I do this too! For me, it's about taking some time to write out or think out, what I need to say and focus down from there. Giving students these tips will be so beneficial all the way around!

I think that here is a good place where you are going to see if there are valuable missing pieces of information. For example, of the students I work with, I am not sure how many could answer this question! This would either be a moment where I ask the class to turn and talk and then share out what they talked about. If there weren't many answers or if many were misconceptions, then I need to teach a mini lesson here or find a way to address that hole. Here might also be where students aren't comfortable sharing out. They might not know or they might believe they are wrong and many students won't share if they feel anxiety, this situation would definitely cause anxiety if you aren't careful!

It's like asking the same questions 10 different ways, through different means, and with all kids explaining every time. This would be optimal but unless you are moving fast, difficult to master.

At times I use the phrase, would anyone like to add to (name)'s thinking? Or I ask the student if they would like to phone a friend to help them out. In this way, they aren't as spotlighted as not knowing the answer and they pick their way out.

I know many adults that need to have some instruction in these attitudes. It's very hard to work on the students when their examples at home follow the same line. We have to be diligent in showing that there is a difference between how we act at home and how we act in school. We say things with friends we don't say with just anyone. These are very important underlying norms of our culture that need to be pointed out to students so they are more successful all around.

So true!

Super important point!

Honestly, this is something that I still struggle with at times, writing it down anyway and saving it for later. This activity is great for teaching self-monitoring skills.

This really is just whole brain teaching and getting the entire thing involved. EVERYONE is a kinesthetic learner, we ALL learn from doing, sometimes the doing is in our brain, like math problems. We can also act them out and give them a movement which I think cues the brain to get ready for that particular operation. It's whole brain learning. :-)

right after talking students need time to add their new facts or ideas to their own thinking, they need to analyze it and then synthesize it with all the other information they already have on the topic. Tying these new ideas into the old ones, either modifying or affirming, maybe completely changing our arguments or opinions on the topic, is higher order thinking and a necessary step for the students to construct their own schema regarding the topic. At this time, they are also making stronger connections and should be better able to verbalize, after they write, what their idea(s) are.

I completely agree with this! We have GOT to show students what the good and the bad both look like. The more we let students know that we are trusting them to work in this manner and you could always go back to worksheets, the more I feel they will be willing to work.

I think there are a LOT of people that are in conversations to win them. I almost put arguments and then debates but ended up at conversations. Many adults do NOT know the difference between these 3 words, let alone students knowing the difference. We must really talk and discuss with our students, exactly HOW to conversate correctly and without "winning".

It's especially important to model the way we want students to speak and then to let the student pick out what they noticed, think they should repeat or pay attention to. i also think that at first, when you are beginning a new topic of discussion, you should revisit the purpose of the conversations we should be having. The way we speak about something in science will be different than the way we speak about something in social studies or math etc.

I like this idea and can tie it to writing through growing sentences. You have the students start with a really simple sentence and then you make it more elaborate by adding adjectives, adverbs, prep phrases, etc. Basically you start with a noun and a verb. This might be a good piece to have on the card with the conversation starter, almost like a sentence frame but for speaking.

Celebrating our successes individually AND group-wise, as well as being sure that we are taking into account HOW the student would like to be recognized. That's very important as well.

Step-by-step is for everyone but the students have to experience it firsthand, for this reason we want to question the students to guide their thinking, eventually using questions to guide themselves. Using this manner allows ANY student to begin accessing the material. Additionally, making the classroom safe for learning, allows these questions to develop over time, allowing for everyone to work with everyone to ensure everyone's learning.

This is so true. When we are wanting students to really learn something, they have to have ownership of the information and how they are working with the information. Additionally, when we start wondering and questioning, the creative juices begin flowing. At first, it is difficult for the students to ask questions, if they've been taught to only pay attention to what is in the teacher's head, then they aren't asking questions, it's like they are waiting on you to tell them. The safer the classroom climate, the safer it is to share and feel that your voice is valued, therefore I CAN ask questions and wonder about things, and won't seem stupid.

Wow. This step is huge and one I don't think we do enough of. What does being respectful mean to a student. When is their day do they come into contact with someone being disrespectful? What if it's someone in authority? How to handle it, role play, looking at responses. This is HUGE, especially with things that are occurring now. We must all be hyperaware of how we are acting and how others are responding; being flexible is so important and these reflections open up the opportunity for these conversations to happen in a safe atmosphere.

I have never really thought about modelling this behavior through having a colleague come in and observe, then offer feedback. It would have to be apparent to the students why the teacher was coming in but that's an easy conversation to have. This would be a great way to get kids to see the process of observation too. Bringing the teacher back in to model offering constructive feedback, that would be another great step to add!

This whole list...it is also how we, as educators, want to be treated by our leaders, peers, and students. We all are craving the same things, to be valued and appreciated for the differences we bring to the conversation/table/group. There are those that don't understand, we as teachers should ALWAYS be respectful; this goes both ways. My motivation increases, for sure, when someone asks about my life and makes me feel like they care. We ALL benefit from relationships such as these. I cannot imagine being an educator and not addressing these areas.

I think there are many examples in life, where we see this interplay for control, happen. If we could start to work on this at the student level, then maybe we could start to change the global community (at the end) I see this play for control happen a lot and when you have a teacher/student control situation happen, other students lose respect too, so you have to be careful and VERY self aware, so that you aren't stepping into these situations out of control. For many, traumatic experiences lend themselves to these situations, so there's another added layer to the control/compliance part, whether you're a student or an educator. I believe that when we have a collaborative, connected classroom, we are aware of these situations before they present themselves by checking in in the morning and knowing our students well enough that we can see when they are struggling, with life, schoolwork, family, whatever it may be.