Information changes as it is reinterpreted with each new listener. You can demonstrate this in your classroom by lining your students up around your class. Instruct them to stand 1 foot away from each other. Whisper a sentence or two in the first student’s ear and instruct her to whisper the same sentence in the next student’s ear. Keep the message moving around the class and ask the last student to repeat the sentence to the class. Inform your students that this activity demonstrates the power of interpretation, as each new listener reinterpreted the message in slightly different ways until multiple reinterpretations may have changed the meaning completely.
Role-playing activities can help you illustrate the damage some activities can have on effective communication. Pair off your students in groups of two. Give a list of disruptive activities, such as texting, listening to music, interruptions and looking elsewhere, to one person in each group. Give an important message, such as a recap of a popular kid’s show, to the other student in each group. Instruct the disruptive student to role play those activities, while the other student attempts to talk to them. Once finished, have the students trade scripts and repeat the activity. Ask the students to tell you how it felt to talk to someone not paying attention and use this exercise to teach the importance of being attentive while listening.
Class introductions are an opportunity for you to teach your students how to pay attention to details. On the first day of a new class, instruct your students to introduce themselves, one by one, with their names and four unique facts about themselves. Once each student is introduced, call on students and ask them to repeat the information given from a fellow student. Use this technique to teach students that every act of communication is a chance to gather information from a speaker.
Interpersonal communication is the direct communication between two people or between small groups of people. Pair off your students in groups of two, giving them five minutes to speak to their partner, ask questions about their partner’s interests and answer questions about their own. After the five minutes, have each student introduce their partner to the class, using the information gained during the short interview. Use this technique in conjunction with introductory activities to teach students the difference between listening to a speaker in front of a group and speaking to someone on a more personal level.