ENHANCING MY COMMUNICATION SKILLS WORKSHOP

RATIONALEMany group and relationship conflicts arise because of the lack of understanding among members, regardless of individual personalities, creative differences, traumatic experiences, unconscious motivations and whatnot. This module confirms the assumption that relationships among peers require communication as its most important tool in achieving better relationships and to avoid misunderstanding. Communication is the foundation of any successful relationship, be it personal or professional.Communication is defined as the sharing of messages which could be expressed in a form of verbal expression and non-verbal expressions. The main objective is to establish a degree of understanding between the sender, the receiver, with the use of both verbal and nonverbal cues.

OBJECTIVESThe following objectives of this communication workshop are as follows:a.Know the two-way communication modelb.Find the importance of verbal and non-verbal cues in communicationc.To be able to apply the two-way communication model in everyday interactions

PROGRAM FLOW

12:00 nn 1:00 pm:Registration 1:00 pm 1:10 pm : Invocation and National Anthem 1:10 pm 1: 15 pm : Opening Remarks and Objectives 1:15 pm 1: 25 pm : Giving of the Ground Rules 1:25 pm 1: 45 pm: Opening Exercise: 1:45 pm 1:50 pm: Experiential Activity 1: Draw An Object 1:50 pm 2:30 pm: Experiential Activity 2: ComCards 2:30 pm 3:00 pm:Processing 3:00 pm 3:20 pm:Lecturette 1: Two-Way Communication :Lecturette 2: Non-verbal Communication3:20 pm 3:25 pm:Evaluation3:25 pm 3:30 pm:Giving of Certificates

EMCEE: Miss Lucelle B. Collamat

INVOCATION

Lets put ourselves in the most Holy presence God. Let us pray.

Dear God, we offer everything to you during this workshop. May we ask for your blessing and divine providence that the activities set for this undertaking be successful and effective.May we also retain the invaluable knowledge and learning experiences that we derive from this activity, for actual application when we leave this venue.

We pray that you bless all of us here, and we who prepared this activity that wemay fulfill our tasks responsibly; that the objectives we have set may all be achieved.Your generous blessing would mean the success of this workshop. We know that without You, we can do nothing.

May we be living witnesses of your genuine love, through the implementation of the knowledge acquired through this workshop. Grant us your divine wisdom as we go about our daily task after this.

This we ask in Jesus name, AMEN.

THE PHILIPPINE NATIONAL ANTHEM

Bayang magiliw, perlas ng silanganan.Alab ng puso, sadibdibmo'ybuhay.Lupang hinirang, duyanka ng magitingSa manlulupig, di kapasisiil.

Sa dagat at bundok, sasimoy atSa langit mong bughaw,May dilagang tula at awitSa pag layang minamahal.

Ang kislap ng watawat mo'yTagumpay na nagniningning.Ang bituin at araw niyaKalian pa may di magdidilim.

Lupa ng araw, ng lualhati'tpagsinta,Buhay ay langit sa piling mo.Aming ligayanapag may mang-aapi,Ang mamatay ng dahilsaiyo

OPENING REMARKS

To Mrs. Luzlin Elcullada, our ever dynamic professor in group process and counselling, to my beloved classmates in Master in Education major in Guidance and Counselling Batch 9, to my fellow facilitators in this workshop, friends, ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon.

First of all, I would like to thank everyone here for being present in this workshop. I do hope and believe that you can get a precious gem in this activity and that is learning. But what is in need about learning? Or shall I say what we can get after this workshop? Well it is a surprise and it is for you to find out what the activity is all about.Last time, our team made a Training Needs Analysis Tool (TNA) and conducted to a selected group of young people. No one behold that this pressing need is what the answer of this workshop. Thus, I remember one time with the experience of mine when my fellow youth got embarrassed in the group which affects misunderstanding, mis-coordination, lack of knowledge and details, and others. The rationale of this is that many group and relationship conflicts arise because of the lack of understanding among members, regardless of individual personalities, creative differences, traumatic experiences, unconscious motivations and whatnot.That is why in every group, whether in your work mates, class mates, seat mates, love mates or even in homes, this value (or shall I say blank) will indeed a great help for all of us for personal and social growth. To end this remarks, allow me to use the words of the current President of U.S.A. in his one of his famous speeches: Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones weve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek. May this workshop change us for the better of our lives and the lives of others. Once again I welcome you all and good afternoon.

GROUND RULES

1. Participate. I would like you to participate in this workshop, that you will not joke around, but instead take the activity seriously. I promise that you will learn so much in this endeavour, that whatever insights you get, you will surely be able to use in your daily life.

2. Take off your shoes. Taking off your shoes means levelling off. I ask each one of you that you set aside your status and position in your work, whether you in the supervisory level or in the line staff or whether you are a principle or a teacher. Know that each one us here is equal. No one is superior or inferior to one another.

3. Listen with your ears, eyes and heart.Listening with your ears means you listen with understanding to the person who is talking, expressing, and disclosing. Listening with your eyes means that you look at the person who is speaking. Lastly, listening with your heart means that whatever it is that is being said, understand the person and do not judge. Have an open mind.

4. Be responsible and be honestI ask you to be honest and be responsible for the things that you do and the words that you say.

5. What you hear, what you do, what you see, when you leave, leave it hereI ask you that all the things that you see, hear and do, you keep it to yourself. There might me things that are being disclosed that are personal and thus, it needs your outmost adherence to the rule of confidentiality.

OPENING EXCERCISEInstructions: GTKY (Getting to know you more) Follow the given instructions: a) All the participants will form a big circle called Circle of friends;b) Participants will sing the song I want to be your friend ; c) All of them will follow the 5 different actions with a partnerd) Getting to know more with your partner in asking the given weirdest questions. I want to be your friend ( 3x)A little bit more ( 2x) (THIS PART DO THE ACTION WITH A PARTNER) A little bitA little bit A little bit more( 5x) 5 actions: 1. Side by side ( clapping of hands)2. First partner ( nose to nose)3. Second partner ( chick to chick)4. Third partner ( forehead to forehead)5. Fourth partner ( knees to knees) 6. All friends ( hug a friend at least 5 to 10 friends) Weirdest questions ever! 1. How are you today? Tomorrow? Next day?2. If an orange is orange, why isn't a lime called a green or a lemon called a yellow?3. All of your life, your parents have taught you. What have you taught to your parents?4. Are you a sensitive person? Why or why not?5. According to you, how do we fight global warming?6. Why don't black guys get white tattoos?7. If you had only 24 hours to live, what would you do?8. If money were not an object, what would you do with your life?9. What are the thing(s) you always bring inside your bag? 10. How much money do you have in your pocket now? ( Let your friend see it)

After all the activities, this reflection message will help the participants to have a strong relationship with each other.

Message:

Effective communication is critical to successful relationships. It's well known that good communication is the foundation of any successful relationship, be it personal or professional. It's important to recognize, though, that it's our nonverbal communicationour facial expressions, gestures, eye contact, posture, and tone of voicethat speak the loudest. The ability to understand and use nonverbal communication, or body language, is a powerful tool that can help you connect with others, express what you really mean, and build better relationships.Here inside of our classroom. We are not just students or a learner but also we are family. Yes, a family not just by blood but in our heart and soul. Each of has here have an ability to build a strong family. Strong families allow all family members no matter how young or small to talk about their thoughts and feelings. This does not mean that members are not respectful of one another, but rather that feelings and ideas are respected. Everyone should be expected to express themselves in appropriate ways such as with I messages. This is how we show here in our batch, and this made us unique. In this seminar, this is not just about effective communication but also effective relationship thru one another. But all means, all of us here are family. Together we stand, divided we fall.

EXPERIENCIAL ACTIVITY 1

Title: DRAW AN OBJECTTheme: CommunicationObjective: To know the importance of both verbal and non-verbal communicationTime: 5 minutes onlyPhysical setting:Indoor settingMaterials:White board, white board markersProcedure:1. The facilitator will divide the group into small groups of 15 persons.2. Each group will draw an object (e.g. house, dog, cat etc.) on the board in 15 strokes, simultaneously.3. Each member is not allowed to discuss with the other members about the design. Verbal communication must be avoided.4. Each member is entitled to one stroke only.5. All groups will draw on the board simultaneously.

EXPERIENCIAL ACTIVITY 2

Title: COMCARDSTheme: CommunicationObjective: To use effective communication strategies via verbal communicationTime: 10-20 minutes onlyPhysical setting:Indoor setting, participants will sit in a circle

Materials:ComCards, publishing board, white board marker, permanent marker, masking tape, manila paper, Procedure:6. The facilitator will form the group in a big circle. 7. The facilitator will give one comcard to each participant. Participants are not allowed to show their comcards to the other participants. Otherwise, they will be disqualified.8. In the comcardsis one symbol for each areas (top, bottom, right and left sides). Each comcard is connected like a puzzle piece to other comcards through their similar symbols. (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Each comcard area (top, bottom, left, right) has a corresponding symbol which is connected with other comcard symbols.

9. The task is to connect the puzzle by identifying whos sides/areas are connected through describing each symbol to the whole group via verbal communication only. Other forms of non-verbal communication are strictly prohibited.10. The group is given the opportunity to discuss what strategies to use in accomplishing the task.

Processing Questions:1. What have you experienced while doing the activity?2. What difficulties have you experienced?3. Was the task easy? How so?4. What did you feel while doing the activity?5. What have you learned from that experience?6. What insights have you gained?7. Have you had similar experience with what you have experienced in the activity in your day to day life? In work? At home?8. How can you apply your learnings in your everyday life?

LECTURETTE 1Theoretical Input: TWO WAY COMMUNICATIONObjective: Differentiate One-Way Communication from Two Way CommunicationTime: 10 minutes onlyCommunication can travel in two directions: One-way communication is linear and limited because it occurs in a straight line from sender to receiver and serves to inform, persuade or command.

Two-way communication always includes feedback from the receiver to the sender and lets the sender know the message has been received accurately.

In two-way communication, communication is negotiated. Both sender and receiver listen to each other, gather information and are willing to make changes to work together in harmony.

Their intent is to negotiate a mutually satisfactory situation.

LECTURETTE 2Theoretical Input: NONVERBAL COMMUNICATIONObjective: Know the importance of nonverbal cues in everyday communicationTime:10 minutes only

What is nonverbal communication and body language?When we interact with others, we continuously give and receive wordless signals. All of our nonverbal behaviorsthe gestures we make, the way we sit, how fast or how loud we talk, how close we stand, how much eye contact we makesend strong messages. These messages don't stop when you stop speaking either. Even when you're silent, you're still communicating nonverbally.Oftentimes, what comes out of our mouths and what we communicate through our body language are two totally different things. When faced with these mixed signals, the listener has to choose whether to believe your verbal or nonverbal message, and, in most cases, they're going to choose the nonverbal because it's a natural, unconscious language that broadcasts our true feelings and intentions in any given moment.Nonverbal cues include: touch, glance, eye contact (gaze), volume, vocal nuance, proximity, gestures, facial expression, pause (silence), intonation, dress, posture, smell, word choice and syntax, sounds (paralanguage)

Why is non-verbal communication important?Basically, it is one of the key aspects of communication (and especially important in a high-context culture). It has multiple functions: Used to repeat the verbal message (e.g. point in a direction while stating directions). May substitute for the verbal message (especially if it is blocked by noise, interruption, etc) i.e. gestures (finger to lips to indicate need for quiet), facial expressions (i.e. a nod instead of a yes). Reinforce or modify what is said in words. For example, people may nod their heads vigorously when saying "Yes" to emphasise that they agree with the other person, but a shrug of the shoulders and a sad expression when saying "I'm fine thanks, may imply that things are not really fine at all! Convey information about peoples emotional state. Define or reinforce the relationship between people. Provide feedback to the other person. Regulate the flow of communication, for example by signaling to others that they have finished speaking or wish to say something.Note the implications of the proverb: Actions speak louder than words. In essence, this underscores the importance of non-verbal communication. Non-verbal communication is especially significant in intercultural situations. Probably non-verbal differences account for typical difficulties in communicating.

Page 1 of 14