You can’t throw a bunch of people together, call them a team, and expect them to magically start working as a team. And yet, that seems to happen way too often in Education. This makes about as much sense as throwing a bunch of lumber into a pile and calling it a building.
You must take time to build your team if you want it to perform as a team. Winning teams don’t usually happen by chance. As a leader with a team to lead, I would like to give you a quick blueprint you can use to build your own winning team this year with your students.
First, let’s make sure we have a shared understanding of what defines a team. In my classroom, we define team as a group of diverse individuals working together to achieve a shared vision/goals while striving for individual best.
As the leader of my team, I must come in with an exciting vision of where I want to lead my team. Then, I must work to turn that vision into a shared vision. Finally, I must provide a doable plan the team can easily understand and follow to help get us to where we want to go or accomplish what we set out to achieve.
In my classroom, our shared goal is to have our “Best Year Ever!” I’m not trying to replace any other teacher or year as this year being their best. I tell my students that I want every year in school to be their “Best Year Ever!” and that I hope they will be able to include this year on that list.
I describe all the benefits they will have if we can truly have a great year together. I talk about possible lasting friendships they will make, about how time will fly because we are having fun while working hard to reach our goals this year. I discuss how they will have a chance to try new, exciting things throughout the year that will challenge them and give them a chance to grow. Lastly, I tell them that together we will accomplish things that none of us could possibly accomplish on our own and that they will become strong believers in their own potential by the end of the school year.
The doable plan I give them is quite simple. I tell them that if they focus on three words consistently throughout the year, I will do everything else needed in order to guarantee them success -- their Best Year Ever! The three words they must learn and commit to doing in my classroom all year are “Attendance, Attitude, and Effort.”
To get my room of individuals to start working together as a team, I do what most corporate trainers do to get adults to tear down their walls, build trust, and start working together. I make them play together or work together to try and solve certain team challenges. These are usually called “ice breakers” and often involve some amount of physical activity or moving around.
Lastly, Pavlov’s dog’s showed the world that it takes about 21 days to make/break a habit. That means that as the leader of my team, I must invest a little time each day the first 21 days of school to build my team. During this critical time, I must keep pounding away at making my vision our team vision, building our team with the help of ice breakers, and I must keep my students focused on using the three words that will lead them – and our team -- to success!
I hope you will use this blueprint to create your own winning teams for years to come! And always remember, winning teams attract fans!!