A teacher's job is highly challenging. They manage classes, create and monitor homework and classwork of students, set up question papers for upcoming exams, check answer sheets, and prepare report cards, among other things. They work with their colleagues collectively to better the students and the school. Teachers often share the same staff room with each other for hours. However, all of them collectively rarely get the chance to know each other well. Some team-building exercises can help teachers build a close-knit community of practice.
Team building exercises for teachers provide an excellent opportunity where teachers can interact with each other and develop bonds. Here, we share some interesting activities which teachers can enjoy.
6 Elements of Team Building
There are six elements of team building that can create a collaborative work environment which will be valuable for the teachers:
- Promote an inclusive work culture
Every teacher has a unique personality. Some are outgoing while others may be introverts. When they participate in the same activity, they connect and feel a sense of oneness.
2. Better communication
Lack of communication often leads to misunderstandings, which can delay the work process. Team building exercises break barriers, creating scope for open communication and making information flow easier.
3. Exchange of ideas
Some tasks in team-building exercises can put teachers in situations where each one of them has to present a different perspective to approach the same situation. Thus, they enrich each other with fresh ideas.
4. Trust building
All teachers contribute toward creating a good learning experience for the students. Through team-building activities, they can learn to depend on their colleagues and share the workload.
5. Maintain harmony within the team
When people connect well, conflicts become lesser.
6. Boost Motivation
The positivity generated from team-building exercises motivates teachers to stay committed to their work.
Team Building Exercises for Teachers
Team building exercises should be fun and engaging. They must help each member to connect with others. Gather all the teachers under one roof inside the school premises and let them enjoy!
Activity#1: Knowing each other
Estimated Time 15-20 minutes
· Ask teachers to take out all coins from their pockets, wallets, and purses. If there aren't enough coins, teachers can use some pens, chalks, markers, notebooks, etc.
· Give them 2 minutes to create a personal logo representing their personality or the school department they represent.
· Once the 2 minutes of hands-on activity is over, ask each participant to explain what the logo says about them or their department.
· This activity will help teachers to know their colleagues better.
Activity #2: Effective communication
Estimated Time: 15-20 minutes
· One teacher will be assigned the role of a speaker.
· The speaker will get a picture or image made with multiple geometrical shapes which other teachers cannot see.
· Other teachers will get a sheet of paper and pencil for drawing.
· Now, the speaker will describe the image in words, and others have to draw the image by listening to those instructions.
· The artist-teachers are not allowed to ask the speaker any questions or have any discussions among themselves.
· At the end, all the drawn images will be compared with the original picture to check who came closest in following the instructions properly.
· This activity will show that effective communication is possible only when both the parties are allowed to speak.
Activity #3: Story Time!
Estimated Time: 20-30 minutes
· Divide the teachers into small groups.
· Each group will get a sheet of paper and a pen.
· One member from each group will start writing the first sentence of a news story. The sentence should not have more than ten words.
· Once the first sentence is written, the paper will be passed on to the next member in the same group, who will add a new sentence to the story. Again, the number of words in the sentence cannot exceed 10.
· This way, each member will give their input to create a new story.
· At the end of the story writing session, each group will read out their story. The one with the best logical conclusion will be recognized as the best story. This will encourage creativity and collaboration.
Activity #4: Group discussion
Estimated Time: 20 - 30 minutes
· Select any topic related to education for discussion. Examples – Impact of globalization on Indian Education System / Common syllabus for all schools / Best career advice for students / Role of parents in choosing a child's career.
· Every speaker can speak for 3 minutes in favor of the topic uninterrupted.
· Once the speaker has finished talking, others will get uninterrupted one minute each to counter the points made by the speaker.
· The speaker will note down the counterpoints made by others. Then the speaker will get 1 minute to express their views on each of the counterpoints.
· This activity will show the importance of allowing people to express their views without interruption. It also improves one's listening skills.
Activity #5: Personal bonding among teachers bonding
Estimated Time: 20-30 minutes
· One teacher starts sharing three personal experiences as a teacher with the team.
· Any team members who can identify with any shared experiences will join hands with the first speaker and start narrating a similar experience. They will also get to share two more different personal experiences.
· Other teachers who can relate to any of the experiences shared by the second speaker can join hands and narrate their identifiable experiences plus two new experiences. Thus, a group of 3 is formed who are bound by a common thread.
· This activity will continue until all the teachers in the room join hands to create a team with some similarities or commonalities in place.
Teachers dedicate their entire life to shaping up the young minds of our nation and building a strong, knowledgeable community. These team-building exercises for teachers will help them work together, learn from each other and ease their stress while spending some light-hearted moments of interaction with their other peers.
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