Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Through
Discussion
By Natalie and Cory
Learning Target
Students will be able to name and effectively
use new tools to facilitate discussion in a
classroom
What is and isn’t discussion?
-Discussion fundamentals:
-Sentence Starters
-It’s simple: speak loud enough to be heard and encourage your students to do the same
-Teachers can reinforce this idea by saying, “Great idea Layne, turn and explain
that a little more to Hadeel.”
2. Follow-on, and Follow-on Prompting
-Follow-on: The teacher consistently asks one student to respond to something another
student has said, whether or not the second student has volunteered to do so.
-Example
-Follow-on prompting: Instead of asking a directive question, this style of prompting disrupts
the thread of conversation less and avoids steering the second student’s response
- “That’s an interesting point, but I’d like to hear someone respond to Tasha’s
comment before we move on to another one.”
-Inside the Box: it’s okay to stay focused on one topic, maintain steady and deep reflection
on an idea
-Don’t always have to move on from a topic, can be more valuable to dive deeper in one
comment than to change the subject
-A way to guide students through the discussion and control the topics
Tools for Efficiency and Accountability
-Setting Pairs: partners should be pre-arranged so students can begin discussion right away
-The Out-Cue: students need to be aware of when they’re time is ending so the whole-class
discussion can start without delay
-Crest of the Wave: all about the timing, in their Turn and Talk when they are still discussing
ideas, not when talking has died down (want the whole-discussion to still be lively!)
-Precise Time Limits: students need to know how much they will be able to say before their
discussions begin
What happens after Turn and Talk?
-Whole-Class Analysis:
- “Let’s put some ideas on the board and list the evidence that supports this..”
-Whole-Class Discussion:
-Have pairs share their thoughts and students make a list of ideas in their notebook to
compare
- “Let’s see if we can write a paragraph together that describes the evidence we
found”
Conclusion/Reflection
-Essential Question:
What is the teacher’s role in classroom discussion? What are some tools the
teacher can use to make sure discussions are worthwhile and the class stays engaged with
the material?