy of the agenda written up and posted somewhere. Tell students that today they will be focusing on how to include people who are not our friends. Tell them that you will be focusing on teamwork.

Focus (30 minutes)

1. Brainstorm: What is Teamwork? (10 minutes)
Goal: Students will brainstorm about the word teamwork to define the word and identify when and where it happens

a. Tell students that you are going to begin today’s activities by brainstorming about the word teamwork.
b. Write the word “teamwork” up on the board or newsprint.
c. Ask students if they know what the word teamwork means. Here are some suggested questions to help guide the brainstorm:

• What does teamwork mean?
• Why do we need teamwork? (How does teamwork help us?)
• Where does teamwork happen?
• Do we always need teamwork? (difference between individual and team activities)
• Do you have to be friends with someone to be able to work well on the same team with them?
• How can we tell that teamwork is happening?
• What words do you think of when you think of teamwork?
• How can we make teamwork happen?
• What skills do people need to make teamwork happen?

d. Student responses should include actions such as listening, helping other people, working together, etc.
e. When students run out of thoughts, provide them with the definition of teamwork:

• Two or more people overcoming their differences to work together towards a common goal

f. End this activity with praise for getting so many great ideas out on the paper. Tell students that you are impressed with how much they know about teamwork.

2. Squiggles (20 minutes)
Goal: Students will work together to create a picture based on a squiggle to demonstrate teamwork

a. Tell students that you are now going to do an art project to practice working together as a team.
b. Hold up one of the large pieces of paper to show students. Point out the squiggle on the sheet. Tell student that in small groups they are going to work together to make a picture out of the squiggle.
c. Show students the model you brought to class with you. Point out where your original squiggle was on the picture and explain how you and the other Peace Games teachers made it into the final picture.
d. Tell students that in their small groups they will decide what their squiggle is going to become and then make it into the picture.
e. Explain to students that you expect them to use all of their teamwork skills during this activity. Remind students that by using teamwork their group could earn a Friendship Coin to hang on the Coin Jar.
f. Divide students into small groups. (It is probably a good idea to have as many groups as Peace Games teachers, but not necessary.) Send the groups to different areas of the room.

g. Pass out a squiggle sheet to each group. Tell them that you want them to brainstorm ideas, decide on one, and then see a Peace Games teacher. Explain that they will get crayons and markers to draw and color with once they have told a Peace Games teacher what picture their squiggle is going to become.
h. If groups are stuck for ideas, tell them to turn the paper around to prompt more suggestions.
i. Remind groups that everyone’s ideas are important and should be heard. Tell them that is what teamwork is all about.
j. Once the group has decided on what the squiggle should become, give each student a different color of crayon. (In order to keep this from getting messy, you probably should not let them trade colors or have them pick out of a hat).
k. Tell students there are three rules for the drawing of the picture.

• Each person can only draw with his/her color crayon.
• All of the colors need to be used on the drawing.
• Teamwork must be used.

l. As the group decides on what colors should go where and how the drawing should look, help them to use teamwork to make sure that everyone is participating.
m. Once the group has the picture the way they want it, ask all of the students to put their names on the bottom.
n. When all groups are finished, have students return to their seats. Debrief the activity with them. Here are some suggested questions:

• Did you like this activity? Why or Why not?
• How did your group decide what picture to draw?
• How did you work out drawing and coloring your picture?
• Did teamwork happen in your group? How did you know?
• Do you think peacemakers use teamwork?

o. When finished, congratulate the class with virtual high fives.

Closing (20 minutes)

1. Cooperative Game: Hula Hoop Relay (10 minutes)
Goal: For students to demonstrate their teamwork skills by playing a cooperative game

a. Tell students that you are going to play a game, the Hula Hoop Relay, to practice using teamwork.
b. Ask students to come join you in a circle. (Make sure you are in a large enough space.) Tell students that you want them to be standing and to hold hands.
c. Explain to students that the goal of this activity is to get the Hula Hoop all the way around the circle, without letting go of each other’s hands. Tell students that you want to hear them use encouraging words to help their classmates. Explain that you are trying to get the Hula Hoop around the circle as fast as possible.
d. Ask students if they have any questions. If not, you can begin to play. Remind students that there are two rules:

• Their circle must not break (students must always be holding hands) or else they need to start from the beginning
• A Peace Games teacher will always start with the Hula Hoop

e. Time how long it takes the class to get the Hula Hoop around the circle. Play a few rounds continually trying to beat your best time. If you want to add another challenge, insert another Hula Hoop into the mix going in the opposite direction.
f. When finished, ask students to return to their seats.
g. Quickly debrief the activity with them. Here are some suggested questions:

• Did you like this game? Why?
• What was difficult about this game?
• Why do you think we were able to better our time?
• What teamwork skills did we use?

2. Safe School Web (10 minutes)
Goal: To help students connect the day’s activities with helping to create a friendlier and safer classroom.

a. Gather students in an area of the classroom where they can comfortably sit in a circle (it is okay to remain at seats).
b. Inform students that it is almost the end of Peace Games time for this week and that you want to see what they have learned. Bring out the large visual of the Safe School Web.
c. Review with students what the Safe School Web represents.
d. Look over last week’s entry for the web and tell students that it is now time to fill in the gingerbread person for Lesson 9.
e. Review with students what happened in today’s lesson. Here are some suggested questions:

• What activities did we do today?
• What did these activities teach us about friendship?
• What is teamwork?
• When do we use teamwork?
• Do you think that what we did today will help us be better friends? Better peacemakers? Why?

f. Listen to students ideas and summarize them on the large Safe School Web. Then, draw in and connect the arms and hands for the gingerbread person for Lesson 9 with the gingerbread person for Lesson 8.
g. Congratulate students on another great lesson and say good-bye until next week.