Kick Start Engagement by Speaking Discussion Strategies ·       Stations - set up the classroom to have stations with items to stimulate discussion around a prompt or a task for small groups ·       Gallery Walks – students create an informative poster then talk about it to others who circulate around the room or a team of students create materials that are posted and then viewed in a walk ·        Physical Barometer – a statement is read and students move to one corner of the room or the other to indicate their choice. Can add “strongly” to agree or disagree and have four corners. Students discuss their ideas. ·       Pinwheel Discussions – four students discuss an issue or text, with provocateur’s  challenging them to go farther, think deeply ·       Socratic Seminar – students sit in a circle as the leader asks an open ended questions to prompt answering with evidence from a source ·       Concentric Circles – Student form two circles (outside and inside) They pair with the person they face then rotate to face another. Useful for discuss content or give opinions on topics ·       Fish Bowl – two students sit face to face in the middle of the room with others circled around them. They can create a conversation around a topic or skill and the others observe, take notes and follow up. "Class Discussion ." Cult of Pedagogy. Jennifer Gonzalez, n.d. Web. 19 July 2017. <https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/speaking-listening-techniques/>.

Encourage them to speak by asking them to   ·      Restate what their partner said ·      Paraphrase what others have said ·       Give evidence to back up ideas or arguments ·       Listen intently then solve a mystery or problem ·       Think aloud to answer questions ·       Choral read a passage Oracy “Elevate speaking to the same level as reading and writing.”    Peter Hyman, School 21, London, UK Oracy – the ability to speak well The Goal: every student speaks in every class, every day. Discussion guidelines are taught and practiced. Common Core State Standards for Speaking Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade level topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.

Diane Albanese, Cape Henlopen Literacy Specialist, 2017