Now have participants practice listening.

Pair participants and ask each member of the pair to take a turn being a listener and a speaker in the following scenarios.

- Scenario 1: The speaker describes something that he/she likes to do during free time at home. The listener will only use " passive" listening. This means the listener cannot ask questions, talk in any way or encourage the speaker nonverbally (head nods) or verbally.

- Scenario 2: The speaker will describe one of the most exciting things he/she has ever done. The listener will give verbal and nonverbal signs that he/she is listening (nodding, eye contact, not interrupting, encouraging utterances).

-Scenario 3: The speaker with make and finish the statement, “My least favorite subject in school is _______." The listener will ask questions that expand the conversation by inviting the speaker to say more.

- Scenario 4: The speaker will describe a situation about which he/she felt angry. The listener will mirror or restate the feelings and facts in what is being said (“It sounds like you felt..." and " If I heard you right, you said that...").

After allowing about four minutes for each scenario, with each person taking the listener and speaker roles for each scenario, ask participants to pause and share with their partners their answers to the following questions:

• When listening, what did it feel like to be listened to in the different ways you were instructed?
• When speaking, what did it feel like to be listened to in the different ways? When did you feel most that you had the listener’s attention and were understood? Why?

After completion of the last of the scenarios, bring the group back together as a large group and use the following questions to initiate a discussion of the impact on both the listener and speaker of the different strategies for active listening that they practice:

• Did you notice any difference in how you felt about you interaction with you’re partner when active listening skills were being used? For example, was the conversation longer, more pleasant, more in depth?
• What types of active listening strategies made speakers feel most understood and listened to when they were talking?
• In what ways did the listeners encourage speakers to keep talking?
• How often are active listening skills used by your friends, family members, and teachers?
• Are there differences in how people from different cultural groups engage in active listening?
• Are there differences in how females and males engage in active listening?

Point out to participants the manner in which one listens is a learned skill and so is influenced by social environment.

• This means that persons from different cultures may engage in active listening (labeling feelings, paraphrasing, using body language etc.) in a somewhat different manner than individuals from other cultures.

• It also means that because girls and boys are taught to behave differently in many ways, it is also possible that persons of one gender may listen differently than persons of another gender.

Explain to the group that persons with disabilities may demonstrate active listening in a somewhat different manner than to persons without disabilities or persons with disabilities.

• An individual with cerebral palsy who is physically unable to maintain eye contact may signal a speaker that he/she is hearing them by slumping in the chair or tilting his/her head in a certain direction.

• A person who uses a communication board may encourage a speaker to continue talking by pointing at a specific symbol on the board rather than using traditional " uh-huh".

• An individual with autism who is uncomfortable with sustained eye contact may indicate interest in an interaction through focusing his/her gaze on another part of the face.

Ask participants to identify other ways that persons who might not be able to use more traditional active listening behaviors could demonstrate their interest and attention in a conversation.

As participants respond, list their responses for all to see and use these as a basis for a discussion of the need for all individuals to appreciate the subtle differences in listening styles used by different persons. Make sure the following points are covered in your discussion:

• The manner in which different persons with and without disabilities communicate they are paying attention to a speaker is quite individual and based not just on the nature and severity of their disability but also upon their personality, cultural background, and personal preferences.

• It is important for speakers to not make assumptions about the extent to which a person is engaged in active listening if they do not know the individual or the behaviors they engage in when actively listening.

• In some situations, communication can be greatly improved by educating the other person (teachers, fellow participant) about how an individual with a disability demonstrates interest and attention during a conversation, or encouraging the person with a disability to do these themselves.

Week One: Day One Handouts