Working Together as a Team
Students learn to take on an assigned group role and carry out its responsibilities, contribute at least one idea or action toward the group's shared goal, suggest a next step when the group is stuck, take turns speaking and make space for others, and reflect on one thing the group did well and one thing to try differently.
Lesson Overview
What students will be able to do after this lesson: Students will be able to take on an assigned group role and carry out its responsibilities, contribute at least one idea or action toward the group’s shared goal, suggest a next step when the group is stuck and invite others to respond, take turns speaking and make space for others, and reflect on one thing their group did well and one thing to try differently next time.
Skill segments at a glance:
| Segment | Segment name | Primary standards |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Knowing Your Role and Contributing | RS-TMW-2-1 · RS-TMW-2-2 |
| 2 | Moving the Group Forward | RS-TMW-2-3 · RS-TMW-2-4 |
| 3 | Looking Back Together | RS-TMW-2-5 |
Supporting standards reinforced:
| Code | Why it connects |
|---|---|
| RS-COM-2-1 | Active listening in a group is the foundation of cooperative turn-taking |
| SoA-EMP-2-3 | Considering different viewpoints makes group problem-solving more effective |
| SA-STR-2-3 | Matching strengths to group roles is the SA lens on this same teamwork skill |
Key Vocabulary
- Role — Your specific job in the group — the thing only you are responsible for right now
- Contribute — Adding something that actually helps the group move toward its goal
- Stuck — When the group has stopped moving and no one knows what to do next
- Reflection — Looking back at how the group worked and naming what you noticed
Materials
- Whiteboard or chart paper + marker
- Role cards for the I Do (optional: Materials Handler · Timekeeper · Speaker · Recorder)
- Before the week begins: Post your unit anchor chart and I Can Statement where students can see them — you’ll reference both throughout the week.
How this lesson is structured: Each skill segment has an I Do (teacher models the skill) and a We Do (class practices together with your guidance). Independent practice lives in the practice resources that go alongside this lesson.
What Students Need Before This Lesson
- What’s inside
- What students should already be able to do
- Helpful to have in place
- 4 quick set-ups before the I DoA role is not a rule — it’s your specific job right now · Contributing isn’t the same as talking a lot · Turn-taking is not just waiting — it’s making room · Unsticking the group means proposing + inviting — not taking over solo
- Rescue planIf students are significantly behind
This section opens when Grade 2 launches.
Introducing the Skill
- What’s inside
- Opening hook
- What we’re learning
- Why it matters
- Core sentence frameThe frame students use all week
This section opens when Grade 2 launches.
Knowing Your Role and Contributing
- What’s inside
- I do: 4 teacher modelsWhat doing your role looks like · Wrong version → fix: doing other people’s jobs · What contributing looks like · Non-conflict: contributing in an ordinary moment
- We do: 5 guided scenariosWith sentence frames, pacing notes and what to watch for
- Coaching in the momentWhat to say when students get stuck
This section opens when Grade 2 launches.
Moving the Group Forward
- What’s inside
- I do: 4 teacher modelsUnsticking the group: suggest a next step, then ask · Wrong version → fix: taking over vs. proposing · Turn-taking: what it looks like to make room · Non-conflict: turn-taking when the group is working well
- We do: 5 guided scenariosWith sentence frames, pacing notes and what to watch for
- Coaching in the momentWhat to say when students get stuck
This section opens when Grade 2 launches.
Looking Back Together
- What’s inside
- I do: 4 teacher modelsWhat a specific team reflection sounds like · Wrong version → fix: vague reflection vs. specific · Reflection that is honest without being negative · Non-conflict: reflecting on a group that went really well
- We do: 5 guided scenariosWith sentence frames, pacing notes and what to watch for
- Coaching in the momentWhat to say when students get stuck
This section opens when Grade 2 launches.
Closing the Week
- What’s inside
- 3 partner-share roundsOne for each segment, with the frame students say together
- Closing prompt
- Land the key idea
- Connect to daily life
- Optional — Quick check-in
This section opens when Grade 2 launches.
Practice for every skill segment
Each lesson comes with independent practice — the “you do” — for each of its 3 skill segments, in print and digital.
Printable practice
Ready-to-copy practice pages for each segment.
- View and print in your browser
- Answer keys for quick checking
Digital activities
Share one link — students open it on any device, and you see their answers.
- Works on Chromebooks, tablets and phones
- Students just type their name to start
While you wait: from the SEL Resource Library
Relationship Skills resources for Grade 2, ready to use today.
