Puzzles, Team Work and Communication

My youngest Monkey is particularly fond of puzzles.  

He usually does them on his own or if it is a challenging puzzle we'll work on it together as a family.

We have a collection of puzzles that I buy at our local thrift store for 99 cents- most are brand new.

Yesterday we did a puzzle while exploring the concept of Team Work and Communication:

From Compass Learning:

Communication is an important key to working with a partner. 

You need to clearly explain your ideas. 

Then your partner can understand them. 

That will help both of you. Use clear communication with a partner. 

It can be challenging. Have you ever tried to do a puzzle with a partner?

Some people start with the outside borders of a puzzle. Then they do the inside. Others just pick any piece. Then they try to find where it fits.

Your guide has a puzzle for you. There is one catch. You must communicate to your guide which piece you want to use next. Explain clearly which piece you want. Your guide may hand you the piece. You will link them together.

This exercise was really interesting for us- it allowed my monkey to see things from a different perspective.  I purposely chose to give him directions that I knew were opposite of how he usually does a puzzle. When he was 'guiding' me I reacted literally, which forced him to reassess his instructions in order to get 'his partner' to understand the steps in the proper order.