The closer we get to the holidays, the higher the noise level in the classroom it seems! Some days everyone in the room is relieved to have some quiet moments.
Here are some ways to facilitate dialogues and discussions with added benefits for you, the teacher: (1) everyone is engaged 100% of the time; (2) students are often more thoughtful in their responses to others, (3) you can participate in the dialogue, and (4) at the end of the dialogue, you have something tangible to read and evaluate.
ROUND ROBIN JOURNALS
I have heard of round-robin story writing, but it was the professor of one of my graduate classes who introduced me to the idea of sharing ideas and reflections by passing a group journal from person to person in a class.
I modified the idea and tried it with my 5th graders. We used brightly colored notebook paper and students shared by passing a single sheet of paper. One of my favorite RR journaling activities was one we did while reading The Giver. At the beginning of the novel, I had students respond to the following: Choose one rule to write about. Discuss why you think the community has that rule and what you think about it. (At this point, students were not aware of the dystopian elements). Of course, you can have students respond to any prompt.
To begin, pass out one sheet of paper to each student. Students write their names at the top of the page and a response to your prompt. After 3-5 minutes, the papers are passed in an orderly fashion.
For the next 2 minutes or so, students read the paper they’ve received (silently). Then, they have another 3-5 minutes to write a thoughtful response to what they read using the same norms we use in Socractic dialogue (see Conversations with Class ~ Introducing Socratic Dialogue to Young Scholars). Before passing, students write their names or initials next to what they’ve written.
Papers are passed again, but this time students need 3-5 minutes to read both of the previous entries. When they are finished, they again respond to what they’ve read and add their own ideas and thoughts.
I found a good limit was four entries. Each time papers are passed, students need a few more minutes to read previous entries before writing their own responses.
The students also love it if you sit down at an empty student desk and participate!
TABLETOP TALKS
Students get to move when prompts are set out on tabletops and they circulate to write their responses. Two benefits are (1) you can present more than one prompt, and (2) students can return to each table to see what responses were added.
Many teachers have students use Sharpie® paint pens or markers to write directly on the desks or tables. Rubbing alcohol removes most inks. I often just taped colored bulletin board paper to the tables and had students use regular thin-colored markers.
Consider how structured or unstructured the dialogue should be. I usually had two rules: (1) no talking, only writing, and (2) respond to all prompts.
If you use paper, you can cut apart the responses and post them on the front board for further discussion.
DIGITAL DIALOGUE
There’s nothing novel these days about conducting silent dialogues in web-based platforms such as Google Classroom or Edmodo. When I did this years ago, though, the students considered it a novel treat. They loved that they could “get all their thoughts out” as opposed to our verbal dialogues, when there was only so much time we could devote to “back-and-forths.”
To facilitate better discussions, create small groups (or classes) in the platform. During the discussion, you can pop into each group and participate.
Padlet or Linoit can also be used to facilitate silent discussions.
If you have other ideas for conducting silent or very quiet dialogues, please share! Your comments below are welcome.