Teaching Sequence

20 minutes – Part A: Personal Qualities for a Difficult Conversation
35 minutes – Part B: Identifying Personal Qualities
5 minutes – Reflection

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

Part A: Personal Qualities for a Difficult Conversation

Step 1.

Begin by explaining to students that in this lesson they will be exploring difficult conversations and the skills needed to initiate and engage in difficult conversations.

Invite students to respond to the following through a brief class discussion:

Think back to a time when you had to have a difficult conversation: how did it make you feel and why?

Explain to students that they don't need to share what the conversation was about, just their feelings and emotions in response to the conversation.

Step 2.

Once students have had an opportunity to share, pose the following question to students (also available on the Student Worksheet):

Why do we need strategies for engaging in difficult conversations?

Invite students to take a few moments to record their responses on the Student Worksheet. Students can then come together to share their thoughts with the class. You could also suggest answers such as:

Finding a resolution to a difficult problem can often mean communicating about that problem.
Understanding how other people feel about a problem or an issue can help guide decision making around that problem or issue.
Difficult problems or issues are often emotional – having strategies to deal with emotions can help to resolve these issues or problems or move the conversation onwards.

Through your discussion explain that they will be exploring the question in more detail in this lesson, using the topic of organ and tissue donation as an example of a difficult discussion topic.

Step 3.

Students will work in groups to participate in a brainstorming activity around the personal qualities that might be important when having a difficult conversation. Before they begin, briefly engage students in a class discussion around what a 'personal quality' might be. Suggest to students that personal qualities are:

The personal characteristics of an individual.
What make up our personalities, and what determine how a person will act in a situation.
Something we are born with, something we learn as children, and something we can continue to learn throughout our lives.

Next, break students into groups of three or four. Students could record their brainstorm on a piece of butcher's paper or could use an online mind-mapping tool such as Mindmeister or bubbl.us.

Invite each group to create a mind-map of the personal qualities they believe might be important when initiating a difficult conversation (e.g. a conversation about a difficult topic). Students should also include a short sentence about why this quality might be important.

To get students started, suggest some of the personal qualities included in the sample mind-map below:

Step 4.

Once complete, invite the class to come together to share their mind-maps, explaining why they included the personal qualities that they did. Invite a student scribe to create a list on the board of all the personal qualities identified by the class.

You could then engage students in a class discussion around their ideas and suggest further qualities (such as the ones included in the mind-map above). Points for your discussion could include:

Which of these personal qualities would be most important if someone was initiating a difficult discussion with you and why?
Which of these personal qualities do you think you might struggle with and why? How might you strengthen this quality within yourself?

Part B: Identifying Personal Qualities

Step 1.

Now explain to students that they will be watching a clip of people talking about some of the difficult aspects of organ donation, and then engaging in a discussion around this clip using the questions provided below (also available for students to answer on the Student Worksheet):

You could watch the clip through once and then ask questions below. You should then navigate to the points in the clip that students identify in their answers to the questions to help clarify their answers.

Dying to Live: Kate's Story (https://youtu.be/jr3eracx_Kk)

Students could work as a class or in groups to discuss their answers to these questions.

Discussion questions:

What difficult conversations did you identify in this clip?
What did you find interesting about the way people had these conversations?
What personal qualities did the people in the clip use in these difficult conversations?
Did you identify any other personal qualities not included in your mind-map? Which ones and how were they used? Add these to the list of personal qualities on the board.
What strategies did they appear to use when employing these qualities (for example, being quiet while considering their answers to ensure their answers were clear and respectful)?

Step 2.

Break the class into groups of two or three students and assign each group two or three of the personal qualities listed on the board, ensuring that each personal quality has been assigned at least once. Explain to students that each group will now create a poster that describes the qualities they have been assigned and that includes suggestions on practical strategies for each quality (e.g. what actions they can take when using a personal quality). Posters should also include at least one image or symbol that supports the content of the poster. These can be sourced online (with references) or created by students.

Students may need to undertake research online to find out more about their personal quality and the strategies for each quality. Remind students of the Search Strategies for Googling.

Use this Poster Assessment Rubric to assess student work.

Step 3.

Once complete, create a gallery walk of posters:

Remind students to be kind, helpful and specific when providing feedback.

Reflection

Present the following information about organ and tissue donation from the Donate Life website to students (also available on the Student Worksheet):

Source: https://donatelife.gov.au/about-donation/get-facts/myths-and-misconceptions

Invite students to imagine they want to initiate a conversation about organ and tissue donation with their families. Students need to work independently to create a script for this conversation that incorporates some of the personal qualities and strategies identified in this lesson. Students can annotate their scripts.

Differentiated learning

Extension – Consider inviting students to respond to the following question in writing:

How might the personal qualities identified in this lesson contribute to your relationships with friends, family and the community generally?

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

Dying To Live - Personal Qualities for Difficult Conversations

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