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Discussing and how to do it does not come naturally – we have to teach it!  Over a 2-part blog series, I will give you the very simple steps to teaching kids how to discuss.  It’s important to remember that discussion is the back and forth exchange of ideas!  It’s not a situation where I sit quietly composing my thoughts until it’s my turn to say what I want to say!  (Does that sound familiar?!)

So, here’s the explicitly teaching students how to have a discussion…perhaps we should share this with our colleagues for use during staff and team meetings, too?  😉  Tee hee!

Day 1

  • Introduce the difference between responding (short blips of information typically directed to the teacher) and discussion (Quality comments, Text Dependent Responses, Active Listening)

Day 2

  • Teach what Quality Comments are
  • Model for the class examples and non-examples of Quality Comments
  • Debrief Quality Comments

Day 3

  • Break students into groups of three to practice giving Quality Comments to each other, using a very simple prompt
  • Provide feedback to small groups and debrief

Day 4

  • Teach what Text Dependent Responses are
  • Model for the class examples and non-examples of Text Dependent Responses
  • Debrief Text Dependent Responses

Day 5

  • Break students into groups of three to practice Text Dependent Responses, using a very simple prompt
  • Provide feedback to small groups and debrief