Author: Tom Siebold. Tom is a writer and consultant in Minneapolis. He is editor of two websites: 1 College Grazing -- Free college planning tools for college bound students, 2. Teachers on Target -- Free professional development ideas and classroom activities.
Objective(s): To focus team thinking and identify key ideas
How the author has used this exercise: In order to encourage participants to think about teams (or any professional development topic), I often ask them to complete fill-in-the-blank cards (see sample below).
Activity Description: Have participants individually complete the fill-in-the-blanks card (see sample below). Then have them meet in small groups of five to seven and pass the completed cards around the group. Once all the cards have been read, they should reach consensus and complete a group card that selects their best responses. These cards are shared with the full group. This is a good way to identify ideas that are important to the group.