Students will be able to identify key characteristics of effective teamwork and practice collaborative skills through an engaging, movement-based activity.
Teamwork is a crucial life skill that helps us achieve common goals, build stronger relationships, and solve problems more effectively, both in school and beyond. This lesson aligns with New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Social and Emotional Learning (SEL), focusing on responsible decision-making and relationship skills.
Audience
4th-6th Grade Students
Time
45 minutes
Approach
Interactive discussion, partner share, game, and collaborative movement challenge.
Prepare the gymnasium for group work, ensuring students have ample space to move and collaborate.
Set up the "minefield" using cones, beanbags, or other markers spaced out across the gymnasium floor.
Gather necessary supplies: index cards/slips of paper, pens/pencils, pre-written charades slips, and a bowl/hat for charades, and blindfolds (optional, scarves or bandanas) for the Minefield Challenge.
Set up the projector/smartboard for the slide deck (if applicable in the gymnasium).
Step 1
Introduction & Warm-Up (5 minutes)
5 minutes
Begin with the Warm-Up: Team Challenge by asking students to complete a quick, collaborative task in small groups. (e.g., arrange themselves by birthday without talking).
After the warm-up, discuss their experience. What was easy? What was hard? How did they work together?
Use Teamwork Troubleshooters Slide Deck (Slides 2-3) to guide a discussion on key elements of successful teamwork (communication, cooperation, shared goals, respect).
Ask students for examples of teamwork they've seen or been a part of (sports, school projects, family chores).
Facilitate a brief partner-share: Ask students to turn to a partner and share one time they worked in a team, and what made it successful or challenging.
Explain the challenge: One student in each pair will be blindfolded (or keep their eyes closed) and attempt to navigate a "minefield" of scattered objects across the gymnasium floor.
Their partner will guide them using only verbal instructions (no touching!).
Emphasize clear, concise communication, trust, and active listening. They should work together to safely cross the minefield without stepping on any "mines."
After partners complete one round, have them switch roles so both students experience guiding and being guided.
Circulate and observe, offering gentle guidance and prompting effective communication.
Have each pair briefly share their experience with the Minefield Challenge and discuss one teamwork strategy they used or learned.
Conclude with the Cool-Down: Team Takeaway activity, asking students to reflect on one key takeaway about teamwork. Collect their responses.
Slide Deck
Teamwork Troubleshooters: Can You Get Unstuck?
Today, we're going to become 'Teamwork Troubleshooters' and discover how to build amazing things... not just with our hands, but with our teamwork skills! We'll explore what makes a great team and put our skills to the test. Get ready to collaborate, communicate, and create!
Welcome students and introduce the exciting topic of teamwork! Get them thinking about what it means to work together.
What is Teamwork?
Teamwork is when a group of people work together to achieve a shared goal.
Why is teamwork important?
Makes big tasks easier
Helps us learn from each other
Creates better ideas
Builds friendships!
Ask students for their initial ideas about what teamwork means. Guide them towards the idea of people working together for a common purpose.
Keys to a Great Team
Communication: Talking and listening to each other clearly.
Cooperation: Working together and helping out.
Shared Goal: Everyone knows what they are trying to achieve.
Respect: Valuing each other's ideas and contributions.
Problem-Solving: Working together to overcome challenges.
Discuss each point, asking students for examples of how these qualities make a team stronger. Emphasize that all parts are important.
Your Turn! The Minefield Challenge
Now it's your turn to be Teamwork Troubleshooters!
You'll work in pairs to navigate a 'minefield' using only verbal communication.
Remember to use our 'Keys to a Great Team', especially Communication and Trust!
Introduce the Minefield Challenge activity. Explain that they will be putting these 'Keys to a Great Team' into action in a fun, active challenge that requires trust and clear communication.
Warm Up
Warm-Up: Team Challenge - Silent Birthday Line-Up
Objective: To get students working together and thinking about non-verbal communication.
Instructions:
Silently arrange yourselves in a line according to your birthdays, from January 1st to December 31st.
No talking allowed! You can use gestures, hand signals, or other forms of non-verbal communication.
After the activity, discuss:
What was challenging about this activity?
How did your group communicate without talking?
What strategies did you use to figure out the order?
Activity
Minefield Challenge
Objective: To practice clear communication, trust, and problem-solving skills in a dynamic, movement-based team activity.
Materials:
Cones, beanbags, hula hoops, or other soft markers to create a
Game
Team Charades: Communicate & Collaborate
Objective: To practice non-verbal communication and collaboration in a fun, fast-paced game.
Materials:
Slips of paper with simple actions/objects (e.g., "brushing teeth," "playing soccer," "eating ice cream," "reading a book," "flying a kite"). Prepare 10-15 slips.
Bowl or hat to hold the slips.
Instructions:
Divide into two teams.
Each team will take turns. A player from Team A picks a slip of paper.
The player acts out the word or phrase silently for their team.
Their team has 60 seconds to guess the word/phrase.
If they guess correctly, they get a point.
Teams alternate turns. Play for 5 minutes.
Discussion (briefly after game):
What made it easy or hard to guess?
How did your teammates help each other?
Cool Down
Cool-Down: Team Takeaway
Objective: To reflect on one important learning from today's lesson about teamwork.
Instructions:
On an index card or a small slip of paper, write down one important thing you learned about teamwork today.
It could be about communication, cooperation, or anything that helps a team succeed.
