Communication

=COMMUNICATION=

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In a fast-growing and competitive world like ours, employees need to have knowledge and technical expertise and must also demonstrate essential communication skills. They way we interact with others, through our verbal and nonverbal forms of communication, can easily make the difference between success and failure.

Join us as we set out to discover the essential elements of good communication as well as how you can personally and professionally improve your communication style and image.

ACTIVITIES
1. COMMUNICATION QUIZ: Go to http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCS_99.htm. Scroll down to the Communication Quiz. Answer the questions and then click Calculate My Score. Once you have your score, continue reading to find out what type of communicator you are. Are you as good a communicator as you thought you were? What are some things that surprised you about your ability to communicate? How can you improve your communication skills?

2. LISTENING: Spend five minutes brainstorming generic information such as likes and dislikes, favorite and least favorite school subjects, foods, hobbies, etc. At the end of 5 minutes you should have a short list of 5-7 specific ideas written down in note form. Then break up into Then break up into groups of two. // [Note: try to make // sure that the two people in each group are not very familiar with one another.]

Each group member will have three minutes to tell the other person the five to seven ideas they brainstormed about themselves. The communicator sending the message needs to be sure that they are sticking to the main ideas they want the receiver to know about themselves while being warm and friendly in their delivery. The receiver must be sure to exhibit body language that shows they are attentive while staying focused on what the sender is saying. Before switching positions, the receiver will get one minute to write down five to seven main ideas that they remembered from their conversation. Repeat this scenario and have the groups share what they learned about the importance of good communication and listening skills.

3. WHISPER DOWN THE ALLEY: Split into groups of no more than ten and no less than seven students. Designate a leader for each group. Each of the group leaders will take a few minutes to create a short four-to-six-sentence paragraph that they will pass along to their group members. // [Note: be sure to have them write the // paragraph on a piece of paper.] While they create their message, the rest of the group members will gather and review different ways in which they can be effective listeners. Once the leaders and group members are ready, each group leader begins communicating his/her message to the first person in their row. The group leaders are the only ones who can read the message from their paper. The teams should have some distance from one another, and each time the message is passed along it should be whispered from one team member to the next one in line. When the message gets to the last person, he/she will write down the message they heard. Each group then takes its turn, reading aloud first their leader’s message and then the final message received.

After each group has read their beginning and ending messages, discuss why some of the messages may have been distorted. What may have distracted the listeners or communicators from receiving or sending the intended message? What techniques were used by the groups that got the closest to passing along the most accurate message? What does this tell us about the importance of the sender and receiver when communicating?