Successful Group Work: 13 Activities to Teach Teamwork Skills

The skills associated with successful group work go way beyond the classroom. They are life skills that can be applied in all areas of our lives. Patrice Palmer's] wonderful course...is a must for any teacher and every resource room.-Chris Mares, author of 50 Ways to Be a Better Teacher

Successful implementation and completion of team activities requires instructors and students alike to confront challenges not present in individual work. To maximize learning, group projects need a solid lesson plan that helps students

• understand the benefits of group work,
• develop ground rules and assign responsibilities,
• value everyone's contributions, and
• resolve potential conflicts.

Teacher, curriculum designer, and "teacherpreneur" Patrice Palmer offers thirteen easily implemented, robust group-work activities formatted to foster the development of life skills. Designed with secondary and postsecondary students in mind, Palmer's workbook takes students through the team-building process, from getting to know one another to a final evaluation of the group's work and success.

Written in a user-friendly format, Successful Group Work: 13 Activities to Teach Teamwork Skills allows teachers to choose activities that best meet their students' needs. Make group work a powerful addition to your teaching repertoire. You may be surprised how your students rise to meet a new challenge

Patrice Palmer taught English for speakers of other languages for twenty years before parlaying her experience into a business. She now teaches online courses, writes English-language-teaching materials and blogs, and designs courses.

Palmer received her bachelor of arts degree from York University, Canada. She holds a master of education degree in teaching, learning, and development from Brock University; a second master of arts degree from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto; and an OCELT certification.

In addition to teaching college-level communication courses, Palmer has developed English-language curricula for Hong Kong secondary schools and vocational programs.

Palmer is the author of a ten-module online course for Saudi Arabian students as well as courses on anger management and increasing well-being. She also wrote An A-Z Guide: How to Survive and Thrive as a New ESL Teacher and Dream Beyond the Classroom: The Essential Teacher to Teacherpreneur Toolkit.