Silence is one of the most powerful and underused tools in the classroom.

A reflective classroom community is in many ways a microcosm of democracy—a place where explicit rules and implicit norms protect everyone’s right to speak; where different perspectives can be heard and valued; where members take responsibility for themselves, each other, and the group as a whole; and where each member has a stake and a voice in collective decisions

The classroom should be a place where students learn to exchange ideas, listen respectfully, try out ideas and posi-tions, and give—and get—constructive feedback without fear or intimidation

Thishelpsmeunderstandwhatinfluencedyouranswer.Butlet’stakeaminutetothinkaboutthehis-torictimewhenstatesdecidedonthelocationoftheircapitals.Forexample,thecapitolbuildinginNashvillewasbuiltin1859.Howmanyyearsagowasthat?

Thinkofthepicturetheteacherdrewforhisstudentsandthenewvisualimagehegavethemforrememberingthefivesenses.Itishighlylikelythatthisdescriptionwillstrengthenthisknowledgeformostofthesestudents

Connecting to their lives is fine later on, but students seldom get back into the text if they launch into their own life examples first. Students should start with the text, and you can scaffold their use of text examples with .sentence starters

The elaborator should be aware of the amount and detail of the information that needs to be shared to make the point dear. Likewise, a listener should know when more information is needed.

cademic conversations are opportunities to take a verbal journey with others. And journeys have destinations. It is very tempting to veer off the path. It takes much less mental work ro jump around to different topics. This happens to all of us, but the trick is to get back on the path quickly. The skills and behaviors described in this chapter will help students stay on (and return to) the path. Hopefully, each year of school they will become more and more independent in their use of these skills so that the skills become lifelong conversation habits.

ake num ere I ) Pull six meren k ers, 1 th ugh 26 for examp e · . carters that students can as each other to k bers ro ' . onversanon s . . 'al . eep d Model and explain two c I b on .. ?"). Ask an 1mt1 questton or prom scan up. . . ( . "Can you ea orate · . h. ? Pt to h . onversanon gomg e.g' h me that emerged mt ts story. How can stati . c e1r c . . ( What was a t e sties c che conversanon gomg e.g., . 1. . ?) The lowest numbered student of the six sele d ge kn mething is ivmg. . b cte lie? How do you ow so Th d t with the next highest num er prompts for elab . d h sits down. e stu en 11 Th d . a. begins talking an c en ·d d then sits down as we . e stu ent wuh the th· d fi d r adds an 1 ea, an If ration from the rst stu en ' . d on until each of the six students has taken a tur highest number continues the rounne, an. so . n. f the class can then add to the d1scuss10n.

If you are feeling stressed, share that as objectively as possible. Just name it and tell your students what you are doing to support yourself. They need to know you are human and hear what strategies you are using, but they also need you to be a positive model and co-regulator.

Pause and ask students to check in with how they are feeling, and let them provide a silent gesture or signal that reflects how they are doing.

Students are more open to learning when they are emotionally and physically regulated, feel connected to others, and have opportunities for meaningful engagement.

Barellconceivesofthoughtfulnessinbothsensesoftheword:teachingstudentstothinkandencouragingthemtobeconsiderateandrespectfuloneofanother.

heypositivelyimpactallkindsofthinking.Goodthinkers,afterall,aremorethanpeoplewhosimplythinkwellwhentheythink:Theyalsothinkattherighttimeswiththerightcommitments—totruthandevidence,creativityandperspectivetaking,sounddecisions,andaptsolu-tions.Viewsofthinkingthatbringthistotheforeareoftencalleddisposi-tionalbecausetheylooknotjusttohowwellpeoplethinkwhentryinghardbuttowhatkindsofthinkingtheyaredis-posedtoundertake.—Ritchhart&Perkins(2005,p.785)Likeallhabits,theyevolveovertime;however,wheninplace,theybecomeautomatic.eTeacherscanactivelymodelanddirectlyteachthesedispositions.Theymotivateindividualstobethoughtful.©Acultureforthinkingreinforcesthesehabitsordispositions;inturn,theystrengthenthethinkingculture.

istenwithrespecttootherpointsofviewinordertofullyunderstandandlear

ThinkingThroughQualityQuestioningWesuggestthatyouhaveasimilarconversationwithstudentsaboutallofthenormsthatyouselecttosupportthinkingandquestioning

ostedsignsthatremindstudentsofimportanttruthsaboutlearningandliving

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