The Four R’s of Conflict Management

When confronted by a conflict, students should practice the Four Rs: Recognize, Respond with Respect, Resolve, and Reflect. This method will help them approach the situation without fear, and is an essential tool to helping resolve conflicts before they happen.

In this activity, students will create a storyboard that narrates each of the Four Rs of Conflict Management. Students should create a scenario (or one can be provided for them), and then illustrate each step to avoid conflict.

Four Rs of Conflict Management

1. Recognize: Foresee when there is a build up toward a possible conflict.
2. Respond with Respect: Your response prior to this step is critical if your desired outcome is avoiding conflict or resolving it.
3. Resolve: If conflict is unavoidable, follow some of the previous steps in the story titled “Conflict Resolution”:
   • Person to person
   • Listening to understand
   • Time to cool off
   • Find a common interest
   • Never assume
   • Move on
4. Reflect: Think about the conflict afterward to find ways it could have been prevented.

Student Instructions

Create a 4-cell storyboard about the Four Rs of Conflict Management.

1. Click "Start Assignment".
2. Title each cell with a different ‘R’ discussed earlier.
3. Create a picture of each method of managing conflicts discussed earlier.
4. Each cell should be one cohesive story showing how a person could manage a conflict from start to finish using the four R’s management method. Use a combination of appropriate scenes, characters, and items.
5. Describe how the picture achieves the meaning of the title method.