The Importance of Teaching Group Work Skills

I'm sure we can all think of that one kid that can't handle working in a group. I actually totally get it because I hate group work. I was that one person in school that basically did the entire project on my own because I couldn't bare to hand in mediocre work. 

We are in the business of increasing positive behaviors and included in this is teaching group work skills. Many children with challenging behaviors have skill deficits when it comes to peer interactions and even if they have the skills, well, we know they don't always use them. 

Appropriately working in a small group or large group can be tough! Let's look at some of the skills a child needs to not only have, but consistenly use to be part of a group:

• Problem-solving skills - What if there is a disagreement? What if they can't figure out the answer? What if someone took their pencil? Children need to be able to idenfity what the problem is, be able to think about potential solutions, pick the most appropriate one, and then act it out. 
• Coping and self-regulation skills  - Yea, that peer that took their pencil? He's not giving it back. Now, some of our student's who lack self-regulation skills, well, we know how they might respond and it involves a trip to the nurse and possible suspension. We need to be teaching coping skills because sooner or later they will come across a situation in a group where they will need them. 
• Ability to gain attention appropriately - You can't always be the center of attention when it is group work time. That can be a hard pill to swallow for some of our friends. We need to ensure we are teaching them how to gain our attention and the attention of their peers appropriately when the spotlight isn't on them, because we know some children can come up with some pretty creative, not so appropriate ways to gain attention!
• Communication and conversation skills  - Being part of a group usually means engaging in conversations and communicating with one another. Remember, most behaviors are a form of communication, but we don't want that type of communication when it comes to group time, that's for sure. Give your students the skills to start conversations, maintain conversations, comment, question, stay on topic, and wait their turn to speak. All of these will make this time that much more successful for them. 
• Sustained attention - You can't be part of a group if you can't stay with the group or follow along. Think of ways to provide accommodations so the student can access the material and reinforce participation and engagement with the work. Focus on slowly increasing the duration of time they are on-task and celebrate that!
• Conflict resolution skills - This goes hand in hand with problem solving, but emotions tend to right higher during these times. Teach your student(s) how to identify how they are feeling, how to disagree appropriately, and compromise.
• Flexibility - This can be a tough one. We all like to do things our own way on our own time. But, that's not life. And that sure as heck will get your shunned from the group. Teaching kids to be flexible is super important. Reinforce times when they are going with someone else's idea or sharing the conversation. Other times, allow them to do it there way to show that YOU are flexible too.
• Listening skills - Where should their body be? Where should their eyes be? Should they be talking? How do they show with their words after that they were listening to their friend? Can they fidget while they listen? All things to teach. 
• Negotiation skills - We get a lot of pushback on this one, but it's literally a skill all of us use in life! This one is similar to being flexible and problem solving, it just involves more give and take. If Sam wants to do it one way, and Sally wants to do it another way, how can you teach them to negotiate each of their wants and needs and come to an agreement? Just remember to teach all the ins and outs surrounding negotiation with peers to they really understand its purpose. 
• Ability to wait  - Ah, who really likes waiting anyway? To be successful in a group though, students need to be taught how to wait their turn in conversation and in tasks. They can't always dominate the group or they won't have any friends left. Get a baseline of how long they are typically able to wait, then slowly work towards increasing it and reinforcing them when they do!

How do I teach all of these skills?

For any skill you want to be sure to follow this general procedure, called Behavior Skills Training. BST is essentially just good teaching and if you teach reading, math, how to ride a bike, or any skill for that matter, you likely already do it! 

1. Instruction - Provide instruction on the skill, either verbally, in writing, or pictorally. 

2. Model  - Model the skill for the child. Show them exactly what it looks like and sounds like. Model the right way and the wrong way so there is no confusion. 

3. Rehearsal - Have the child practice the RIGHT way to do the behavior or skill. Do NOT have them practice the bad way, they already are good enough at this! Have them practice multiple times a day, every day. We want it to become muscle memory and the only way to create muscle memory is by actively practicing. 

4. Feedback - Give them explicit feedback on how they did. "Wow! You totally stayed quiet while I was giving instructions! Remember, we need to keep our hands in our lap thought. Let's try it again."