Can You Cooperate?

(Team Cooperation Challenges)

This activity uses previously learned fundamental skills in a variety of cooperative challenges. Students work together in teams to communicate and complete a small task that uses skills they have learned and practiced earlier in the year.

Procedure:

1. Share with students that they will continue to use skills to try to challenge themselves.
2. Explain that they will use their skills to try to complete a challenge by cooperating with their team.
3. Review with students that cooperation takes best effort by each partner and the use of talking/listening skills (communication).
4. Explain that you will give them a cooperation challenge to try together, and they will have 2 minutes to cooperate and practice the challenge.
5. Share/show team challenges and allow two minutes for practice/completion of each challenge.
6. Possible Challenge Ideas to Explore:
   • Snake Jog (Can your team stand in a straight line, then follow your leader to jog together, staying behind one another at the same speed, changing directions 3 times, without bumping into one another?)
   • Side to Side Ball Pass (Can your team stand in a straight line, standing sideways, an arm’s length away from the person next to you and toss/catch a ball down and back to each other, without dropping the ball?)
   • Through the Hoop (Can you and your teammates stand in a line facing sideways and grip hands, then pass a hula hoop from one end of the line to the other and back to the start without un-gripping hands?)
   • Move the Mat (Can your team stand up and have each person put two hands under the mat, lifting it high above your heads, and move from one end of the activity area to the other without dropping the mat or taking any hands off from it?)

Transition:

Ask students to create a team hand-pile with each teammate putting their favorite hand extended to the center of their team circle. Ask them to complete a team chant, saying together, Let’s Go Team!