The Dream Team Challenge – Together We Can!

EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY PLAN

LEARNING TASK

Students become members of an international youth team. They receive a limited budget and a mission to make life better for young people in their community. They must combine their ideas, divide responsibilities and cooperate with different partners to create a solution that benefits as many people as possible.

The lesson is designed to be lively, creative and meaningful for teenagers, with a focus on the idea that different people bring different strengths to the same goal.

GOALS ACCORDING TO THE GENERAL CURRICULUM

• Understand the importance of partnerships in achieving common goals.
• Develop teamwork, creativity, negotiation and decision-making.
• Recognise the value of different skills, experiences and perspectives.
• Create a realistic proposal for improving the local community.

General Competences

1. Cooperation: Share responsibilities and contribute to a common goal.
2. Communication: Present ideas, listen to others and negotiate solutions.
3. Problem-solving: Use available resources to develop a practical plan.

Subject Competences

1. Use English vocabulary related to teamwork, resources, community and partnerships.
2. Explain why different partners are needed to achieve a goal.
3. Present and justify a collaborative project proposal in English.

Integration with Other Subjects

• Civic Education: Community participation and shared responsibility.
• Mathematics: Budget planning and resource allocation.
• Geography: Local needs and community development.
• English: Making suggestions, negotiating and presenting ideas.

MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT

Mission cards, paper and pens, play money or budget tokens, board or interactive whiteboard

LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Activity 1 – Choose Your Mission!  ( 8 min. )

Tell students:

“Imagine that your town or village has received a special grant to improve life for young people. You are the youth team responsible for deciding how to use it!”

Put these four missions on the board and let each group choose one.

• Mission A – A Place for Everyone: Create a welcoming place where young people can meet, relax and spend time together.
• Mission B – Skills for the Future: Organise activities where teenagers can learn practical skills, from digital tools to crafts and languages.
• Mission C – Our Community, Our Planet: Create a project that improves the local environment and brings people together.
• Mission D – Nobody Left Behind: Develop an activity that helps young people feel included, make friends and participate in community life.

Ask groups to discuss:

• Why does this mission matter?
• Who would benefit?
• Can one person achieve it alone?

Each group writes down its main goal.

Useful English:

• “Our mission is to…”
• “This is important because…”
• “The people who would benefit are…”

Activity 2 – Build Your Dream Team  ( 22 min. )

Each team receives a fictional budget of 100 community coins. Their task is to design a project and decide which partners and resources they need.

Present the following options:

Teams cannot buy everything. They must choose what they need, stay within their budget and explain why their selected partners are important.

The challenge: Each team must include at least three different partners and explain what each partner contributes.

Their project plan must answer:

1. What exactly will we organise?
2. Who will benefit?
3. Which partners will help us?
4. How will we divide responsibilities?
5. How will we know whether the project was successful?

Example: For A Place for Everyone, a team might combine school support, parents and volunteers, a local business and materials to create a welcoming school courtyard area.

Encourage teams to think creatively about Starý Tekov or their own local community. The project does not need to be expensive or complicated.

Useful English:

• “We need support from…”
• “Our partner could provide…”
• “We have chosen this option because…”
• “We can achieve more by working together.”

Activity 3 – Pitch Your Project!  ( 15 min. )

Each group prepares a one-minute pitch to persuade a fictional community committee to support its project.

Their pitch must include:

• The problem they want to solve.
• Their proposed project.
• Their three or more partners.
• How they will use their budget.
• The positive change they expect.

After each pitch, classmates can ask one question, such as:

• “How will you include everyone?”
• “What will happen if one partner cannot help?”
• “How will you know your project has worked?”

Students then vote for the proposal that is most useful, inclusive and realistic. They cannot vote for their own group.

Finish with a short reflection:

“A strong partnership works when everyone…”

Invite several students to share their answers.

REFLECTION AND ASSESSMENT

Assess students on:

• Active participation and teamwork.
• Appropriate use of the budget.
• Clear explanation of each partner’s role.
• Realistic planning and presentation.
• Understanding that partnerships involve shared responsibility.

Reflection questions:

1. Why can’t money alone guarantee a successful project?
2. What happens when partners have different ideas?
3. What can a teenager contribute to a real community project?

Expected Learning Outcomes

By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

• Explain why partnerships help achieve shared goals.
• Identify suitable partners for a community project.
• Plan the use of limited resources.
• Present a practical proposal and justify their decisions.
• Recognise that every partner has a role and responsibility.

Final slogan: “Different Strengths. One Goal. A Better World!”