Work Together

1. Work Together 12th Grade Keys to Postsecondary Success #5

2. Review • Discuss: • What are some of the major differences between high school and college? • What were some of the tips college student provided for succeeding academically in college?

3. Activity • In your group of 4, work together to build the tallest card castle you can in 5 minutes. Microsoft, 2011

4. 5 Minutes! • http://www.online-stopwatch.com/full-screen-stopwatch/

5. Times Up! • Time to measure! Microsoft, 2011

6. Discussion • What was easy about creating your castle? • What was difficult about creating your castle? • How did you communicate with your group members? • What could you have done differently? • Why are we building a card castle in the middle of a unit about skills for high school and postsecondary success?

7. Objectives Today’s lesson objective: • To learn the importance of working together • To learn why, how, and when to set up study groups • In college, not only will you be required to work together on projects, but you may choose to do so because of the benefits of working together.

8. Study Groups • “Studying in groups…refreshes my memory on course material, makes me aware of information I missed during class or didn’t quite understand, and gives me new ideas and perspectives on class topics.” —Fall 2005 undergraduate at Berkeley • “Throughout my three years in Berkeley, I have found that student-to-student support is the most academically and socially rewarding.” —SLC Study Strategies Peer Mentor • “Those of us who lived in the dorms were first year freshman. We were all anxious about doing well, so we created a late night study group with people from different majors. We shared food, tested each other, and studied throughout the night. It really helped to have a supportive group of people who all wanted to do well.” —Social Welfare, African American Studies major University of California, Berkeley, 2011

9. Working Together Helps Everyone • Studying with others in a small group is helpful because you: • Think out loud. • Share ideas. • Learn from one another. Microsoft, 2011

10. Benefits • Reinforce note-taking • Share talents • Cover more ground • Benefit from a support system • Socialize Microsoft, 2011

11. Guidelines • How many? • 4-6 people • Who? • Students who will contribute to the group • Where? • A place with few distractions and room to spread out supplies • How long? • 2-3 hours at a time • When? • Regularly. Set up a schedule to meet at the same day and time each week.

12. Getting the Most Out of Session • Decide what you’re going to do in advance. • Prepare for the session, so you can make the most of your time together. • Take turns teaching, to reinforce your own knowledge. • Stick to the session topic. Microsoft, 2011

13. Activity • 3 Students will work together in a group in the hall while the rest of the class will work independently. • You will have 3 minutes to complete the assigned task.

14. Activity • Brainstorm singers/bands whose name begins with an “T.” • List as many as you can in 3 minutes

15. How Many Did You Get? • Count the number of singers/bands you came up with. • What was the highest number of singers/bands that students came up with independently? • How many did the group come up with?

16. Discussion • Why did the group do better than most students? • Imagine the impact on studying when a group of students works together! Microsoft, 2011

17. Review • Today we talked about the importance of working together now and in college. • What are the benefits of working together? • How many people should be in a study group? • When should study groups meet? Microsoft, 2011

18. References • College Board. (2011). The Power of Study Groups. Retrieved from http://www.collegeboard.com/student/plan/high-school/50432.html • Microsoft Office Images. (2011). Retrieved from http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/images/ • University of California, Berkeley. (2011). Student Learning Center. Retrieved from http://slc.berkeley.edu/studystrategies/