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4 Practical and Fun Interpersonal Communication Activities

We all know that authentic communication goes both ways, as an ongoing dialogue between two or more people.

But so often, we struggle to teach language in that way. That’s why it’s necessary to stress the importance of interpersonal communication.

Keep on reading to find out about 4 fun interpersonal communication activities that you can do with your students!

4 Effective Interpersonal Communication Activities

1. post-presentation q and a session, 2. conversation around the circle, 3. student-generated surveys, 4. random object improv, what are the 3 modes of communication, 1. interpretive communication, 2. presentational communication, 3. interpersonal communication, why your students need interpersonal communication activities.

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

This is a clever way to inject some interpersonal flavor within the presentational mode.

Next time your students give a prepared presentation , follow up with a spontaneous question-and-answer session.

Provide some brief coaching on the vocabulary and sentence structure needed for asking questions, and then let the students ask whatever comes to mind related to the information presented. For this activity, make sure students know they will not be penalized in any way for incorrect grammar or pronunciation. If they feel free to make mistakes, it can lead to a truly uninhibited, two-way conversation.

Here’s a fun activity to do with your class.

Arrange your students to sit in a circle. Then, move the conversation in a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction as each student asks a question. Depending on their level of proficiency, these questions may be improvised on the spot or prepared ahead of time. You can choose to have each student ask a question of the peer sitting next to him/her; or you can have 3-5 different students volunteer answers to the question, depending on the group and their comfort level.

This activity can be adapted to different seating arrangements, and works well in a game format (i.e., have students compete to see which ones give the most answers.)

This is a survey activity that encourages short, structured responses. It can be adapted to any level and gives students structured practice with two-way communication.

Students must create survey questions based on a topic that you’re covering in class. For example, questions about their favorite leisure activities work well if you’re working on a unit about hobbies and pastimes. These can be presented in:

  • Open-ended questions: “What is your favorite sport?”
  • Yes/no questions: “Do you like to draw?”

Students then circulate around the room, asking their peers questions and compiling the results. At the end, the class regroups so students can share these results, using the target language. Common results shared include sentences like: “Four students like to play baseball,” “Six students like to draw,” and so on.

Jot down the names of a few random objects (i.e., “guitar,” “tree,” “pencil,” etc.) on slips of paper and put them in a hat. Students then walk up in pairs or small groups, pick an object out of the hat, and then improvise a short dialogue around that item. This activity can be loads of fun, getting even the shyest students out of their shell.

It’s widely accepted that we use three different ways to express ourselves, depending on the situation. For a language learner to become fluent in their target language, they need to first understand the different modes of communication and when to use them.

So, what’s the difference between the three? Let’s take a look.

This is a type of one-way communication where students use their listening and/or reading skills to comprehend spoken and written language. Some examples would be listening to a podcast or reading a book  and answering questions.

There’s nothing inherently wrong with interpretive communication activities in the classroom. In fact, they are invaluable for providing language exposure that can lead to fluency. And reading and listening are both crucial skills for effective communication.

But the awkward fact remains that real-life encounters with the language are usually about holding conversations  rather than one-sided listening or reading activities.

This is yet another instance of one-way communication—but in the other direction.

Presentational communication occurs when your students use their writing and speaking skills to present information or knowledge on a topic. Examples include performing a prepared skit or dialogue, or presenting a slideshow.

This type of communication is also valuable to your students. They need to learn how to organize and express their thoughts clearly.

But real conversations are spontaneous. You don’t get a chance to prepare a speech ahead of time. Rather, it’s a give-and-take of listening and responding.

This is two-way communication in which both sides actively negotiate meaning through a process of observing, monitoring and clarification.

Needless to say, this describes most authentic conversations in daily life . All parties spontaneously build meaning together.

But it’s tough to achieve this level of spontaneity within the constructs of a classroom, among students who may only have a basic vocabulary at their disposal.

Despite the challenges, though, interpersonal communication is essential for your students to learn how to use the language effectively.

Below are some reasons why you should be adding interpersonal communication activities in your lessons.

But first, if you want to maximize classroom communication and help your language learners speak more naturally,  FluentU   can help.

interpersonal communication class assignments

FluentU offers a unique learning experience not found in most language-learning curriculum—authenticity.  FluentU enables educators to teach language using a mixture of tried-and-true exercises and real-world material. As a result, students learn the mechanics of a language and practice communicating like a native speaker.

Now that we’ve covered the basics, here are some reasons why language learners should be actively building their interpersonal communication skills.

1. Interpersonal communication helps them build confidence and overcome anxiety about speaking

Let’s be honest; many students find it terrifying to speak up in a language class. They’re accustomed to carefully phrasing their communication via social media comments or text messages. Spontaneous, face-to-face communication feels unnatural and scary.

But by providing plenty of opportunities for interpersonal communication within your classroom, you can build your students’ comfort levels so they can go forth and communicate with confidence.

2. It develops a more natural understanding of language and how it works

As we constantly express ourselves and negotiate meaning with others, we develop an intuitive understanding of the language.

One example is grammatical rules. You can teach grammar in your lessons , but it won’t really make sense until someone has a chance to hear the rule in action so that they can recognize when something just doesn’t sound right.

3. It taps into the emotional, affective side of learning

What makes knowledge memorable? Often it’s the emotions we associate with it.

That’s why we often use songs, pictures,  stories and literature to make a lesson stick in our students’ minds.

The spontaneous interactions of interpersonal communication force us to dig a little deeper for our responses—tapping into that rich emotional landscape where true learning happens.

4. Interpersonal communication is the whole reason for studying a language

You know your students are not in your class because they want to learn how to prepare scripted dialogues or to read passages from a text.

They want to be able to listen and speak in their target language.

How many people do you know who studied a language for years in school, yet are unable to speak it? How sad and disappointing. The students in front of you dream of being able to converse fluently in the target language. That’s the whole reason they’re in your class in the first place.

And guess what. Interpersonal communication is the only way to get them there.

By now, you’re probably sold on the benefits of interpersonal communication— that is, if you weren’t already.

But when it comes to incorporating spontaneous, two-way communication in your classroom, you may feel that your creativity is quickly stretched to the limit. That’s where we can help! Read further to learn how to prepare interpersonal communication activities that you can easily incorporate in your classroom routine.

Communication truly is a two-way street—and the foreign language activities above can help you walk down it.

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interpersonal communication class assignments

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Interpersonal Speaking: Activities and assessments

September 18, 2015

So #langchat tonight was crazy. We celebrated "Throwback Thursday" by using the old "free-for-all" format in which a topic is given at the beginning, but the conversation is not moderated. #langchat has grown significantly, and while I prefer the free-for-all format to the moderator Q - participant A format, it was clear tonight that there are just too many participants for a free-for-all to be successful.

As I was making dinner and trying to get my brain to un-clench from the stress of trying to keep up with the conversations, I realized why tonight's topic was truly the perfect topic to address in the old format.

You see, tonight we discussed interpersonal speaking assessment. And what is  interpersonal speaking but spontaneous communication between two or more parties? It can get messy: we miss pieces of the conversation, we misinterpret other things, we don't express ourselves well, we are misinterpreted...oh yeah and sometimes we communicate successfully!

Story of tonight. The "new" #langchat format, where the moderators ask questions and the participants respond, is  not  interpersonal communication. At times it tends in that direction, but by and large it ends up being two ongoing presentations that happen to be related. What I loved about tonight is that I felt like for the first #langchat in a long time, the participants really had a conversation going! We were trying to work through the intricacies of interpersonal communication together, and it felt like collaboration; not presentation. The Q/A format tends to create an atmosphere of show and tell--which is great because the participants have so many great ideas--but it's not the same as what happened tonight.

Assess and practice the interpersonal mode of communication with these quick activities

So what  were  we trying to work through? Well, the conversation ended up centering on Assessment of Interpersonal Speaking at the Novice level: should novices be assessed (formally--graded) on their Interpersonal Speaking ability, and, if so, how? My takeaway from tonight was that I needed to spend some time looking at proficiency guidelines and to grill Scott Benedict when I see him this weekend at AFLA about his take on the subject, since he's my favorite Proficiency Based Assessment guru :) Well, a few hours have passed, and I've got some initial findings and conclusions to share with you. (And, at the bottom of the post, I'll share links to some Interpersonal Speaking activities because let's face it--you need stuff to use in class, not just stuff to make your brain hurt!).

My first and favorite new  find on Interpersonal communication—and specifically for novices—is this guide from the Ohio Department of Education . I actually cannot believe that a state DOE would ever spend so much time and effort to create such a specific guide, but there it is! They show the three dimensions of Interpersonal communication: comprehensibility, quality of communication, and interculturality.

What is interpersonal communication and what is it not?

What I care about here is the fact that Interpersonal speaking is  spontaneous by both parties  by definition! Knowing that communication must be spontaneous makes me think that Novices (at least Novice Lows and Novice Mids) are incapable of true interpersonal communication (oh my, I am gasping at my own self for thinking that!). I mean, let's look at ACTFL's proficiency guidelines for Novice Low speakers:

Speakers at the Novice Low sublevel have no real functional ability and, because of their pronunciation, may be unintelligible. Given adequate time and familiar cues, they may be able to exchange greetings, give their identity, and name a number of familiar objects from their immediate environment. They are unable to perform functions or handle topics pertaining to the Intermediate level, and cannot therefore participate in a true conversational exchange. - Page 8, ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines, Copyright © 2012 by The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, Alexandria, VA

Well, shoot! Did you catch it?? You have it right there, straight from the source! Novice Lows... "cannot [...] participate in a true conversational exchange".  So I'm not crazy! Which begs the question,  why in the world are we holding them accountable--grading them--on something that they shouldn't technically unable to do?? While the guidelines do not explicitly state that Novice Mid and Novice High speakers cannot participate in true conversational exchanges, they are very clear that Novice speakers at all sub-levels are very difficult to understand and only able to produce short, memorized chunks of speech. For more details, we can look to ACTFL's Performance Descriptors . And while we are examining ACTFL's publications (since they should be our go-to when determining how to assess our students), let's see how  they  describe Interpersonal Communication:

The Three Modes of Communication as described in the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines

Again, we see this idea of "active negotiation of meaning", which disqualifies any kind of conversation in which one or both sides is predetermined. And since Novices can only function with memorized (predetermined) chunks, I am further convinced that we should not be grade Novices on their Interpersonal Speaking performance.

I think that it is inaccurate to say that Novices do not have interpersonal speaking ability; after all, there are descriptors for it in all of ACTFLs proficiency publications. However, the ability is extremely limited and does not appear to have yet become an ability in its own right: it is still a sum of its collective parts (the ability to comprehend and the ability to produce), but it is not yet  greater  than the sum of its parts! It is not "its own beast": it is comprehension (interpretation) and production, and the negotiation--the process component--has yet to develop.

As I searched the Internet to see  how  other teachers are assessing Interpersonal speaking at the Novice level, I found quite a few good rubrics--but none of them gave me the "missing link" that could convince me that I should create a separate category for Interpersonal speaking in my gradebook. Here are two quick examples:

  • I love the feedback section at the bottom of this rubric —where students GLOW and where they need to GROW. What seems to be missing is a measure of their ability to understand the question being asked—as is, it looks no different than a presentational rubric, since it focuses only on production and the ability of someone else to understand what the student says.
  • In this speaking assessment for Novice Lows (available in a bunch of different languages!), we see the true expected ability of a novice speaker. Notice that everything must be memorized: the student should have memorized the questions that s/he is expected to interpret and his/her standard (or possible standard) responses for the questions. Zero creativity is involved. This assessment appears to be designed to be speaking between the teacher and the student, which was a topic of discussion in tonight’s #langchat. Since Novice learners are not expected to be able to negotiate meaning, they really do need to hear correct language in the questions, and that cannot be guaranteed in student-student interactions. But if the teacher is being strategic in the questions and speaking in a way that the student should absolutely be able to understand, then can using a pre-determined list of questions even qualify as interpersonal communication? It would seem to me that the “interpersonal” component wouldn’t come into play until follow-up questions are asked—questions that the questioner hadn’t premeditated—and then novices are not supposed to be able to understand and respond because those questions would most likely not have been memorized.

So my preliminary conclusion for tonight is that we should NOT formally assess Novice learners on their Interpersonal Speaking ability. If you were at my assessment session at iFLT this summer, you might remember that I said that when I return to the classroom one of these years, I'd break down my speaking category into "presentational speaking" and "interpersonal speaking". Well, I have changed my mind and will keep it the way it is (at least in my beginner language courses). All that as a result of Interpersonal communication on #langchat tonight and some follow-up Interpretation of Internet resources. But please, let's continue the conversation--nothing is set in stone here!

Should my students practice interpersonal communication?

Of course, deciding that I won't grade students on their Interpersonal speaking ability doesn't mean that I won't be giving them opportunities to practice and develop it, all the while giving them formative feedback. So first, let's deal with formative assessment and feedback. Thomas Sauer (@tmsauer1) asked this question several times tonight:

Thomas Sauer asks how we can assess SO MANY students in the interpersonal mode??

So, forgetting about summative assessment (since I am throwing it out the window for now), let's talk about formative assessment and feedback. How can I get a pulse on my students' developing Interpersonal Speaking ability and communicate to them what their pulse was? The best solution that I found to this dilemma (as a teacher with 175 students each year) was to use these speaking cards .

Use speaking cards with built-in rubrics aligned with ACTFL proficiency guidelines to assess interpersonal speaking quickly!

I'll let you read the instructions that are included in the file, but basically I just walk around the room and make notes on the cards that belong to whichever students I happen to listen in on. If I don't get through everyone in one day, no problem--I just pick up the stack during the next communicative activity and continue on with the remaining students. A good and accurate summative assessment should never indicate a different proficiency level than its formative counterparts, so it doesn't really matter that I am collecting data from different activities. Students will demonstrate their true ability in informal situations. By recording data on several different instances for each student, I can identify "outliers": instances in which students--for whatever reason--did not demonstrate their true ability.

So that's the how; here's the what: some different Interpersonal speaking activities that you can use in class. Remember that Interpersonal speaking requires  spontaneous, two-way interaction.  In many of these activities, students are working with prescribed questions, so the Interpersonal speaking doesn't come into play until students ask follow-up questions that they come up with on-the-spot. Because Novices' ability to create follow-up questions and respond to unrehearsed questions from their classmates is extremely limited, you are going to be examining the building blocks of that skill (listening comprehension and speaking production) more than the skill itself as you formatively assess these activities. Mostly, you're just giving them an opportunity to develop their confidence and competency for conversational speech.

ACTIVITIES TO PRACTICE INTERPERSONAL SPEAKING :

Here are some that have been shared before:

SIMULTANEOUS PRESENTATIONS

As the name of this activity implies, Simultaneous Presentations involve the Presentational mode first (students are sharing something that they have prepared with a series of classmates). For it to become an interpersonal activity, the 'audience' must respond in some spontaneous way to the presenter, and the presenter must respond back with unprepared speech. What I like about Simultaneous Presentations is that students are provided with something that they can talk about, and it is different each time that students switch partners.

Fan N Pick is one of my favorite Kagan structures, and while the first time that you use it with your students is a little confusing, it is well worth the effort to make sure they understand how it works. I love that all group members have roles and that it is very low-stress. Once again, for this to become interpersonal, that follow-up question or reaction piece is key: otherwise, it's a presentation activity.

COLLECTIVE INTERVIEW

Collective interviews are really fun and a great way to get responses from all students in the class without the teacher having to ask and listen to a zillion responses. Remember--interpersonal requires spontaneity, so the interviewer students must be asking follow-up questions and reacting in the target language to what their interviewees are saying!

QUIZ QUIZ TRADE

Quiz Quiz Trade works with prepared questions (each student has one when the activity begins). For that reason, Quiz Quiz Trade is an interpersonal speaking activity  if and only if  each partner asks a follow-up question before partners switch cards and part ways.

...and here are some new ones that I share in my Assessment for Acquisition workshop:

Information gap activities are a great way to incorporate the interpersonal speaking mode

ROLL A ROLE

Roll a role is a great activity to use after you have been exploring a topic in your classes; in particular, a topic on which there are at least two standard opposing opinions, or perhaps more.

In Roll a Role, an interpersonal speaking activity, students are 'assigned' a role by a die and must have a conversation in character

Students are assigned a 'role' at random by the roll of a die, and then they are given a question to discuss. The catch is that they have to discuss the question 'in character'; from the perspective of the role that they rolled. Here is an example: students are assigned one of the six roles below, and from that person's perspective, they must discuss with their partner (who has rolled a  different  role) whether or not it is important to learn another language.

Roll a role is an interpersonal speaking activity. Learn more at The Comprehensible Classroom!

SPEED DATING

I love speed dating because it gets students moving (but not too much, ha!) and it allows students to talk with many different partners throughout the course of the activity.

When I do speed dating activities with my students, I have them form two parallel lines that are facing each other. Each student is partnered with the student that they are immediately across from, and then I give them a topic to discuss. Sometimes, I give students a list of questions and they can choose from any of the questions on the list to talk about; but if you are really going for interpersonal mode then you need to make sure that the question asker is coming up with their own follow-up questions and not just reading pre-created language.

After a minute (or even less!), I ding my bejeweled teacher bell, and one of the lines moves to the left, so that each student is now facing a new partner.

Speed dating is an easy interpersonal speaking activity for language classes

REMEMBER: unless  spontaneous, two-way interaction  (that means spontaneous on the part of each party involved) is taking place, it is not truly an interpersonal speaking activity. HOWEVER, even without that spontaneous, two-way interaction, all of these activities will build students' confidence and competence in the building blocks of Interpersonal communication.

Thank you, and goodnight.

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Interpersonal Communication: A Mindful Approach to Relationships

(12 reviews)

interpersonal communication class assignments

Jason S. Wrench, State University of New York

Narissra M. Punyanunt-Carter, Texas Tech University

Katherine S. Thweatt, State University of New York

Copyright Year: 2020

Last Update: 2023

ISBN 13: 9781942341772

Publisher: Milne Open Textbooks

Language: English

Formats Available

Conditions of use.

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

Learn more about reviews.

Reviewed by Jinnie Jeon, Assistant Professor, Adler University on 5/30/23

N/A read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

Content Accuracy rating: 5

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

Clarity rating: 5

Consistency rating: 5

Modularity rating: 5

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

Interface rating: 5

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

“Interpersonal Communication: A Mindful Approach to Relationships” by Jason S. Wrench, Narissa M. Punyanunt-Carter, and Katherine S. Thweatt is a truly illuminating journey into the depths of human interaction. A cutting-edge book written in an engraining and accessible style, it expertly blends theoretical foundations with practical applications, encouraging readers not just to understand but also to implement the principles of effective communication. The author’s unique focus on mindfulness, a concept rarely emphasized in similar literature, provides a fresh perspective and an essential tool for nurturing and enhancing relationships in today’s fast-paced, technology-driven world. This approach enables readers to become more present and thoughtful communicators. Despite the intricacies of the subject matter, the text remains approachable and practical, enriched by real-life examples and exercises that promote self-reflection. The original cover art by Melinda Ahan adds a touch of beauty and uniqueness to this enlightening piece of work. Overall, the book stands as a seminal text for anyone seeking to improve their interpersonal communication skills, from students to professionals and beyond.

Reviewed by Dana Trunnell, Associate Professor of Communication, Prairie State College on 3/15/23

This text covers interpersonal communication concepts and theory in extraordinary detail with the added bonus of weaving mindfulness into each topic. If anything, I find the chapters to be almost too long for undergraduate reading expectations.... read more

This text covers interpersonal communication concepts and theory in extraordinary detail with the added bonus of weaving mindfulness into each topic. If anything, I find the chapters to be almost too long for undergraduate reading expectations. That said, the mindfulness approach, along with the care taken to cover topics from multiple perspectives is appreciated. One especially great resource is the accompanying instructor resource manual, which is very detailed, updated, and helpful. It is not the afterthought that some OER textbooks provide. I would like to see more coverage of LGBTQIA+ issues.

The text is accurate, without grammatical and proofreading errors. I do think the text can be rather repetitive in spots, so word economy might be something to think about for future revisions and editions.

Interpersonal Communication is a timeless discipline and the text reflects this disciplinary longevity. I find the mindfulness approach to be an important update as the mindfulness trend establishes itself into a more long-term approach to thinking about relationships, communication, and life, in general. But, the text should be updated to be more aware and inclusive of emerging norms in race, LGBTQIA+, and sociopolitical issues.

Clarity rating: 4

Information is presented in an easy-to-read format and concepts are explained clearly. As I mentioned above, at times, the text can be pretty repetitive, which affects readability.

The content in this text is consistent with the approaches of for-profit volumes on Interpersonal Communication.

I like that this text displays the full chapter when one clicks on the link instead of only one subsection of that chapter. So, students can read the entire chapter from one link without having to scroll through other pages using navigational tools. I have found that the latter is very confusing to students, who might read only the first subsection and not the entire chapter. These links can easily be incorporated into an LMS module for easy access. In addition, each chapter is organized consistently, beginning with introductory information about each unit. The chapters are divided by major topics/concepts and each division includes Learning Objectives, Key Takeaways, and application Exercises. Time is devoted in each chapter to the application of the mindfulness approach as it relates to the topic of study. Chapters end with a list of important terms, a case study, and end-of-chapter assessments.

The content flowed well with transitions linking the chapters. I think the ordering of the chapters made sense. I also think it makes sense to organize them completely differently. The beauty of interpersonal communication is that it is so important and pervasive in our lives that we can jump in anywhere and get the discussion started. I do think, however, it is easy to adapt the flow of the text to any class – titular notions of “Chapter 1,” “Chapter 2,” etc. mean less with an electronic resource that is linked to LMS modules than a physical book.

Interface rating: 4

The textbook is easy to use and easy to navigate as it uses the consistent approach of other texts housed in the Open Textbook Library. Chapters are consistently organized and it is easy to move throughout the text. I love that hyperlinks are provided so students can access referenced surveys, measures, and other supplementary material. Unfortunately, some of these are dead links.

I did not encounter grammatical errors as I read.

Cultural Relevance rating: 3

The book acknowledges the importance of cultural factors as they influence various parts of the interpersonal communication process. However, the text would benefit from an update that helps students navigate the current communication climate, especially as they relate to current issues associated with race, sociopolitical events, and LGBTQIA+ people.

This text is particularly good for introductory-level interpersonal communication students. Instructors who value mindfulness as a daily practice will find this text especially suitable for their teaching style. New instructors will be impressed and feel supported by the extensive ancillary material.

Reviewed by Beth Austin, Assistant Teaching Professor, University of Wisconsin - Superior on 9/23/22

This book covers all the relevant material covered in a typical textbook on interpersonal communication. read more

This book covers all the relevant material covered in a typical textbook on interpersonal communication.

After briefly looking through the book and with publisher and the authors' credentials, I am confident in the accuracy of the content.

This text was published in 2020 and the images, research, and mindfulness angle are still relevant. Only time will tell the reception that mindfulness receives over the years.

This book is easy to read and contains foundational jargon for the discipline.

The text is internally consistent in terms of terminology and framework.

The page layout of this book provides the reader with captivating images which provide reading breaks. The infographics are colorful and visually dynamic.

The flow and structure of this book follow the table of contents for many other interpersonal communication texts.

This book is user-friendly and easy on the eyes.

I did not find any grammatical errors in this book.

I did not see any evidence of insensitive or offensive material in the book.

Chapter 14: The Darkside of Interpersonal Communication provides information about which many undergraduate students may relate.

Reviewed by Riley Richards, Assistant Professor, Oregon Institute of Technology on 8/22/22

This book offers a unique perspective on IPC, particularly through its mindfulness lens. Through this lens, it covers the standard and expected major ideas needed to cover in an IPC class and is covered in other IPC textbooks. The information... read more

This book offers a unique perspective on IPC, particularly through its mindfulness lens. Through this lens, it covers the standard and expected major ideas needed to cover in an IPC class and is covered in other IPC textbooks. The information covered and how it is presented (i.e., readability) are fit for undergraduate students in an introductory or standalone IPC course. Areas of content that stand out in this text, compared to other IPC texts, are the chapters on mediated communication and especially the dark side of IPC. Additionally, emotions through the lens of mindfulness are discussed throughout the text while other IPC texts lump the connection between emotion and communication into a section or chapter. From an instructor standpoint, I especially appreciated the authors explaining how research findings were found (i.e., methodology) instead of simply providing the student with the information and a citation through the research spotlight sections. My only minor critique is the family and marriage relationship chapter. The marriage portion albeit limited is related to family but also seemed out of place in the text. A standalone chapter on romantic/sexual relationships seems like a natural next step in the next edition. Also, instructors can easily substitute this section for other material. Finally, the additional materials (e.g., Ted Talk, YouTube videos) provide accessible material for a student who may wish to learn more in-depth information or prefer information through different mediums.

The authors did well in balancing the breadth and depth of the subject within each chapter and across the book. I did not find parts or the sum of the parts to be biased or inaccurate.

As of this review, the content is up to date across the board from current research findings to the inclusion of seminal research and examples of concepts (e.g., COVID-19) that students can relate to. Additionally, the text is written (also through its license) in such a way that other instructors can freely expand on the authors’ examples or go in and make their own. Finally, I believe the lens of mindfulness to be around and relatable for quite some time based on national data about Generation Z coming through university doors for at least the next few decades.

The text was clear. The authors do a good job clearly defining and calling the reader’s attention to major ideas before going in-depth into the concept. The real-world case study included at the end of every chapter and its prompted thinking questions (which could easily be in-class discussion questions) is helpful for readers to consider key ideas in contexts immediately after reading the chapter.

The text keeps consistent and uses terminology as it was originally defined/discussed and is consistent with the larger IPC literature.

The text is clearly divided into chapters and sections within chapters. Instructors can easily use standalone chapters and/or add/remove sections within chapters to meet their pedagogy needs. The text is not overly self-referential, and a new reader would not need to read chapters in order. However, the reader would be best to have some background to IPC (i.e., chapters 1-3) before reading how the material applies in specific contexts.

The chapters are logically ordered and run in order similar to most IPC texts (i.e., I did not have to change my course vary much when transitioning to a new text). Each chapter opens with clear learning outcomes and ends with a reminder of the key terms and supplies the reader with a means to immediately apply the content through case studies, quizzes, and personality tests.

Overall, there were no major issues. Few exceptions such as a table going over onto the next page, textbox, or section header breaking apart sentences in the same paragraph (e.g., “end of chapter” in chapter 12). These few exceptions do not take away from the content being covered.

In my read through I found no major issues. I also offered my students extra credit to find errors (aids their writing) and they did not find any issues either.

The text was neither culturally insensitive nor offensive. The examples provided vary across genders, sexes, sexualities, races, and ethnicities. This is especially true in the culture chapter.

Overall, I strongly recommend this text to others. This is my first time using and reviewing an OER. I have used it for one summer term so far but plan to continue to use it in the future. No textbook is perfect for our individual needs, we all teach differently. However, the beauty of the author’s choice of license allows each of us to use the text differently. Thus, as the years go on, I will continue to pick and choose and supplement where I need to based on my curriculum and learning outcomes.

Reviewed by Abby Zegers, Correctional Education Coordinator, Des Moines Area Community College on 11/17/21

This text is incredibly comprehensive to the point that I feel that it could possibly be two texts or classes, depending on how much time you had. Each chapter dives relatively deep into its topic and not only is it visually appealing with up to... read more

This text is incredibly comprehensive to the point that I feel that it could possibly be two texts or classes, depending on how much time you had. Each chapter dives relatively deep into its topic and not only is it visually appealing with up to date charts, graphs and pictures, the downloadable version has hyperlinks to directly take the student to a certain inventory that the chapter is utilizing as a supplement. I found this to be really engaging. The text has a separate instructor manual which is incredibly useful with all of the materials, power points, quizzes and other necessary information needed to instruct this class. There is a glossary at the end of the text. No index was available which in my opinion would be helpful simply due to the fact that many topics/subjects or inferences are utilized throughout the chapters and not necessarily in the one devoted to that topic.

I found the content to be accurate and free from bias. I noticed only a few grammatical errors but content was incredibly accurate and up to date with references cited appropriately throughout.

Interpersonal communication is a topic that holds relevance and longevity as many things stay the same however the authors did an excellent job with current communication topics such as Chapter 12 devoted to Interpersonal Communication in Mediated Contexts. This is a topic I spend a great deal of time on with my classes as it is so current and relative to their lives right now. I think that this information will change in the future however the content available now on the topic will remain relevant as “history”. I found value in the links to different personality tests or activities that were relevant to the topic at hand and appreciated that they were available so easily as students are more likely to click a link rather than jot down something they might look up later.

I found this text to be very elaborate into many topics relating to interpersonal communication and the extensive glossary was very helpful. The supplemental activities and videos presented are a wonderful way to apply what is approached in each lesson. The text uses a “mindfulness” approach which might be a new concept to some however I think it’s a great way to see the value and importance of the topic.

I found no issues with consistency. Each chapter is laid out the same with Learning Outcomes identified in each section, exercises that could be great journal activities or discussions, key takeaways, a chapter wrap up including key terms used, a real world case study and a quiz followed by references. It is consistent throughout the text and a great way to appeal to different types of learners.

The way this text is set up allows for one to jump around if need be however; the beginning focuses more on history and theory which in itself is important along with communication models. This in itself could almost be its own text with the depth the authors go to in the material along with the abundance of activities and self-assessments allowing the reading to analyze their own styles creates a nice foundation to continue into the material. For my own classes, I would never have enough time to get through this text and give it the attention that it deserves so the ability to pick and choose topics and chapters relative to today is really an attractive part of it for me.

I think this text flows very well and much of the material from the beginning builds upon itself. The chapters are in appropriate order with building content however; it is beneficial that an instructor could pick and choose different areas they wanted to focus on without losing too much. The text ends with Chapter 13 being Interpersonal Relationships at Work and Chapter 14 being The Dark Side of Interpersonal Communication and I feel that these were appropriate choices to wrap up the text with.

I loved the ability to read through this text in electronic format and the hyperlinks were incredibly helpful and I had no issues with connectivity to sources. Images were clear and loaded as they should. I printed off a copy of the text and there were no formatting issues in doing so. I feel that utilizing the hard copy method or downloading the pdf version are both great options to have that appease different types of learners.

There were a few minor grammatical errors here and there but nothing that distracted me or was relative enough that I documented it. I felt like it was very well written and edited.

There is a specific chapter dedicated to Cultural and Environmental Factors in Interpersonal Communication however; references to cultural and gender issues are spread throughout and I feel like the information is inclusive.

Overall, I found this text to be a really great OER and am using pieces of it for my classes. I appreciate a text that appeals to many different styles of learners with text, videos, interactive quizzes and assessment and slides. So much material is available and covered and I find many sections of this to be useful in a few different classes that I teach. I am thankful to have found this text and look forward to continuing to use it.

Reviewed by Jennifer Adams, Professor, DePauw University on 11/13/21

This book is lengthy, and each chapter contains more good content than I expected. There are chapters on each topic you would expect (although organized somewhat differently than most of the popular print textbooks in this discipline). For... read more

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This book is lengthy, and each chapter contains more good content than I expected. There are chapters on each topic you would expect (although organized somewhat differently than most of the popular print textbooks in this discipline). For example, the information on perception is mostly in chapter 3, but some info about the topic was found across two other chapters (and attribution theory is not really included at all). There is no specific chapter on emotion, but there is content about it throughout. Furthermore, something that was somewhat new to me was incorporating the idea of "mindfulness" along with competence to understand communication processes. There is a chapter on technology that I think is growing in importance. This book doesn't really push the envelope on considering issues of identity like race or gender, but there is a good chapter on culture (and I would say that is also true of many for-profit books). The sections on relational communication are really thorough and give a good range or ideas and theories for each different relational experience. While the organization was slightly different than the book I was used to using (the Floyd text), I was able to find all of my content normally covered somewhere in this textbook.

I found no errors in this textbook that I have found aside from minor typos or a few strange sentences. The content is accurate and attributed to the correct sources. There is a lengthy and useful reference list.

This book includes all of the theories and concepts that I have been teaching for two decades. Their examples are really useful. One thing I did notice is that a lot of space is taken up by quizzes or activities - things like personality tests. I don't really use those in any way, but I do wonder if those types of things might be trendy - I don't know that or sure, but I didn't use them. I do think that the focus on "mindfulness" is something that is popular now that has not been in the past, but I certainly hope that the value in mindfulness doesn't trend away any time soon. I really thought that the book was up to date and see no reason it can't be updated relatively easily.

This book is comparable to the popular for-profit interpersonal communication textbooks that are available. It is addressed to the reader, and it is easy to read. It does introduce new terminology and concepts , but these are always defined clearly. At the end of every chapter, there is a 'take-away" section that includes key-terms, so there is the ability to look those up outside of the basic text as well. There are activities at the end of each chapter as well, to help develop.

Yes, the entire book is about interpersonal communication and it does not diverge from topics covered in the popular for-profit books. I didn't find any inconsistencies in the way that the material is presented. In fact, the opposite is true: their focus on "mindfulness" as a skill that can be developed holds each chapter together, so that there is not just information about the important ideas and theories, there is also a constant reflection on the values of mindfulness as it relates to all of the topics (and relationship types) that are covered.

This is really well organized. The book is divided into chapters, and each chapter is divided into subsections that have numbered placement within the chapter and headings throughout. (For example, chapter seven materials are divided into 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, etc). If you didn't want to assign the entire book, you could easily pick sections here and there to use (and you can save only those sections as PDFs to insert on your syllabus or organizing platforms).

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4

The book is not organized like my class was, but it wasn't a major deal and I simply hoped around a bit. So, for example, I thought that the chapter on culture should come sooner than chapter 6, perhaps before verbal and nonverbal communication. I also wasn't sure that some of the content in chapter 7 called "Talking and Listening" was placed well there - it seemed redundant in some ways, but some info (like social penetration theory or the johari window) seem like they should be in an earlier chapter about perception. That being said, these concerns are ultimately very minor - the content I expected was there, and I could assign page #s for specific sections that I needed to address at different times in the semester. I did not use this book chronologically from chapter 1 to the end, but that has been true for for-profit books I have used in the past, too. I found the chronology to be good.

I used this book in the fall of 2021, and recommended that all students download the PDF version, which is what I primarily use. The book's TOC is hyperlinked, and so you can easily find the content you are looking for and click to go to the relevant sections. When I do keyword searches for specific theories or concepts, they come up easily without error. It's easy to use and the layout is professional and attractive (pictures and images come through formatted correctly, charts and graphs look clear).

This book is well written. Aside from a few typos here and there, I didn't find lots of problems with readability. It's not perfect; for example, sometimes where there are bullet points, they are not written in a parallel style, or something like that which might be noticeable, but that was pretty infrequent. The writing is clear and correct.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

There is nothing offensive that I found in this book. The book includes examples and ideas that are inclusive or race, ethnicity and gender. There is an entire chapter on cultural communication, so it does present information about cross-cultural differences and communication. I would like to see more about gender and more explicitly about race, but some of that content IS here (I just find myself spending more time on this every semester, but I must use supplemental material on topics such as white fragility or privilege and how that impacts interpersonal communication).

Although I hate the price of textbooks, I have been hesitant to use open source materials in the past due to a perceived lesser quality. This book has changed my mind. It isn't perfect, but it saves students 50-100 dollars, and the information that they purchase isn't perfect either. This book presents as professional, and it reads that way as well. Of course, I supplement this book with popular readings and examples, but almost all of the academic content I needed was in this book. I do recommend it.

Reviewed by Joseph Nicola, Professor, Century College on 10/6/21

The text provides a very detailed and granular index and glossary. Very helpful when planning lessons and homework readings. The text is hyperlinked from the index/glossary making it helpful for students. Presents a good explanation of the many... read more

The text provides a very detailed and granular index and glossary. Very helpful when planning lessons and homework readings. The text is hyperlinked from the index/glossary making it helpful for students. Presents a good explanation of the many important aspects of the communication discipline.

Content is accurate, error-free and unbiased. Does a fair job at covering the large content scope of Interpersonal Comm subject manner. Does not address some popular content covered in an undergrad course on the subject. However the text does provide a nice foundation for class lecture and discussion. Sources are referenced at the end of every chapter.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 4

Content is up-to-date, but not in a way that will quickly make the text obsolete within a short period of time. The text is written and/or arranged in such a way that necessary updates will be relatively easy and straightforward to implement.

The text clearly covers the basic principles of the large content subject matter. Does a fare job a covering basic principles that are foundational for the discipline.

The subject of gender identity is not greatly covered. Terms within the LGBTQIA are briefly mentioned but not explained further. A future edition would benefit from this addition.

Good concordance and glossary of terms with page numbers. Easy to read and follow. Has “Key Takeaways” and End of Chapter “Exercises at the end of each chapter. For the most part, the text adequately covers the material needed.

Yes. It appears consistent throughout.

This is a well organized text. That does a fair job at covering that large foundational scope of interpersonal communication. Has “Key Takeaways” and "End of Chapter Exercises" at the end of each chapter.are very nice for class activities and discussion.

Text is organized very well.

Good text and well interfaced. Easy to navigate.

Text is well written with clear paragraphs, bullet points and formatted topic headings. No errors found.

The text does devote a large amount of content to explaining the importance of cultural awareness for being a competent communicator. Provides a good starting foundation to start with class lectures and class discussion. Graphics do depict a diverse student population which is nice to see that intention. Some content that could be added on: *It should be noted that the important subject topic of gender identity is not greatly covered with this text. Terms within the LGBTQIA are briefly mentioned but not explained further. *Only briefly mentioned the importance of Emotional Intelligence but lacks in content and key terms within the subject and practical examples.

The subject of gender identity is not greatly covered. Terms within the LGBTQ+ are briefly mentioned but not explained further. Well designed and layout with some minimal graphics and color-coated topic headings. There could be more for a future printing. Offers some personality and perspective assessment activities that would serve as a good chapter activity.

Reviewed by Aditi Paul, Assistant Professor, Pace University on 8/13/21

The authors do a really good job at covering a variety of introductory, foundational, and contemporary topics pertaining to interpersonal communication. read more

The authors do a really good job at covering a variety of introductory, foundational, and contemporary topics pertaining to interpersonal communication.

Content Accuracy rating: 3

The authors do a good job of laying the foundation of the importance of mindfulness in interpersonal communication. However, the discussion surrounding mindfulness and how it should be integrated into different aspects of interpersonal communication was less than thorough. Mindfulness almost came as an afterthought rather than being weaved into the main material in most chapters.

The importance of mindfulness in interpersonal communication is a highly relevant topic, especially in today's age where most of our communication over digital media has become primarily mindless. The authors also do a good job at including new and relevant topics such as body positivity in non-verbal communication, computer-mediated communication apprehension, internet infidelity, and postmodern friendships.

The text was very clear and easy to follow.

Consistency rating: 3

As mentioned earlier, the lack of consistency was evident in the discussion of mindfulness. The authors introduce mindfulness in terms of "attention, intention, and attitude" in the first chapter. But in the rest of the chapters, especially chapter 5 onward, the conversation around mindfulness dwindles.

The modularity of the book was good.

The organization of the book was good. The only critique I would have is the placement of the chapter on culture and interpersonal communication. I would have preferred that topic to be introduced earlier than chapter 6 since a lot of our verbal and non-verbal communication is colored by culture.

The interface of the book was good.

The grammar of the book was good.

The book was culturally sensitive. It included sexually and culturally marginalized groups into the conversation.

Reviewed by Rebecca Oldham, Assistant Professor, Middle Tennessee State University on 5/20/21

This textbook provides a thorough introduction to communication studies. It covers multiple important theories, seminal research, major concepts, and practical suggestions for improving communication. The instructor guide includes many helpful... read more

This textbook provides a thorough introduction to communication studies. It covers multiple important theories, seminal research, major concepts, and practical suggestions for improving communication. The instructor guide includes many helpful tools, including chapter outlines, presentation slides, in-class activities, practice quiz questions, and links to TEDTalks and YouTube example videos from recent popular films and TV shows. It also comes with a student workbook. This textbook has as many, if not more, supplemental materials as a traditional textbook.

However, some sections of the book could be expounded upon with future revisions. For example, I would have expected to see more variety of research about on marriage beyond Fitzpatricks typologies (e.g., John Gottman's research or references to other romantic relationship research). Other topics I would like to see in future revisions are (1) the rhetorical triangle and (2) the elaboration likelihood model.

However, the comphrehensiveness is still such that instructors additions to this textbook for curriculum would merely be supplemental.

This textbook uses a mixture of seminal and recent research to review major topics of interpersonal communication to supports accuracy. When relevant, the authors describe research studies and methods, not just the findings, which enhances students' science and information literacy.

The textbook is written with up-to-date research and references to recent culture and political issues from the past year (e.g., COVID-19, political polarization). References to mediated communication are very up-to-date, with the exception of TikTok not being mention. The instructor's manual provides excellent examples of concepts in recent popular TV and film that students are sure to enjoy because they are not out-dated and the media is familiar for this age group.

However, I would reframe the concept of relationships in the textbook beyond "marriage" to "committed romantic relationships" given the increase of polyamory/consensual non-monogamy, open relationships, and long-term cohabitation/commitment without marriage. Although marriage is still largely the norm in the United States, the changing landscape of romantic relationship development could be more strongly present in this textbook.

The tone of the authorship balances an academic and conversational tone well-suited for an undergraduate audience. Jargon is well-defined in-text and glossary is provided. The writing is professional and academic, without being esoteric.

No inconsistencies in terminology, theoretical frameworks, nor pedagogical approaches were detected. The authors have clearly reviewed this textbook for quality and consistency.

The textbook is well organized into manageably-sized blocks of text with many headings and subheadings, which helps the reader navigate the text. Instructors should find it easy to identify how parts of this textbook overlap with their existing communcation or relationships course for ready adaptation and integration into existing curriculum.

This textbook is largely organized like other communication textbooks: Introduction/Overview, Identity, Verbal/Nonverbal Communication, Culture, Mediated Communication, and various types of relationships (e.g., family, professional, etc.). It's logical and familiar organization makes it easy to navigate and integrate with standard introducation to communication courses.

Very few issues with distortion of images or overlap in page elements or formatting inconsistencies.

No obvious grammatical errors were detected. The writing style is accessible and easy to read.

Authors clearly took steps to be inclusive and draw attention to issues of equity with regard to gender identity, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, religion, political identity, and other groups (for examples, see sections on dating scripts, post-modern friendships, racist language, cross-group friendships). I would recommend future revisions include information about African American Vernacular English (AAVE) possible under a section about culture, dialects, or accents, given its direct relevance to communication.

I plan on replacing the textbook for my Interpersonal Communication course with this textbook. In most respects, it is equivalent to the textbook that is currently required. However, it also is an improvement on the current textbook in terms of the density of research citations and in the supplemental material. Instructors of introductory communication courses can feel confident in adopting this textbook to reduce costs, lower educational barriers, without sacrificing educational rigor and quality.

Reviewed by Jennifer Burns, Adjunct Faculty, Middlesex Community College on 3/13/21

Interpersonal Communication: A Mindful Approach to Relationships, provides an in-depth understanding to the variables that comprise interpersonal communication, I especially appreciate the mindful (know thyself) lens!! read more

Interpersonal Communication: A Mindful Approach to Relationships, provides an in-depth understanding to the variables that comprise interpersonal communication, I especially appreciate the mindful (know thyself) lens!!

After examining the context and student workbook, I was impressed with the content accuracy. I did not pick up on saturation of bias and or stigmatizing language.

Yes, content is up-to-date, and it is encouraged to contact the author with needed updates, and or changes. It is also encouraged to personalize the book to fit the needs of the students!

This textbook is clear, concise and to the point!

The framework and theory are woven throughout the text.

The text is divided into digestible sections, that allow for independent assignment of course material. The formatting is easy on the eyes!

Love the text organization, the content is clear, logical and sequential!

You do need an access code from author to obtain access to the teacher resources.

Did not notice grammatical errors.

I did not perceive this text to be culturally insensitive.

Reviewed by Jessica Martin, Adjunct Instructor, Communication Studies, Portland Community College on 1/5/21

This book presents a comprehensive breakdown of the major types of interpersonal communication. The chapters included in this course text align with the traditional content in an interpersonal communication course. I like how it also includes a... read more

This book presents a comprehensive breakdown of the major types of interpersonal communication. The chapters included in this course text align with the traditional content in an interpersonal communication course. I like how it also includes a chapter focused on mediated communication, as this is an important topic of discussion for our current day and age.

Consistent sources are cited throughout the course text at the end of each chapter, proving its accuracy . The sources appear to be non-bias and overall boost the credibility of the text.

Being that the text includes a chapter primarily focused on mediated communication, I would say that the text is up to date and contains adequate information to support relevancy.

The text is written in a straightforward, simplistic type of manner. This would make it easy for any college student to follow along with the content and keep up with the terminology. Any time a new term is introduced, plenty of examples are given to explain that term. This same format is followed consistently throughout the course text.

Each chapter begins with clear learning outcomes, follows with consistent sub-headers and clear introductions to new terminology. I also noted how each chapters includes exercises to help students further understand course content.

Each chapter is clearly divided up into specific sections to help with lesson planning and overall lecturing materials. This would make it easy to create lecture material for the course.

The text is organized effectively in that there are clear transitions from one topic to another. As mentioned previously, each chapter begins with clear learning objectives, and concludes with exercises, key-takeaways, and a list of key terms.

I would say that overall this course text is easy to navigate. Plenty of charts, tables, and photographs are consistently used to help introduce new ideas and key theories.

I did not note any grammatical errors.

The text includes a chapter titled "Culture and Environmental Factors in Interpersonal Communication," which includes all of the necessary key terms that you would hope to see in an interpersonal communication course.

Reviewed by Prachi Kene, Professor, Rhode Island College on 10/22/20

This book presents a comprehensive overview of the different aspects, types, and models of communication. Further topics of discussion include verbal and non-verbal elements of communication, impact of communication on a variety of relationships... read more

This book presents a comprehensive overview of the different aspects, types, and models of communication. Further topics of discussion include verbal and non-verbal elements of communication, impact of communication on a variety of relationships (friendships, family, marriage, dating, siblings, coworkers, etc.), mediated communication, and conflict. The book concludes with an exploration of "the dark side of communication." Key concepts discussed throughout the book are listed in the glossary.

The content of the book is informed by advances in the fields of communication and psychology. These sources are acknowledged throughout the content and cited in the references section at the end of each chapter. Information is discussed in an unbiased manner.

The content is up-to-date and includes information about communication and technology. Given the clear organization of the text, it will be amenable to modifications as the impact of technology on communication continues to evolve.

This text is easy to read and follow due to the clear organization and clarity of expression. Exercises and key take aways following each section make the content easy to understand and remember.

The content of this text is consistent and free of contradictions. Multiple perspectives to view and understand concepts are presented in a cogent manner.

Each chapter is divided into smaller and coherent sections that will easily align to lesson planning, creation of lecture materials, and graded tasks/assignments.

This text is well-organized and smoothly transitions from one topic to another. Specifically, each section begins with learning objectives and concludes with exercises and "key takeaways." Chapters are followed by a list of key terms, "real world case study," and quiz that makes the concepts meaningful to the reader.

This book is easy to navigate. Tables, figures, and pictures are used effectively to emphasize the key concepts and ideas. However, occasionally a table spans across multiple pages.

This text does not contain grammatical errors.

The text acknowledges the role of culture in communication and contains a chapter titled, "Cultural and Environmental Factors in Interpersonal Communication." Impact of culture on communication is also infused into other chapters.

Table of Contents

  • Chapter 1: Introduction to Human Communication
  • Chapter 2: Overview of Interpersonal Communication
  • Chapter 3: Intrapersonal Communication
  • Chapter 4: Verbal Elements of Communication
  • Chapter 5: Nonverbal Communication
  • Chapter 6: Cultural and Environmental Factors in Interpersonal Communication
  • Chapter 7: Talking and Listening
  • Chapter 8: Building and Maintaining Relationships
  • Chapter 9: Conflict in Relationship
  • Chapter 10: Friendship Relationships
  • Chapter 11: Family & Marriage Relationships
  • Chapter 12: Interpersonal Communication in Mediated Contexts
  • Chapter 13: Interpersonal Relationships at Work
  • Chapter 14: The Dark Side of Interpersonal Communication

Ancillary Material

  • Instructor Manual
  • Lecture Slide Deck

About the Book

Interpersonal Communication: A Mindful Approach to Relationships  helps readers examine their own one-on-one communicative interactions using a mindfulness lens. The writing team of Jason S. Wrench, Narissra M. Punyanunt-Carter, and Katherine Thweatt incorporates the latest communication theory and research to help students navigate everyday interpersonal interactions. The 14 chapters in this book cover topics typically taught in an undergraduate interpersonal communication course: family interactions, interpersonal dynamics, language, listening, nonverbal communication, and romantic relationships, as well as exploring emerging areas such as self-compassion, body positivity, friendships, and “the dark side”. The writing takes on a purposefully informal tone to engage readers. Each chapter is broken into different sections that have unique instructional outcomes, key takeaways, and exercises, and concludes with real-world case studies and sample quiz questions. Also included is  an extensive glossary with over 350 definitions.

About the Contributors

Jason S. Wrench (Ed.D., West Virginia University) is a professor in the Department of Communication at the State University of New York at New Paltz. Dr. Wrench specializes in workplace learning and performance, or the intersection of instructional communication and organizational communication. His varied research interests include workplace learning and human performance improvement, computer-mediated communication, interpersonal communication, empirical research methods, family communication, humor, risk/crisis communication, and supervisor-subordinate interactions. Dr. Wrench regularly consults with individuals and organizations on workplace communication and as a professional speech coach for senior executives.

Narissra M. Punyanunt-Carter (Ph.D., Kent State University) is a professor in the Department of Communication and assistant dean of international affairs for the College of Media and Communication. She is also an associate professor of Communication Studies at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. She teaches the basic interpersonal communication course. Her research areas include mass media effects, father-daughter communication, mentoring, advisor-advisee relationships, family studies, religious communication, humor, and interpersonal communication. She has published over 70 articles that have appeared in several peer-reviewed journals, such as  Communication Research Reports, Southern Journal of Communication , and  Journal of Intercultural Communication Research . She has also published numerous instructional ancillaries and materials. She is also a coauthor of  Organizational communication: Theory, Research, and Practice  (2014, Flat World Knowledge). Dr. Punyanunt coedited  The Impact of Social Media in Modern Romantic Relationship  (2017, Lexington).

Katherine S. Thweatt (Ed.D, West Virginia University) is an associate professor at the State University of New York at Oswego. Dr. Thweatt’s areas of interest are interpersonal communication, instructional communication, and health communication. She has published in the areas of teasing, teacher immediacy and misbehaviors, cognitive flexibility, and healthcare research. Healthcare publications involved shared medical appointments, heart failure, and infectious disease.

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  • Courses for Individuals

Interpersonal Communication: Strategies for Executives

Interpersonal Communication: Strategies for Executives image number null

Management and Leadership

Certificate Credits

- Negotiation & Communication

- Organizations & Leadership

  • Participants

Course Highlights

  • This course runs over 6 weeks with an estimated 6-8 hours per week of study time
  • This course is delivered in our Self-Paced Online format which enables you to participate at your own pace within weekly modules
  • You will learn through a variety of formats including: interactive videos, practice quizzes, presentations, assignments, and discussion forums
  • You will have access to a Success Adviser who will help you manage your time, and support you with any administrative or technical queries you might have
  • You will earn a certificate of course completion from the MIT Sloan School of Management

Course snapshot

Why attend Interpersonal Communication?

This online course uses research and practice-based methods to improve your communication skills in a variety of contexts. Specifically, it’s built around the RELATE framework, developed at the MIT Sloan School of Management to support a scalable communication strategy. This dynamic approach will guide you in connecting and communicating with different audiences to achieve effective business practices.

In a world where digital transformation is rapidly changing businesses and how you communicate in the workplace, effective communication is becoming an increasingly important skill. Moreover, it plays an essential role in maintaining interpersonal relationships in the corporate context and navigating complexities that may arise due to the adoption of new technology. This course uses research and practice-based methods to improve your communication skills in a variety of contexts. Specifically, it’s built around the RELATE framework, developed at the MIT Sloan School of Management to support a scalable communication strategy.

Course experience

You’ll learn a range of communication techniques including active listening and humble inquiry, and prepare for the challenges that arise when communicating with larger and more complex audiences. Using a blend of research and practice, this course offers you the opportunity to apply your knowledge to real-world situations by means of practical applications. You’ll refine your personal leadership narrative, explore cross-cultural communication, and outline methods for managing difficult conversations.

Taking into account the increase of technologies such as AI in the workplace, the course covers how to best communicate with — and through — machines. This includes developing an understanding of the use of algorithms in a business context as well as robots as a communication channel to maximize social media reach. You’ll also gain the comfort and confidence to discuss the use of AI in your organization.

Learn more about the self-paced online experience.

Learn more about the GetSmarter course experience.   Learn more about GetSmarter technical requirements.  

Applying to the course

Enrollment for this course is done through the GetSmarter website.  You can begin the application process by using the red Enroll Now bar at the bottom of the screen and clicking on the “Go to GetSmarter Site” button.

Upon successful completion of your course, you will earn a certificate of completion from the MIT Sloan School of Management. This course may also count toward MIT Sloan Executive Certificate requirements.

This program is for you if you want to

  • Improve your communication skills with a strategy created by MIT Sloan and learn practical methods that can be used in your work.
  • Discover your personal leadership narrative and understand how effective interpersonal communication has a positive impact on your ability to lead in business.
  • Develop tactics to effectively manage and participate in difficult conversations in the workplace.
  • Explore the role technology plays in modern communication and its strategic value in business, and identify how you can use it to your advantage.

Sample Schedule—Subject to Change

This course is aimed at senior managers, executives, and business leaders looking to build their communication abilities to meet the needs of an increasingly complex, digitized world, both in person and online.

This includes technical leads who want to improve their interpersonal skills to match their practical expertise, as well as managers and HR professionals who want to communicate better with their teams in general. Consultants will also have the opportunity to add to their service delivery by improving their ability to communicate with diverse audiences, or via virtual or social media tools, as required by multinational companies.

This course is relevant to entrepreneurs and business owners who need to engage with a wide range of stakeholders or who are moving into a new market. It will also develop the skill set of professionals looking for ways to take on new or additional responsibilities.

GetSmarter™, a brand of 2U, Inc., partners with the world's leading universities to select, design and deliver premium online short courses with a data-driven focus on learning gain.

Technology meets academic rigor in our people-mediated model which enables lifelong learners across the globe to obtain industry-relevant skills that are certified by the world’s most reputable academic institutions.

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The 5 Best Activities for Improving Interpersonal Communication

Interpersonal communication is the backbone of human interaction, and organisations that invest in these skills stand to benefit from improved collaboration within teams, reduced levels of conflict, increased productivity, and much more.

In this blog post we’ll help facilitators to design and deliver effective communication training that will empower individuals and organisations to achieve the outcomes mentioned above. Here’s what we’ll cover:

  • What is interpersonal communication
  • The difference between interpersonal communication and interpersonal skills
  • Why interpersonal communication is important
  • What effective communication training entails
  • 5 activities to improve interpersonal communication skills in the workplace

Click here to jump straight to the activities.

What is Interpersonal Communication

At its core, interpersonal communication is the process of exchanging information between two or more people. This can be verbal or nonverbal, and can take place face-to-face or in other settings like phone calls, video calls, social media interactions and so on.

You may come across communication models like the one by Shannon and Weaver that mention sources, transmitters, receivers, and so on: this paring down of communication to a transactional model can be a helpful way to conceptualise it, but it’s also limiting. 

This is because communication is a practical skill, rather than a transaction. And to really facilitate improved interpersonal communications, we need to focus on delivering practical experience with a more human-centric approach. 

This approach focuses on things like:

  • Active listening
  • Conflict resolution

The Difference Between Interpersonal Communication and Interpersonal Skills

The terms ‘interpersonal communication’ and ‘interpersonal skills’ are often used interchangeably, but there’s a subtle functional difference between the two:

  • Interpersonal communication is act of exchanging information and ideas between two or more individuals
  • Interpersonal skills is the broader category of accompanying skills necessary for effective communication

This post will address both with an emphasis on interpersonal skills, with the view to equip facilitators with the tools and knowledge to deliver effective communications training.

Why Interpersonal Communication Skills are Important

Interpersonal communication is a fundamental part of human interaction. In the professional context, interpersonal communication facilitates an improved understanding of communicated information and an improved understanding of different viewpoints.

This in turn leads to an array of benefits, including:

  • Effective collaboration between colleagues, in face-to-face or online settings
  • Improved decision-making
  • Stronger interpersonal relationships
  • Improved morale
  • Increased engagement
  • Clearer understanding of roles
  • Better navigation of complex situations
  • Improved professional outcomes

There are also outward-facing benefits for organisations that invest in improving interpersonal communication in the workplace. These include better customer relationships, reduced misunderstanding, better feedback, improved brand image, increased sales, and more.

What Does Effective Experiential Communications Training Entail

In short, good effective communication training moves beyond the technicalities of communication to the skills, attitudes, approaches and mindsets that enable effective communication. 

This type of training is about creating an immersive and engaging environment where participants can, and want to , practice, reflect upon, and refine their communication skills.

Effective communications training is that which improves an individual’s ability to make an impact . As well as speaking and listening, this training focuses on areas such as:

  • Learning about communication style : developing awareness of different styles, understanding preferences, and adapting style to suit the needs of others.
  • Understanding your limitations : fostering a mindset of ongoing improvement by identifying strengths and areas for improvement.
  • Understanding how you are perceived by others : developing self-awareness, identifying potential barriers to effective communication, and learning how to adjust.
  • Understanding the impacts of ineffective communication : seeing tangible impacts of ineffective communication in a controlled environment, and developing strategies to prevent this.
  • Adaptability : learning what effective communication looks like in different contexts, and how to adapt accordingly.
  • Clarity : explaining succinctly, instructing accurately, and using unambiguous language.
  • Active listening : learning the importance of truly listening, and techniques for making others feel valued, heard, and understood.
  • Giving and receiving feedback : giving constructive feedback, giving feedback without causing defensiveness, seeking feedback.
  • Taking responsibility : learning how to take responsibility, and seeing the impact of not taking responsibility.
  • Tailoring communication to the context : adjusting communication based on the context, audience, and outcome
  • Effective nonverbal communication : using body language, facial expressions, tone of voice, and gestures to strengthen communication

5 Activities to Improve Interpersonal Communication Skills in the Workplace

At MTa, all of our kits and activities are built around the experiential learning methodology , which uses the following structure to deliver impactful, lasting learning:

  • Engaging group tasks
  • Individual reflection
  • Group review to share perspectives and develop ideas
  • Draw conclusions and select the ideas to be implemented
  • Learning transfer
  • Improved workplace performance

Three of our kits have a particular focus on communication: MTa Team Kit, MTa Mini, and MTa Insights. The activities below are taken from these kits.

Sorting Shapes, from MTa Insights

In Sorting Shapes, participants must work together to solve a logic puzzle that’s trickier than it initially seems. Accurate communication is crucial, with teams who struggle to communicate effectively coming up against all sorts of challenges – possibly including having to completely restart the activity.

This time sensitive challenge requires organisation and cooperation to complete successfully, and gives participants the opportunity to explore skills like asking for help, clarifying, listening, explaining, aligning behaviour to others’ needs.

Relevant discussion topics:

  • Accurate verbal communication
  • Clarifying understanding
  • Team problem solving

Take a look at MTa Insights now to discover Sorting Shapes and 52 other impactful experiential activities.

Back to Back, from MTa Insights – Communication, and MTa STEM Kit

This task involves effective communication at two levels, within and between pairs. It also sounds deceptively simple at first: work as a team to build a model. But as limitations on communication and access to information begin to affect the building process, the ability to give and receive instructions effectively makes the difference between success and frustration. 

  • Communicating and appreciating the big picture
  • Effective two-way verbal communication
  • Giving and receiving clear instructions

Back to Back is part of MTa Insights – Communication .

The Frame, from MTa Team Kit

Do you need your participants to keep a strategic focus on the big picture? If so, The Frame will help. 

In this activity, two halves of one team are separated by a door. Each half has a different part of the same task, and neither team can divulge its full information, making effective communication more difficult as pressure and frustration increase.

For those participants that can step back and think things through, things become easier. And teams that try to solve the problem of developing effective communications rather than focusing on the detail of the task are more likely to succeed.

The complexity of this activity and the presence of observers make it particularly good for structured review and exploration of effective communication.

Relevant discussion topics: 

  • Awareness of the needs of others
  • Developing and maintaining trust
  • Testing assumptions (misinterpreting individuals’ actions)

The Frame is taken from the MTa Team Kit: 16 activities designed to build high-performing teams. Take a look at the kit here .

Carts and Horses, from MTa Mini

This is a fast-paced activity with competing objectives that must be deftly managed in order for teams to succeed, and things are made harder by the success of the overall group being dependent on each team meeting their objectives. 

And to make things even more challenging, communication pertaining to complex designs and constituent components must only be verbal. As the activity progresses, those teams who can communicate effectively and collaborate while resisting the urge to compete will pave the way for success.

This activity lets participants explore planning, verbal, spatial, retention of information, attention to detail and accuracy, as well as an ability to understand and respond to the needs of others.

  • Monitoring progress and agreeing when and how to change plans
  • Communicating effectively within and between teams
  • Collaboration vs. competing

Bonus: MTa Coaching Skills

Coaching is a science and an art. And while various coaching models exist to help with the science, learning the art of coaching can be far more challenging. This is why we developed MTa Coaching Skills : our all-in-one coaching skills workshop designed to equip managers, trainers, and teachers with the tools required to deliver a more facilitative approach to learning.

For facilitators to make impactful improvements to interpersonal communication skills, we need to move beyond a transactional understanding of communication, seeing it instead as a network of interrelated competencies that empower individuals to connect meaningfully with the people around them.

The activities in this blog post are designed to develop advanced skills that are integral to effective communication. The experiential methodology and its inbuilt review stage give participants the opportunity to reflect and engage with their learning outcomes, and to take these forward into the workplace.

The MTa Team Kit is designed for facilitators and organisations looking to foster a culture of effective interpersonal communication. It contains 16 impactful experiential activities, each focussing on a specific set of competencies.

You can buy the MTa Team Kit here , or get in touch with our team to discuss your needs.

Need tasks that generate rich interpersonal experiences?

interpersonal communication class assignments

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Online Class: Interpersonal Communication

interpersonal communication class assignments

  • 15 Exams & Assignments
  • 2,200 Students have taken this course
  • 7 Hours average time

View Interpersonal Communication Video Demonstration

Course Description

Mastering the Art of Interpersonal Communication: Your Blueprint for Building & Enhancing Relationships

Step into the intricate realm of interpersonal communication, a domain where each gesture, word, and silence paints the canvas of human relationships. This course isn't merely about 'talking' and 'listening'; it's about diving deep into the heart of what makes relationships tick. We invite you on a transformative journey, one that deciphers the multifaceted dance of human interactions, creating pathways to more meaningful connections.

Key Features of the Course:

The Essence of Human Connection: Delve into the foundational principles that underpin interpersonal communication. From the spark of a fleeting interaction to the depth of a lifelong bond, explore the nuances that shape relationships.

Research-Based Insights: Benefit from a plethora of studies and observations, illuminating the mechanisms that govern our interactions. Navigate relationships with a renewed perspective backed by scientific understanding.

Universal Application: These insights aren't restricted to a single facet of your life. Whether it's the bond with a family member, the camaraderie among friends, the intimacy between romantic partners, or the dynamics within the professional realm, the principles taught are universally applicable.

Unraveling Human Needs: Delve into the core human desires and aspirations that guide our search for connections. By recognizing and understanding these needs, both yours and others, cultivate the ability to nurture and enrich relationships at every turn.

Conscious Communication: Elevate your relationships by mastering the art of mindful interaction. Learn to speak with intent, listen with empathy, and weave a bond that's resilient, understanding, and deeply fulfilling.

Navigating Challenges: Every relationship has its storms. This course equips you with the tools to not just weather these challenges but to transform them into pillars of strength. Understand common communication pitfalls and learn strategies to navigate them gracefully.

The Reward of Fulfillment: Harness the knowledge and techniques from this course, and you're poised to elevate the quality of your relationships. Experience the joy of mutual understanding, the strength of unwavering trust, and the warmth of genuine affection.

Imagine a world where your relationships are not just existent but thriving, where misunderstandings give way to mutual respect, and where every conversation becomes a bridge to deeper connection. Such a world is not just a dream; it can be your reality.

In essence, this course isn't just an academic endeavor; it's an investment in a life brimming with happiness and contentment. It is an essential toolkit for those who yearn for a life where relationships are not just a part but the very heart of a fulfilling existence. Join us on this enlightening journey and watch as your world transforms, one conversation at a time.

Emotional Intelligence

Course Motivation

In this course, we will traverse several components of interpersonal communication. First, we will address individual components that comprise the complexities of interpersonal communication, and in the later units we will present how these individual components work together to create certain impressions. Our goal is to provide you with the knowledge and tools you need to make conscious decisions in your interpersonal communication with the hope of improving your communications and, in turn, improving your relationships and your successes.

Communication Defined

We begin with a brief discussion and some basic definitions of communication so that we have a clear idea of what we're working with. Communication is the sending and receiving of messages. These messages can be written, verbal, or nonverbal. Former interpersonal communication research suggested that communication occurred along one-way channels, where a message was sent, then received, then a response message was sent, then received, and so on -- each message was conceived of as individually sent and received. This way of viewing communication meant that an individual was  either  sending or receiving a message at any given time. Current research has evolved to the point of positing that communication is more complex than that. In fact, messages are sent and received  simultaneously . If you consider yourself telling a story to an individual, or group of individuals, this will make more sense. As you tell your story, you "read" the impressions of your audience, and adapt your story accordingly. If your audience doesn't understand, their facial expressions will likely let you know, and you then know that you must elaborate further. If your audience is growing impatient, you will be able to sense this largely through their nonverbal communication, and you know that you should progress more quickly or lose your audience completely. This example illustrates how messages are simultaneously sent and received.

Interpersonal Communication Defined  

When we talk about interpersonal communication, we are talking about communication that occurs between two individuals, what researchers call a  dyad . We are not talking about three or more individuals, as this then becomes small group communication; similarly, we are not talking about self-talk alone. This is not to say that the principles in this course do not apply to small groups and/or to self-talk, but rather that the focus here is on dyads.

With these brief definitions in mind, let us begin our journey to further understanding the complex dynamics that occur in interpersonal communication.

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interpersonal communication class assignments

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Course Lessons

interpersonal communication class assignments

Introduction

interpersonal communication class assignments

Lesson 1: Communication Competence

Lesson 2: intercultural communication, lesson 3: communication and the self, lesson 4: nonverbal communication, lesson 5: interpersonal perception, lesson 6: listening, lesson 7: social relationships, lesson 8: emotions, lesson 9: conflict, lesson 10: argumentative and aggressive communication, lesson 11: communicating with confidence and assertiveness, lesson 12: targeting your message, lesson 13: being approachable, learning outcomes.

  • Define communication competence.
  • Describe intercultural communication.
  • Summarize communication and the self.
  • Identify nonverbal communication.
  • Summarize interpersonal perception.
  • Describe listening skills and styles.
  • Recognize social relationships, emotions, and conflict and how to deal with them.
  • Describe argumentative and aggressive communication.
  • Demonstrate communicating with confidence and assertiveness.
  • Summarize techniques for targeting your message and being approachable.
  • Demonstrate mastery of lesson content at levels of 70% or higher.

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Online Course Assignments

When creating or revising a course it is important to include activities and assignments that are both interesting and of pedagogical value. Creating assignments and activities can be more challenging in online courses. To help alleviate this difficulty, this section includes several activities and assignments created by Communication instructors with experience in online teaching. Each of these activities or assignments is mapped to the NCA learning outcomes, and provides information on the time, materials, and instructions necessary for carrying out the activity or assignment. Because these documents are meant to assist in course development and design, they should not be used in their entirety and appropriate credit for any material used is expected.

  • Live Policy Advocacy Assignment  - Pat Gehrke
  • Live Policy Advocacy Assignment Preparation Project  - Pat Gehrke
  • "What Not to Do on Video” Speech Assignment  - Natalie Holley
  • Digital Storytelling Group Project  - Megan Pope
  • Computer-Mediated Communication - Jeff Kuznekoff
  • Experiencing the Digital Divide - Nicholas Bowman
  • The Internet as Communication  - Ruth Tsuria
  • Media & Cultural Difference, Media & Children - Hocheol Yang
  • Multiple Stories Activity: Intercultural Communication - Mary Meares
  • Cultural Snapshot Assignment: Intercultural Communication - Megan Tucker
  • Intercultural Communication: Cultural Identity Forum - Karen Anderson-Laine
  • Intercultural Communications: Case Paper Study - Julian Teixeria
  • Interpersonal Communication: Personal Diversity PowerPoint - Juanita Doyon
  • Team Ethics Project - Patsy Totusek
  • Social Exchange Theory Application Homework - Patricia Vorndran
  • People Watching: Nonverbal Communication Interpretation - Kim Weismann
  • Introduction to Strategic Communication: IMC File and Reflection Paper - SunYoung Park
  • Online Assignment Template: Media Follower - Megan Bell
  • Introduction to Strategic Communication: IMC Campaign Planning - SunYoung Park
  • Communication Theory: Blogging Theory - Danielle Stern
  • Communication Theory, All Humanities: Wiki Glossary Challenge - John Radwan

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COM 1090 - Interpersonal Communication: Relationship Assignment

  • COM 1090: Interpersonal Communication

Relationship Assignment

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The purpose of this assignment is to examine the role of communication in creating and sustaining relationships by analyzing interpersonal communication principles and concepts in the development, maintenance, and possibly, the deterioration of a long term significant relationship.

This assignment is linked to the following Student Learning Outcome:

  • Evaluate orally and in writing intrapersonal skill concepts

This assignment is designed to help you practice evaluating orally and in writing interpersonal skill concepts covered in this course. You will by analyzing a relationship that is important to you and describing it in terms used in the textbook and class discussions. This assignment has two components: a 2-4 page paper and an oral presentation.

No matter what type of relationship we are in—whether, in terms of friendship, romance, or family, all relationships are in the process of either developing or dying.  This paper requires you to analyze an interpersonal relationship using communication concepts/theories and principles from the text and lectures (as well as incorporating the social context of generation and culture). The relationship you choose to write about can be one that you are currently engaged in or one that has already ended.   It should, however, be a fairly recent one, not a relationship you had in grade school.  It can be a friendship relationship or a romantic relationship.  You don’t need to disclose any information you are not comfortable disclosing.

Organization

This paper involves more than just simply summarizing the development of a relationship.  While you will want to offer some description of the relationship; the main emphasis should be on how it has developed in communication between two people.  Your paper should contain the following five parts:

  • Cover Page: (include your name, the date, class name, my name)
  • Introduction:   Describe the relationship. Who are the participants? What is the history of the relationship? What is the current status of the relationship?  This information should be relatively brief. Next, preview the body of the paper by indicating the terms/concepts you will use to analyze the relationship.
  • Body:   In this section of the paper you will analyze the relationship using interpersonal communication concepts, terms, topics, etc. This is by far the longest section of the paper.
  • Select at least two concepts that we’ve discussed in class and apply them to your relationship.  You should discuss these concepts in-depth and explain how they affected the communication in your relationship. Use evidence to support your claims and ---using direct quotes from the text, and specific examples from your relationship.   If you fail to give evidence, it will significantly lower your grade. Be sure the concepts you choose are not too general. For example, mediated communication as a concept would be too general, but focusing on gender differences in mediated communication and how these differences affected your relationship would be acceptable.
  • Some concepts you should consider using are self-disclosure, nonverbal communication, drawbacks of mediated communication, perception checking, listening, self-fulfilling prophecies, social roles, gender communication, the influence of culture, self-concept, self-esteem, self-disclosure, relational dialectics, confirming/disconfirming messages, interpersonal attraction, expressing emotions, trust, rituals, commitment, investment, managing conflict.
  • Conclusion :  This section includes a brief summary of the body of the paper.  End the paper with some reflections on your relationship, and what you learned as a result of completing this assignment. If you feel you learned nothing, that is fine but you need to elaborate.
  • Reference Page : Provide a list in APA format of any references you used in your paper. Your textbook should be included in this list.

Papers will be based on three criteria. First, papers must demonstrate an understanding of interpersonal communication topics. Second, in your paper, you must analyze how these interpersonal communication topics apply to your particular relationship. Third, papers must be well organized and demonstrate effective writing mechanics and style. Your overall grade will depend on whether or not you include the five components outlined above. 

Requirements

The paper must be typed, double spaced, 12pt font, one-inch margins all around.  Acceptable college level of grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, paragraph structure, and spelling should be utilized.  Be sure to edit your paper carefully before turning it in. Papers should be 2-4 pages (2 pages of text, one cover page, one reference page). All papers should be submitted through Blackboard by 11:59 pm  on the assigned date . I will submit all papers to Safe Assign to check for plagiarism. I will not accept late papers.

Oral Presentation

In addition to submitting a written paper, you will need to give an oral presentation to your classmates. Your presentation must be 4-5 minutes in length and should include an introduction, body and conclusion. In your presentation, share the highlights from your paper with us without reading it. You should use notecards but eye contact and adequate volume are essential! You will need to upload your video to Youtube and submit it to the appropriate link on the Discussion Board no later than 11:59 pm  on the date assigned.

*The Relationship Paper is worth 60 points and the presentation is worth 25 points.

Please be aware that this is the general assignment for COM-1090 and your professor may have altered the requirements.  Always refer  to your professor for the most up to date information.

  • Relationship Assignment The purpose of this assignment is to examine the role of communication in creating and sustaining relationships by analyzing interpersonal communication principles and concepts in the development, maintenance, and possibly, the deterioration of a long term significant relationship.
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49 Communication Activities, Exercises & Games

Communication games and activities

Read on to learn about how important communication is in a relationship and how you can work on improving your communication skills.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Positive Communication Exercises (PDF) for free . These science-based tools will help you and those you work with build better social skills and better connect with others.

This Article Contains:

What are communication activities, exercises, and games, the role of communication in a relationship, how can we develop better communication skills, 18 communication games and activities for adults, 17 exercises to help improve communication in a relationship, the importance of communication in the family unit, 14 family therapy activities for communication, a take-home message.

The resources in this piece include tips, techniques, exercises, games, and other activities that give you the opportunity to learn more about effective communication, help guide your interactions with others, and improve your communication skills.

Some might feel like a chore you need to cross off your to-do list while others may make you forget you’re not just having fun with your family , but actually boosting vital life skills; however, they all have one thing in common: they will help you become a better, more effective, and more positive communicator with those who mean the most to you.

But what’s the deal with these activities, exercises, and therapy games ? Are they really that important or impactful? Do we really need to work on communicating when it seems like we’re pretty good at it already?

Communication in relationships

Check out this quote from Stephen R. Covey and take a minute to think about how vital communication really is.

The most important ingredient we put into any relationship is not what we say or what we do, but what we are. And if our words and our actions come from superficial human relations techniques rather than from our own inner core, others will sense that duplicity. We simply won’t be able to create and sustain the foundation necessary for effective interdependence.

Stephen R. Covey

As Covey notes, communication is the foundation of all of our relationships , forming the basis of our interactions and feelings about one another.

According to Australia’s Better Health Channel, communication is “ the transfer of information from one place to another ” and within relationships, it “ allows you to explain to someone else what you are experiencing and what your needs are ” (Victoria Department of Health & Human Services, n.d.).

When communication is good, we feel good about our relationships. Dr. Susan Heitler (2010) puts it this way:

When people say, ‘We have a great relationship,’ what they often mean is how they feel when they talk with one another. They mean, ‘I feel positive toward that person when we interact. I send and I receive positive vibes with them.’

Besides making our relationships easier, there are also relationship-boosting benefits to good communication:

  • Effective communication shows respect and value of the other person.
  • It helps us to better understand each other; not all communication is about understanding—some are intended to fight, dismiss, invalidate, undermine, etc.—but it should be!
  • It makes us feel more comfortable with each other and encourages even more healthy and effective communication (Abass, n.d.).

interpersonal communication class assignments

Download 3 Communication Exercises (PDF)

These detailed, science-based exercises will equip you or your clients with tools to improve communication skills and enjoy more positive social interactions with others.

Download 3 Free Communication Tools Pack (PDF)

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Fortunately, all it takes to develop better communication skills is a commitment to do so and a little bit of effort.

These tips from Australia’s Better Health Channel can help guide you toward better communication with your partner or spouse (these tips can also apply to any other relationship in your life with a little tweaking):

  • Set aside time to talk without interruption from other people or distractions like phones, computers or television.
  • Think about what you want to say.
  • Be clear about what you want to communicate.
  • Make your message clear, so that your partner hears it accurately and understands what you mean.
  • Talk about what is happening and how it affects you.
  • Talk about what you want, need and feel – use ‘I’ statements such as ‘I need’, ‘I want’ and ‘I feel’.
  • Accept responsibility for your own feelings.
  • Listen to your partner. Put aside your own thoughts for the time being and try to understand their intentions, feelings, needs and wants (this is called empathy ).
  • Share positive feelings with your partner, such as what you appreciate and admire about them, and how important they are to you.
  • Be aware of your tone of voice.
  • Negotiate and remember that you don’t have to be right all the time. If the issue you are having is not that important, sometimes let the issue go, or agree to disagree (Victoria Department of Health & Human Services, n.d.).

If you’re experiencing high levels of conflict in your relationship(s), the Better Health Channel has some specific recommendations for you:

  • Avoid using the silent treatment.
  • Don’t jump to conclusions. Find out all the facts rather than guessing at motives.
  • Discuss what actually happened. Don’t judge.
  • Learn to understand each other, not to defeat each other.
  • Talk using the future and present tense, not the past tense.
  • Concentrate on the major problem, and don’t get distracted by other minor problems.
  • Talk about the problems that hurt your or your partner’s feelings, then move on to problems about differences in opinions.
  • Use ‘I feel’ statements, not ‘You are’ statements (Victoria Department of Health & Human Services, n.d.).

8 Tips on How to Teach Communication Skills

Teaching Communication

This useful framework comes from Alice Stott at Edutopia (2018):

  • Physical: How a speaker uses their body language, facial expressions, and voice.
  • Linguistic: The speaker’s use of language, including their understanding of formality and rhetorical devices.
  • Cognitive: The content of what a speaker says and their ability to build on, challenge, question, and summarize others’ ideas.
  • Social and emotional : How well a speaker listens, includes others, and responds to their audience (Stott, 2018).

Once you have a good framework for understanding communication, try these 8 ways to foster effective communication in your children or students:

  • Teach your kids empathy so they can get a sense of what the other person is thinking and feeling.
  • Teach your kids conversation skills with techniques like puppets and video modeling, which they can then apply in exercises and activities.
  • Establish listening and speaking procedures in the classroom or at home (e.g., Dr. Allen Mendler’s SLANT strategy : Sit up straight, Listen, Answer and ask questions, Nod to show interest, Track the speaker; Mendler, 2013).
  • Teach respectful vocabulary and remind students that being “cold” (passive) or “hot” (angry) will probably result in less understanding and more conflict.
  • Teach the power of pausing (e.g., encourage them to pause, think, and ask questions like “What do you mean by that?” and “Why?”).
  • Have your kids practice speaking and listening in natural settings (e.g., outside of the home and classroom).
  • Encourage introspection in your children; it will help them understand themselves better as well as those around them.
  • Practice taking turns with a talking stick or a ball, teaching your children that they can speak when they have the object but they are expected to listen when others are talking (Stanfield, 2017).

One of the most effective ways to avoid unnecessary disputes is to practice non-violent communication (NVC). According to Rosenberg (1999), non-violent communication methods can serve us in three ways:

  • It can increase your ability to live with choice, meaning, and connection
  • It helps connect empathically with yourself and others to have more satisfying relationships
  • It shares resources so everyone is able to benefit

In an effort to exemplify the various forms that communication can take, we want to share some key differences between passive, assertive, and aggressive communication styles.

  • Specifically, a passive communicator prioritizes the needs of others, even at their own expense. This often leads to being taken advantage of and having their own needs disregarded by others as well.
  • An assertive communicator mirrors the values of NVC, which is what we should aim for. This communication style emphasizes the importance of all parties’ needs and is defined by confidence and the willingness to compromise
  • Aggressive communication, also referred to as violent communication, disregards any other parties involved and consists of constant disrespect, interrupting, and domination.

Now that you are familiar with these types of communication styles, it’s time to analyze how you convey your thoughts to others (and if there is any room for improvement).

interpersonal communication class assignments

If you’re looking for some concrete ways to build communication skills in adults, you’ve come to the right place. Below are 18 games, activities, and exercises that you can use to help adults develop more effective listening and communication skills.

5 Communication Activities for Adults

To get started improving your (or your team’s, or your student’s) communication skills, give these 5 activities a try.

1. Card Pieces

This exercise from the team at MindTools is a good way to help participants develop more empathy, consider other perspectives, build their communication and negotiation skills.

First, make sure you have enough people for at least three teams of two, enough playing cards to give out between 4 and 6 cards to each person, and 15 minutes to spare.

Here’s how the activity works:

  • Cut each playing card into half diagonally, then in half diagonally again, so you have four triangular pieces for each card.
  • Mix all the pieces together and put equal numbers of cards into as many envelopes as you have teams.
  • Divide people up into teams of three or four. You need at least three teams. If you’re short of people, teams of two will work just as well.
  • Give each team an envelope of playing card pieces.
  • Each team has three minutes to sort its pieces, determine which ones it needs to make complete cards, and develop a bargaining strategy.
  • After three minutes, allow the teams to start bartering for pieces. People can barter on their own or collectively with their team. Give the teams eight minutes to barter.
  • When the time is up, count each team’s completed cards. Whichever team has the most cards wins the round.

Afterward, you can use these questions to guide discussion on the exercise:

  • Which negotiation strategies worked? Which didn’t?
  • What could they have done better?
  • What other skills, such as active listening or empathy, did they need to use?

2. Listen and Draw

This game is easy to play but not so easy to “win.” It requires participants’ full attention and active listening.

Gather your group of participants together and hand out a piece of paper and a pen or pencil to each player. Tell them you will give them verbal instructions on drawing an object, one step at a time.

For example, you might give them instructions like:

  • Draw a square, measuring 5 inches on each side.
  • Draw a circle within the square, such that it fits exactly in the middle of the square.
  • Intersect 2 lines through the circle, dividing the circle into 4 equal parts.

As the exercise continues, it will get progressively harder; one misstep could mean that every following instruction is misinterpreted or misapplied. Participants will need to listen carefully to ensure their drawing comes out accurately. Once the instructions have all been read, compare drawings and decide who won.

For added engagement, decide in advance on what the finished product is supposed to represent (e.g., a spiderweb, a tree).

3. Communication Origami

This is a great exercise to help people understand that we all hear and interpret things differently, even if we are given the exact same information.

Here’s how it works:

  • Give one sheet of standard-sized paper (8.5 x 11 inches) to each participant.
  • Tell your participants that you will be giving them step-by-step instructions on how to fold their piece of paper into an origami shape.
  • Inform your participants that they must keep their eyes and mouths closed as they follow instructions; they are not allowed to look at the paper or ask any clarifying questions.
  • Give the group your instructions on how to fold the paper into the origami shape of your choice.
  • Once the instructions have all been given, have everyone open their eyes and compare their shape with the intended shape.

You will likely find that each shape is a little bit different! To hit the point home, refer to these discussion points and questions:

  • Make the point that each paper looks different even though you have given the same instructions to everybody. What does this mean?
  • Ask the group if you think the results would have been better if they kept their eyes open or were allowed to ask questions.
  • Communicating clearly is not easy, we all interpret the information we get differently that’s why it’s very important to ask questions and confirm understanding to ensure the communicated message is not distorted.

4. Guess the Emotion

Another useful exercise from the Training Course Material website is called “ Guess the Emotion .” As you might expect, it involves acting out and guessing emotions. This helps all participants practice empathy and better understand their coworkers or group members’ reactions.

Follow these instructions to play this engaging game:

  • Divide the group into two teams.
  • Place on a table (or put in a box) a packet of cards, each of which has a particular emotion typed on it
  • Have a participant from Group A take the top card from the table and act out (pantomime) the emotion for his/her group. This is to be done in a fixed time limit (such as a minute or two).
  • If the emotion is guessed correctly by Group A, they receive ten points.
  • Now have a participant from Group B act out an emotion; award points as appropriate.
  • Rotate the acting opportunities between the two groups.
  • After 20 to 30 minutes of acting and guessing, call time and announce the winning team based on its point total.

If you have a particularly competitive group, consider giving a prize to the winning team!

5. The Guessing Game

Finally, another fun and engaging game that can boost communication skills: “ The Guessing Game. ” You will probably recognize this game, as it’s similar to what many people know as “ Twenty Questions ,” except there is no hard limit on the number of questions you can ask.

To start, separate the group into two teams of equal (or roughly equal) size. Instruct one player from each team to leave the room for one minute and come up with a common object that can be found in most offices (e.g., a stapler, a printer, a whiteboard).

When this person returns, their teammates will try to guess what the object is by asking only “Yes or No” questions (i.e., questions that can only be answered with “yes” or “no”). The team can ask as many questions as they need to figure it out, but remind them that they’re in competition with the other team. If there’s time, you can have multiple rounds for added competition between the teams.

Take the last 10 minutes or so to discuss and debrief. Use the following points and questions to guide it:

  • Tell the group that obviously it took a long time and effort for us to find out the object in each round, but what if we didn’t have time and only had one question to ask to find out the object, what would that question be?
  • The question would be “What is the object?” which is an open-ended question.
  • Open-ended questions are an excellent way to save time and energy and help you get to the information you need fast, however, closed questions can also be very useful in some instances to confirm your understanding or to help you control the conversation with an overly talkative person/customer.

5 Listening Activities for Adults

If you’re intent on improving listening skills, in particular, you have lots of options; give these 5 activities a try.

1. Telephone Exercise

This classic exercise from Becky Norman (2018) at Sift’s Training Zone illustrates why listening is such an important skill, and why we shouldn’t ignore any opportunities to improve it.

Split your group into two even lines. At opposite ends of each line, whisper a phrase or short sentence to the person on the end and tell them to pass it on using only whispers, one person at a time. They can only repeat the phrase or sentence once.

While participants are busy passing the message along to the next person in line, play music or engage them in conversation to create some white noise. This will make it a bit more difficult but it will mimic real-life conditions, where distractions abound.

When the messages have made it to the end of each line, have the last person to receive the message in each line report out on what they heard. Next, have the first person to receive the message in each line report the original message and compare it to the final message received.

2. Stop Listening Exercise

This exercise , also from Becky Norman’s piece (2018), will show participants the emotional consequences of not listening and—hopefully—encourage them to practice better listening skills.

Split your group into two smaller groups of equal size and take one group outside the room. Tell them that they are instructed to stop listening to their partner after about 30 seconds, and to be open in showing their disinterest. Tell the other group to think of something that they are passionate about and be prepared to tell their soon-to-be partner a meaningful or personally relevant story about this topic.

Bring the other group back in, put all the participants into pairs, and tell them to get started. Observe the behavior from the listeners and the reactions from the speakers until you’re sure each speaker has picked up on what’s happening. Stop the conversations at this point and explain the instructions that were given to each group.

Facilitate a group discussion on the importance of listening, how to use active listening, and what indicates that someone is truly listening.

3. Listener and Talker Activity

The “Listener and Talker” activity is another good activity for showing the importance of active listening and giving participants a chance to practice their skills.

Divide your group into pairs, with one partner assigned to the talker role and the other assigned to the listener role. The talker’s job is to describe what he or she wants from a vacation without specifying a destination. The listener’s job is to listen attentively to what is being said (and what is not being said) and to demonstrate their listening through their behavior.

After a few minutes of active listening, the listener should summarize the three or main criteria the talker is considering when it comes to enjoying their vacation. Finally, the listener should try to sell the talker on a destination for their vacation. After a quick debrief on how well the listener listened, the two should switch roles and try the exercise again.

This exercise gives each participant a chance to practice talking about their wants and needs, as well as an opportunity to engage in active listening and use the knowledge they gained to understand and relate to the speaker.

4. Memory Test Activity

This great activity from TrainingCourseMaterial.com is called the “Memory Test” activity.

  • Tell participants that you are going to read them a list of words to test their memory.
  • Instruct them to listen carefully, as they cannot write down any of the words. Tell them you will test them later to see how many of the words they can remember.
  • When you finish reading the list of words, distract your participants by talking about something else for at least one full minute.
  • Once you have finished talking, have each participant write down as many words as they can remember from the list.

You (and your participants) will find that it’s pretty difficult to remember a list of somewhat-random words, especially when there is a break in time and another discussion in between hearing them and recalling them! Relate this to real-life listening by emphasizing the importance of paying attention to people when they are speaking to you, especially if it’s an important conversation.

5. Just Listen Activity

This activity comes from the folks at MindTools.com and offers participants a chance to communicate their feelings and provide a recap or rephrasing of another person’s feelings on a subject.

To get started, you will need an even number of people to pair off (or prepare to partner with one yourself) and eight index cards per pair. These index cards should have one topic written on each card; try to make sure the topics are interesting but not too controversial, as you don’t want listeners to dislike the speakers if they disagree with their viewpoint (e.g., you should probably avoid politics and religion).

Use these instructions to conduct the activity:

  • Have the team members sit down in their pairs.
  • Give each pair eight of the index cards.
  • Instruct one partner to choose a random card and then speak for three minutes on how he or she feels about the topic.
  • Instruct the other partner to stay quiet while the first partner talks, just listening instead of speaking.
  • After the three minutes is up, the listener has one minute to recap what the speaker said (not agree, disagree, or debate, just recap).
  • Have each pair switch roles and repeat the exercise so both partners get a chance to speak and to listen.

After each participant has played both roles, end the activity and guide a discussion with the following questions:

  • How did speakers feel about their partners’ ability to listen with an open mind? Did their partners’ body language communicate how they felt about what was being said?
  • How did listeners feel about not being able to speak about their own views on the topic? How well were they able to keep an open mind? How well did they listen?
  • How well did the listening partners summarize the speakers’ opinions? Did they get better as the exercise progressed?
  • How can they use the lessons from this exercise at work?

You will find this activity at this link , exercise #4.

6 Nonverbal Communication Activities for Adults

Nonverbal communication activities for adults

Nonverbal communication is just as important as verbal communication, if not more so!

Use these 6 activities to practice reading and “speaking” effective nonverbal messages.

1. Power of Body Language

This activity from TrainingCourseMaterial.com will help your participants work on their body language skills.

  • Tell the participants that you are going to give them a series of instructions and you want them to follow them as fast as they can.
  • Put your hand to your nose.
  • Clap your hands.
  • Touch your shoulder.
  • Stamp your foot.
  • Cross your arms.
  • Put your hand to your mouth (but while saying this one, put your hand to your nose).
  • Observe how many participants copied what you did instead of what you said.

Share this observation with your group and lead a discussion on how body language can influence our understanding and our reactions. It can reinforce what we hear or it can interfere with the verbal communication we receive. The more aware we are of this possibility, the better communicators we become. It’s vital to keep your own body language in mind, just as it’s vital to notice and understand others’ body language.

2. Clap and Follow

The “Clap and Follow” activity is a great way to practice using your body in conjunction with verbal communication.

It works like this:

  • Tell your group that this is a game that requires their full concentration.
  • When they hear one clap from the leader (you), tell them this means they should stand up.
  • When they hear two claps from the leader, they should hop once in place.
  • When they hear three claps, they should rub their belly.
  • When they hear four claps, they should do a 360-degree turn on the spot.
  • When they hear five claps, they should pat their head.
  • Begin the activity! Start with one clap, then two claps, and so on until you have given the group each instruction once.
  • Now, mix it up! Switch between the five different instructions and begin to pick up the pace. This is when the eliminations begin.
  • Each time a participant engages in the wrong activity, eliminate them from the game. Continue until there is one clear winner.

If you have a competitive group, you may want to bring a prize to ensure active engagement with the exercise. It will give participants a chance to practice nonverbal communication in a fun context.

3. Wordless Acting

This activity from Grace Fleming (2018) at ThoughtCo will show your participants how much we “speak” with our body language and facial expressions.

Here are the instructions:

  • Separate your group into pairs.
  • Assign one participant in each pair to be Partner A and the other to be Partner B.
  • Give each participant a copy of the script (copied below).
  • Instruct Participant A to read his or her lines out loud, but instruct Participant B to communicate his or her lines in a nonverbal way.
  • Provide Participant B with a secret emotional distraction written on a piece of paper (e.g., Participant B is in a rush, is really bored, or is feeling guilty).
  • Have each pair work through the script.
  • After each pair has finished working through the script, have the “A” participants guess what emotion their partner was feeling.

This is the script you will give each participant:

A: Have you seen my book? I can’t remember where I put it. B: Which one? A: The murder mystery. The one you borrowed. B: Is this it? A: No. It’s the one you borrowed. B: I did not! A: Maybe it’s under the chair. Can you look? B: Okay—just give me a minute. A: How long are you going to be? B: Geez, why so impatient? I hate when you get bossy. A: Forget it. I’ll find it myself. B: Wait—I found it!

After the activity, guide a discussion on how much information we can pick up from nonverbal communication and how important it is to regulate our bodies and our facial expressions when communicating, even if we’re also using verbal communication.

4. We Have to Move Now!

Another great exercise from Grace Fleming (2018) is called “We Have to Move Now!” and it will help your participants learn how to express and detect several different emotions.

These are the instructions for this activity:

  • Cut several strips of paper.
  • On each strip of paper, write down a mood, feeling, or disposition, like guilty, happy, suspicious, paranoid, insulted, or insecure.
  • Fold the strips of paper so you can’t see what is written on it and place them in a bowl or jar. These are your prompts.
  • Have each participant take a prompt from the bowl or jar and read the exact same sentence to the class, but with the emotion the prompt specifies.
  • The sentence everybody will read is: “We all need to gather our possessions and move to another building as soon as possible.”
  • Have the participants guess the emotion of each reader by writing down what they think the speaker is feeling (or what they are supposed to be feeling).

After each participant has had a chance to read the sentence based on one of the prompts, run through the emotions displayed and see how many each participant guessed correctly. Finally, lead a debriefing discussion on how things like tone and body language can impact the way a message is received.

5. Stack the Deck

All you’ll need for this exercise is a deck of playing cards, a blindfold for each participant, and some space to move around.

Here’s how “Stack the Deck” works:

  • Shuffle the deck of cards and hand one out to each participant.
  • Instruct the participants to keep their cards a secret; no one should see the suit or color of another participant’s card.
  • Tell the participants that they will not be allowed to talk at all during this exercise.
  • Instruct your participants to assemble into four groups according to their suit (hearts, clubs, diamonds, spades), but using only nonverbal communication.
  • If you have the time and your participants have the inclination, try blindfolding each participant and giving the same instructions—it makes it much more difficult and more time-consuming!
  • Once participants have all gathered into one of the four groups, have them line up according to their rank (Ace is the lowest, King is the highest); again, they cannot speak or show their cards to anyone during this part of the exercise.
  • The group that lines up in the right order first wins!

As always, you can offer a prize to the winning team to motivate your participants.

This exercise will show how difficult it is to communicate without words, but it will also show your participants that it is not only possible, it gets easier as they start to pick up on one another’s nonverbal cues.

You can find this exercise at this link (Activity #3).

6. Silent Movie

Finally, facilitate this activity to really drive home the importance of effective nonverbal communication.

Divide your participants into two groups. For the first half of the activity, one group will be screenwriters and the other group will be actors. In the second half, the two groups will switch roles.

Instruct the screenwriters to write a silent movie, but to keep these things in mind:

  • Silent movies tell a story without words. It’s important to start the scene with the actor doing an obvious task, like cleaning the house or rowing a boat.
  • The scene must be interrupted when a second actor (or several actors) enter the scene, and their arrival should have a big impact. The character(s) could be anyone (or anything), including burglars, salesmen, children, or even animals.
  • A physical commotion must occur.
  • The problem that is caused by the commotion must be resolved by the end of the scene.

Give the screenwriters time to write out their script, then have the actors perform the script. Once the scene is finished, have the groups switch roles.

The communication game – Asgar Hussain

2 Communication Group Activities

Other great activities for group communication include the “Square Talk” and “Follow All Instructions” activities.

1. Square Talk Activity

For this activity , you will need one blindfold for each participant, one long piece of rope for each team (teams should be composed of around 5 participants each), and 25 minutes.

Follow these steps to give this activity a try:

  • Divide your group of participants into groups of about 5 each.
  • Clear the room so you have as much space as possible.
  • Blindfold each participant and tell them their objective: to make a square from a rope (i.e., stand in the shape of a square with their team).
  • Disorientate each participant by moving them a bit, spinning them around, etc.
  • All team members are blindfolded and must remain so for the duration of the activity.
  • The rope you are holding is approximately ___ feet in length.
  • The role you are holding is knotted together to form a circle; it must not be undone.
  • You must not let go of the rope.
  • You will be told when you have 5 minutes remaining.
  • Allow the teams to work on the activity and inform them when they have 5 minutes left.

Once the teams have given this activity their best shot, use these 5 discussion questions to review the importance of good group communication:

  • Do you feel as a group you communicated effectively?
  • During the Activity, what communication skills did you use effectively?
  • During the activity, what communication skills could you have used to improve performance?
  • How important is communication in the workplace? Why?
  • What key points have you learned about communication from this activity, that you wish to apply in the workplace?

2. Follow All Instructions Activity

This activity from TrainingCourseMaterial.com is a great one for young people, but it can be used with participants of all ages. All you’ll need is a set of instructions for each participant.

  • Write all of your teams initials at the top right-hand corner of this sheet.
  • Write your first name on your sheet of paper.
  • Write the total of 3 + 16 + 32 + 64 here: __________________
  • Underline instruction 1 above.
  • Check the time by your watch with that of one of your neighbor’s.
  • Write down the difference in time between the two watches at the foot of this page.
  • Draw three circles in the left-hand margin.
  • Put a tick in each of the circles mentioned in 6.
  • Sign your signature at the foot of the page.
  • On the back of the page, divide 50 by 12.5.
  • When you get to this point in the test, stand up, then sit down and continue with the next item.
  • If you have carefully followed all these instructions, call out ‘I have’.
  • On the reverse of this page, draw quickly what you think an upright bicycle looks like from overhead.
  • Check your answer to Item 9, multiply it by 5 and write the result in the left-hand margin opposite this item.
  • Write the 5th, 10th, 9th and 20th letters of the alphabet here: ___________________
  • Punch three holes with your pen here: o o o
  • If you think you are the first person to get this far, call out ‘I’m in the lead’.
  • Underline all the even digits on the left-hand side of the page.
  • Draw triangles around the holes you punched in Item 15.
  • Now you’ve finished reading all the instructions, obey only 1, 2, 20 & 21.
  • Stand up and say, “We’re the greatest team in the World!”

As you can see, the instructions include lots of silly directives (e.g., “When you get to this point in the test, stand up, then sit down and continue with the next item.”) that will identify who is following the directions and who is not—but the person that stands is actually the one not following directions!

The first and only verbal instruction you will give participants is to read all the written instructions first before engaging in any of the directives. The first person to complete the list will be declared the winner of the activity. You can offer a prize to the winner if you think the group would be motivated by it.

This exercise is a fun way to see who is paying attention and who is skipping the most vital instruction—to read everything before acting.

Communication in Relationships

7 Communication Games for Couples

Defeating Divorce shares the following three games aimed at improving communication in a romantic relationship.

This game is goal-directed, meaning the couple is working towards a common goal, and that goal requires effective communication.

  • The couple sits back to back with an identical set of building blocks in front of each of them.
  • One partner uses their blocks to create some sort of building or structure.
  • The builder partner then relays a series of instructions to the other partner to help him or her build the exact same structure.
  • The listener partner must try to build the same structure based on the speaker partner’s instructions.

This game takes some serious teamwork and good communication, and it can be repeated as needed to help a couple build their skills.

2. Minefield

“Minefield” is a physical game that will not only get both partners up and moving, but it will also require a great deal of trust and communication to complete the challenge.

You will need a blindfold for one partner, some space to navigate, and some objects with which you can create a minefield or obstacle course. Once the course is ready to go, blindfold one partner and bring them into the room.

The challenge here is for the non-blindfolded partner to guide the blindfolded partner through the obstacle course using only verbal communication. The couple will only succeed if the blindfolded partner has trust in their partner and the non-blindfolded partner is an effective verbal communicator.

Feelings of frustration are common in this game, but it can be a great way to highlight issues in communication or, alternately, highlight the couple’s communication strengths.

3. Give Me a Hand

This game is another one that can be frustrating for the couple but ultimately provides a great opportunity to build effective communication skills and unite the two in a common goal.

In this game, the couple will be given a seemingly easy task to complete, such as buttoning a shirt or tying a shoe, but with a catch—each partner will have one arm tied behind their back. The couple will find that the lack of one arm makes the task much more difficult than they might expect!

To complete the task, the couple will need to communicate effectively and coordinate their movements. It will be tough, but immensely satisfying to successfully complete this challenge!

4. Twenty Questions Times Two

If you remember the game “Twenty Questions”, you’ll recognize this game. It can be used to help couples communicate, share important details, and strengthen their connection.

Here’s how:

  • The couple should schedule some time alone, without distractions.
  • Before playing the game, each partner should come up with a list of 20 detailed personal questions to ask the other partner. The couple should feel free to get creative here!
  • Both partners take turns asking each other one question at a time.
  • When they’ve finished asking each other their questions, they should reverse them! Instead of asking questions like, “What is your favorite color?” each partner will ask, “What is my favorite color?”

This fun twist on a familiar game will result in greater knowledge and understanding of your spouse and, hopefully, better communication skills.

5. Eye-to-Eye

This game is a good way for couples to work on communicating and improving their connection, and all you need is your eyes!

Here’s how to do it:

  • The couple sits facing each other, close enough to hold hands.
  • Each partner looks directly into the other partner’s eyes.
  • Each partner should take a minute to notice the feelings they are experiencing at this point.
  • One partner begins talking about something simple and easy to discuss, like what happened that day, what they had for lunch, or something they are grateful for.
  • The other partner reciprocates with a similar conversation, all while holding eye contact.
  • The couple continues sharing things one at a time until each partner has shared at least three or four times.
  • The couple discusses what the experience was like.

Many people find this game uncomfortable at first, but with practice, it can greatly enhance your sense of intimacy with your partner.

6. The Top Three

Similar to the “three good things” exercise, this game’s aim is to boost a couple’s gratitude for one another and give them both a chance to practice expressing it. Couples should schedule a time for this game every day, but the good news is that it doesn’t take long—just a few minutes will do.

To play “The Top Three”, couples should follow these instructions:

  • At the end of each day, take some time to reflect on your day. Think about what your partner has done for you today.
  • Take turns sharing those three things with your partner and tell them what each thing meant to you.
  • Don’t forget to say “thank you” or otherwise verbally express your gratitude to your partner!

This game gets couples to practice vocalizing their appreciation and expressing gratitude, two things that are not necessarily in everyone’s daily communications but can have a big impact on a relationship.

7. Make a Playdate

Playdates are not just for kids or puppies—they are a great idea for couples as well! A play date is not your average, regularly scheduled programming sort of date, but something that is different, spontaneous, unique, and/or just plain fun!

Here are the three ground rules for the playdate:

  • It has to be something for just the couple to do and they cannot include the kids or discuss mundane things like chores or bills.
  • It has to be something that requires both partners to be present in the moment; think sailing, rock climbing, or dance lessons rather than seeing a movie or going out to dinner.
  • The couple should take turns picking the activity and try to surprise their partner with something new.

Planning this date will not only make it easier to feel connected and closer to one another, but it also provides couples with an opportunity to communicate their love for one another through their actions. Depending on the date activity, it can also provide some much-needed time for the couple to talk.

5 Exercises and Activities for Married Couples

These exercises , also from Defeating Divorce, are not just for married couples, but for anyone in a committed relationship.

1. Fireside Chats

This communication exercise is based on President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “fireside chats,” in which he addressed the American people with the intention of making it feel as if he was speaking directly into their living room, carrying on a calm and rational discussion of important issues.

The intention of this exercise for couples is similar: to make the couple feel more connected, more aware of what is going on in each other’s lives, and to maintain a pulse on how the relationship is going.

The two partners should schedule a 15 to 30-minute “fireside chat” each week to practice their ability to speak calmly, respectfully, and effectively about important and relevant issues. They should minimize the chances of distraction (turn off the TV, put their phones on silent, etc.) and focus only on one another for these chats.

What the couple discusses is up to them, but if there are salient relationship issues, this is a good time to talk about them. If the issues are very serious, it may be a good idea to start out this exercise talking about less intense, less emotional topics before moving on to the problem areas.

2. High-Low Activity

The high-low activity also aims to help couples feel more connected and in touch with one another, which requires measured and thoughtful communication. Engaging in this exercise daily will give the couple a chance to practice their communication skills on a regular basis, as well as their active listening skills.

Here’s how the exercise works:

  • Wait until the end of the day (e.g., at the end of dinner, around bedtime) to put it into practice.
  • The couple will then “check-in” with each other about the other’s day.
  • Each partner will ask the other to share their “high” of the day or the best part of their day.
  • Next, each partner will ask the other to share their “low” of the day or the worst or most disappointing part of their day.
  • As one partner is sharing, the other should practice active listening techniques, conveying their empathy and understanding to their partner.

This simple activity will result in a more intimate and understanding relationship between the two partners, all for just a few minutes a day.

3. Listening Without Words

If a couple wants to practice both their verbal and nonverbal communication, this is a great way to do it. The “Listening Without Words” activity allows each partner to apply both verbal and nonverbal communication skills, as it involves switching between only speaking and only listening.

This is how to practice it:

  • The couple will schedule some time for themselves without kids, work, or other responsibilities interrupting them.
  • They set a timer for somewhere between 3 to 5 minutes.
  • Until the timer goes off, one partner acts as the speaker and the other acts as the listener. The speaker will talk about any subject they’d like to talk about.
  • While the speaker talks, the listener will attempt to show the speaker compassion, empathy, and understanding through nonverbal communication only (e.g., smiling, nodding, taking their partner’s hand).
  • When the timer goes off, the partners will have a chance to process what they experienced and discuss any thoughts or feelings that came up.
  • Finally, the partners switch roles and repeat the exercise.

This exercise is a great way to boost your bond and your skills at the same time.

4. Eye See You

Similar to a previous exercise (“Eye-to-Eye”), this exercise relies heavily on eye contact; however, unlike the previous exercise, this one does not allow talking until the end.

Here’s how to give it a try:

  • The couple should be in a quiet and relaxing environment, with as few distractions as possible.
  • They sit in two chairs facing one another, near to one another but not touching.
  • The couple sets a timer for five minutes and settles in their respective seats, making and holding eye contact with one another. They will hold eye contact but refrain from speaking or touching until the timer goes off.
  • Both partners should be encouraged to note any thoughts, feelings, or sensations that come bubbling up during these five minutes.
  • Once the timer goes off, the two should try to guess what the other person was thinking and feeling during the five minutes. Once they have a chance to guess, they should discuss these things that bubbled to the surface as they maintained eye contact.

It might surprise some people to hear what their partner was thinking and feeling during the activity, but a strong relationship depends on understanding and empathizing with one another, making communication like this a necessity.

5. Send Me a Postcard

Although we’ve mostly focused on verbal communication and communications via body language, facial expressions, and touch, there is another form that we haven’t mentioned: written communication. This activity guides the couple in developing more effective written communication skills.

Both partners should have two blank postcards and something to write with for this exercise. On one postcard, each partner will write down a message to the other partner communicating a frustration, a feeling, or a desire. They should take a few minutes to create a thoughtful message to their partner.

Once they have their postcard ready to “mail” each partner will deliver their message to their partner without any verbal communication. They will both read their partner’s message and take a few moments to process. When they feel ready, they will use their remaining blank postcard to craft a response to their partner’s message.

When both partners have finished writing their response, they will deliver those messages to one another as well. After they have both read the response postcards, the couple can debrief and discuss their messages to one another.

5 Communication Exercises for Couples Therapy

If you’re hungry for more couples’ communication exercises, maybe these five exercises will hit the spot!

1. Active Listening

Active listening is not the easiest skill to master, but it is an important one to develop. This exercise from marriage counseling expert Racheal Tasker will give you a chance to practice it with the person closest to you.

The next time you and your partner are talking about something important or sensitive, put these tips and techniques into practice:

  • The speaker should remain focused on a single thought or idea.
  • The listener should listen attentively to the speaker, concentrating on understanding their perspective and attempting to gain new insights into their thoughts and feelings.
  • The speaker and listener should switch roles after a while to allow each to practice both types of communication.
  • Both partners should practice speaking and listening with patience and love, allowing their feelings for their partner to guide them toward true understanding rather than just reacting (Tasker, n.d.).

2. Sharing Emotions Freely

It can be tough to be truly open with our emotions, but it’s vital for effective communication and a healthy relationship. Try this exercise to work on this skill.

The couple should agree to try this exercise together and follow these instructions:

  • Decide on a specific time and place to put this exercise into practice.
  • Let your partner know what you need to feel safe sharing your feelings, and listen to what your partner needs to feel safe sharing his or her feelings.
  • Be sure to also ask your partner what would make him or her feel more comfortable as you share your feelings, as it can be just as difficult to hear as it is to share.
  • Share with your partner! If it helps, use a timer to limit how much sharing can occur and to ensure equal time to share feelings.
  • Listen to what your partner tells you and discuss what, if any, concrete steps you can take based on the information you’ve both shared. Commit to using the information you gained to improve your communication skills and your relationship in general (Tasker, n.d.).

3. Use Positive Language

Another great exercise from Racheal Tasker is focused on using positive language with one another. It can be surprisingly easy to slide into a pattern of mostly neutral or even negative language with your partner, but you can use this exercise to counter that tendency.

Here’s what to do:

  • Commit to using positive language when you communicate with your partner.
  • Ask your partner to make the same commitment to positive language.
  • Avoid being overly critical or negative when communicating with your partner.
  • Use a positive and encouraging tone when you speak to your partner.
  • Keep an eye on the words you use; try to incorporate words like “love”, “feel”, “appreciate”, and ditch words like “fault”, “never”, and “hate” (e.g., “I hate it when you do X!”).

As partners continue to practice this exercise on a regular basis, they will find that their communication style grows more positive with less effort, and their relationship will flourish (Tasker, n.d.).

4. Take a Trip Together

There’s nothing like traveling with someone to work on your communication skills! Making a trip successful requires tons of communication, coordination, and clear expectations, but it can also open you up to fun new experiences and relaxation. To practice communicating with your partner, try planning and taking a trip together.

Plan your trip with a focus on doing things you both like, going to a place you’d both like to visit, and trying new food, activities, and other experiences together. Getting out of your routine and into a novel environment can do wonders for your communication—not to mention your overall mood.

Use some of the other tips and techniques mentioned in this article when you are planning your trip and while you are enjoying your trip; you’re sure to see some improvements to your communication with your partner (Tasker, n.d.).

You can find this exercise at this link , second exercise from the bottom.

5. I Feel (Blank)

The final exercise from Tasker is called “I Feel _____” and it’s a simple one.

We often have trouble sharing our feelings, even (or especially) with those we are closest to. A great way to work on communicating your feelings more often—and more effectively—is to practice saying “I feel (blank).”

The next time you are experiencing strong emotions or discussing a sensitive or difficult subject with your partner, try beginning your sentences with “I feel…” and continue from there. So, if you’re upset with your partner for forgetting about an important appointment or canceling plans at the last minute, instead of saying “You don’t respect my time,” try “I feel like you don’t respect my time.”

Framing your discussion in this manner—as a statement of your feelings rather than a personal attack or blaming session—is not only conducive to greater understanding, it also shows your partner that you care about having a constructive conversation and that your intentions are not to hurt them but to help them see from your perspective.

Communication in the family

According to researchers Peterson and Green (2009), family communication is so important because:

“…it enables members to express their needs, wants, and concerns to each other. Open and honest communication creates an atmosphere that allows family members to express their differences as well as love and admiration for one another.”

The benefits of high-quality communication make spending time on improving the way family members relate to one another a task that is well worth the time spent on it. If you’re interested in working on your communication skills as a family, give the following activities and exercises a try.

These 14 activities are great tools to use in family therapy, but you can also try them at home.

4 Group Exercises for the Family

These four group exercises are a great introduction to communication skill-building as a family. They’re fun, engaging, and good for all ages!

1. What If?

The best time to work on communication skills is when families take the time to just sit and relax together. This simple game is a great way to do that, allowing families to improve how they communicate with one another while laughing together and putting their imagination to good use.

You will need strips of paper, a pencil or pen for each family member, and two bowls.

  • Get two slips of paper and something to write with for each family member.
  • On the first slip, have each family member write a question off the top of his or her head; it can be silly, serious, or anywhere in between. Put all the questions in one of the bowls and give them a good mix.
  • On the second slip of paper, have each family member write an answer to the question they came up with. Place these slips in the second bowl and mix them up.
  • Pass each bowl around the room and have each family member take one question slip and one answer slip.
  • Have each family member read the question and the answer that they have in their hand. The questions and answers might fit well together or they may result in absurd combinations!
  • Continue the game with two more slips of blank paper. It may take a few rounds for everyone to get the hang of the game, but family members will get more comfortable with the game and enjoy it more as they go along.

Use the following questions to guide your discussion as a family:

  • Did the activity spark your imagination?
  • Why did the questions and answers get funnier after several rounds?

2. Expressing Individuality

Although families usually share values, norms, and beliefs, that doesn’t mean all family members will see things the same way. It can be hard for some family members to communicate their thoughts and feelings when they feel like the odd one out or a “black sheep” in the family.

To make sure your family is a safe space for everyone to share their thoughts and feelings, give the “Expressing Individuality” activity a try. It will help each family member understand that they are a valuable part of the family and that they are always free to share their unique perspective.

You’ll need about an hour for this activity, 15 minutes to make the dough and 45 minutes for the activity itself. Use one of the recipes below to make your own play dough as a family.

If you want to make reusable play dough, mix together:

  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 cup water (add food coloring to water if you want colored clay)
  • 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1 tablespoon oil

After mixing these ingredients together, put over low heat and stir slowly. When the dough has formed into a small ball, remove it from the heat and knead while still warm. Store the clay in a sealed container.

If you plan on baking your designs at the end of this activity to preserve them, mix together:

  • ½ cup water
  • Food coloring (if desired—you can also paint the figures after you bake them)

Follow these instructions to encourage each family member to express their individuality:

  • If you love Boy Scouts, you may want to mold the image of a person sitting on a log by a campfire.
  • If you received an award as the “Employee of the Month,” you may want to mold the image of something that represents hard work, or dependability.
  • If friendliness is a personal characteristic that you value, you may want to mold a face with a pleasant smile, or if you have a great love for animals, you may want to mold several of your favorite animals.
  • After creating your unique design, you can preserve it by placing it on a cookie sheet and baking it in the oven on warm for several hours (until hard). This will harden the clay hard so that it maintains its shape. If you did not use food coloring to color the clay, or if you like to paint, you could paint the hardened figure. Once everyone has completed a mold, display these molds in the home.

To continue working on communicating your individuality as a family, ask these questions and discuss your answers together:

  • Why did you choose to make what you did?
  • What does it mean to you?

If the idea of creating a figure out of play dough doesn’t appeal to you, you can also try these two alternatives:

  • You could draw pictures using plain white paper and colored pencils/crayons. Drawing may allow you to express more ideas than if you use clay. Make sure that you do not place an emphasis on artistic abilities. It is okay to draw simple stick figures that represent people or other objects.
  • You could cut pictures out of old magazines and paste them on a poster board. After each person has completed a mold, picture, or collage, allow each family member to explain how their collage, picture or mold represents them.

3. Hints of Anger

Anger is a normal human emotion, and we will all get angry at some point. Instead of trying to avoid or deny anger, it’s vital that families learn how to manage their anger and communicate it to others in a healthy way. This activity will help family members identify their anger cues (the signs that indicate they are getting angry) and help them regulate their emotions to ensure they don’t say or do something they will regret.

Here’s how to do this activity as a family:

  • Tell family members to think about a time when they were angry or upset, and consider how they felt.
  • Were your hands relaxed or clenched in a fist?
  • Was your heart rate normal or beating fast?
  • Were your muscles relaxed or tight with tension?
  • What kind of thoughts was going through your head?
  • As a family, discuss any discrepancies between what you think about your anger cues and what other family members think.
  • How did your body feel during this period of time?
  • In which scenario did you feel more comfortable, angry, or happy?
  • Discuss the importance of knowing when you are getting upset and might need to take a break and think.

After the activity, discuss these questions as a family:

  • Why is it important to recognize the signs that you are angry?
  • Why is it important to control your anger?
  • What do you feel like specifically, when you are upset?
  • What are the things you are going to do to manage your anger so it does not hurt your family relationships?
  • Can recognizing anger cues help in managing your anger?

4. Family Meetings

Family meetings are a good idea for a lot of reasons, but yet another benefit of these get-togethers is the potential for building and developing better communication skills as a family. Regular family meetings can help family members learn how to:

  • Make joint decisions
  • Plan together
  • Accept responsibility
  • Show concern for others
  • Spend some quality time together

Pick one night of the week when your family can consistently get together for a weekly family meeting that lasts 30 to 60 minutes, and make sure it’s scheduled on everyone’s calendar.

Here’s how to conduct good family meetings:

  • Set a regular time. Setting a regular time and place gives the family council a position of importance and results in it becoming a permanent part of family operations. If everyone knows that the family is meeting together regularly, they find that most problems can wait a few days to be discussed. For this reason, some families like weekly meetings.
  • Use an agenda. Post a paper during the week where family members can list concerns they want brought up (possibly, the message center). Discuss things in the order listed. This also reduces problems between meetings when parents can say, “List it on the agenda and we’ll discuss it at the meeting.”
  • Attendance is voluntary . All members of the family are invited to attend — but attendance is voluntary. However, if a member is not present, he/she is still expected to abide by any decisions made by the family council.
  • Each person has an equal voice . Everyone should be encouraged to contribute ideas and suggestions. All members must be treated the same, regardless of age. Using the steps of negotiation to (1) introduce the problem, (2) discuss solutions, and (3) vote on a solution. This gives everyone a chance to be involved. Councils do not always run smoothly. Teenagers are often suspicious that the new program is just another way for parents to gain compliance with their demands. In the first council meetings, rebelliousness may be exhibited to deliberately test whether parents are sincere about including them in family decision-making.
  • Use rules of order . If participation is to be equal, then some type of order must be maintained. If a person has the right to express himself, then he also has the right to be heard — which implies that others have the obligation to listen. Rules of order help this situation.
  • Rotate chairmanship . If the same person conducts all meetings, that person eventually begins to assume an air of superiority. To help maintain a feeling of equality, family members should take turns conducting the councils. This allows each person to experience the privileges and the responsibilities of this position.
  • Accentuate solutions . Family council should not be “just a gripe session” — a time to get together and complain. In order to prevent this, you may decide that the person presenting a problem must also suggest one possible solution. Family members could then discuss alternate solutions or modify the one presented. In practice, some solutions do not work as well as anticipated. As family members begin to live with a decision, they may decide it needs to be changed. This change, however, must wait until the next regular meeting. Children soon recognize a need for better solutions and they learn by experience to make wiser choices. When family council is held regularly, each member learns to project ahead and anticipate problems. When this occurs, the emphasis at council meetings shifts from problem-solving to problem prevention and planning. Family council can also be a time to plan fun things like vacations or family outings. Families can talk about different places to visit and how they want to spend the time available.
  • Decide on the authority level . The family council can be the final authority for the family, or a family can have a modified version of decision making. For it to be effective, however, most decisions made by the council need to be binding. If parents always overrule the council, children will soon lose interest.
  • Keep a record . There sometimes develops a difference of opinions as to who conducted the last meeting, what matters were discussed, and what plans were agreed upon. For this reason, a secretary to record minutes is most helpful. The secretary can rotate with each meeting.

After your first family meeting, discuss these questions as a family:

  • How did your first family meeting go?
  • What about the meeting was good? What was bad?
  • What do you want to incorporate in future meetings?

4 Active Listening Exercises

Active listening is a vital part of communication and can greatly improve relationships between family members. These four active listening exercises are a great way to boost your skills.

1. Precision Communication

Another activity that can help your family build and continue to develop good communication skills is called “Precision Communication.” It’s focused on active listening, which is a vital part of communication and conducive to better understanding and stronger, healthier relationships.

Here’s how to put this activity into practice:

  • Set up a maze in your home using furniture, such as kitchen chairs or other pieces of furniture that can act as a barrier.
  • Tie string or yarn between the furniture to create a clear path through the maze.
  • Select a family member that will try to walk through the maze blindfolded. This person must not see the maze prior to being blindfolded.
  • Have someone give voice instructions so the family member can be directed through the maze.

This activity’s aim is to see if the family member giving instructions can help the blindfolded family member get through the maze without bumping into the furniture, walls, or string. This means that not only must the speaking family member communicate clear and detailed instructions, but the blindfolded family member must also use their active listening skills to receive the instructions and implement them effectively.

Use these discussion questions to debrief and maximize this learning opportunity:

  • Why was clear detailed communication necessary for this exercise?
  • How important was it to listen carefully to the one giving instructions? Why?
  • What were some of the difficulties associated with helping a family member complete this exercise?
  • Using some of the ideas from this exercise, how can you, as a family, improve your communication skills?

If you want more from this activity, try this follow-up:

Draw a simple picture or pattern on a piece of paper. Without letting family members see the diagram, tell them what they need to do to make a copy of your picture that matches as closely as possible. After giving detailed instructions, see how accurately the pictures match up.

2. End of the Word—Beginning of the Next

This is a fun game on the Encourage Play website that can keep your kids actively engaged in building their listening skills.

Here’s how to play:

  • One person (probably an adult) starts the game by giving out one word—it can be any word, it just needs to be one that every family member knows how to spell.
  • The next family member must listen to the word the previous person said, then come up with a word that starts with the letter the last word ended with.

This is an easy game to play since you don’t need any materials, just a few minutes and the ability to hear one another! That makes it a great game for car rides, waiting in restaurants, or standing in a long line. To make it more challenging, give it a bit of complexity by limiting the words to a category, like animals or cities.

3. Red Light Green Light

Another exercise from the Encourage Play website is a familiar one. It’s based on the classic “Red Light, Green Light” game in which the leader gives instructions by color: saying “red light” means stop and saying “green light” means go.

To make the game a bit more challenging and really emphasize the importance of active listening, incorporate these three variations to the game:

  • Different colors refer to different types of movement; for example, yellow light could mean skipping, purple light could mean crab walking, and blue light could mean hopping.
  • Pretend to be a different animal for different colors (yellow = lion, green = bunny, purple = frog, etc.).
  • Use words that rhyme with red or green to see if the players catch the difference (e.g., “Bread Light! Teen Light!”).

4. Tell a Group Story

Group stories are a great way to practice active listening with the whole family. It also gives kids a chance to be creative and silly, which helps to keep them engaged in the activity.

  • The first person (probably an adult) starts a story with just one sentence (e.g., “Once upon a time, there was a very curious brown bunny”).
  • The next person adds onto the story with just one sentence as well (e.g., “This bunny lived with her mother and father in a cozy little burrow under a willow tree”).
  • The story continues until everyone has contributed at least a couple of sentences to the story.

This activity boosts active listening skills because it requires careful and attentive listening to what has already been said in order to make a good contribution to the story.

3 Assertive Communication Exercises

One of the best skills to teach your kids is how to be assertive instead of aggressive or passive (or passive-aggressive). Use these three assertive communication activities to help them learn this important skill.

1. Assertive Communication Worksheet

This worksheet is a great way to help older kids understand the difference between types of communication and to learn how to communicate assertively.

The worksheet first provides a good working definition of assertive communication:

“A communication style in which a person stands up for their own needs and wants, while also taking into consideration the needs and wants of others, without behaving passively or aggressively.”

It also outlines the traits of people who are assertive communicators, including:

  • Clearly state needs and wants
  • Eye contact
  • Listens to others without interruption
  • Appropriate speaking volume
  • Steady tone of voice
  • Confident body language

Next, it shares four tips on communicating assertively:

  • Respect yourself—your wants and needs are as important as everyone else’s.
  • Express your thought and feelings calmly rather than using the silent treatment or yelling and threatening.
  • Plan out what you’re going to say before you say it.
  • Say “no” when you need to, say it clearly, and do it without lying.

After some examples of assertive communication, we get to the active part of the worksheet. It’s geared toward adults, but the scenarios can be tweaked to fit kids as well.

There are four situations presented and space to write out your own assertive response to each. These situations are:

  • Your partner says, “ I know you have plans for the weekend, but I really need you to watch the kids. I have a friend coming to town, and we made plans .”
  • Situation: You’ve just received your food at a restaurant, and it was prepared incorrectly. Your sandwich seems to have extra mayo, instead of no mayo.
  • Your friend says, “ Hey, can I borrow some money? I want to buy these shoes, but I left my wallet at home. I’ll pay you back soon, I swear. It won’t be like last time .”
  • Situation: Your neighbor is adding an expansion to their house, and the crew starts working, very loudly, at 5 am. It has woken you up every day for a week.

Working through these scenarios as a family can help your kids see what healthy assertive communication looks like and show them that it’s okay to say “no” sometimes.

2. The Aggressive Alligator

The Aggressive Alligator is a great tool from Kristina Marcelli-Sargent, for teaching assertiveness over-aggressiveness or passiveness. It makes what can be a dry and boring subject more interesting and engaging.

Start by giving simple definitions to the terms “passive,” “aggressive,” and “assertive.” Next, show them a list of animals or a bin of small stuffed animals and allow them to choose an animal that they feel represents each definition. The aggressive animal doesn’t need to be an alligator, it can be anything that makes sense to your children.

After your kids have chosen an animal for each term, describe some social situations and instruct your kids to act them out with their animals. Each animal should act according to the definition it represents (e.g., the aggressive alligator should act aggressively, the passive panda should act passively, and the assertive anteater should act assertively).

Once all scenarios have been acted out, talk to your kids about how the outcomes differed between the three animals. Point out which one(s) resulted in a positive outcome and which one(s) should probably be avoided. In the future, you can refer back to the assertive anteater to remind your kids to be assertive instead of passive or aggressive (Sargent, 2015).

3. Keeping Cool

A great lesson for kids to learn is that assertive communication is about being firm and direct without being angry or upset. This activity will help you teach healthy assertiveness to your kids or students.

Here’s how to go about it:

  • First, ask your kids how people might feel when they are bullied. If they have trouble coming up with answers, talk about how people might feel angry, scared, sad, upset, embarrassed, or confused.
  • Next, ask your kids what kinds of things people want to do when they feel this way. If they can’t think of things people might do when they feel upset, angry, or sad, mention that they might yell, throw something, hit something, hide, cry, or do something else to make another person feel as bad as they feel.
  • Ask your kids if they think these are good or helpful things to do. Explain how everyone has strong, negative feelings like this sometimes, and that it’s okay to feel them. These feelings have a purpose; they tell us that something is wrong or that something needs to be fixed, but they can also encourage us to do the wrong thing unless we learn how to keep a cool head.
  • Close your eyes and take several slow deep breaths
  • Count to ten
  • Relax the muscles in your face and body
  • Talk silently to yourself and repeat a soothing phrase, such as “Keep calm” or “I control my feelings”
  • Get a drink of water
  • Go sit by a person you trust

Discuss these options with the whole group and decide together on what the best techniques are, then practice using them together.

Click here to read about this exercise from the Education Development Center’s Bullying Prevention program.

3 Nonverbal Communication Exercises

Finally, although verbal communication is generally the focus of skill-building exercises and activities, nonverbal communication is also a vital skill to develop.

Use these 3 exercises to help your kids build their nonverbal skills.

1. Understanding Non-Verbal Communication

Things like tone of voice, facial expressions, body posture, and hand gestures are all non-verbal, but they are hugely important in our communication with others. If we say one thing with our words and another with our face or body, we can end up giving mixed messages and confusing others.

To make sure we are saying what we want to say with our words and our face, body, and tone, help your kids learn how to understand and “speak” non-verbal communications.

Here’s s description of this activity:

“As a family, make a list of different non-verbal actions. For example, folding your arms, snorting, frowning, etc… Select a TV program or a segment of a video. Watch about 5 to 7 minutes of the program with the volume off. While watching the program without volume, identify the different non-verbal messages, especially the feelings that are expressed. After 5 to 7 minutes, turn off the TV and discuss what you observed. You could even carry on the discussion as the program continues.”

To get the discussion started, use questions like:

  • What were the non-verbal messages that you observed?
  • How important do you think the non-verbal messages are in helping you to enjoy the movie and understand what was going on in the movie?
  • Did you observe any confusing non-verbal messages?
  • What feelings were expressed through non-verbal communication?
  • What were some of the difficulties of this activity?
  • What can you do to be more aware of non-verbal messages?
  • Did everyone think the non-verbal message meant the same thing?
  • Are non-verbal messages always obvious in real life?

If you want more from this exercise, try this follow-up activity. Seat two family members away from each other and have them carry on a conversation about giving directions to somewhere or explaining how to do something. As they talk, they should focus on trying to understand the other person’s feelings.

After doing this for a few minutes, the two should turn around, face each other, and continue the discussion—they will likely find it much easier!

Use the following questions to guide your discussion after the follow-up:

  • When you had your backs to each other, did a lack of non-verbal communication affect your ability to communicate with the other person? If so, how?
  • What feelings did you experience as you communicated with your back to the other person?
  • When you spoke to the other person face-to-face, did this improve your ability to communicate and understand the other person’s feelings? If so, how?
  • Did face-to-face communication improve your ability to understand the other person’s feelings?
  • How can you increase your awareness of non-verbal messages you do not mean to be sending?
  • How can you be aware of how we may misinterpret someone else’s non-verbal messages?”

2. Charades

Charades is a popular game with kids since it’s fun, easy to play, and can result in some seriously silly situations.

Here’s what you need to do:

  • Animals: Monkey, dog, cat, rabbit, kangaroo, snake
  • Activities: brushing teeth, playing cards, shining a flashlight, fishing, playing frisbee
  • Emotions: scared, sad, bored, angry, happy, wary, proud

Acting out these prompts will give kids an opportunity to practice communicating non-verbally, a skill that they can easily build over time (Simmons, n.d.).

This nonverbal communication activity  is available from Sue Simmons at Equinox Family Consulting.

3. Silent Snack

Finally, another activity from Sue Simmons is called “ Silent Snack ” and it gives young children a chance to have fun while building their nonverbal communication skills.

Follow these instructions to give it a try:

  • Put out a few different snacks in individual bowls.
  • Tell everyone it’s “Silent Snack Time,” meaning there’s no talking allowed!
  • Offer each person a taste of each snack.
  • Each player should take turns sharing their opinion on each snack. They can use indicators like thumbs up and thumbs down or facial expressions to communicate their opinions.

It’s a simple activity, but an effective one! Give it a try at your next snack time.

I hope you leave this piece with a treasure trove of new resources you can use to improve your own life or the lives of your clients.

Communication skills are one of the most important skills a person can have, making it well worth your while to devote some time and energy to develop them.

What are your favorite ways to work on communicating with your spouse? Do you schedule a time to talk about how your relationship is doing or do you just let it flow naturally? What do you think are the best ways to build, enhance, and maintain your communication skills? Let us know in the comments section.

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Positive Communication Exercises (PDF) for free .

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  • Sott, A. (2018). Teaching communication skills. Edutopia. Retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/article/teaching-communication-skills
  • Tasker, R. (n.d.). 6 amazing couples therapy exercises for improving communication . GuideDoc . Retrieved from https://guidedoc.com/couples-therapy-exercises-for-improving-communication
  • Victoria Department of Health & Human Services. (n.d.). Relationships and communications . Better Health Channel. Retrieved from https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/relationships-and-communication

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interpersonal communication class assignments

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Open Educational Resources and Communication Studies

This collection was curated by an ASCCC OERI discipline lead.  A comprehensive list of current discipline leads is available.

Archived Communication Studies Webinars

Public speaking ( c-id comm 110 ).

Theories and techniques of public speaking from the perspective of the speaker and the audience. Emphasis on research, logical organization, composition and effective delivery of informative and persuasive speeches. Practice in clearly stating and developing ideas.

Exploring Public Speaking (Barton and Tucker) in LibreTexts  ( CC BY-NC-SA ) Exploring Public Speaking is now on its 4 th  edition. The text addresses all the subjects that traditional publishers’ books would address with some additional topics that might be excluded from most texts including learning theory, plagiarism, speaking online, speaking to diverse audiences, and humor in public speaking. The third and fourth editions also include case study examples and outline samples. The text includes a set of test banks which are not available to the public. For access to these resources, please  contact Dr. Barbara Tucker .

( CC BY 4.0 ) Fundamentals of Public Speaking is an OER published by the College of the Canyons for their Comm 105 course. The text begins with the fundamentals, ethics and communication apprehension before walking students through the process of developing, researching, and delivering speeches. In addition to covering informative and persuasive speeches it also includes a chapter on special occasion speeches.

(CC BY-SA 4.0) Introduction to Public Communication is an open textbook created specifically for Indiana State University’s COMM 101 course. A guiding team of communication instructors compiled content from other open sources and wrote original content to complete the text. In addition to more traditional public speaking content this text also includes chapters on interpersonal, professional, and small group communication as well as global engagement and culture.

Stand up, Speak out – The Practice and Ethics of Public Speaking in LibreTexts   ( CC BY-NC-SA ) Stand Up, Speak Out focuses on helping students become more seasoned and polished public speakers, and emphasizes ethics in communication. The text covers all of the major aspects of public speaking from research through organization and presentation skills with specific chapters on informative, persuasive, and entertaining speeches. The book has a 4.5/5 star rating from more than 50 reviews.

( CC BY-NC-ND ) Note: “ND” means no derivatives – editing the text is not permitted. The Public Speaking Project includes everything needed to teach public speaking starting with introductory chapters covering the origins and ethics of the subject. It includes material to help students through research, reasoning, organization, composition, presentation, and evaluation of various types of speeches including informative, persuasive, special occasion, and group speeches. The text includes additional instructor resources including test questions, chapter outlines, and  video resources .

( CC BY-SA 4.0 ) This material was created by Steven Ginley at Morton College. He argues “the purpose of an introduction to public speaking course should be to provide a human communication overview. It should use independent study, textbook readings and exercises, group work, class discussions, library research, oral presentations and lectures to prepare students for successful lives by improving their oral and written communication skills. It should stress personal responsibility, ethics and the ability to understand and follow written and oral directions.” The all-inclusive site includes a textbook, workbook, presentations, practice quizzes and tests, motivational aids, and more.

  • Rhetoric and Speech in the Digital Age by Newsom & Montenegro (Newsom & Montenegro) – Canvas Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-SA) 
  • In this public speaking OER, we will explore the impact of public communication on our world. We will learn both how to create public messages that can help shape the world around us and learn how to read the various public messages that surround us each day. We will explore how each of you can use your own voices and communication abilities to reach out to a variety of audiences, market yourself and your ideas to potential employers and colleagues, interact with your friends and relatives, and voice your concerns and potentially change the wrongs you perceive in the world.
  • Principles of Public Speaking (Lumen Learning) (Click the words “Licenses and Attributions” at the bottom of each page for copyright and licensing information specific to the material on that page.) Principles of Public Speaking covers all of the basics of public speaking in bite-sized modules which can be adapted in part or whole. The modules include objectives, videos, assignments, and more. The courseware includes resources copyrighted and openly licensed by multiple individuals and organizations.

Survey of Human Communication ( C-ID COMM 115 )

( CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 ) A Primer on Communication Studies is a comprehensive textbook that covers all of the basics of communication including perception, verbal and nonverbal communication, listening, and culture. It also has chapters on public speaking including preparing and delivering speeches. Finally, it covers various types of communication including small group, interpersonal, and cultural communication.

Communication in the Real World – An Introduction to Communication Studies in LibreTexts ( CC BY-NC-SA ) Communication in the Real World overviews the foundations of the field while incorporating the latest research and cutting-edge applications of these basics. Each chapter includes timely, concrete, and real-life examples of communication concepts in action. A key feature of this book is the integration of content regarding diversity and organizational communication in each chapter through examples and/or discrete sub-sections. Also integrated into the content are examples that are inclusive in terms of race, gender, sexuality, ability, age, marital status, religion, and other diverse identity characteristics. The book has a 4.5/5 star rating from more than 35 reviews.

Introduction to Communication (Green, et al) in LibreTexts (CC BY-NC)  Introduction to Communication is an introductory communication studies text comprised of several individual modules covering perception, diversity, language, listening, interpersonal, small group, and public speaking. The modules can be used as a whole or broken up into smaller portions covering individual topics.

This textbook is targeted for Introduction to Human Communication courses that introduce students to the study of Communication. The underlying organization addresses the importance of students to be able to answer the question, “What is Communication Study?” in a way that captures the field of Communication appropriately, as well as an important discipline across colleges and universities.

( CC BY 4.0 ) According to the author Message Processing “provides an upper-level undergraduate introduction and explanation of the social and cognitive processes involved in human communication, focusing on how people create understanding.”

( CC BY 4.0 ) Process of Communication is an OER published by the College of the Canyons for their Comm 100 course. The text provides a comprehensive look at the field including foundations and history. It has chapters covering the major components of communication including perception, verbal, nonverbal, listening, etc. before turning to the distinct types of communication.

( CC0 ) This book is private and accessible only to registered users. If you have an account you can  sign in here . The Evolution of Human Communication is a more specialized text with a focus on theory. The book begins with an introduction to the field and then provides one chapter on each of the following topics: interpersonal, relationships, gender, media, intercultural, and rhetoric.

  • COMM001: Principles of Human Communication (Saylor) ( CC BY 3.0 ) This course will introduce you to communication principles, common communication practices, and a selection of theories to better understand the communication transactions that you experience in your daily life. The principles and practices that you study in this course will provide the foundation for further study in communications. The course has ancillaries and supplemental readings. Excluding course final exams, content authored for Saylor Academy’s Principles of Human Communication is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unsupported license. A complete list of terms of use is available.

Argumentation or Argumentation & Debate ( C-ID COMM 120 )

( CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 ) A Concise Introduction to Logic is an introduction to formal logic suitable for undergraduates taking a general education course in logic or critical thinking and is accessible and useful to any interested in gaining a basic understanding of logic. This text takes the unique approach of teaching logic through intellectual history; the author uses examples from important and celebrated arguments in philosophy to illustrate logical principles.

Arguing Using Critical Thinking focuses on teaching students argumentation skills with an emphasis on constructive conflict resolution. Through its 12 chapters the textbook explores all types of conflict from interpersonal disagreements to major policy decisions.

( CC BY-NC ) How Arguments Work takes students through the techniques they will need to respond to readings and make sophisticated arguments in any college class. It is a practical guide to argumentation with strategies and templates for the kinds of assignments students will commonly encounter. It covers rhetorical concepts in everyday language and explores how arguments can build trust and move readers. Ancillaries are currently under development.

( CC BY-NC-ND ) “ND” means “No Derivatives. Editing this resource is not permitted. Logic and Critical Thinking is primarily a philosophy textbook but it covers a number of topics that overlap with argumentation including deduction and induction, fallacies, proofs, and kinds of arguments. Due to licenses that apply to certain sections of this book, it is safest to presume this work as a whole to be under a CC-BY-NC-ND license.

( CC BY-NC-SA ) Logical Reasoning aims to improve students’ critical thinking skills by focusing ono abilities that help you get someone’s point, generate reasons for your own point, evaluate the reasons given by others, decide what or what not to do, decide what information to accept or reject, explain a complicated idea, apply conscious quality control as you think, and resist propaganda.

( CC BY 4.0 ) The (In)Credible Argument covers all of the major topics of argumentation from the basic components of argument to common argument frameworks. It walks students through how to find, evaluate, and use evidence including bias and fallacies.

( CC BY-NC-ND ) The book includes essential chapters on the history and development of informal logic. Other chapters are key reflections on the theoretical issues raised by the attempt to understand informal argument. Many of the papers were previously published in journals.

  • PHIL 2020 – Principles of Logic and Argumentation (Valdosta State University) ( CC BY-SA 4.0 ) This course was developed as part of an Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grant awarded to two faculty members at Valdosta State University. The course includes units on critical thinking, arguments, fallacies, symbolic logic, syllogisms, research, and law. It also includes an instructor’s guide and lesson planning.

Interpersonal Communication ( C-ID COMM 130 )

( CC-BY-NC-SA ) Communicating to Connect introduces an undergraduate to a whole new world of concepts with an in-depth exploration of interpersonal communication. Theory and research that reflect what is currently known about interpersonal communication complement practical skills explaining why course concepts are important in everyday life. The narrative voice and culturally diverse examples, as well as relevant pictures, charts, graphs, videos, and multimedia enhance reading comprehension. Ancillary materials are available upon request to support student learning and instructional planning.

( CC BY-SA 3.0 ) I.C.A.T. covers significant elements of an introductory interpersonal communication course including perception, identity, verbal and nonverbal communication, listening, emotions, conflict and power, and interpersonal relationships. Canvas pages were created for each chapter of the Interpersonal Communication Abridged Textbook (ICAT) containing accessible content and subsection tabs to make it easier to access targeted information.  Download I.C.A.T Interpersonal Communication Abridged Textbook on Canvas Commons

Interpersonal Communication – A Mindful Approach to Relationships (Wrench et al.) in LibreTexts ( CC BY-NC-SA ) Interpersonal Communication helps readers examine their own one-on-one communicative interactions using a mindfulness lens. The authors incorporate the latest communication theory and research to help students navigate everyday interpersonal interactions. The 14 chapters in this book cover topics typically taught in an undergraduate interpersonal communication course: family interactions, interpersonal dynamics, language, listening, nonverbal communication, and romantic relationships, as well as exploring emerging areas such as self-compassion, body positivity, friendships, and “the dark side.” Includes a  student handbook and ancillaries

( CC BY 3.0 ) This textbook was compiled and graphically designed especially for College of the Canyons students. The following chapters will cover topics such as: dealing with conflict, how to communicate in professional and personal relationships, and self-presentation in communication. There are two types of interactive features in this book to help you, the student, engage with the various concepts and procedures behind interpersonal communications.

Interpersonal Communication: Context and Connection provides an engaging overview of interpersonal communication  grounded in theory, research, and practical application, with an eye to the lived experience of college students.

  • CMST 210 – Interpersonal Communication (Open Course Library) (CC BY 3.0) This course introduces you to the conceptual issues and practical implications of interpersonal communication. The course is designed to provide a holistic and self-contained, although not comprehensive, introduction to the study and practice of communication within interpersonal encounters. In addition, this course focuses specifically on understanding and improving how we communicate in personal relationships including familial, friendship, work, and romantic contexts. The guiding instructional philosophy of the course is that learning entails active engagement with and feedback about the targeted skill.

Small Group Communication ( C-ID COMM 140 )

An Introduction to Group Communication in LibreTexts ( CC BY-NC-SA ) An Introduction to Group Communication was designed to accompany the General Education course, COMM542 Interpersonal Communication and Group Dynamics at Granite State College. It includes chapters on theory, group development, membership, verbal and nonverbal communication, listening, conflict and problem solving, group leadership and motivation, and intercultural/international group communication.

( CC BY-SA ) Managing Groups and Teams is a wikibook that takes a challenge-based approach, one that focuses on the “how” of managing a group or a team. It covers topics on leadership, team roles and dynamics, cohesion, inclusion and groupthink.

This book is a cloned version of  Problem Solving in Teams and Groups (updated at: https://opentext.ku.edu/teams/)  by cpiercy, published using Pressbooks under a  CC BY (Attribution)  license. It may differ from the original.

Content in this textbook is adapted from The Open University, OpenStax, The Noba Project, and Wikipedia. Each chapter presents the source in the top header and each chapter has its own version of the Creative Commons (CC) license, noted at the bottom of the chapter.

( CC BY-NC-SA ) Small Group Communication is an interdisciplinary textbook focused on communication in groups and teams. The aim of this textbook is to provide students with theories, concepts, and skills they can put into practice to form and sustain successful groups across a variety of contexts.

( CC BY 4.0 ) Small Group Communication is an Open Resource published by the College of the Canyons for their Comm 120 course. The text provides a comprehensive look at small group communication. It includes chapters covering group development, team management, verbal and nonverbal communication, listening, leadership and conflict management, and intercultural group communication.

  • CMST 230 – Small Group Communication (Open Course Library) ( CC BY 3.0 ) This course is designed to familiarize you with the major theory and research surrounding the study of small group communication and provide an opportunity to analyze and develop solutions to a community problem while working in a small group.
  • Working in Diverse Teams (OpenLearn) ( CC BY-NC-SA ) An OpenLearn course exploring diversity within teams and team roles with a focus on the workplace and employer/employee dynamics. Includes a section on virtual teams.

Intercultural Communication ( C-ID COMM 150 )

( CC BY ) Exploring Intercultural Communication is a comprehensive introductory text, it begins by defining intercultural communication and the roots of culture. It includes chapters on identity, verbal and nonverbal processes, culture shock, barriers and conflict, intercultural relationships and communication competence.

( CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 ) Intercultural Communication examines culture as a variable in interpersonal and collective communication. It explores the opportunities and problems arising from similarities and differences in communication patterns, processes, and codes among various cultural groups. It explores cultural universals, social categorization, stereotyping and discrimination, with a focus on topics including race, ethnicity, social class, religion, gender and sexuality as they relate to communication.

Intercultural Communication for the Community College (Krumrey-Fulks) in LibreTexts  ( CC BY-NC-SA ) In the quest to explore the multiple facets of intercultural communication, this book is divided into three general areas: foundations, elements, and contexts. The foundations cover the basic principles associated with communication studies and culture. The elements move beyond the basics into self, identities, verbal, and nonverbal process associated with communication and culture. Contexts explore all the different environments such as media, business, and education, in which intercultural communication occurs.

  • Intercultural Communication Version 2 (Rice, College of the Canyons, 2019) (CC BY 4.0)

Language and Culture in Context – A Primer on Intercultural Communication (Godwin-Jones) in LibreTexts  ( CC BY-NC ) This textbook was written and designed especially for College of the Canyons Communications students. The following chapters will cover topics such as: understanding cultural identity, social construction, cultural biases, and culture shock. There are two types of interactive features in this book to help you, the student, engage with the various concepts and procedures behind intercultural communication.

( CC BY-NC 3.0 ) Speaking of Culture was designed to fulfill General Education breadth requirements in social sciences at Utah State University intended to introduce students to the nature, history, and methods of different disciplines; and to help students understand the cultural, historical, and natural contexts shaping the human experience. This book focuses on culture and other concepts associated with it.

  • COMM311: Intercultural Communication (Saylor) ( CC BY 3.0 ) This course is designed to improve communication in cross-cultural situations with a focus on barriers to successful communication that involve cultural differences. Though some of this course addresses a Western/U.S. perspective, much of the course focuses on characteristics of specific cultures and how generally one culture may adapt to another, regardless of which cultures they may be.
  • Communicating Across Cultures (MIT Open Courseware) ( CC BY-NC-SA ) “Communicating Across Cultures” is designed to help you meet the challenges of living in a world in which, increasingly, you will be asked to interact with people who may not be like you in fundamental ways. Its primary goals are to help you become more sensitive to intercultural communication differences and to provide you with the knowledge and skills that will help you interact successfully with people from cultures other than your own.

Forensics (Speech & Debate) ( C-ID COMM 160 B )

  • Critical Thinking 1 How to Reason Logically (Dowden, California State University Sacramento) ( CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 ) Series of online modules covering topics in argument and logic by Bradley Dowden, California State University Sacramento.
  • 5.1a Argument Structures (University of Sydney) (CC not readily available) This course focuses on (1) Using critical thinking and argumentation in university contexts to improve academic results (2) Understanding the importance and function of critical thinking in academic culture (3) Using a variety of thinking tools to improve critical thinking (4) Identifying types of argument, and bias within arguments, in order to better evaluate the strength of arguments (5) Using evidence to support claims in arguments (6) Applying critical thinking and argumentation to real world problems and issues.

Oral Interpretation of Literature ( C-ID COMM 170 )

  • TA121 – Oral Interpretation of Literature OER (Ivey) ( CC BY 4.0 ) This course by Tinamarie Ivey was designed for Linn-Benton Community College students. Course Description: Students will be able to foster an appreciation of literature and develop creative skills in public speaking and performance. Students will analyze various literary forms (poetry, novels, plays, letters, diaries, etc.) as texts for oral presentation. Students will explore oral traditions and other nonliterary sources and events as oral presentation material. Class exercises introduce vocal, physical and other speaking techniques to effectively communicate a point of view.
  • Topics in Performance Studies: Comedy Across Media (MIT Open CourseWare) ( CC BY-NC-SA ) This multidisciplinary lecture/workshop engages students in a variety of approaches to the study and practice of performance as an area of aesthetic and social interaction. Special attention is paid to the use of diverse media in performance. Interdisciplinary approaches to study encourage students to seek out material histories of performance and practice.
  • Literary Interpretation: Interpreting Poetry (MIT Open CourseWare) ( CC BY-NC-SA ) This seminar offers a course of readings in lyric poetry. It aims to enhance the student’s capacity to understand the nature of poetic language and the enjoyment of poetic texts by treating poems as messages to be deciphered. The seminar will briefly touch upon the history of theories of figurative language since Aristotle and it will attend to the development of those theories during the last thirty years, noting the manner in which they tended to consider figures of speech distinct from normative or literal expression, and it will devote particular attention to the rise of theories that quarrel with this distinction. The seminar also aims to communicate a rough sense of the history of English-speaking poetry since the early modern period. Some attention will be paid as well to the use of metaphor in science.
  • Theater and Cultural Diversity in the U.S. (MIT Open CourseWare) ( CC BY-NC-SA ) This course explores contemporary American theatrical expression as it may be organized around issues of gender and cultural identity. This exploration will include the analysis of performances, scripts, and video documentation, as well as the invention of original documents of theatrical expression. Class lectures and discussions will analyze samples of Native American, Chicano, African American, and Asian American theater, taking into consideration the historical and political context for the creation of these works. Performance exercises will help students identify theatrical forms and techniques used by these theaters, and how these techniques contribute to the overall goals of specific theatrical expressions.
  • Oral Interpretation of Literature (Martinez, 2022) (CC BY-NC-SA) An OER intended for a college course on the oral performance of literary texts

Introduction to Communication Studies or Introduction to Communication Theory ( C-ID COMM 180)

(CC BY-NC-SA) This OER textbook provides a survey of the field of communication studies. In today’s world, it’s difficult or even nearly impossible to function without some level of communication literacy. That term, communication literacy, refers to the ability of an individual to not only convey their ideas, information, and messages to others, but also to be able to interpret and understand the ideas, information, and messages that they receive. The processes involved in communicating, or transferring messages and ideas between people, are far more intricate than many people recognize. In today’s world, these processes include a variety of forms and styles, such as interpersonal, digital, public, media, intercultural, transnational, gendered, racial, group, and organizational communication, to name a few. We refer to people who have the ability to communicate effectively in one or more of these modes as having communication competency, which requires a high level of “communication literacy” and knowledge of how communication actually works.

( CC BY-SA ) Communication Theory is a Wikibook with an overview of communication theory. It includes an introduction and then has chapters covering theories from Uncertainty Reduction to Uses and Gratification to Social Systems and Network Society.

Introduction to Persuasion ( C-ID COMM 190 )

( CC BY-NC-SA ) Exploring Perspectives helps students gain a better understanding of how to discover, develop, and revise an analytical essay. The first two chapters focus on the nature of an analysis and what’s involved in writing an analytical essay. Then students are shown how to “set the stage” for producing one of their own. The remaining three chapters reveal more specific advice on how to develop an analytical essay.

( CC BY 4.0 ) Each of the three modules in this series introducing the Little Red Schoolhouse principles aims to do several things: (1) Present an overview of the Little Red Schoolhouse method; (2) Review key LRS topics and terminology; (3) Examine one aspect of the writing and editing process more closely, working through selected examples.

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Using an OER resource that is missing from the list above?  If so,  please let us know .

This page last updated January 29, 2024.

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  • Sample Assignments

The following list suggests some possible speaking activities and is not meant to limit anyone’s creativity. Other kinds of speaking tasks are certainly possible.

Presentational Speaking

These assignments give students an opportunity to speak to an audience, and they can be done on an individual basis or students could work together as a presenting group. Some formats include:

  • Oral reports of research or student papers debates
  • Presentation of course content areas Interviews
  • Presentation analyzing a problem Oral exam
  • Role-playing as part of a simulation

Presentational speaking assignments encourage students to understand course material well enough to communicate it to others. Typically, these assignments emphasize factors such as:

  • research, analysis, evaluation of data
  • adaptation of materials to meet the demands of the occasion and audience
  • determination of a suitable purpose and focus for a presentation
  • development of a suitable and clear organizational pattern
  • development of arguments to support the speaker’s purpose
  • delivery skills suitable to the presentation’s objectives
  • listening to and critical evaluation of oral messages

Learning Groups and Class Discussion

Learning group activities give students specific oral tasks, such as analyzing a problem or examining textual material. The assignment is designed so that collaboration by group members is essential to make progress on the task. A speaking-intensive approach to learning groups and class discussion involves more than merely having discussions and using groups in class. To make the class speaking-intensive, instructors must spend time with students talking about the discussion process and the characteristics of good discussions. Instructors also provide opportunities for the class to assess its discussions and for students to examine their own communication behavior as part of the discussion group.

Learning group and class discussion formats include:

  • Laboratory groups Student led discussions (whole class)
  • Peer reviews Instructor led discussions (whole class)
  • Study groups Transcript analysis of group “talk”

Learning group and class discussion assignments emphasize factors such as:

  • development of discussion skills that facilitate group progress
  • an understanding of and skill in dealing with group conflict
  • increased student responsibility for learning in the class
  • an awareness of how questioning technique helps or hinders group talk

Task Group Projects

In these assignments, students work together for longer periods of time and may be expected to produce a final report of some sort. Often, task groups have to meet together outside of regular class times in order to work on their assigned projects.

Formats include:

  • Problem solving projects Analysis of case studies
  • Laboratory groups Research teams
  • “Task force” groups, assigned a long- or short-term product goal

Once again, simply assigning student group projects does not make one’s use of these activities speaking-intensive. Instructors must spend time with students talking about the group process and helping students learn how to understand group communication dynamics. Instructors also include opportunities for groups to assess their progress and for students to examine their own communication behavior as part of the group.

Task group assignments emphasize:

  • development of communication skills that facilitate group progress
  • awareness of and skill in dealing with group conflict
  • an understanding of the advantages and limitations of group work

Interpersonal Communication

These assignments involve projects in which two students communicate together for the purpose of achieving some common goal. Typical formats include: Role-playing cases (e.g., managerial issues, clinical interviews, conflict resolution)

One-on-one teaching/tutoring Interviews Interpersonal communication assignments help students:

  • gain and improve interpersonal communication skills
  • acquire an awareness of and skill in dealing with interpersonal conflicts
  • develop listening skills
  • Speaking Intensive Program
  • SI Course Expectations
  • Archive of the 2015 NACC Conference at UMW
  • Body Language
  • Formats for Group Presentations
  • Handling Speech Anxiety
  • Leading Discussion Groups
  • Moderating a Group Presentation
  • Outline Checklist
  • People Ask Me to Repeat Myself
  • Planning a Group Presentation
  • Preparing Speaking Notes
  • Preparing Supporting Materials
  • Settings for Group Presentations
  • Speech Organization
  • Toulmin Argument Model
  • Transitions
  • Using a Script
  • Using PowerPoint
  • Available Articles
  • Class Discussion
  • Communication
  • Evaluation Sheets
  • Learning Groups
  • Public Speaking
  • Task Groups
  • Speaking Center Video
  • Your First In-Class Presentation
  • Accommodations and Oral Communication Assignments
  • New Course Proposals
  • Speaking Intensive Committee
  • Speaking Intensive Committee – Minutes and Reports
  • Speaking Intensive Course List – courses approved by the SI committee
  • Using Video for Student Presentations
  • Speaking and Writing Center

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This site provides information on adult learning theories and research in relation to practice in the field of human resource development.

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Top 10 Activities for an Interpersonal Skill Workshop

interpersonal communication class assignments

In today’s age, when we are connected more than ever before through technology, communication skills are required in just about any area of life. All of us need to interact with people, and good communication skills allow us to form and maintain lasting relationships. Thankfully, there are methods we can use to improve our interpersonal skills .

For many, improving communication skills leads to greater confidence, transparency and a better quality of life. The following 10 methods we’ve reviewed can be used for an interpersonal skills workshop to help anyone, from the most seasoned public speaker to the shyest individual.

FAQ | Interpersonal Skills

1. how can interpersonal skill activities help.

Interpersonal skills are important Research suggests that the way we communicate with others has a large impact on the quality and outcomes of our relationships.

At their most basic level, interpersonal skills help us to be present in relationships, balance priorities and demands, reassess our desires and obligations and improve our sense of self-respect. These skills can then help us achieve our objectives, keep healthy relationships, and maintain our self-esteem, well-being and confidence.

Focusing on games and activities during an interpersonal skills workshop allows group leaders to focus on specific communication skills for their participants, such as learning to better express what they want or need or learning how to say “no”.

2. How Do Interpersonal Skills Activities Work?

Interpersonal skills activities are used in a workshop setting so a group of people, generally coworkers, can focus on specific, measurable goals. Participants may be asked to work in a group, listen closely to instructions, give or receive directions, mediate communication issues and/or conflicts, or read emotions. Not only are the activities effective, but they also can be fun, too.

Workshop leaders must come prepared to lead and bring a focused interpersonal skills activity that can provide a structure to keep the group focused on the task at hand.

3. Where Can You Learn These Activities?

The great thing about the activities we reviewed here is that they don’t cost you a thing. You just need to keep reading, explore the examples we give and then pick the activity or activities you wish to use in your workshop.

4. Why Do We Need to Improve Interpersonal Skills?

You may think that if you can already communicate, then you shouldn’t bother to improve. However you look at it, though, there is always room for improvement. Even the best communicators still need work. Keep working at your craft and the payoff will be substantial.

How We Decided on these Activities

We looked at prominent interpersonal skill activities used by many corporations today to train their employees and then did a thorough review of each one. We looked at what each activity involved, the benefits it offered and what some drawbacks of each one might be.

We narrowed our list of recommended activities down to the 10 best interpersonal skills activities we could identify. Then, at the end of this article, we let you know which activity we think is the best for organizational leaders to implement with their teams.

What We Reviewed

Listening dilemma, skills assessment handout, the elephant in the room list, try to not listen, group strengths & weaknesses, guess the emotion, repairing relationships, count the squares.

This activity couples communication with fun. With large, plastic cups, golf clubs (or anything similar), golf balls (or whiffle or tennis balls) and equipment, the group builds a mini golf course with cones, blocks, mats or something similar. This activity works best in a large room or field, in groups of two or four, and where the groups can build their own course .

Each group gets one, large plastic cup to use as a hole for the course . When each group finishes building its course , each member has to explain to the others in the workshop the reason they designed the course the way they did. After each group explains their reasoning, they play their course .

  • Easily explained game with well-known rules
  • Requires physical creativity, which may not be used in other types of activities
  • Can lead to a wider discussion on teamwork and project planning
  • Requires a substantial amount of space
  • Requires materials you may not already have in your office (i.e. clubs, balls, etc.)
  • Participants may get lost up in the fun of the activity and lose sight of its greater purpose

This activity is designed to improve listening skills and bring more awareness to the process of listening attentively. The rationale is that any failure to communicate can be traced back to either the listener’s lack of focus or his/her inability to interpret the speaker correctly.

Participants are asked to brainstorm communication issues they can focus on, to pay attention to body language and how others speak, to not think about how they will respond but rather listen to a speaker all the way through.

  • Encourages participants to think about how they listen to others and how they can better communicate messages
  • Doesn’t require any additional materials, or large amounts of space
  • Open discussion may lead to coworkers addressing real communication issues that have arisen in the office
  • It’s possible that no misinterpretations are experienced during a round
  • Some adults may consider the game childish, which may inhibit them

Participants are given a workout to assess their own interpersonal communication skills . In essence, it is a self- response questionnaire that gives context to specific and overall communication skills .

  • Allows individuals to think about their own communication without social pressure
  • Does not require a group meeting or taking much time out of the work day
  • Organizer gets direct insight into how participants perceive themselves
  • Does not include active communication or live feedback
  • Participants often rate themselves higher than others would rate them
  • Requires the preparation, analysis, and feedback of the test by the organizer
  • Does not lead to teamwork in identifying and solving communication problems

Participants in this game must break into groups, brainstorm, discuss and list all the ways they can sabotage a group assignment. Essentially, it can be anything that disrupts a team task . Then, the groups are pulled back together and all ideas are written down on a chalkboard.

Then, the participants are instructed to learn from the sabotage ideas and develop good ideas for successful group work.

  • Requires active teamwork
  • Participants use skills useful in the work environment, such as ideation, step-by-step planning and presentation
  • It is generally fun for all participants
  • It may be difficult for participants to come up with sabotage ideas
  • Younger participants may offer ridiculous examples, undermining the activity
  • Great sabotage ideas might reflect negatively on coworker’s motivations

This activity is a cross-section between problem-solving, communication and team building. It provides participants with a safe place to have open and honest dialogue, and can help team camaraderie while enhancing interpersonal skills . Better yet, if there are tense relationships within the team, management can use this activity to hash out real issues that often go unaddressed.

The activity begins with a group facilitator , who prepares pieces of paper with elephants on them and passes a set of them to each individual in the group. Each participant must spend a set amount of minutes to write one of their “elephants” and label them according to C-I-A principles: issues they can control, issues they can influence, or issues they have to accept.

These responses are then passed back to the facilitator and announced to the group. The group then discusses whether the elephants in each section should be in the section in which they were placed. The group the addresses the following: Why are we doing this? Why is this happening? What are we doing about it? Who can resolve these issues?

  • Anonymity of the cards allows participants to address real issues they face at work
  • An ideally trained facilitator can motivate and lead an honest, meaningful discussion
  • May have a direct positive impact on relationships in the workplace
  • Despite the ideal anonymous nature, some participants may not feel comfortable addressing the most important issues for fear of being identified
  • Without proper administration, heated and sometimes angry discussion can arise from pointed topics

This activity is meant to be lighthearted, yet capable of addressing serious issues in the office at the same time.

A facilitator divides the group into pairs. Each pair will have one “speaker” and one “listener.” The speaker must speak for X amount of time (two to three minutes) on a topic of their choice. Meanwhile, the listener must act in a way that shows he/she is not listening: the trick is that he/she can only use body language. Then, the partners switch.

Obviously, the focus of this activity is to show participants the importance of body language, and how listening or not listening can affect the confidence of any person who is trying to relay a message. Once the activity is done, participants reflect on their experiences.

  • Humorous at first, then engaging for the participants
  • Stresses the importance of body language, an important and oft-ignored aspect of interpersonal skills
  • Doesn’t require any additional materials or prep work
  • Some participants may get carried away with their acting role, which can draw attention away from the message
  • Some participants may not feel comfortable speaking extemporaneously
  • Limits the focus of the discussion primarily to body language

This simple activity can prove difficult for some staff members, but it has the potential for genuine reflection and subsequent changes in the way a group of professionals work together.

All this activity requires is that participants are organized into small groups. They then are told to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of each member, and how these might play off of each other and affect the dynamics of the whole tea — for better or worse.

A good moderator will lead the subsequent discussion toward focusing on what makes for a good team member and a good team.

  • Encourages honest reflection and communication with others
  • Addressing positive attributes can boost the self-esteem of some participants
  • Doesn’t require any additional materials or preparation
  • Some participants may show reticence at the idea of criticizing coworkers, and so may not be entirely truthful
  • Occasionally, participants might offer criticism that is too harsh to be appropriate for the desired environment
  • Even constructive criticism can lead to defensive behavior and emotional reactions

This simple activity can lead to participants reflecting on an aspect of their communication they might not normally consider: how their nonverbal reactions can be perceived by those they are communicating with.

The moderator should divide the group into two teams, giving each group a set of cards with emotions listed on them. A member from one team will act out said emotion, while the other team tries to guess what emotion it is. Whatever the age, this game is sure to be enjoyed!

  • Moderator can make the game competitive and/or offer some sort of prize, thus stimulating competition
  • Allows participants to actually see how they nonverbally communicate with others
  • Requires minimal preparation (just the cards)
  • Shy participants may not enjoy the activity and be hesitant to engage
  • Limits the topic of the discussion to nonverbal cues
  • Limited number of emotions means the activity may be over quickly

While this activity can prove emotional and difficult for some teammates, it has the potential for reflective communication and genuine connection between participants.

In a discussion format, participants are asked to think about problems they perceive in their most important relationships. The moderator should have prepared a worksheet to ask the participants to think about behaviors related to and ways to address these relationship problems.

After some time (several weeks, a month) participants will convene again and be given an additional worksheet which requires them to think about how they’ve enacted the behavioral changes from the first worksheet and what, if any, impacts these changes have had on their relationships. If the participants feel comfortable doing so, then the moderator may lead a discussion on these issues.

  • Requires participants to reflect and act on real issues in their lives regarding work or home life
  • The emotional connection to their relationships means participants are likely to follow through with their plans
  • Can result in positive benefits for the participants, both in the work environment and at home
  • Some participants may not wish to discuss these issues at work, not even via worksheet
  • Requires the preparation and analysis of the worksheets, and relies on all participants making good on their behavioral changes

For this activity, a PowerPoint must be prepared with an image with several squares, or a series of similar images of squares. Participants are asked to count the number of squares and to write the answer down, without communicating with each other. Then, they will share their answers, which the moderator will remember.

Then, the participants will team up with a coworker and count the squares again, with the process repeated. Finally, the moderator will go through the entire process again, this time with the participants in small groups.

This activity is a springboard to discussing how additional perspective can change how one approaches a subject. An ideal moderator will lead a discussion on group synergy and how it can be promoted in the workplace.

  • Easy to prepare and visually stimulating
  • Produces the sensation of competition, which may increase engagement among participants
  • Allows for reflection on the dynamics of group interaction
  • Some individuals may count the correct number of squares the first time, undermining the activity
  • Participants may have difficulty drawing the link between the image of squares and the discussion that follows
  • Requires space and material for a PowerPoint presentation that can be easily viewed by the entire team

The Verdict

Ultimately, you are the one who best knows the people with whom you work. You know their strengths, their weaknesses and what activity is likely to appeal to them.

Different interpersonal skills can be practiced with different activities. If your team consists of mostly shy, reflective people, then we think you are best keeping them comfortably engaged by trying Repairing Relationships or the Skills List Handout .

If you know real interpersonal problems exist within your team currently, then we recommend you try the Elephant in the Room or Strengths and Weaknesses, in an attempt to address and resolve these issues.

Or, if you simply want a fun activity to get your workers to thinking about how they communicate, then we think you can’t go wrong with Count the Squares or Mini Golf.

No one activity is a magic wand that will automatically make your participants perfect communicators. But with the right amount of thought and preparation, and with the skills of a good leader acting as a moderator, any of these activities might lead to real reflection on behalf of the participants, and subsequent improvement in the interpersonal skills of the entire team.

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10 Interpersonal Skills Games & Activities For Students And Adults

Interpersonal skills are the foundation of effective communication, and they play a vital role in our personal and professional relationships. Whether it’s in the classroom, the boardroom, or at home, the ability to connect with others and make our voices heard is an essential tool for success. However, developing these skills takes practice and effort. That’s where interpersonal skills activities come in.

For adults, they can help to sharpen existing skills, refresh forgotten ones, and offer new perspectives on the importance of interpersonal communication. But what makes these activities so significant? Well, think of them as a workout for your interpersonal skills. 

So, what are you waiting for? Whether you’re a seasoned communicator or just starting out, there’s always room for improvement. With a little effort and some creative thinking, you can hone your interpersonal skills and become a communication master. Who knows? You might even discover a hidden talent for making others feel heard, understood, and valued. In a world where effective communication is becoming increasingly important, there’s no better time to invest in your interpersonal skills.

Connecting through play: Interpersonal skills games & activities for students & adults

Interpersonal skills play a crucial role in today’s learning as well as working environment. Besides a step-by-step guide for improving interpersonal skills , interactive games and activities not only let individuals have fun but also foster communication skills, and teamwork, and help cultivate meaningful bonds with each other. The following games and activities are such that they can be played both by students as well as adults in their group settings. So, let’s begin the fun

1. Listening like a superhero

Listening like a superhero

Listening like a superhero is an interpersonal skills activity designed to teach students the importance of active listening. Active listening is a critical skill that involves paying attention, focusing on the speaker, and actively engaging with the message being communicated. This activity helps students to develop their listening skills by encouraging them to listen carefully, ask questions, and provide feedback to their peers.

To do this activity, gather the students in a circle and have each student take turns speaking about a topic of their choice for two minutes or pair them up. The other students must listen attentively and ask questions to clarify any points they may not have understood. 

After each student has spoken, the group or the pair can discuss what they learned from the exercise and how they can apply active listening in their everyday lives. This activity helps students to build stronger relationships, improve their communication skills, and become more effective listeners.

2. Drama Queen/King

Drama Queen/King

Drama Queen/King is an interpersonal skills activity that helps develop important skills such as active listening, conflict resolution, and effective communication. The activity involves players stepping into their favorite characters and acting out different scenarios. 

To perform the Drama Queen/King activity, gather players into small groups of three or four. Each group should choose a favorite character to play, such as a character from a movie, book, TV show, or even a historical figure. Provide players with different scenarios to act out, focusing on interpersonal skills such as conflict resolution, active listening, or effective communication. 

Give each group a few minutes to prepare and rehearse their scene. Then, have each group take turns acting out their scenario in front of the class. After each performance, encourage the class to provide feedback and discuss what they learned from the exercise. This activity provides students with a fun and engaging way to practice important interpersonal skills and build stronger relationships.

3. The Great Debate

 The Great Debate

The Great Debate is an interpersonal skills activity that helps improve critical thinking, negotiation, and persuasive skills. In this activity, divide the whole group into teams and give them the task of debating a lighthearted and fun topic. This allows players to practice important skills such as expressing their opinions, listening to others, and persuading others to see their point of view. 

Select a fun and lighthearted topic for the debate , such as the best type of pizza topping or the most fun holiday. Provide each team with time to prepare their arguments and practice their delivery. After the debate, debrief with the class to discuss what they learned from the exercise and how they can apply the skills they practiced in their everyday lives.

4. The Empathy Challenge

The Empathy Challenge

The Empathy Maze is an interactive experience designed to foster empathy, active listening, and cooperation among individuals. This empathy activity transports participants through a labyrinth of challenges that require them to step into another’s shoes and grasp their emotions. 

Assemble small groups of individuals, each composed of two or three trailblazers. Conjure up a collection of challenges that will test their ability to understand and empathize with others. These could include imaginative scenarios, where different emotions are displayed and discussed. 

Allow each group to collaborate and discuss with each other and then provide their analysis of the same which can include the emotions involved in the scenario, how one should react in the same, and what could be possible solutions and strategies to cope. As and when everyone is done with their presentation of the viewpoints, the rest of the whole group can give ratings on the basis of how satisfying the response is. 

This activity is a fun and imaginative way for students to build deeper relationships by honing their interpersonal skills. It provides a dynamic platform to develop their empathetic skills and become more effective communicators.

5. Mystery Guest

Mystery Guest

The Mystery Guest is a captivating interpersonal skills exercise that hones individuals’ empathy, active listening, and observation abilities. In this activity, players rotate as the enigma, and the rest of the cohort endeavors to decipher their internal sentiments, musings, and emotions. 

Assemble the participants into a bustling group. Select one player to become the enigmatic visitor and request that they express a specific emotion, thought, or feeling without revealing what it is. Inspire the rest of the cohort to tap into their active listening and observation skills as they attempt to decode the mystery guest’s internal landscape. Continue the activity, rotating through different players as the mystery guest, until all have had a chance to participate.

This activity provides a fun and interactive platform for students as well as adults to improve their interpersonal skills and deepen their understanding of others. By engaging in active listening and observation, players will become more effective communicators and build stronger relationships with their peers.

6. The Body Language Battle

 The Body Language Battle

The body language battle can be the perfect interpersonal skills activity for anyone looking forward to working on their skills. Going well beyond spoken words, the activity requires participants to engage in a friendly competition to see who can best interpret and display various nonverbal cues and body language. 

Through role-plays and demonstrations, participants will learn the power of nonverbal communication and how it can impact their interactions with others. For instance, one member from each of the teams will just act out non-verbally expressions of various emotions.

They will also have the opportunity to practice using effective body language themselves, helping them to better understand and connect with others. The team that is able to guess the most correct emotions with body language displayed wins. The activity will strengthen one’s understanding of human emotions, body language, and interpersonal understanding.

7. Observational skills challenge

Observational skills challenge

This challenge is an interpersonal skills activity designed to help individuals connect with and understand one another. In today’s busy times, instead of building a meaningful connection or know the other person, people usually connect with each other for one or the other purpose only which results in a lack of understanding and coordination among them. So, let’s do this activity, learn, and enjoy.

To start, instruct participants that they need to meet 5 people in the group and try to drive the conversation for at least 5 minutes and observe and note the key points about their personalities. Set a time for about 25-30 minutes for participants to complete the task. Or else, you can give an entire day for this and let them take their time to connect twitch each other. 

Next, gather together and participants can voluntarily share their analysis about each person to which the rest of the people can give feedback and the person for whom the observation is being shared can add his/her inputs too that whether these are right or wrong or what else is there about their personality or nature which is not being observed. This activity can help people challenge their observational skills along with improving communication skills and connecting abilities.

8. Collaborative Storytelling

Collaborative Storytelling

To adapt the activity for adults, you can choose a prompt that relates to the work or industry that the group is in. For example, if the group works in marketing, the prompt could be “Once upon a time, there was a startup that needed to develop a new marketing campaign.” Each person can take turns adding to the story, with each sentence building on the previous one and advancing the narrative. Similarly, the prompt can be according to the age level or experience level of the participants.

Collaborative storytelling can be a valuable interpersonal skills activity for both students as well as adults. It can help develop their communication and collaboration skills, while also fostering creativity and teamwork.

As the story progresses, encourage the group to work together to develop a clear and cohesive message that aligns with their company’s goals and values. This will require active listening, clear communication, and a willingness to collaborate and build on each other’s ideas.

After the story is finished, you can have the group reflect on the process and discuss what they learned about communication, collaboration, and creativity. You can also ask them to brainstorm ways to apply these skills to their work, such as through brainstorming sessions, project collaborations, or team-building activities.

Head Up

Improv Madness is an energetic and entertaining interpersonal skills activity that is perfect for adults who want to have fun while also improving their teamwork, communication, and trust skills. This game helps people connect with each other better and fosters more understanding and coordination among each other.

This game can be played by anyone in a group. All you have to do is stick any word on the forehead of one of the players. The word can be anything, be it related to a movie name, emotion, etc. The player must be unaware of the word being stuck to his/her forehead and the challenge is to guess that word right in the minimum time possible. For the same, the other players need to do some actions in order to help that player get the idea about what it is. 

It is just like charades with the difference of one player being the guesser and the rest all acting to help to get to that mystery word. Being a vocabulary-building activity , it helps participants update their lexicon, learn to work better as a team, communicate more effectively, and build stronger relationships with their peers.

10. Get to Know You” Bingo activity 

Get to Know You" Bingo activity 

Create a bingo board with statements or questions that are relevant to the group’s interests or work. If it is a group of students or individuals at work, then the statements will change accordingly. For example, if the group is a new team at work, the bingo board could include statements like “Has worked in the industry for over 5 years,” “Speaks a second language,” or “Has completed a marathon.” 

Distribute the bingo boards to each participant, and instruct them to mingle and find colleagues who fit the statements or questions in each box. Encourage them to have conversations with each other, and to actively listen to what their colleagues are saying.

The first person to complete a row or column on their bingo board and return to their seat with a completed board wins a prize. This could be something small like a gift card or a snack. After the game is over, have the group reflect on what they learned about each other and what surprised them. Encourage them to share one thing they learned with the whole group.

As a follow-up activity, you can have the group pair up with someone they don’t know well and continue the conversation, using some of the questions from the bingo board as a guide. This will allow them to build connections and deepen their understanding of each other’s interests and experiences.

Interpersonal skills are essential for both students and adults to develop and maintain successful relationships and achieve their personal and professional goals. Games provide a fun and interactive way to practice and improve these skills, including communication, collaboration, problem-solving, and conflict resolution. If you think, you’ve got a strong hold on interpersonal skills, then you must check out interpersonal intelligence career options .

Whether playing with friends, family, or coworkers, incorporating games into one’s personal and professional life can foster greater social connection and increase overall happiness and success. So next time you have a chance to play a game, embrace it as an opportunity to build and strengthen your interpersonal skills.

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I am Shweta Sharma. I am a final year Masters student of Clinical Psychology and have been working closely in the field of psycho-education and child development. I have served in various organisations and NGOs with the purpose of helping children with disabilities learn and adapt better to both, academic and social challenges. I am keen on writing about learning difficulties, the science behind them and potential strategies to deal with them. My areas of expertise include putting forward the cognitive and behavioural aspects of disabilities for better awareness, as well as efficient intervention. Follow me on LinkedIn

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100 Best Communication Topics You’ll Ever Need

Interpersonal Communication Topics

Public speaking has gained great recognition over the past few years. Where it wasn’t even considered a valuable skill a decade ago, public speaking has now become the main part of college curriculums. Students who are good at delivering speeches are encouraged to do better and hone their skills.

If you are fond of public speaking or know someone who is into speeches and debates, this guide is going to serve you the right way. It will provide you with interesting communication research topics and give you the best writing help ever.

What Are Communication Topics?

If you are a newbie in this field, you might be wondering what public speaking is and how to ace it.

Basically, public speaking is any kind of speech that is given in front of an audience – be it an official event, a college competition, or any other occasion. It consists of a large range of interpersonal communication topics and has many benefits.

Public speaking is done for many different reasons, where education stands on top of the list. People who are studying communication topics are always on the lookout for communication research topics such as interpersonal communication research topics, communication thesis ideas, social media research topics, and whatnot.

Everyone wants to bag in the best communication thesis ideas and make sure their presentations are the finest of all. We are sure you are one of those people; that is why we have written this guide to give you an insight into lots of topics in interpersonal communication.

Benefits Of Public Speaking

As we mentioned above, there are numerous advantages to this skill, and it really helps you in all stages of your life. Here is a brief list:

Boosts up your confidence Improves your research skills Builds your patience Helps in educating other people through your knowledge Aids your mental growth Results in great exposure Better conclusive skills Makes you a convincing person You automatically build an opinion about everything after going through all the communication research ideas Transforms your body language

Now you probably know what we were talking about in the previous paragraphs. If you are not a speaker at the moment, it is high time you consider doing it from now on because you can see all the amazing benefits it will bring your way. It will certainly make you a better and more learned person who can actually influence people’s opinions about how they see the world.

100 Interpersonal Communication Topics For You

In case you are still stuck with interpersonal communication research topics, we have written down a long list of research topics for communication to help you with your studies as well as give you public speaking ideas.

Funny speech topics

  • No one wants to grow up
  • Parents should ask for our consent before bringing us into the world
  • Vegetarians not allowed
  • Why is there a temptation in only the prohibited things
  • Our favorite childhood memories
  • Let us travel back to happy times when we were not born
  • You should smile more often
  • A billion reasons why telling the truth doesn’t always work
  • Let us just say no to growing up
  • Mayonnaise beats ketchup
  • Being weird is good

Informative speech topics

  • The history of evolution
  • Is the earth flat or round?
  • Let us give our women their rights
  • 100 reasons why racism should not exist
  • Let us clean our motherland
  • Deep-rooted causes of coronavirus
  • History and origin of America
  • The era of believers
  • How did the internet affect us?
  • How continents came into existence

Beauty and fashion related speech topics

  • The history and origin of makeup
  • Why is skincare your best friend
  • Skincare is all about your water intake
  • Miniskirts vs. trousers
  • Reasons to wear makeup
  • How makeup impacts confidence
  • High heels or sneakers?
  • Ideal skincare routine for everyone
  • Makeup is not for a specific gender
  • Skincare over makeup

Sports-related speech topics

  • Football releases stress
  • College athletes should be paid
  • Girls need more inclusion in sports
  • Health benefits that sports bring
  • Why choose cricket over baseball?
  • Female vs. male wrestlers
  • Is wrestling a healthy sport?
  • Make sports safe for LGBT sportsmen
  • Paralympics and its benefits
  • Its high time we stop sexism in sports

Inspirational interpersonal communication topics

  • We got this!
  • There is way more to life than you think
  • Get your life together
  • Make yourself proud before anyone else
  • Way to love yourself
  • Forgiveness is not easy but always gives you relief
  • The key is to hold on
  • You should be the most important person in your life
  • 100 reasons why we should be more kind
  • Fake it till you make it!
  • Work hard in silence and let your success make the noise

Mental health awareness speech topics

  • Personality disorders amongst teens and their solutions
  • Is the medication required for mental illnesses?
  • How important is therapy?
  • Rub off those suicidal thoughts
  • You are important
  • Physical and mental health should be given equal importance
  • Men have the right to show their emotions, and no one should tell them otherwise
  • Peer pressure and its side effects
  • Deaf your ears to everything but your heart
  • Let us break stereotypes

Communication research topics for kids

  • Mobile phones or books?
  • The better side of technology
  • Play-time is as important as studies
  • No more homework!
  • Should homeschooling become more common?
  • Introduce evening shifts in schools!
  • How to be a pro at maths
  • Always stand up to bullies
  • Be a kinder version of yourself, every day
  • Should watching cartoons be allowed in schools?

Health and medical speech topics

  • Every doctor should get a gold medal for his services
  • Accept your body
  • The importance of drinking water
  • Take care of your diet
  • Here is why you should never step near drugs
  • Why should a headache never be ignored?
  • The correct first aid kit can help save a life
  • How do cell-phones affect our health?
  • Top things to do for better brain functioning
  • What should be done to improve immunity?

Political speech topics

  • Is democracy really the best option?
  • The problem of investing in biological weaponries
  • Why are taxes needed?
  • Should chain-smokers pay a health tax?
  • Does voting actually help?
  • We want justice
  • Why isn’t the government against racism?

Environmental interpersonal communication topics

  • Recycle paper as much as possible
  • How to make recycling a part of daily life?
  • Plastic should be completely banned
  • Only one car per house should be allowed
  • Let us beat global warming together
  • Why we need to plant more trees
  • We lack fresh air – aren’t you worried?
  • An animal’s life is just as important as a human’s.
  • It is high time you stop wasting water
  • Adopt a stray cat instead of buying an expensive breed
  • No one can save our planet but us!

Now that you have reached the century, we are sure you know what your next speech will be about. We hope this guide helped you out! However, should you need a professional writer by your side , feel free to contact our experts – they will nail it in no time!

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IMAGES

  1. Interpersonal Communication Class Notes by Communication Innovation

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  2. Interpersonal Communication: Definition and Example

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  3. Interpersonal Communication Assignment Help By Professional Experts

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  4. Interpersonal Speaking: Activities and assessments

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  5. How to Improve Your Interpersonal Communication Skills

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  6. Interpersonal Communications Essay Examples

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  1. Interpersonal Communication Plan Assignment HSCO508 D03

  2. Effective Communication

  3. EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

  4. Interpersonal Project

  5. Final Presentation Project

  6. David Touchard, Interpersonal Communication Class, Instructor Cecilia Gutierrez, September 20 2023

COMMENTS

  1. COM200 Week 1 Assignment

    Interpersonal Communication Skills Improvement Plan. Introduction. Interpersonal communication is a fundamental skill that plays a pivotal role in all aspects of our lives. From personal relationships to professional settings, effective interpersonal communication can enhance understanding, foster relationships, and promote productivity.

  2. 4 Practical and Fun Interpersonal Communication Activities

    1. Interpersonal communication helps them build confidence and overcome anxiety about speaking. Let's be honest; many students find it terrifying to speak up in a language class. They're accustomed to carefully phrasing their communication via social media comments or text messages.

  3. Interpersonal Speaking: Activities and…

    HOWEVER, even without that spontaneous, two-way interaction, all of these activities will build students' confidence and competence in the building blocks of Interpersonal communication. Thank you, and goodnight. Interpersonal speaking is an advanced communicative mode. Consider whether it is appropriate to assess and to practice interpersonal ...

  4. PDF Introduction to Interpersonal Communication Skills SPC 2300

    Introduction to Interpersonal Communication Skills SPC 2300 - Spring 2021. Teaching Assistant: Rachel O'Neal ([email protected]) - Rachel should be your first point of contact in the class. Feel free to 'cc me on all emails though. Office: On Zoom. Office Hours: Mondays 12:30pm-3:30pm via Zoom (link on canvas) Phone: 392-5421 fax = 352-392-5420.

  5. PDF INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION

    This course will utilize the following instruments to determine student grades and proficiency of the learning outcomes for the course (see full assignment descriptions below under course assignment on page 13). Presentations - individual and group oral presentations . communication theories and concepts, critical thinking,

  6. Interpersonal Communication: A Mindful Approach to Relationships

    About the Book. Interpersonal Communication: A Mindful Approach to Relationships helps readers examine their own one-on-one communicative interactions using a mindfulness lens. The writing team of Jason S. Wrench, Narissra M. Punyanunt-Carter, and Katherine Thweatt incorporates the latest communication theory and research to help students ...

  7. Interpersonal Communication: Strategies for Executives

    Self-Paced Online (date based) 6 weeks. 6-8 hrs/week. $2,950. This online course uses research and practice-based methods to improve your communication skills in a variety of contexts. Specifically, it's built around the RELATE framework, developed at the MIT Sloan School of Management to support a scalable communication strategy.

  8. The 5 Best Activities for Improving Interpersonal Communication

    Stronger interpersonal relationships. Improved morale. Increased engagement. Clearer understanding of roles. Better navigation of complex situations. Improved professional outcomes. There are also outward-facing benefits for organisations that invest in improving interpersonal communication in the workplace.

  9. Developing Interpersonal Skills

    Interpersonal Skills are skills you use every day to communicate and interact with others. They enable you to interact positively and work effectively with others. The Interpersonal Skills course will help you develop skills and behaviors required to become an effective communicator, make a lasting impact, and deal with challenges in a ...

  10. Online Course: Interpersonal Communication

    Online Class: Interpersonal Communication. This course presents concepts essential to understanding the complex dynamics that go into constructing and maintaining our relationships, offering a multitude of research-based insights that will help students better understand themselves, their relationship partners, and relationship dynamics. $ 95.00.

  11. Online Course Assignments

    When creating or revising a course it is important to include activities and assignments that are both interesting and of pedagogical value. Creating assignments and activities can be more challenging in online courses. To help alleviate this difficulty, this section includes several activities and assignments created by Communication instructors with experience in online teaching.

  12. Relationship Assignment

    This assignment is designed to help you practice evaluating orally and in writing interpersonal skill concepts covered in this course. You will by analyzing a relationship that is important to you and describing it in terms used in the textbook and class discussions. This assignment has two components: a 2-4 page paper and an oral presentation.

  13. Syllabus

    Click on SPCH 1318 Interpersonal Communication under "My Courses." Carefully read all the information provided under the Course Syllabus, Instructor Information, and Course Schedule links on the left-hand side, as well as instructions for completing and submitting the various assignments. You will then need to complete the Orientation Quiz.

  14. PDF A Pedagogical Guide to Teaching an Interpersonal Communication Course

    In this article, we examine foundational material and content areas generally included in an interpersonal communication course. We then provide examples of applied assignments included in an interpersonal communication course. Finally, we discuss several issues instructors should consider when teaching an interpersonal communication course.

  15. Syllabus

    Course Assignments and Grading. Your grade in SPCH 1318 will be based upon a series of online quizzes as well as written and oral assignments. The distribution of each assignment is listed below. ... Interpersonal Communication and You: An Introduction (1st edition). Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's. ISBN: 978-1-4576-6253-9 (Paperback)

  16. 49 Communication Activities, Exercises & Games

    To get started improving your (or your team's, or your student's) communication skills, give these 5 activities a try. 1. Card Pieces. This exercise from the team at MindTools is a good way to help participants develop more empathy, consider other perspectives, build their communication and negotiation skills.

  17. Open Educational Resources and Communication Studies

    A Primer on Communication Studies (LardBucket) ( CC BY-NC-SA 3.0) A Primer on Communication Studies is a comprehensive textbook that covers all of the basics of communication including perception, verbal and nonverbal communication, listening, and culture. It also has chapters on public speaking including preparing and delivering speeches.

  18. Sample Assignments

    Learning Groups and Class Discussion. Learning group activities give students specific oral tasks, such as analyzing a problem or examining textual material. The assignment is designed so that collaboration by group members is essential to make progress on the task. ... One-on-one teaching/tutoring Interviews Interpersonal communication ...

  19. COMM212: Interpersonal Communication

    Quizzes/Attendance/Daily Assignments/overall contribution/class activities(35%) (I, II, IV, V) Because this is an activities-based class, participation is critical and therefore, a significant part of your grade. Students are expected to be active in class discussion by facilitating and enabling discussion with your peers.

  20. Syllabus

    Assignments in This Course that Fulfill These Requirements, with Brief Descriptions: ... Improving Interpersonal Communication Project - Students will research advice for improving a specific interpersonal communication skill, then report the advice in a research summary. Some students will create a visual research presentation of this advice ...

  21. Top 10 Activities for an Interpersonal Skill Workshop

    Interpersonal skills activities are used in a workshop setting so a group of people, generally coworkers, can focus on specific, measurable goals. Participants may be asked to work in a group, listen closely to instructions, give or receive directions, mediate communication issues and/or conflicts, or read emotions.

  22. 10 Interpersonal Skills Games & Activities For Students And Adults

    This activity helps students to build stronger relationships, improve their communication skills, and become more effective listeners. 2. Drama Queen/King. Drama Queen/King is an interpersonal skills activity that helps develop important skills such as active listening, conflict resolution, and effective communication.

  23. Interpersonal Communication Topics: 100 Topic Ideas For You

    Inspirational interpersonal communication topics. We got this! There is way more to life than you think. Get your life together. Make yourself proud before anyone else. Way to love yourself. Forgiveness is not easy but always gives you relief. The key is to hold on. You should be the most important person in your life.