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>>student 1: The most thing that Byron showed courage was family.
>>student 2: Probably that-that was his weak spot: family. >>students: Yeah.
>>student 3: Exactly, like. >>student 4: But he always says he doesn't care about them.
>>student 3: But the truth is he does, he does care about them.
>>student 4: Probably when he said he was grown up, that's why he's acting like that.
>>student 3: Yeah like teenagers you know that-that they don't care
if you give them the punishment. Like they just don't care.
>>student 5: That's why they're sending him to Birmingham.
>>student 3: It don't hurt them. >>student 2: But the grandma.
>>student 6: He just really cares about his family, Byron.
>>student 3: But he doesn't want to show it because he thinks he's cool.
>>student 2: Since he's called Daddy Cool, he doesn't want to show Bobhead
that he cares about his family. Maybe that's why.
>>teacher: The way I see a Socratic seminar is
that students are discussing a topic. It allows them to go in depth
and to really discuss some of those um inner workings of the text that they
might not when they're just being asked comprehension questions.
It gives the students a chance to discuss with one another, to build on
each other's ideas and I think
most importantly, it shows them what an academic discussion is versus a fight or
uh an argument, how they are used to arguing with each other.
All my students are ELD.
Right now about two-thirds of my class has been reclassified. The other third
I have like two beginning students and then the other ones are
around intermediate level. I have about 4 or 5 GATE students in the class as of now.
I think this is going to be, uh
a great way for students to be able to discuss with each-with each other
I know that's a big part of Common Core, citing textual evidence
as well as, uh, how a theme is conveyed through details
in a text. And uh my goal for them to learn was to be able to
use textual information in their discussion to um provide evidence
for their claims. We were reading the novel The Watsons Go to Birmingham 1963
and that's actually a text that I just chose because it was so rich
um and many other things. It has history and then just the
themes overall the kids can really relate and they love the book.
We've been working with this book for I would say about two months
and the Socratic Seminars I use randomly throughout
depending on what the topic is. If the students are very excited and I can see
that they have questions and they're starting to
question things, then I we stop and we do a Socratic Seminar
because they already want to discuss and that makes them more engaged
and more apt to go on with the discussion and have a lot to say.
What I'd like to do like they say, why reinvent the wheel?
So if I'm-if I pick a book I try to look
for a teacher's guide that they might have online.
So I found a good guide and all it has is a list of comprehension questions.
And I use those to give me an idea so if it's a question that's
related to a-a good topic that I know it will grab my students right away,
I just change it a little bit. So I think the question for this one
was just uh, how does Kenny display courage?
So I thought, that well that was really good,
but that's not really necessarily great for
a discussion because it has to be-there has to be differing opinions and that was
just going to be really just one right answer.
So I changed it and said which character shows most courage because
even they picked up on, well she has too, she shows courage, he shows courage.
so that allowed conversation.
Okay, does everybody know
where they think they're going to put their sticky?
>>students: Yes.
>>teacher: Okay, so I'm going to give you
thirty seconds to go up there and put it in the place you believe it goes.
One thing that I hadn't done before that I decided to this
this time was an anticipation sorta question for them.
What do you think now, from just yourself, what you've read and what you thought,
and that's where they had their sticky. And they put which character they
thought showed the most courage.
Then after that, I had already pick their partners,
who they would be listening to and who would
be in the inner circle or the outer circle.
I had a mix of students. They weren't all the high students in the circle.
Some were shyer students and some are students that maybe
are better at expressing than writing down.
Also we're talking about the theme courage. Remember that. Which character
shows the most courage and give examples from the text.
My goal this time also is
to hear you guys asking each other questions as well. You heard that that's
one of the things on the rubric.
So if somebody says something and you don't agree, you can ask him a question
because then I'm going to step back and you guys are in charge of the conversation.
You guys decide. I'm out. Go ahead, start conversation
I think one tip would be, especially when you're beginning,
to just, ah, let it flow. Let the kids talk.
I know even this time I had to wait a little while for the kids
to start it and I really wanted to just
tell them something and prompt them myself. But I-I held back and I waited
and they did it themselves. It was very slow to begin, but then it just
it went. So I think patience is number one.
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>>student 1: Kenny has to deal with his fears in order to survive the whirlpool.
>>teacher: The kids will get there
the first 2-3 times might not go so well, but they will get there.
>>student 1: Kenny mentioned he got hypnotized when they were about to burn him.
>>student 2: And then I also think he is caring about the family
since Bobhead is not there and he knows
that Bobhead doesn't know.
>>student 3: So he can't-so Bobhead can't use his weakness against him.
>>student 2: Yes, exactly. >>student 4: Bobhead is not a real friend.
>>student 4: But what about his up right there?
>>student 2: Another person with Bobhead, and he is with his family.
>>student 4: And maybe because the grandma is there or
maybe he'll follow the grandma like he-he'll be nice.
>>student 2: But Byron is acting like that because...Bobhead is not there.
>>student 4: But if Bobhead comes and visits him there with his grandma,
then maybe he will still be nice because his grandma's
there and he is scared of the grandma.
>>student 5: No, I don't think so because, look it, he did that with his parents still.
>>student 4: I know but he's not afraid of his parents, he's afraid of the grandma.
>>student 3: Then why do you think he got hypnotized
when he was about to burn his fingers?
>>student 4: Because he was about to burn...
>>student 3: Because he was scared.
>>teacher: At first I was uh facilitating a a lot more. So I was having the students
I was asking more questions to get them talking because they did have a lot
of quiet periods, and I would start it for them.
I might directly ask the student a question verses waiting for them
to ask each other or to start a discussion. The students on the outside circle
they have a rubric. So their role is to listen to their assigned partner that's
inside the circle.
And while they're listening they're checking of the different parts
um, of that standard which is the speaking and collaborative discuss-participating
and collaborative discussions.
What I've been doing and what I try to do is take notes on my own
of some other things that students say, their participation
is I think what's most of the grade, and what they're doing for the outside
circle I look at the rubric, make sure they were listening.
So really I think mostly I assess on speaking and listening.
Uh, my goal was to get you guys to ask more questions, and I heard a lot of questions.
I heard a lotta prompting for some of our shyer students.
So that was really good and the fact that the shyer students talked and didn't
um shun down from that. Vanessa?
>>Vanessa: I had another one that
maybe Kenny was being brave because you know how some people
when they're scared they don't-they're afraid do something
and he was kicking and-and kicking the whirlpool.
>>student 4: No, he was just scared that he was going to die.
>>student 6: Wouldn't you ever do that...
>>Vanessa: He was showing a little bit of bravery.
>>student 8: A little bit. But Byron showed more.
>>student: But Byron is the most brave.
>>student 6: Vanessa, if you were drowning, wouldn't you try to swim up to not drown?
>>student 1: Anybody would do that.
>>student 3: But most people...
>>teacher: But once they get going, they just- I just can't stop them.
uh, as what happened today I tried to stop it and they just have to keep going.
So that-and it's only the fourth time so I think it works pretty quickly. They want
to talk. The kids are desperate to discuss and they like this a lot better
than just answering questions on a sheet of paper.
Some of you had mom nobody had Dad or Joey. Now that you've had the
discussion and you've heard evidence from the text from everybody,
I heard you guys trying to reach a consensus anyway. But um
after you guys return to your seats, as you're returning and moving your chairs
if you need to move yours because you changed your mind after hearing evidence
and discussing it then I would like you to move yours.
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