Conflict resolution activities are a very important factor when it comes to managing people, be it young or old. Scroll down to get to learn about a few such activities, that will help people in getting through a time of crisis, smoothly.
Often people in leadership positions face problems in resolving conflicts among team members. They get tired of dealing with this at the workplace everyday and perhaps even at home. One needs to relax, take a breathe as here are activities which may help resolve conflicts.
Activities for Kids
Act it Out
Yes, we always say to someone that 'I understand what you are going through' or if we do not try and understand someone, we are told that 'put yourself in my shoes'.
So in conflict resolution, you can actually use this and resolve the situation. Students in this activity have to get into pairs and they have to actually act out a scenario. For this, the teacher will keep slips of paper which will have potential conflict - inducing situations. The students will be asked to pick a slip and act out that scene.
The kids have to be allowed to improvise a skit portraying the scene for the benefit of their classmates. That will demonstrate the ways to deal and effectively overcome a difficult situation. This way the students would understand what exactly happens in real situations and they can understand how conflicts can be avoided and resolved.
Talk It Out
This one is for students and children who are a bit older than elementary or middle school. In this activity, the teacher would identify issues at the local, national, and global level. Then the gravity of these conflicts has to be determined.
The next thing to do is to write a few steps of escalation, for example, lack of clarity, dispute, wrong information, and so on. Once this is done, now the students would be divided in 3 groups, respectively for 3 scenarios.
The groups then would be asked to identify the actions by parties involved in the dispute, which exacerbated it. The groups would then need to suggest and think of possible solutions, without blaming either party. Doing this, will help the students understand what they need to do when they get into a conflict with someone.
Poster Perfect
To do this activity, the teacher can ask the students to depict ways of resolving conflicts through posters. The students can get a cue by telling them to think about what would they do if they are involved in such a situation.
The teacher, after jotting down a list of reactions, tells the students to select either of them and make a poster on it. The posters will suggest ways of resolving conflicts and also beautify the classroom.
Activities for the Workplace
Stepping into Others' Shoes
If done and implemented properly, it can be a really effective conflict management activity. As a mediator or boss, you ask the parties involved in the dispute to swap roles. They may be told to take up each others' job responsibilities and give a thought to meeting that job criteria.
All this after reading each others' job description. The managers of both parties have to be present to explain the expectations from them. That will give insights to the parties about each others' perspective. This will help sort out any problem.
Across the Table
Another activity, which is in fact the most resorted to and used in workplaces is to get the disputing parties to the conference table. Then request or ask someone senior enough from the management to be the mediator.
This way, the parties would be able to express themselves freely, without escalating the disagreement. Moreover, the person from the management would command respect from the parties concerned and can make them understand and accept a way for conflict resolution in the workplace.
In a workplace, another way to avoid a conflict and to resolve it would be to make the reporting bosses sort out the problems for their subordinates or colleagues. This is an effective method.
Well, those were the conflict resolution activities, and the ways in which people can indirectly understand the importance of solving such disputes as soon as possible.
Being genuine and frank, taking responsibility, communicating properly, and striving towards a fair deal for all the parties involved will further help in this regard. All the best!