This is an awesome lesson plan that uses simple LEGO materials
to demonstrate the complexity of the communication process.  Use
this to kick off a thorough treatment of the communications
process and the technology that accompanies it.  

MATERIALS

This is a simple building and communication exercise that
requires 2 sets of identical LEGO elements including building
bricks and base plates. You will need two matched sets of 1 small base plate and 7 or 8 LEGO building bricks.

PREPARATION

Using one of the sets of LEGO materials, build a small model by stacking bricks on the base plate in any pattern.  Put some side by side, some on top of one another, and some separate from the others.  Be careful to keep this finished model hidden from the students.

THE ACTIVITY

Step 1.  Lead an introductory class discussion on the concept of clear versus unclear communication.  Ask several student volunteers to give verbal directions on how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and have the rest of the class analyze what worked and what did not work in their directions. Now, announce to your students that a physical demonstration of the communications process is next!

Step 2.  You will need two students to volunteer to demonstrate
the activity.  Depending on time and available LEGO materials, 
you can have more students do the activity.

Step 3.  Have the two students sit back to back so they can clearly speak and hear one another, but cannot see each other. Position them so that your other students have a clear view of 
the exercise.

Step 4.  Select one student to be the "sender" and the other to be the "receiver."  Give the sender the sample LEGO model that you built, and the receiver the matching set of parts.

Step 5.  Clearly explain that the two students will have five minutes to duplicate the existing model, using only verbal instructions from the sender.  Step back and start the clock!

Step 6.  At the end of the five minutes, hold up the original and duplicate models.  The success of the duplication will vary depending on the age and sophistication of your students, but  this is a challenging activity!  Wrap up your introduction to communications with a class discussion evaluating the performance of your two volunteers-- what were their greatest barriers to success?  What worked best for them?

TECH TIP:

Using Mailing Lists to Enhance Home-School Communication 
While email makes it possible for parents, teachers and administrators to stay in touch, mailing lists take online messaging to the next level. Mailing lists provide every member of the school community with a powerful communication tool, one that encourages participation, interaction and two-way communication. The lists take just a few minutes to set up and cost very little to maintain over the course of a school year. If you know how to send and receive email, you're ready to set up a list. It's that easy! Using a free online service or inexpensive software, anyone can set up a mailing list to open up both internal and external communication. Individual lists can link administrators to teachers, teachers to parents, coaches to players' parents, library media specialists to teachers and students participating in schoolwide and multigrade projects, etc. The uses for mailing lists are limited only by your imagination. A teacher can create a private mailing list to keep parents informed about homework assignments, readings, upcoming field trips, what units are being taught, volunteer opportunities and more. She can create a single email (called a "post"), send it to her mailing list, and know that it will be sent to every parent in a matter of seconds. Plus, parents can reply to her post with questions, comments and ideas that the whole group could see. Other parents can chime in with ideas and comments, creating an open dialogue and facilitating two-way communication. This completely open mailing list is unmoderated, since members can post anything, anytime, without review. However, the teacher may choose to moderate the messages. That way, she can answer questions that come in before passing them on to everyone, and filter all communications. This is known as a moderated mailing list. In general, moderated lists are more effective than unmoderated lists. In a similar fashion, a school can create a private mailing list and add all parents as members. Administrators can send messages to every parent simultaneously, then designate a staffer as the moderator to screen replies. The replies may be emailed directly to the appropriate person for a personal reply, while ideas and feedback may be instantly acknowledged and recorded.  Of course, not every parent or student has access to email at home. Be sure to supplement your online communications with newsletters, memos and other printed materials. Creating Lists Teachers and administrators have two choices when setting up new mailing lists -- a free online service or inexpensive software that runs on a school PC or server. Both solutions have pros and cons. While a free online service makes it easy to get started immediately at no cost, all posts are stamped with a small text advertisement to pay for the service.
Article Continued in next column

ROCKWOOD SCHOOL DISTRICT

Here you will find a vast plethora of information about curriculum, essential skills, assessment and scope and sequence. The K-12 curriculum is correlated with various levels of expertise. The categories are arranged in  a sequential manner with each area divided by the following:

INTRODUCE
RE-INTRODUCE
EMPHASIZE
RE-INFORCE

This program is well worth a look to compare different ways to add or delete skills and objectives with other school districts. It can be found  at  ROCKWOOD SCHOOL DISTRICT