Leadership for Student Activities - January 2015, NHS & NJHS Edition - (Page 28)

Lessons for Leaders Discovering Your Organization's Identity LY N FI SCUS Objective ■ Students will create a visual representation of their organization and develop a plan to promote its brand. Materials ■ Three different colors of construction paper (provide a ■ ■ ■ ■ half sheet of each color per student) Scissors Glue or glue sticks Markers A large piece of banner paper Time Required 45-60 minutes Procedure 1. Write the phrase "Together we are ... " on the board. Ask students to consider the strengths of your organization as a group and then individually write three words on a scrap of paper to complete the sentence. After giving them time to consider their answers, ask students to call out words they have written and record them on the board. Put tallies next to repeated words. Come up with as many words as possible. 2. Once the list is compiled, have students select a word from the list to illustrate. Give each student half of a piece of construction paper to use as a background, and two additional half sheets of differing colors to use for decorating the background piece. Instruct students to use words, drawings, and symbols to create a "quilt" piece conveying the meaning of the word they selected as it relates to your organization. (Alternatively, this could be done as a homework assignment and could include 28 leadership for student activities photos of group members engaged in organization activities, pictures from magazines, etc.) 3. Allow 15-20 minutes to create the quilt pieces. Then ask students to share their pieces with the class, highlighting the ways the words they selected relate to your organization. As students finish their presentations, have them attach their piece to the banner paper, in rows, to create a large paper quilt. Processing Engage students in a discussion using the following questions: ■ Looking at the quilt on the wall, what impression do you have? ■ Does anything stand out? ■ What might a person who doesn't know anything about our organization think of us by looking at this quilt? ■ What kind of impression does our organization promote to our school community? ■ In what ways do we show our school and community what our organization is all about? ■ What is our brand? ■ How can we do a better job of promoting a positive image of our organization? Follow-up Divide students into small groups to brainstorm a public relations plan to promote your organization. Lyn Fiscus (lyn@leadershiplogistics.us) is a freelance education writer and the founder of the Teaching Leadership website (leadershipteacher.webnode.com). She currently serves as vice president of the Alliance for Student Activities. http://leadershipteacher.webnode.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Leadership for Student Activities - January 2015, NHS & NJHS Edition

Editor’s Note
Questions & Answers
Take Note
From the Director
Building a Buzz
The Calm Created by Disruption
Giving Students a Voice
Middle Level Activities
Lessons for Leaders
Scholarships & Awards
Activities Exchange
Things to Do

Leadership for Student Activities - January 2015, NHS & NJHS Edition