Contents The author and series editor Foreword Introduction How to use this book Section A: Forming the group 1 Breaking the ice: warm-up activities for the first week of term 1.1 Guess my name 1.2 Shaking hands 1.3 Circles 1.4 My home town 1.5 Group skills 1.6 Family statistics 1.7 Forfeits 2 Thinking about language: individual learning styles and group strategies 2.1 What kind of person are you? 2.2 What kind of language learner are you? 2.3 Experience and expectations 3 Thinking about groups: group strengths, individual contributions 3.1 Thinking about groups 3.2 Contributing to a group 3.3 Roles in groups Section B: Maintaining the group 4 Bridging gaps: opinion-and value-bridging activities 4.1 One world 4.2 The Flat Earth Society 4.3 What's so special about us? 4.4 Elemental passions 4.5 Happy families 4.6 The Smelly-foot Tribe 4.7 Predicting similarities 5 Maintaining fluidity: reseating and melee games 5.1 Seating plan 5.2 Changing places 5.3 Airport lounge 5.4 Stations 5.5 Picture sections 5.6 Invitations 6 Getting to know each other: humanistic exercises and personalized grammar 6.1 What are they up to now? 6.2 How often? 6.3 Past confessions 6.4 Class records 6.5 Magic moments 6.6 Group predictions 7 1 did it your way: empathy activities 7.1 1 am you 7.2 If 1 were you 7.3 Ghostwriters 7.4 How did it feel? 7.5 A day in your life 8 A sense of belonging: whole group identity activities 8.1 Group history 8.2 Group profile 8.3 Rainy Sunday Shock Horror: a group newspaper 8.4 Group portrait with melon 8.5 Group advert 8.6 One big family 9 Establishing trust: trust-and confidence-building activities 9.1 Falling 9.2 Blind trust 9.3 Look after it for me 9.4 Promises promises 9.5 Sillv walks 10 Staying positive: encouraging positive feelings 10.1 1 like it when 10.2 My English self 10.3 Wanted: the perfect student 10.4 Medals 10.5 Crazy compliments 10.6 Present-giving 10.7 The negative feelings dustbin 11 Group achievements: product-orientated activities 11.1 A partridge in a pear tree' : a group song 11.2 Tonight at noon' : a group poem 11.3 TV News 11.4 Travel posters 11.5 Group scrapbook 12 Bringing it together: pyramid discussions, feedback techniques, and summaries 12.1 Pyramid discussions 12.2 Reporting back 12.3 Poster presentations 12.4 Postbag 12.5 Instant opinion poll 12.6 Storybook 12.7 Amazing facts 13 That patriotic class feeling: inter-class activities and competitions 13.1 Inter-class debate 13.2 Package tours 13.3 Inter-class quiz league 13.4 Silly sports 13.5 Sketches 14 Ensuring participation 14.1 Interaction mapping 14.2 Catching the question 14.3 Group scribes 14.4 Over to you 14.5 Passing the buck 15 Learning to listen 15.1 Speaking to a brick wall 15.2 Tea and sympathy 15.3 Listeners 15.4 Bamboo telegraph 15.5 Body language and showing interest 16 A sense of direction: setting, assessing, and resetting goals 16.1 1 'm here because 16.2 Visualize it 16.3 What do 1 want? 16.4 How 1 can help you, how you can help me 16.5 Have 1 got what 1 wanted? 16.6 What we've done 17 Coexistence and compromise: individual wants and frustrations; group solutions 17.1 Ideal homes 17.2 Win - lose and win - win negotiations 17.3 Middlemen 17.4 Timetabling priorities 17.5 Negotiating the timetable 18 Coping with crisis: some group problems Sources of problems in groups Responding to problems Some strategies for coping with conflict Section C: Ending the group experience 19 Ending with positive feelings 19.1 Remember when ? 19.2 I'll remember them because 19.3 Thank-you presents 19.4 Hopes for the future 20 Evaluating the group experience 20.1 Look how far we've come 20.2 Now we can 20.3 Evaluating learning strategies 20.4 What's left to do? 20.5 The old lags' letter 21 Finale Language focus index Further reading