• communicate and compare their ideas with one another
• build on one another’s ideas
• discuss and debate these ideas
• revise and rethink their reasoning
• present their final team understanding through multi-modal representations.

Opportunities for working in collaborative learning teams are highlighted throughout each curriculum unit. Students need to be taught how to work collaboratively. They need to work together regularly to develop effective group learning skills.

Team roles

Students are assigned specific roles (Director, Manager or Speaker) within their team. The wristbands have been sized and grouped into class packs to fit different aged students and to reflect the number of different roles at different year levels.

For Year 3 to Year 7, the teams consist of three students: Director, Manager and Speaker (medium sized bands). For Foundation to Year 2, teams consist of two students: Manager and Speaker (small sized bands). Students wear the wristband that identifies them as belonging to their role, for example, blue wristband for Managers. This makes it easier for teachers to identify which role each student is doing and it is easier for the students to remember what they and their team members should be doing. The coloured wristbands are made from non-toxic silicon and are sold in class sets in a clear, re-useable zippered bag for easy transport and storage.