Active Listening Lesson Plans

Students talk with a partner. In this listening lesson, students play a favorite colors listening games, review a checklist for active listening and practice active listening with a partner.

Young scholars develop listening skills. In this listening skills lesson, students work in pairs to practice active listening skills by making eye contact, nodding, and using gestures.

Students practice active listening skills.  In this literacy and U.S. history lesson, students predict the hardships pioneers using the Mormon Trail might have faced. Students view the movie "Children of the Wagon Train," then confirm or reject their predictions. Students form small groups to discuss their predictions, then complete an individual assessment sheet on how well they listened.

Students practice greeting classmates politely.  In this manners lesson, students discover active listening, and how learning names and building community benefits a working environment.  Students utilize these methods throughout the school year.

Fourth graders relate what is read to their own experiences and feelings and use active listening to respond to other students' comments. After a lecture/demo, 4th graders utilize an Active Listening Chart imbedded in this plan to gain practice.

Students listen carefully so they can say their "part" during a reading of a Cinderella story. For this listening and speaking lesson, students saying their "part" on cue during a reading of a familiar story. They actively listen to the story interjecting as needed.

Twelfth graders work in groups to create a speech about a special event in their life. They present their speech to the class, and participate in a peer review of the speech. An emphasis is placed on active listening strategies, and clarity of the speech.

Students discuss the importance of good listening skills. In groups, they participate in various scenerios in which they practice reflective and active listening. To end the lesson, they complete a listening quiz and compare it to one taken earlier.

Fourth graders create a chart or web to display qualities and characteristics of a good leader. They write a paragraph describing the qualities of a good Jamestown leader. Finally, 4th graders contribute to small group discussion about the candidates for leader while demonstrating active listening skills and seeking the ideas and opinions of others to agree upon and determine the most qualified leader for Jamestown.

Ninth graders actively listen to the story, "The Little House." They determine the sequence of events in the story and differentiate between natural changes and man-made changes in the environment over time. They use word processing software to write about the little house's feelings.